I have had symptoms of being hypothyroid for years but haven't gotten a doctor to help yet. Got as far as an endocrinologist one time but was promptly booted from her office for looking too healthy with "normal blood work" despite symptoms. However, I am facing a new challenge that has me concerned. I know adrenal fatigue goes hand in hand with being hypo so I hope I'm posting this in the right spot?

In the past few months, I have faced some major traumatic life events and had the crazy idea to try getting healthy with getting back into exercising. Well, despite being consistent with exercise for around a month, I was only gaining weight not loosing and feeling worse and worse until my body quit one day. For about the past week since then, I seem to have spiraled into what looks like some sort of adrenal crash and I don't know what to do. I can look back now and see it was coming for the last few months of extreme stress but I think the physical stress of the exercise pushed me over the edge.

I'm not in communication with my PCP since she was no help with the hypo and am looking for a new doctor, but I don't know if I need medical care right now and should go back to my old PCP in the mean time? I get nearly all the classic symptoms of adrenal fatigue that's a good ways along so I slowed things way, way down (canceling events, lots of rest) but I'm scared for my wellbeing and don't know what to tell people (like my employers) beside "I feel sick." I don't feel like I'm getting better very quickly and don't know what I'm supposed to being doing really. Help???

I'd try some other doctors a time or two to see if they seem helpful or not.
Sometime you can research their personal philosophy on care if they have a website for their office.

Also have you considered any naturopath/alternative care?

We also have e vitamin & supplement forum that might be of help to get you back to health. http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum49.html

I basically experienced the same thing 8 years ago...ran my tank dry and just didn't know what to do or have any help to get better, so I definitely sympathize with you and your situation. What I ended up doing is taking matters into my own hands. I would suggest you do the same.

There are supplements that you can take to strengthen your adrenals-I like Amazon, but Swanson is also reputable. There are also dessicated thyroid products that you can purchase on the internet that will help with a low thyroid. While not as good as taking Rx thyroid meds they DO help. The best one I found and used was a product by Nutri-Meds:

http://www.nutri-meds.com/Nutri_Meds...p/nm-g-ptc.htm

I used the porcine capsules instead of the bovine (cow) for obvious reasons (ie, mad cow fears). It took several months to see results because you have to start slow and work up your dosage just to make sure you don't over-medicate. In my case, I took it very slow, so it was 9 mths before my energy returned, but it did. I had to take 5 capsules a day, but I felt much, much better.

There are a few other brands you can buy over the internet. I never found them to be as good.

It took me 7 more years to finally get a physician to prescribe actual thyroid medication, and I have an autoimmune disorder with sub-clinical hypothyroidism! For some reason, drs do not take hypothyroidism seriously. I basically had to shame my current doctor into finally prescribing it for me. I'm still not on my optimum dose because he's being overly cautious, but at least I have help now.

I hope you are already on the road to feeling better as well. Take care!

Many doctors don't like the term "adrenal fatigue".
You might try try changing the discussion to one of "adrenal insufficiency", which symptoms are similar, and known/accepted by the medical community.

Are symptoms all you're going on? Adrenal insufficiency is easy enough to test for. I went to my PCP, told him my symptoms, and asked that several adrenal hormone levels be tested. As it turned out, 3 of the 4 were low. Two of those are available OTC, and one is available by prescription. I began supplementing those hormones, and started to feel better within a relatively short time. I get tested periodically to monitor where I am.

Doc

Are you taking something for the adrenal fatigue? I found ora-adren-80 helps. It's raw adrenal gland. Seemed to help me. Many other adrenal supports out there as well.

Hi, i know it can be quite annoying to look healthy or having done test and not getting wiser from it. I also had a weight gain problem in a cetain fase of my adrenal fatigue. If you have adrenal fatigue, my best advice is to buy the book of Dr Wilson, it helped me enormous. The funny thing with the adrenals is, doing things you think are healthy, are not always good for the adrenals.

Like exercising hard and drinking juices.