The Benefits of Red Light Therapy for Adrenal Fatigue

This week we released a podcast all about the benefits of red light therapy and it was such an amazing conversation!

On the podcast, we discuss how it can help if you struggle with chronic fatigue, sleep issues, gut imbalances, and pain.

We were so impressed that today we wanted to give you a quick rundown of some of the incredible benefits because, for our tired community, this is such a relaxing therapy that just requires you to just chill and enjoy the healing benefits of the light. What could be more lovely?

Get $60 USD OFF the Flexbeam Red Light Therapy Device

WHAT IS RED LIGHT THERAPY?

Red light, comprising both red and near-infrared wavelengths, is a unique healing part of the electromagnetic spectrum and it is one of the most natural ways to charge the body. It is now used as a new form of therapy under the umbrella term Photobiomodulation (PBM).

READ MORE ABOUT THE SCIENCE OF HOW IT WORKS HERE

HERE ARE SOME OF THE KNOWN BENEFITS OF RED LIGHT THERAPY:

• Pain Relief: PBM has shown promise in reducing both acute and chronic pain by modulating inflammatory responses, improving blood circulation, and promoting tissue repair. It may be particularly effective for conditions like arthritis, musculoskeletal pain, and neuropathic pain.

• Reduced Inflammation: PBM can help to suppress inflammatory cytokines and promote anti-inflammatory responses, which can contribute to decreased pain and improved overall comfort.

• Improved Blood Circulation: The application of PBM can enhance blood flow to the treated area, delivering oxygen and nutrients to tissues and aiding in the removal of waste products. Improved circulation can contribute to pain reduction and tissue healing.

• Faster Healing: Photobiomodulation can stimulate cellular activity and promote tissue repair by enhancing collagen production, accelerating cell proliferation, and encouraging wound healing. This can be especially beneficial for individuals recovering from injuries or surgeries.

• Enhanced Energy Production: PBM can boost mitochondrial function within cells, leading to increased production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is the primary energy source for cellular activities. This improved energy production may help combat fatigue.

• Neuroprotection: PBM has shown potential in protecting neurons from damage and promoting their survival. This could be relevant for conditions involving nerve pain or neuropathies.

• Improved Mood and Mental Clarity: Some studies suggest that PBM may have a positive impact on mood and cognitive function. By promoting cellular health and reducing inflammation, it could contribute to a better mental state

• Non-Invasive and Low Risk: PBM is a non-invasive therapy that typically involves minimal to no discomfort or side effects. It's considered a low-risk treatment option, especially when compared to more invasive medical interventions.

• Convenience: PBM can be administered in various settings, including clinical environments and even at home using portable devices. This convenience makes it accessible to a wide range of individuals seeking relief from pain and fatigue.

• Complementary Therapy: PBM can be used alongside other conventional treatments, such as medications or physical therapy, to enhance their effectiveness and potentially reduce the need for higher doses of pain-relieving medications.

• Minimal Downtime: Unlike certain surgical procedures, PBM typically requires no downtime or recovery period. Patients can often resume their regular activities shortly after a session.

• Long-Lasting Effects: PBM sessions can lead to cumulative benefits over time. With regular treatments, individuals may experience more sustained pain relief and improved energy levels.

Dr. Zulia, our amazing podcast guest, and our friends at Recharge Health have so generously offered our listeners $60 USD OFF the FlexBeam Red Light Therapy Device, but this week only!!

To access the deal just click the button below and it will be automatically applied.

Are Supplements Holding You Back From Recovering from Adrenal Fatigue?

When it comes to all the puzzle pieces that go together when taking a holistic approach to addressing adrenal fatigue I always say that supplements are the easy part.

I don’t mean they are easy in the sense that they are easy to pick out or necessarily easy to afford, that part can be tricky sometimes—- but when I say easy, I mean it in the sense that they are something that you can just ADD to you current lifestyle without much interruption to business as usual.

After working on the floor in a busy supplement shop when I was studying nutrition, I saw the pattern of people coming in looking for that one silver bullet— that one supplement that was going to make all the difference in the world— to help them lose weight, to help them balance their hormones, clear up their skin, improve their sleep or all of these things put together and the some.

The truth is, I used to be like this too…spending whatever I had to on things I had heard were really effective for certain things. I was right there with ya, I wanted it to be that easy too.

Perhaps you can relate to the disappointment that crept in when you were done a bottle and you literally didn’t notice anything different.. or maybe a bit, but you still didn’t feel fully fixed… and this is something we see ALL THE TIME in this community and with the clients we work with.

Here are 3 common mistakes that can actually sabotage your results

MISTaKE 1: You think a supplement alone is going to be that silver bullet that heals you.

• If it were ONLY that easy… and yes, in some cases we HAVE seen that a supplement can be enough to bring someone back into balance simply and easily. For instance, this is commonly seen in cases where someone is deficient in a certain nutrient and starts supplementing it, but there is almost always more to the picture.

• When it comes to adrenal fatigue, there is more often than not, a lifestyle behind the fatigue that has been supporting the burnout for sometime. Supplements can be supportive and help us feel better day to day— but dealing with the lifestyle and the way the body is perceiving stress on an ongoing basis MUST be addressed if you really want to address this long term. Click here to learn our 7 step system to adrenal fatigue recovery!

KEY THING: DON’T FORGET ABOUT THE LIFESTYLE CHANGES NEEDED!

Mistake 2: You are using supplements to put a band-aid on an issue that is not the root cause

• This is another really common situation and with adrenal fatigue, there are 2 layers to this mindset we want to shine a light on.

  • Layer 1: You are using supplements to support your adrenals but there is another, deeper and larger root cause to your adrenal issues that is being looked over. This is common because for many, adrenal fatigue is much more complicated then simple fatigue and simple burn-out—there is often mineral imbalance, heavy metal toxicity, underlying infections or bacterial overgrowth, auto-immune conditions, etc. In these cases, if you aren’t sure, when it comes to supplements- there is likely a lot of guessing going on. This can draw out the process for a long time in an expensive and frustrating way. We recommend working with a professional who can run the appropriate tests and help you target the right root cause so that all your supplement efforts can be more targeted and more effective.

  • Layer 2: You jump straight to adrenal formulas or adaptogens without addressing an anxious, wound up nervous system that needs calming. You can support and stimulate the adrenals all you want, but if you neglect to address the overdriven nervous system that is keeping the demands on the adrenals high, then you’ll be supporting the adrenals forever. This requires lifestyle adjustments (more deep breathing, more meditating, more sleep) and when it comes to using supplements, think about supplements that are calming and rejuvenating to the nervous system—instead of stimulating or energy producing.

kEY THING: FIGURE OUT THE ROOT CAUSE and ADDRESS iT FIRST!

mISTAKE 3: LACKING PATIENCE

• Patience is a virtue, but when we are burnt-out, exhausted and tired, sometimes we don’t want to wait. We wanted results yesterday! However, we have to remember (especially with hormones) things take time and a supplement may be providing tremendous benefit but the results won’t really be seen or felt for a good few weeks or even months. For this reason, it’s common to see people jumping from one supplement to the next month after month, bottle after bottle, because they aren’t seeing the desired result quick enough.

• We encourage you to think about how you can gauge small and subtle changes that might be showing up along the way—sometimes we are so focused on going from 0 to 100, that it’s easy to discredit or disregard the progress being made along the way.

  KEY THING: Consider how can you track your progress more objectively and less emotionally?

When it comes to using supplements to support your adrenal fatigue, think about what’s causing the imbalance in your body carefully and intuitively. If you aren’t sure, working with a professional who can help make this clear for you can make a huge difference and can really help get you our of a rut if you have felt stuck with the progress you have made up to this point.

Supplement Hacks for Common Adrenal Fatigue Complaints

Adrenal Fatigue is complicated, many of us know this to be true all to well.

The effects of HPA (hypothalmus-piuitary-adrenal) Axis Dysfunction can be vast and varied— so many different symptoms that affect so many different areas of our life. This is part of the reason it can be hard to pinpoint adrenal issues as a root cause and address them properly.

Some of the symptoms are often so common that we come to see them as normal— fatigue, feeling tired in the morning, anxiety, sleep disturbancess etc. While others are less common and a bit more worrying— the heart palpitations, excessive urination, restless legs and on going insomnia.

Today, we want to address some of the most common complaints we hear about in our Adrenal Fatigue Community on Facebook and give you a few supplement tips that you can use to help with them.

Before I dive in, I want to remind you that supplements are just one piece of the puzzle. Without taking holistic action on the dietary, lifestyle and mindset part of things, your supplement efforts may be undermined. For best results, you need to address this from ALL angles.

DISCLAIMER: WE ARE NOT MEDICAL DOCTORS AND NONE OF THE INFORMATION PROVIDED ON THIS BLOG SHOULD BE TAKEN AS MEDICAL ADVICE.
These are basic examples of common supplements known to help support adrenal issues caused by mineral imbalances. Before you start taking any new supplements we strongly encourage you to discuss with your doctor and ideally, work with one of our adrenal recovery coaches to ensure you are taking appropriate steps for the unique needs of your body. Click here to read full website disclaimer.

Supplement Support for Four Common Adrenal Fatigue Complaints

SLEEP

Sleep is one of the main complaints we hear about in our community.
Unfortunately, the irregular hormonal fluctuations that go along with adrenal fatigue can make sleep a real challenge for many of us. Our number one recommendation for addressing this head on is getting advanced hormone testing. Honestly, it’s an investment but the clarity you will receive from understanding exactly what is going on with your hormones and how they fluctuate throughout the day is invaluable. From there you can target your symptoms head on with specific lifestyle and supplements and a good practitioner can help you fine tune a plan for your needs.

Testing a side, when it comes to supportive supplements for sleep here are our top 3 recommendations:

• 200-600mg of Magnesium Glycinate or Threonate before bed to help support deeper sleeps and relaxation.

• .5mg-3mg of Melatonin taken after dinner when it starts to get dark out for those who wake up frequently throughout the night or early morning.

• some sort of nervine tonic— something to calm down your nervous system— you can follow the dosing on the bottle based on what you get, here are some of our favorites: CBD oil, lemon balm, milky oat straw, magnolia bark, passion flower, chamomile, and valerian.

You can try one of the above or a combination of all three.

HEART PALPITATIONS

There can be many causes behind heart palpitations and if you are experiencing this symptom, we highly encourage you to discuss with your doctor. Many adrenal fatigue sufferers experience this symptom and it can be caused by low blood pressure, low blood sugar, anxiety, thyroid issues, diet and caffeine.

These are some supplements you can consider to help support:

• 400-600mg of Magnesium Glycinate or Magnesium Malate to help relax the body and help to stabilize the electrical activity of the heart.

• A daily dose of a quality B-Complex to provide nutrients needed for a healthy nervous system and healthy heart function

• 200mg of CoQ10 (Ubiquinone or Ubiquinol), an important nutrient for heart health and potent antixoidant— great for energy.

FREQUENT URINATION

Frequent urination can go along with having depleted adrenals. One of the hormones implicated with a fatigued endocrine system is aldosterone which controls the amounts of sodium and water in the body, along with our blood pressure. Imbalanced levels of this hormone can contribute to frequent urination.

When it comes to supplements, things like this can help:

• a glass of coconut water daily

• an electrolyte supplement

RESTLESS LEG/ EYE TWITCHES/Leg cramps

When we are stressed, our nutrient need increases. We use up minerals and vitamins more quickly— sometimes we eat foods like sugar and caffeine that also further deplete our minerals and when we are low in certain minerals it can show itself in the form of leg cramps, eye twitches or restless legs at night— all of which are uncomfortable in their own way. Thankfully, rebalancing our minerals can really help calm these symptoms. Here’s where you can start:

• A daily dose of a quality B-Complex to support the nervous

• A daily glass of coconut water

• an electrolyte supplement

• 200-600mg of Magnesium Glycinate or Threonate

You will notice that many of these supplement recommendations are similar across the board for many of these symptoms. Sometimes, just taking something a simple as magnesium can have far reaching effects on different levels of your health in one fell swoop, however, these suggestions will work much better when you combined with a nice clean diet, good self-care and stress management.

Click here to read our post about tailoring your supplement plan based on your stage of adrenal fatigue. 

Do you struggle with these symptoms? If so, let us know what has helped you in the comments below!

All our best,
Danielle + the HYAF Team

Got Sleep Issues? Stop Doing This.

Sleep issues and insomnia are prominent issues for those with adrenal dysfunction or HPA dysregulation.

Waking up throughout the night is common and it can be hard to fall back asleep.
It’s easy in those moments to feel frustrated..especially because we often know how difficult these sleep disruptions can make the following morning.

When it comes to improving our sleep, it’s obvious we want to notice results quickly (overnight if you will), but sometimes when we are addressing our hormones and correcting imbalances with the hormone fluctuations in our sleep/wake cycle, the results don’t present themselves this way… especially when using natural supplements and when shifting our habits.

For this reason, I recommend tracking things in an objective way— so that you can actually SEE and CELEBRATE the small improvements. So often, I see people jumping ship on supplements or bedtime habits they are trying because they aren’t seeing results fast enough. When you check in regularly and take note of the subtle changes, it can help encourage you to press on with the natural solutions.

DOWNLOAD THE FREE RECOVERY STARTER GUIDE

The success and results we get are often the cumulative sum of our habits, but I often see this one bad habit sabotaging our efforts on all levels.

.. can you guess what it is?
**hint — it has to do with your phone

Yes, friend. Oogling your phone before bed and in the night if you can’t sleep is sabotaging your sleep (and your health).

Our brains need time to relax and wind down to prepare our body for sleep. Our brains need to distinguish the difference between day time and night time, unfortunately— the light from our phones can trick our brains into thinking it’s still day time and we need to remain alert.

Whether you’re reading e-mails, scrolling through social media or watching videos, I want to ask you if what you if it’s worth it? ESPECIALLY, if you struggle with insomnia.

For many of us, it’s an addiction we need to break.

I find a helpful way to start is setting a firm boundary.
“I use my phone as an alarm clock” — this is the number one reason I hear people using justifying why they keep their phones beside their bed. If this is the case for you, I recommend buying an “old school” alarm clock and keeping your phone in a completely separate room after a certain hour in the night can be a good way to start.

If you have work to do late into the evening, I recommend investing in some blue glasses to help protect your eyes and support a regular sleep/wake cycle—- because as we know—when we have adrenal issues, this cycle is often times already dealing with some irregularities.

Sorry for tough love, but I SEE how impactful this can be… and I just want the best for you. :)

Let me know in the comments below if this is an issue for you— what are you going to about it, starting tonight!?

xo
Danielle

A Quick Morning Routine for Burnt-Out People

We see all this talk about the perfect morning routine and how to super fuel are mornings to super charge our day.

What an awesome concept, right?

Wait.

If you have adrenal fatigue, mornings can be really difficult.
It is really common to struggle with insomnia through the night, waking up and then feeling too wired to fall back asleep. When you finally do fall back asleep (usually in the early morning hours) it’s often just in time for your alarm to jostle you out of a sleep that feels as deep as the deepest sea.

Trust me, I know how hard it can be to shake yourself out of that when your alarm starts going off.

When I was struggling with stage 3 adrenal fatigue, I used to think not even an icy bucket of water thrown on me would have helped. In those days, I’d grumble to my boyfriend to “ START THE ENGINE” (coffee machine) and you can imagine how the morning went from there.

The experts on social media kept telling me to do stuff like this:

• Get up an hour before my alarm and meditate

• Get some exercise in

• Do something for you

• Spend time in quiet, journaling and feeling gratitude

HECK, I’m pretty sure we even tell you to do this sort of stuff from time to time.
I KNOW in theory a morning filled with self-care would be incredible and soul nourishing and that it would totally make me a more calm and happy person. I totally get it the concept.

But guys, if a bucket of ice water wasn’t going to get me out of bed, neither was the potential idea of feeling more blissed out in my day if it meant sacrificing an hour of sweet, sweet morning sleep (which according to Dr. James Wilson has been said to be some of the most adrenal nourishing sleep for burnt-out people).

Nowadays, things are different and I have become a morning person once again, but I remember the struggle. When I speak to clients, they can relate to this too.

Today, I want to share my 5 minute morning adrenal care routine— it’s the same routine I use these days if I have to be up really early for coaching calls or don’t have a lot of time or space to myself.

It’s the way I capitalized on sleep while STILL taking measures to implement some self-care into my morning.

Check out my walk-through video of my 10 Minute Morning Routine for Burnt-out People here.