it's some esoteric s#!) that nobody knows about! I'm finding out that during doctors medical school, they get approximately 15 minutes of school and one textbook page on the condition of 'adrenal insufficiency' !!!
Can you believe it? How many people have died with this disease and they've chalked it up to hyponatremia which is low electrolytes, low sodium, chloride or potassium, without looking for the cause, which is adrenal insufficiency.
What happens is that the adrenal glands no longer secrete cortisol which is necessary for life processes in the body. We all secret cortisol in varying amounts according to our necessities, such as fight or flight, sad times, excitement, happiness, grief, surgeries, accidents, etc., those glands secret cortisol to see us through these events, plus electrolytes and a few other hormones such as aldosterone and testosterone.
In my case and many others like me, I've taken so much cortisone for my asthma that the adrenaline glands stopped secreting their own natural cortisol. So I'm dependent on taking exogenous cortisone to supply my body's needs, but the catch is that unlike sugar or blood pressure which there are monitors for and can be measured and adjusted easily at home, there are no monitors to measure cortisol in blood as it can be done only in a lab. So one is dependent on how one feels and then one 'updoses' or takes more prednisone or hydrocortisone until one feels better. Problem is if you're not watchful and mindful of how you feel, weak, sweating, diarrhea, nausea, dizziness or if you wait to long to correct the situation, you may end up in the hospital.
Oh and I can't go out in the heat, cause I start sweating like a pig and have to immediately drink Gatorade to replenish the electrolytes or else...
and doctors here seem to know little about the condition and how to manage it. Here and in the states. I belong to a few adrenal insufficiency forums on Facebook and the folks in the states are in the same predicament...most endocrinologists know little and couldn't care less...so we're basically managing ourselves believe it or not...:( Lawd ha' mercy
I've also developed lymphedema in an arm due to a trauma with a heavy metal spoon in January and my arm and breast are swollen so now I have to have a breast cancer workup including biopsy! It's not cancer I'm sure, it hasn't changed since January but the doctors have to be sure...Lawd ha' mercy....I'm falling apart! :D
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