My Poor Shrivelling Adrenals!

Appetite for Adrenaline-Part 2

Ever felt ultra-focused and alive during action-packed moments but dissatisfied or bored in everyday life? Do you rely on caffeine or sugar in the morning and alcohol or cannabis at night? Relentless swirling thoughts accompanied by long periods of blank staring at your computer screen?

The slippery slope of adrenaline rush to chronically stressed and what to do about it.

I’m not stressed, I love adrenaline!

As action enthusiasts, we thrive on adrenaline. It's part of the rush that fuels our passion for extreme sports, but it comes with a catch — chronic stress. Adrenaline and the cocktail of neurotransmitters and hormones that contribute to and control stress is, the “action” feeling in action sports, and we love that shit! It’s the nature of the beast, and it drives our performance.

So if we excel with an amount of stress and love the feeling of the rush, then why is this a problem?

We literally get naturally high from the chemical cocktail of action sports and what goes up comes down. Unchecked, it can lead to a slew of mind-body issues.

The Slippery Slope

The body is under attack from a barrage of stressors all the time. That can be anything from intense training, poor food choices, staying in a toxic relationship, injury or infection, money woes or hating your boss. Stress is a normal part of life and the magnificent human body handles it well behind the scenes until it doesn't. Chronic stress is the action enthusiasts' nemesis. A silently debilitating condition that gnaws away at you, leaving an inflammatory path of destruction in its wake, which can take you down when you least expect it.

Chronic stress creates inflammation, chronic pain, fatigue and digestion issues, which messes with your metabolism and immune system.

A Disruption in the Force

Chronic stress disrupts neurotransmitter and hormone balance in the brain, adrenal glands and the gut, affecting everything from mood to sleep and cognitive function. These potent neurochemicals are made from amino acids, lipids (specifically cholesterol), vitamins and minerals, signaling and regulating all physical and cognitive functions. Ordinarily, excitatory neurotransmitters like dopamine, norepinephrine and adrenaline make you feel alert, focused and motivated. Inhibitory ones like serotonin and GABA help you relax, sleep, and make you feel good, which all contributes to feelings of confidence, control and self esteem.

Dysregulated serotonin is associated with ADD/ADHD, eating disorders, mood issues, sleep disruptions, and panic attacks. Deficient dopamine can cause impaired short-term memory, low sex drive, difficulty with numbers and general fatigue. Adrenaline dysregulation elicits panic and sleep issues, crushes motivation and ambition, and can bring on depression; increasing the need for caffeine and other stimulants. Deficiencies show up as any kind of memory issues, compulsive behavior, binge eating and Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

For optimum health, neurotransmitters of opposing actions need to be balanced.

The adrenaline rush to stressed is beautifully demonstrated when spending a week at Burning man.

There’s the sensory overload, harsh environmental changes, the encouragement to fully participate in the adventure of life, the extreme behaviors and pushing yourself to the edge of your comfort zone just to see what you are capable of. There’s the dehydration and eating crap food, irregular sleeping patterns and all kinds of brain chemistry experimentation to get you in the flow. All perfectly packaged in huge amounts of fun with the freedom and connection to express yourself as you wish. Sound like the lifestyle of another subculture you know!?

At the start you may say things like, “I wish life was always like this” and by the end your mind and body are ragged out and are no longer cooperating. Your shit doesn’t work and you’re likely constipated. Emotions start to fray and meltdowns can happen as your brain chemistry and your adrenals are fried. You're ready to get home, take a shower, eat some good food, and rest aka “recover”. You soon realize that thriving is not sustainable at that level of stimulation for much more than a week without feeling the pinch.This highly fun and stressor-filled week is pretty much a concentrated version of many action sports athletes lives, give or take a few details. The body and mind tell us we must rest and recover from such intensity, but we rarely put it together that it needs to happen in your daily life and training simply to counter the epic lifestyle you lead. "Hangriness," anxiety disorders and self diagnosed ADD have become accepted as something that just happens, not as a sign your blood sugar and nervous system are freaking out.

Stress Sneaks up on You

We experience massive amounts of pleasure from activating the stress response in action sports and don’t often see the signs until its too late. Stress creeps in disguised as fun, leading to injuries, slower recovery, and cognitive fog. Brain-locking in competition? Feeling more distracted than usual? Unfortunately, our buzz seeking behavior, unmanaged, screws with our mind and body, leaving us feeling trapped by unproductive behaviors, an insatiable crappetite, fluctuating energy and the attention of a squirrel. Not to mention dealing with the “normal life” stressors of adulting, like paying bills, having kids, and trying to balance family life with passions or work. Chronic stress sneaks up on us dressed as fun, fueled by the adrenaline rush, poor nutrition and a desire to avoid the mundane. It’s then no surprise that we begin self-medicating with mood altering consumables and the dopamine pleasure-trap of crack-book becomes the stress management of choice for so many.

Herein lies the danger peeps. We are the frogs in hot water, unaware that we are slowly being cooked!

It’ll never happen to me, I’m too strong.

Action athletes generally have strong adrenal function, hence the willingness to go back for more. However, that can change at any moment due to injury or a major emotional event. Perhaps you travel the world, train hard, play hard, compete and/or coach others who want to be like you. It’s a dream lifestyle you love and you wouldn’t trade it for the world!

Then something shakes your world like an injury or tragedy strikes with the all too familiar death of a friend or partner. You start to have trouble sleeping, but you push through the fatigue or mask the pain of loss with more and more added to your schedule. You start to show the signs of stress as “looking older” with your hair and skin becoming thinner and dry. You often feel cold and have spikes in energy. Memory issues may have you dropping the ball on your commitments when usually you’re on it. Self-doubt and insecurities show up as increased judgments, defensiveness or frustrations and decreased tolerance (“people irritate me more these days”). Everything seems like a chore and you depend more and more on sugar and other stimulants to get you going and depressants like alcohol or cannabis to bring you down. When adrenaline is high and cortisol low from dysregulated adrenals, you feel wired and tired. You may notice you’re pounding ibuprofen to manage pain and have an increasing dependence on uppers or downers to improve your mood. Eventually something’s gonna give. As "adrenal fatigue" advances, adding more stimulation to your system without proper regulation from inhibitory neurotransmitters and adrenal hormones, it is like hitting the gas pedal on your car and flooding the engine of your brain with excitatory neurotransmitters. The greater the stimulation,the harder you crash. This can happen to anyone at anytime.

Chronic stress influences decision making, risk assessment, behaviors and general satisfaction with life. With an increase in accidents and fatalities, we are all asking what is going on here? Highly skilled and experienced people are going-in. Yes, they take risks and not everything goes to plan. But could there be something else influencing their choices? Chronic stress and adrenal dysregulation are major barriers to health, happiness and peak performance. When your chemistry is off, you are off. Stress is not a weakness, it's a side effect of living our passions and byproduct of life that requires management so you can keep on being exceptional.

Learning to Say Yes to Stress and focus the mind while nourishing yourself with vital foods that heal your gut, feed your brain and support the adrenals is essential to peak performance training and balancing your daily life. It’s not hard, you just gotta do it!

8 Tips to Boost Energy & Brain Power

1. Balance Blood Sugar – Check Part 1 for tips.

2. Nourish Your Nerves – Load up on anti-inflammatory foods like spinach, blueberries, kale, quinoa, miso, and activated nuts.

3. Eat More Fiber – Whole grains, oats, avocado, and leafy greens help detox and support your gut.

4. Avoid Caffeine & Refined Sugar – These disrupt gut health and brain function. Opt for protein & fiber (vege) snacks and quality fat-based desserts instead.

5. Boost Brain Power – Try herbs like Brahmi, Ginkgo, and nootropic mushrooms like Lion's Mane and Reishi.

6. Support Your Adrenals – Add adaptogen's like Maca, Ashwagandha, Moringa and quality Omega-3s to your smoothies.

7. Rest & Recover – Prioritize sleep, relax with a hike, or enjoy a retreat. The body requires rest to heal from chronic inflammation.

8. Focus with Breath – Slow your breath, focusing on inhales and exhales for 10-20 minutes daily, even in noisy environments.

   
   

   Simple changes for sharper focus, more energy, and lasting balance.

Adrenaline fuels our passion, but managing stress is crucial for long-term health and performance. Balance is key — from nutrition to rest and mental health. Recognize the signs, prioritize recovery, and avoid the trap of constant stimulation.

Chronic stress and adrenal dysregulation can be tricky and require a holistic approach to balance. DM me and let's chat about how you can get back on track with a personalized plan tailored to your needs.

References