Hi yall,

So I thought I would ask for all your advice on what ive been going through the past year.

Im a guy.. just turned 23.. and for the past year ive been having some issues that havent quite resolved and are causing me a lot of stress/depression. Im somewhat skinny, but in good shape physically, kind of wiry/strong - dont look skin n bones but I only weigh like 125 pounds and im 5 9".

Ive always been really healthy.. never had any issues.. always been really active. Ive been doing brazilian jiu jitsu and other martial arts / exercising pretty intensely for a couple years. Ive also smoked pot heavily for many years. From 18-21 I also drank pretty heavily. Ive pretty much completely stopped drinking for the past year or two and have no interested in alcohol anymore. It used to make me sick anyway.

for years before this started I had been exercising really intensely.. training martial arts EVERY day going at it 100%.. it became an addiction. Looking back on it, I didnt give myself adequate time to rest.. and in addition to lots of intense exercise, I was smoking pot very heavily, staying up late at night on the computer.. would masturbate a lot and have sex a lot. But I felt great.

Around a year ago I started having some bad anxiety.. I think i had some anxiety before but it started to get out of control a year ago (I think due to some relationship issues w gf and other life issues) .. I started having panic attacks, that got pretty bad, where I would feel really nauseous and throw up just because of anxiety. I basically developed panic disorder.. my flight or flight response was ON high for a long while, at least a few months.. I started seeing a psychologist and things were improving.. stopped having daily panic attacks but still wasnt the "old me" .. When i started having anxiety attacks I chilled out a bit with the exercise, but as soon as I started feeling better again I went straight back to intense daily exercise.. shortly after that I basically burned out or something, I started feeling extremely fatigued all the time.. couldnt last very long in training.

Then i started having weak erections and some cloudy urine.. went to the doc and he said my prostate was inflamed.. since then (7-8 months) ive dealt with erection problems, weak stream, weak ejaculation, tight pelvic muscles etc.. and all of this has caused me a lot more anxiety.. although I try and deal with it the best I can.

To make matters worse, I went to a urologist who put me on Ciprofloxacin for a month, I then read all the terrible things cipro can do to you..

still dont feel quite right.. i think my hormones are out of wack, and im not sure whats going on with me sexually, all my pelvic muscles arent functioning properly, to me its either a nerve problem, maybe a pinched/compressed nerve in my pelvis causing dysfunction or some kind of hormonal/nutrional/chemical imbalance..

I just wanna feel like myself again. I just went to the uro and had some hormone tests done, awaiting the results, and im planing on seeing a neurologist to rule out any nerve problems with the pudendal nerve which supplies the prostate/penis/bladder etc.

Am I suffering from adrenal fatigue or something? So.. what happens when your under chronic high levels of stress/anxiety, does cortisol increase? or does it eventually burn out and stop being produced? how do you know which one happened and how to correct it?

Any advice? I want my old self back.. and my libido/sexual function.

Try the following:

Vit D 5000 IU daily
Vit B complex once a week
Vit C 500 twice a day

Saw Palmetto EXTRACT (according to the bottle)
Fish Oil (highest dose on the bottle)

Do this for at least 3 months to see if there are changes.

Also, get something called DHEA (it comes anywhere from 5mg to 100 mg). Get the 10 mg tablets or capsules and take one a day (no more than 10mg, no matter what you read about it) for 2 weeks. Stop for a month and repeat.

At least part of your troubles may indeed be adrenal fatigue. You've already mentioned stress and, yes, this could mean excess cortisol which is great for the fight or flight response but that's not supposed to be chronic or long term. I would like to know a few things:
1. Comparitively would you say (assuming there are no drugs involved) that your pupils tend to be enlarged? very small? Pulsing? This is one way to determine if you are either sympathetic or para-symathetic dominant. Pulsing pupils can be a sign of adrenal fatigue. It's hard to see without a magnifying device.
2. Stick out your tongue and try to hold it still. If it's quivering that's a hint of adrenal exhaustion.
3. Do you crave sweets?
4. Do your eyes have dark circles under them?
If you can answer "yes" to most of these, you probably are suffering from adrenal exhaustion and you need to address it with a good adrenal support. You should notice a difference in just a few days.
It sounds like you may have some other issues as well but start with the adrenals and let your body heal from there, if indeed you have an adrenal problem. Even though you are thin don't overlook hypoglycemia as well, which may have to be addressed.

Vitamin C: The vitamin C is known to help support adrenal function and is best taken with bioflavanoids which help recycle the vitamin C thus prolonging its functional life. If you are taking Basic Cell Energy™ you may take plain vitamin C formula, because Basic Cell Energy™ already contains citrus bioflavanoids. You may take 1-3 grams of vitamin C daily in divided doses. Bowel tolerance is a term used to describe the maximum dose an individual can tolerate before getting bowel symptoms such as gas, cramps, or diarrhea. Some people find a beneficial to take vitamin C to bowel tolerance when rebuilding the adrenals. It is best taken in divided doses throughout the day. Many people with chronic adrenal fatigue have a low bowel tolerance and may tolerate only a total of 500 mg (� gram) daily. This level may increase with time. Some people, on the other hand, can tolerate 10 grams or more daily.

5-HTP: Sleep is essential for helping the adrenal glands recover their health. It should not be taken by anyone taking an SSRI type of antidepressant. The SSRI medication will react very poorly with 5-HTP and this could be dangerous. Typically, dosage is adjusted as follows: start with 50 mg.; if after three nights sleep is not obtained with this dose, increase to 100 mg. Keep increasing the dose by 50 mg every three nights until you either obtain good sleep (stay at that dose) or until you reach a maximum dose of 500 mg. Tablets are available in 50 mg and 100 mg size. Eventually you may try to reduce the dose. If you wake up sleepy, try taking 5-HTP earlier in the evening or reducing the dose. If you have not used 5-HTP before, you may want to start with the 50 mg size. Once you know your best dose, you may wish to use the 100 mg size capsules.

Digestive Enzymes: Poor adrenal function is often associated with poor digestion and low gastric acidity. It is probably best to use digestive enzymes that contain hydrochloric acid (usually found as Betaine Hydrochloride). Typically one would take 1-2 capsules during each meal (amount depends of the size of the meal). Getting heartburn or acid reflux may not mean that you make too much acid. Often, not enough acid is present and the reason for the burning is insufficient protection of the stomach lining. This can be improved by:

• Water: Drinking adequate amounts of water daily, 8-10 glasses or more.
• DGL: Sucking or chewing on DGL (deglycerrhyzenized licorice) 5-30 minutes prior to eating. This stimulates the production of protective gastric (stomach) mucous secretions.
• Slippery Elm: taken 5-30 minutes before a meal also helps produce protective gastric secretions.

Rarely, burning can be due to excessive acid production. This can be established by performing a Heidelberg test for gastric acidity or by doing the ‘poor man's test’ of taking the digestive acid after several days of building up the mucous lining of the stomach. If there is a burning sensation with the added acid, and there is a good chance the acid is not needed. A half teaspoon of bicarbonate in a half glass of water or some over-the-counter antacid should relieve the burning immediately. In such a case, one should not take the additional hydrochloric acid with the digestive enzymes. Instead, one may only need plain digestive enzymes without acid or not need the digestive enzymes at all. Do not try taking the acid if you have a history of bleeding ulcers. Consult with your physician.

Magnesium: Magnesium is important for cellular energy (ATP) production. It is also helpful for relaxing tense muscles such as those found in fibromyalgia. Magnesium orotate is a highly absorbable form of magnesium. The typical dose is 2 to 3 tablets daily.

DHEA: DHEA is a basic adrenal hormone that the adrenals will convert into other hormones including sex hormones. If someone is very deficient in this hormone they may only be able to tolerate a small amount such as 5 mg. The average adult dose ranges between 10 and 25 mg. DHEA will also go on to become sex hormones (testosterone and estrogen). It might be best to avoid it if there is a history of sex organ cancers such as prostate, uterine or breast.

7-Keto DHEA: This form does not convert to sex hormones but will still give support to adrenal functions. The typical dose is 25 mg each morning.

MSM: MSM is a nutritional form of sulfur and supports connective tissue health such as hair, skin, nails, tendons, ligaments, bones etc. Some people cannot metabolize the sulfur well and cannot take it. The typical dose is 2 to 3 grams daily.

Essential fatty acids: The reason they are called essential is that our body needs them for good health but cannot manufacture them. It supports the healing process. It may be taken in capsule form or as a liquid. I find Udo’s Choice an easy one to use because it comes in a liquid and the taste is tolerable. Some people prefer to mix it into their daily protein or health drink. I have found the easiest way to take this is to make a salad dressing out of it. You can become creative.

Unlike water-soluble vitamins such as C or B-complex that need to be taken daily, oil soluble vitamins and nutrients do not require daily consumption. You may use a small quantity of this dressing daily or a larger quantity every once in a while. Enjoy and use in good health!

Panic attacks have been discussed on this forum before... It seems like it was from a specific B vitamin deficiency, but i dont remember which one. A great book on adrenal fatigue is "adrenal fatigue: the 21st century stress syndrome" by James L Wilson

__________________
God is and all is well
~John Greenleaf Whittier~

Just me, that was B5 (pantothenic acid). This is the second most important nutrient for the adrenals. However, one should not take a single one of the Bs in isolation. Bee pollen is a good natural source.

Saved1986, I think you are on the right track here; and Naturalman has hit it right on here too (IMO). Adrenal fatigue or even collapse. All is not lost though moxsum. I've been through this before and even survived the 60s. Know what I mean? Weak adrenals can be corrected with nutrients and adaptogens too. Vitamin C is the most important nutrient for the adrenals. When the adrenals need help to correct something in the body, the immune system gives the adrenals priority over all vitamin C. This is at the expense of the rest of the body's need for vitamin C. So replenish it with more.

Do a little research on adaptogens. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adaptogen They will be of immense help to you.

Licorice root, and yucca root can also help greatly. Licorice kills viruses and bacteria, raises interferon, is a steroidal anti-inflammatory, helps other herbs to absorb and function better, etc.

Fix the adrenals; and your libido will return. The adrenals produce several hormones. Testasterone is secreted in small amounts by the adrenals.

__________________
- Jim

Thanks for the advice guys.. ive also had sensations of not being able to get a full satisfying breath for a while, and just recently experienced some faintness when standing up after sitting down (blood pressure)?

My heart beat is pretty slow at times, I checked it this morning when I woke up and it was 48 BPM..

Im wondering about the hypoglycemia thing.. in general I dont have much sweets ..never drink soda or anything like that. but I do have a fruit shake every morning.. and eat pasta etc. which could cause an imbalance. Im gonna try and eliminate my morning shake and replace it withs something like brown rice/veggies.

Now i got all freaked out cuz i read online that diabetes can damage the nerves that lead to the penis.. but if I had diabetes I would know about it right? i mean, ive always been healthy so I dont see why i would get that. Also my sexual problems/prostate problems developed pretty quickly.. went from great sexual health to lots of problems wihtin a few weeks.

ive also had ICE cold hands for years.. not all day but a fair amount, and anytime I feel any stress/pressure my hands go ice cold.. my girlfriend calls me ice hands because anytime were going to have sex and I touch her she jumps from how cold my hands are. I told my doctor about this before but they said it wasnt much to worry about. I also had this symptom long before any sexual/prostate problems.

Hypoglycemia. Most times GTF chromium will help a lot.

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- Jim

Adrenal dysfunction / weakness. This may have weakened the thyroid. Concentrate on your adrenals first. Other than VitC and B50 complex, get some ashwaganda. This is an excellent adaptogen which will also help the thyroid a lot.

In my humble opinion.

__________________
- Jim

Can't licorice root be bad for anyone with high blood pressure? I thought
I'd heard that somewhere?

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May you always have..Love to Share, Health to Spare, and Friends that Care!

Yes, licorice is not recommended for HIGH blood pressure but I think Moxsum is talking about low blood pressure.

Moxsum you've probably got a few things going on here. You mentioned "some faintness" when standing up and that's one of the effects of adrenal exhaustion. As has already been mentioned there may be some thyroid issues. But also, as has already been mentioned, I would work on the adrenals first.
As for the hypoglycemia, often times these three are related, that is they hypoglycemia, adrenal problems, and thyroid problems. That doesn't mean that you have all three problems but one can affect the other. Let me give you just a few symptoms of adrenal exhaustion:
Low blood pressure
Low blood sugar
Palpitations
Fatigue
Poor memory and consentration
Nervous irritability
These are just a few and it sounds to me like you may suffer from most of them.
Here's my advice, take something to address your adrenal problems. There are lots of different things available. I stick mostly to NSP products but there are other goods ones. Lay off of the pasta- starch turns to sugar and even though you may suffer from hypoglycemia, not hyperglycemia, quick surges in sugar can cause an over shooting of insulin, thus dropping your sugar count. (if I understand it correctly)
Here are just a few symptoms of low blood sugar and you'll see why these are difficult to determine:
Sugar cravings
Sudden fatigue in the mid-afternoon
Mood swings
Irritabilty or confusion when food is not eaten regularly
Sudden coldness of the limbs or nose
Difficulty concentrating.
I hope this helps.

Yes. In high amounts for a duration. I take 1 teaspoon daily - sometimes twice daily. I have high blood pressure; mostly from salt and other complications. I also have hypoglycemia.

If you are concerned about high or low blood pressure Earlybird, build up your adrenals your blood pressure will normalize.

Licorice root is a steroidal anti-inflammatory, and it is an excellent adaptogen for the adrenals. You may want to add some licorice root along with yucca root. Yucca root is a steroidal anti-inflammatory, but it helps to lower blood pressure due to its high sterol content.

The study, you may be remembering included the disclaimer:
I'm not talking about grams per day. Moxsum and others should follow bottle instructions. Typically one capsule can contain 500mg. 2 per day would be 1 gram. I can't tell if moxsum has high blood pressure.

__________________
- Jim

Thanks for the advice guys. Im currently taking, vitamin c, b vitamin complex, this adrenal complex (https://www.gaiaherbs.com/product.php?id=5) and this which probably also helps (https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/prod...tem=8&mitem=29). Ive also been taking a ton of other supplements.. fish oil, ginko, garlic, ginger, maybe too many things.. could too many random supplements be a burden on my liver or something?

Im awaiting hormone test results, my urologist wanted to check just my basic sex hormones, testosterone, estradiol, prolactin, FSH, LH

Im wondering if all my sexual/prostate problems are related to low testosterone (if i even have low T).. i read a report that testosterone actually effects the nerves in the pelvis and low T makes them not work as well or something.

Ive been playing around with my diet a bit the past few days.. trying to eliminate as much sugar as I can, and it seems like it helps a bit.. I seem a bit more calm, stable then normal.

I need to watch the pasta though, I love it so ive been eating it a lot lately. I also was making a bit fruit shake every morning (with health powders) but I realise that is just a huge surge of sugar every morning so ive eliminated that, in favor of a more stable meal like brown rice w/ garlic/onions and beans.

My only fear is that, it seems like it can take a while to turn adrenal fatigue around and ive been dealing with this sexual problems for a long time now I feel like its effecting me mentally/emotionally. I dont feel confident like I used to, and I seem to have no libido. Its embarrasing but just lately my penis has been doing this weird thing where its like stiff even when its flaccid.. seems like the muscles in my penis are contracted and not relaxing/contracting properly. ITs not always like this, but I wonder if its related to adrenaline/testosterone or a nerve problem.

Finally, one more thing I really need to work on is sleeping regulary. For a long time now ive been staying up really late at night, I just seem to be more wired at night, even if I was tired before, and I stay up on the computer too late.

What about magnesium? Ive just gotten some magnesium oil which ive been rubbing into my skin everyday.. supposedly it can help with hormones and other problems and increase DHEA or something. or DHA dont remember.

Deglycyrrhizinated licorice is licorice with the compound that raises blood pressure removed. You can buy it in chewable form also.