Talking Adrenal Fatigue and Circadian Rhythm with Dr. Joel Rosen

After realizing he was suffering from adrenal fatigue and finding a serious lack of practical, understandable, and legitimate information out there, Dr. Joel Rosen found his way to recovery and decided to help others who were suffering the same fate. In today’s show, he shares how a dysregulated circadian rhythm can contribute to so many of the symptoms most everyone is suffering from today from fatigue to brain fog, insomnia, impatience, stress, and more, with the root cause being adrenal fatigue. Taking direction on an ailment from someone who has been there, especially with something like adrenal fatigue can be so supportive. Considering that mainstream medicine doesn’t even recognize it as a legitimate diagnosis, makes it harder to find practitioners who can support you in this little known, but very common energy problem known as adrenal fatigue. Dr. Joel Rosen runs a private practice in Florida focused around adrenal fatigue recovery, and is known not only as a functional medicine and health expert, but he’s also a data tracker as well.  He knows the importance of tracking the data to see what is working, and using that data to course correct when things are ‘off’.  You can find Dr. Joel Rosen on Instagram, YouTube, his Podcast The Truth About Adrenal Fatigue, and his website. Join Dave Korsunsky, Founder of Heads Up Health as he sits down with Dr. Joel Rosen and talks all things adrenal fatigue related in today’s episode. Listen in iTunes! This podcast is brought to you by Heads Up Health, a web app designed to help you centrally track all of your vital health data. Instantly synchronize your medical records, connect your favorite health devices and apps and use your data to optimize your health! Click on the button below to start your free 30-day trial. Or, read on for more information about our latest podcast episode! [maxbutton id=”5″ url=”https://headsuphealth.com/” ] In this podcast you’ll learn: About Dr. Joel Rosen’s own experience with adrenal fatigue and how he was introduced to the term adrenal fatigue that would change the course of his professional career [3:40] How saliva testing can reveal how your cortisol rhythm can get backward affecting sleep and energy production [5:10] About the HPA – Axis and what it is [6:35] That adrenal fatigue is not accepted by mainstream medicine as a legitimate diagnosis, which is why you may not have heard of it before [7:00] What the ACTH Test shows and how its not useful in diagnosing adrenal fatigue which is different than adrenal failure [7:40] The difference between a broken adrenal system vs. a broken energy production system [9:00] How the body’s system of priorities change as the adrenal response lessens [10:30] The HPA Axis is the brain’s perception of the stress which is actually called the A-HPA Axis. The Amygdala -> Hypothalamus -> pituitary -> Adrenals and the negative feedback loop which tells the system to turn on and off as needed, and how with repeated stress, the system breaks down in it’s functioning [11:00] About the thermostat analogy of the adrenals negative feedback loop functioning [12:02] How finding the underlying issues that are stressing your body are key to recoveries, such as gut imbalances, and underlying infections, lifestyle changes, blood sugar regulation, spiritual support, nutrition [13:15] Hans Selye in the 1960s identified the initial triad of things that happen to the adrenals as [15:00] The adrenals hypertrophy or get bigger Thymus gland gets smaller Erosive ulcers/linings How supporting spirituality can be a limiting factor when you’ve addressed the other pieces, and prevent healing. Healing adrenal fatigue is not a quick fix [16:00] That it comes down to perception and you need awareness of that. “I am in control of that most important voice at the highest level” has to be your mindset to overcome it [18:10] That high levels of cortisol for long periods of time messes up your front part of your brain affecting focus, concentration, sequential planning, moral behaviors, etc.[20:02] A simple thing to help lower stress is starting a gratitude list daily [21:10] Some of the simple things you can do to help a broken stress system are to reset your circadian rhythm by living with nature by waking with the sun and limit light exposure after dark [21:40] About Dave’s routine for winding down at the end of the day to lower his own cortisol levels and maintaining the natural circadian rhythms that he starts an hour before bed [22:30] How to reset your sleep by eating within a 12-hour window, finishing meals well before bedtime, meditating, getting light during the day, limiting light after dark, use your technology to track and make tweaks that are specific to you to find out what works for you [24:20] What tests Dr. Joel Rosen suggests testing for gut problems to support adrenal fatigue, and how the Secretory IgA test can be an indicator for more testing in a saliva panel [27:50] That low cholesterol is a red flag for an absorption issue. Low protein, albumin, globulin, BUN, chloride, enzymes, are all indications of protein absorption issues secondary to microbes [29:00] GI MAP for DNA mapping can show more than some of the older GI tests, which may miss imbalances picked up in the GI MAP [30:00] Start testing your blood sugar surrounding your meals to see if that could be affecting your adrenals [31:20] Sleep tracking can also help you to realize what is actually happening in your body, and you can make changes in your lifestyle and get feedback on how well changes are working for you [31:47] HRV measures your sympathetic response system.  The higher the heart rate variability the better your ability to adapt to stress [32:20] Regarding meditation and why the goal is not just for your mind to go blank, but to shift into a rest and digest state [34:30] That if you focus too hard on the data tracking it can be counteractive, so track but don’t obsess [36:30] How your readiness score with the Oura ring or other tracking devices is really relative to you and your normal, and understanding how to interpret the data is really important to keep cortisol levels normal [37:50] References Your Adrenal Fix YouTube Channel Adrenal Fatigue Society The Truth About Adrenal Fatigue Podcast FB Private Group Dr. Joel Rosen Mastering the Art of Adrenal Fatigue Insta dr_joel_rosen Our Partners: Learn more about LEVL, a clinical-grade ketone breath meter, which measures your level of fat-burning and ketosis through a simple breath. Find out more at HeadsUpHealth.com/LEVL. You can learn more about the Oura ring, a state of the art ring that can track sleep cycle analysis, activity, and recovery at HeadsUpHealth.com/Oura. Learn more about Keto-Mojo, a highly accurate and affordable device for testing blood sugar and blood ketones. Check it out at HeadsUpHealth.com/Ketomojo. All of these amazing products are integrated with Heads Up Health. They all allow you to quantify your health in novel and powerful ways. Thank you to our partners! About Heads Up Health Heads Up Health is a website designed to empower individuals who want to take a self-directed approach to managing their health. Instantly centralize your medical records, connect your favorite devices and apps (e.g., Oura, MyFitnessPal, Keto-Mojo, FitBit, Apple Health, MyMacros+, Withings and many more) and use your data to optimize your health. Click on the button below to start your free 30-day trial now! 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