The Healthy Way

Monday, July 28, 2008

Restorative Hints for Exhaustion

Q: For the past three months I have been exhausted. I can barely get up to go to work and I find that I am breathing very heavy and lightheaded all of the time. Is there something wrong with me?

A: There could be a number of things wrong with you or it could be nothing major. That is why you have to start with a check up. At a minimum do a full lab work up including hormone levels, blood chemistry panel and immune profile. You could have adrenal burn out due to stress of some kind, you could be fighting off an infection that is not obvious to you, you could be having poor sleep or you could be just in need of some rest and relaxation.

Assuming all your tests come back negative and there is nothing clinically wrong with you, you can do some restorative treatment for yourself. Start with taking some time off for yourself. Make sure you are not rushed in the morning when you first wake up. Drink some warm water with lemon first think in the morning followed by a healthy nutritious breakfast. You should strive to have breakfast that have is high with complex carbohydrates for energy and lots of fruits and berries for the vitamin content and the flavanoids. If you have a tendency for low blood sugar make sure you eat snacks every few hours through the day. Do a detoxification diet. Eat mostly vegetables and lean protein for lunch and dinner. Keep you portions small to avoid over-eating and thus causing fatigue. Stay off red meat and pork for 2 weeks. Cut down on dairy and only eat organic unsweetened yogurt for now.

For the supplements you should consider a good quality multivitamin without additives and fillers, Vitamin C and Zinc to support your adrenal glands (the ones that give you energy) and may be include some liver cleansing herbs in your diet such as bitter greens, dandelion, radicchio and artichoke.

Sometimes it is nothing more then allowing your body some rest and healing that is enough to do the trick.

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Dr. Elena Krasnov is a registered Naturopathic Doctor and Clinic Director of the Toronto Naturopathic Clinic. Submit your questions online here