{"id":197,"date":"2022-05-17T06:18:00","date_gmt":"2022-05-17T06:18:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drsamgraber.com\/?p=197"},"modified":"2022-05-19T15:58:17","modified_gmt":"2022-05-19T15:58:17","slug":"why-your-adrenals-need-extra-love-during-midlife","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drsamgraber.com\/why-your-adrenals-need-extra-love-during-midlife\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Your Adrenals Need Extra Love During Midlife"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Imagine this \u2026 it\u2019s a particularly tiring <\/strong>Friday after a rather stressful <\/strong>week during an absolutely exhausting <\/strong>month.  You\u2019ve \u201cdone had it\u201d with everything and everyone.  T.G.I.F. vibes <\/strong>are dialed up to MAX levels today!  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As you\u2019re packing your briefcase, playing the mental \u201cwhat\u2019s in the fridge for dinner\u201d game, you get a call<\/strong>.  It\u2019s your coworker <\/strong>and she\u2019s going to be out all next week<\/strong> for an impromptu trip her friends invited her to tag along on.  She needs you to cover for her<\/strong>.  You reluctantly tell her you will and hang up.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You forgot for one brief moment you are already scheduled up to the hilt<\/strong> next week with YOUR work\u2026.how on earth will you pick up the slack<\/strong> for her too?\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I imagine <\/strong>this is how a woman\u2019s adrenals feel <\/strong>when she\u2019s in the throes of perimenopause <\/strong>and her ovaries <\/strong>are going into retirement, AKA menopause<\/strong>.  They\u2019ve been hard at work doing their job and it\u2019s a thankless job<\/strong> at that, only to learn that now the ovaries are tapping out<\/strong> as they hit perimenopause.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you know<\/strong> that when the ovaries <\/strong>no longer produce estrogen because they no longer have eggs to release, they tap the adrenals <\/strong>to ramp up production of androstenedione which is then turned into estrogen <\/strong>and testosterone<\/strong>?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a pretty cool biological shift<\/strong> until the adrenals are slapped with the reality <\/strong>that they are already taxed to the max living your crazy life<\/strong>!!  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re like most women <\/strong>I know (myself included), you are already scheduled <\/strong>to the gills and running on empty<\/strong>.  You make it through the craziness of this thing called life thanks to caffeine <\/strong>hits by day and a little red wine <\/strong>to wind the evening down.  (Ok a lot of red wine\u2026but who\u2019s counting?)  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What happens when your hormones <\/strong>start their downshift <\/strong>in preparation for menopause<\/strong>?  What are your overtaxed adrenals <\/strong>to do in response?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the reality <\/strong>we are faced with at midlife<\/strong>.  It\u2019s very rare that a high-achieving woman<\/strong> will not have adrenals that are already limping along <\/strong>when she is approaching that final shift on her ovaries\u2019 timecard.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just in case this is news to you<\/strong>, or you are like I was and think you\u2019re invincible, this my friend is your \u201cCome to Jesus Moment<\/strong>\u201d, without the painful collateral damage <\/strong>I endured a few short years ago.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contrary to popular belief, I am NOT Wonder Woman<\/strong>.  I am far from her in fact.  I am 100% human<\/strong>.  And I\u2019m pretty certain you are too.  The whole you can have <\/strong>it all and do <\/strong>it all and be <\/strong>it all and \u2026 blah, blah, blah \u2026 it all is freaking BS<\/strong> and one more thing that makes us women feel like we are not enough.  More on that \u201cnot enough\u201d topic another day, let\u2019s get back to the adrenals <\/strong>and what we\u2019re to do when the ovaries <\/strong>tap out to play shuffleboard and Bingo with the other ladies at the community center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You see, had I listened<\/strong> to those before me, I\u2019d have beefed up my adrenals in preparation <\/strong>for perimenopause therefore circumnavigating the pit of despair<\/strong> I found myself neck deep in a few years ago.  But true to form, with delusions <\/strong>of Lynda Carter and those shiny bangles, I did not heed the warnings <\/strong>and therefore suffered <\/strong>the consequences.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t want to see you suffer<\/strong> like I did.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s a quick rundown <\/strong>of what you can do to show your adrenals some love before they\u2019re put on double duty:  <\/p>\n\n\n\n