Healing adrenals is important when you’ve got adrenal glands that are fatigued. When your adrenals are fatigued, you feel constantly exhausted. You experience brain fog, a state where you can’t clearly think or focus. It is important to know what happens to these glands to get the right adrenal fatigue treatment. While there are adrenal fatigue supplements you can take to facilitate adrenal fatigue recovery, knowing what happens in every stage your adrenals go through will help you understand how to treat them with care.

The Three Stages of
Adrenal Fatigue
Stage 1 ‘Adrenal Activation’ | Stage 2 ‘Adrenal Distress’ | Stage 3 ‘Adrenal Fatigue’ |
|
---|---|---|---|
Energy Levels | Generally good energy levels | Energy levels fluctuate from high to low, typically experiences a ‘2nd wind’ in the evening after a 3pm slump. | Low energy levels consistently throughout the day |
Nervous System | Heightened awareness of heartbeat, some anxiety | Anxiety and often panic attacks | Depression or low mood |
Sleeping Habits | Minimal sleep disturbance, some difficulty falling asleep due to a ‘busy mind’ | Bouts of insomnia, sometimes feel ‘wired but tired’, lay awake for hours or wake frequently through the night | Sleeping regularly and for long periods but never feel refreshed |
Eating Habits | Over-reliant on coffee, energy drinks, sugar, alcohol or other stimulants | Feel the need to eat carbohydrates more regularly or will not feel satisfied/full | Commonly eat a lot of processed refined sugars and take away foods due to lack of energy but also have developed a lot of food intolerances, especially to gluten and dairy |
Immune System | Rarely get colds or sick in general | Starting to get more frequent colds, 2-5 colds per year or other infections i.e. urinary, chest, sinus, tonsillitis, thrush | History of past viral infection as well as frequent infections ongoing |
Body Weight | Typically healthy weight range, although tendency to store excess fat around mid-centre | Weight changes, difficulty losing weight, starting to put weight on more easily especially around the mid-section | Can be severely underweight or overweight but typically starting to store more body fat all over the body |
Personality Traits | Constantly on the go, overactive mind, high achiever, rarely sits still, needs to fee l productive | Memory and concentration starting to struggle. More frequent emotional outbursts of anger and irritability | Lack of motivation and energy, feelings of hopelessness, sick of being sick and not feeling yourself |
Bowel Health | More prone to loose motions, especially when stressed or anxious | Bowels fluctuate between loose to constipated | More prone to constipation |
Thyroid Health | TSH levels within the classic reference range of 0.5-5 | TSH levels started to increase as thyroid health is beginning to become affected | Underactive thyroid, high TSH levels, with thyroid antibodies starting to rise |
Physical Symptoms | Tendency to internal feeling of shakiness, butterflies in the tummy | Sweaty hands, hair falling out, skin starting to breakout | Hair loss Skin rashes Food intolerances Bloating |
Blood Sugar Regulation | Typically, can’t go too many hours without eating without feeling irritable, headachy or shaky | Insulin resistance starting to form | Loss of appetite, regular nausea |
Oestrogen Status | May experience shorter menstrual cycles due to low progesterone levels. May experience spotting throughout the month | Periods starting to become irregular, with longer cycles | Very irregular periods, often with absence of a period for extended periods of time |
Dream Recall | Can wake with vivid dreams or nightmares | Irregular dream recall | No dream recall |
Cortisol Production | Excessive, high amounts | Irregular, but levels beginning to deplete | Cortisol deficiency, adrenals unable to secrete adequate amounts |
Muscular Health | Twitching and occasional muscle cramps | Muscles becoming tired, weak and sore with some cramping and eye ticks | Tired, sore aching, weak muscle |
Cellular Fluid Levels | Fluid retention around monthly cycle | Noticeable fluid retention around face, arms, thighs, belly, chest | Systemic fluid retention |
What Stage Are You?
STAGE 1
Expected Healing & Recovery Time: 4-12 weeks
Supplementation:
ReplenishME 5-7.5ml twice daily, after eating
OR
RevitalizeME 1 cap twice daily, after eating
Lifestyle Interventions:
Rest
Slow down, reduce the amount of things on your daily to do list and just breath!
Grab a copy of Balanced Babes – Every Woman’s guide to Hormone Harmony for more suggestions on how to heal your adrenal function.
Stage 2
STAGE 2
Expected Healing & Recovery Time: 3-6 months
Supplementation:
Balanced Babes: ReplenishME 5-7.5ml twice daily, after eating
Balanced Babes: Magnesium: 1 tsp twice daily, mixed with water or juice
Balanced Babes: EnergizeME: 15ml daily, mixed with water or juice
Lifestyle Interventions:
Rest
Drink Holy Basil herbal tea
Change your lifestyle – slowdown, stop saying yes when you would prefer to say no, set better boundaries!
Magnesium bathes with epson salts
Grab a copy of Balanced Babes – Every Woman’s guide to Hormone Harmony for more suggestions on how to heal your adrenal function.
Stage 3
STAGE 3
Expected Healing & Recovery Time: 12 months
Supplementation:
Balanced Babes: ReplenishME 5-7.5ml twice daily, after eating
Balanced Babes: Magnesium: 1 tsp twice daily, mixed with water or juice
Balanced Babes: EnergizeME: 15ml daily, mixed with water or juice
Balanced Babes: Liposomal Vitamin C: 1-2 ml, 3 times daily
Lifestyle Interventions:
As yo have reached chronic exhaustion phase you will need some radical intervention.
Please schedule yourself a free hormone assessment with a coach to map out a more targeted plan of attack for your health as there are other issues contributing to your adrenal dysfunction, including:
- Underlying viral infection
- Disturbance to the digestive system
- Hormonal imbalance
- Chronic nutritional deficiencies
- Emotional stress
- Toxic relationship
- Heavy metal toxicity
- Systemic inflammation.
It is unlikely that your body will regain hormone balance until you have addressed each of the above items.
Schedule your free 20 minute hormone assessment here: https://balancedbabesbookings.as.me/Freehormoneassessment
Grab a copy of Balanced Babes – Every Woman’s guide to Hormone Harmony for more suggestions on how to heal your adrenal function.