# Incredible Hydrocortisone Response



## AlmostEasy

Well I've been slowly getting sucked into the hypothyroid world due to an initial comprehensive blood test requested due to chronic fatigue. It showed low T levels which led me to investigating the HPG/HPA axis. I got my LH/FSH/Prolactin/Estradiol tested and they all checked out. Very low body temperatures got me studying the thyroid and adrenals. I'm about 95% certain I have adrenal fatigue and hypothyroidism.

So anyways, I decided to do a little home diagnostic test to see how I would respond to a higher level of cortisol; as adrenal fatigue can result in chronic low levels of cortisol. I actually went out and bought some hydrocortisone 1% cream after Googling it and seeing if anyone else was trying it. A lot of people were actually ingesting it, which I don't recommend. I decided to spread a quarter size dollop on my skin.

Day 1 I noticed about a 1.5 hour period of increased well being. Day 2 I noticed a huge increase in well being, progressively getting better and peaking around 12 hours after administration (right now).

Here's what I experienced:


- Elimination of chronic hand shakiness
- Massive increase in peace of mind
- Massive increase in ability to be calm
- Massive decrease in body tension
- Massive decreaes in chronic eye strain
- Increase in clarity of thought
- Increase in ability to calmly focus
- Incredibly significant increase in sense of well-being
- Return of emotional clarity ***HUGE - an incredibly long term problem for me 
- Return of ability to emotionally articulate **Huge as well, used to be incredibly articulate, loved to express myself. Been a bumbling idiot for years unable to get even the simplest of sentences out.
- Massive increase in ability to sustain focus over longer periods of time
- Massive decrease in feelings of mental burnout
- De-compartmentalization of visual perception; accustomed to a fractured image. Feeling much more IN reality rather than starting uncomfortably AT it. A more unified experience.

I've been experiencing extreme brain fog/memory problems/chronic fatigue/personality loss/social issues for several years and I never imagined such a response from hydrocortisone. Until recently I thought it was something way different than hypothyroid and while I still am not even close to ruling out multiple conditions I'm fairly amazed at my response to HC. My dose of it doesn't even seem that high either. I'd been doing some fairly serious experimenting with all kinds of nootropics and supplements and this was by far one of the most therapeutic. I seriously used to think I was suffering from the "negative/cognitive" effects of schizophrenia. Then it was Lyme disease and co-infections (still possible). This is very enlightening.

I did hardcore research for 5-6 hours tonight without getting massively burnt out and having to turn to doing something else. I definitely don't plan to continue doing this and I want to avoid hydrocortisone if at all possible but I just wanted to see if this would do anything at all really, and it did.

Soo basically I want to know if this is a typical response to HC. Is this how people feel once they treat their adrenal fatigue? Have other people responded to hydrocotisone in this way? Does it usually take that long to fully kick in? Interestingly enough my body temperature is still remaining low so perhaps my hypothyroid is from something else other than rT3 alone or perhaps there just hasn't been enough time for it to adjust, I don't know.

I would like to start my adrenal regimen right now with dessicated adrenal gland, DHEA, pregnenolone, etc etc but I think I'm going to get a 24 hour cortisol, a fT3/rT3, and a DHEA lab run first just to get some hard evidence to support my theories (after being off HC for at least a week of course!!!).

And I've definitely experienced enough emotional trauma/stress to trigger adrenal fatigue several times over, much of it overlapping as well. Sorry to end on a bummer, thought I should throw that in though 

Thanks guys!


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## Andros

Want to welcome you to the board. I cannot comment on your query but I am sure others will be along who can!


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## jenny v

> I would like to start my adrenal regimen right now with dessicated adrenal gland, DHEA, pregnenolone, etc etc but I think I'm going to get a 24 hour cortisol, a fT3/rT3, and a DHEA lab run first just to get some hard evidence to support my theories (after being off HC for at least a week of course!!!).


Definitely do the 24 saliva cortisol test first and make sure DHEA is included. You probably have low cortisol, but the 24 hour test will show if you have all lows, some lows/some highs, etc. Do not start on anything until you have those results as high cortisol can sometimes cause the same symptoms as low cortisol and you treat each differently. Also, you need to be off of HC for at least 2 weeks before you do the saliva test; it takes that long for it to get out of your system totally so it doesn't skew your results. And please don't start on DHEA or any other hormones until you see your cortisol results. Those will also skew the test and they also cause some really icky side effects when taken improperly.


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## AlmostEasy

Thanks for the quick response! Alright I'll wait 2 weeks then. I'm still amazed at the response, though I did have an awful time trying to get to sleep last night. I've had decent responses to other things in the past that fade after a while but this time the science behind it is much more solid.

Thanks again! I'll update as soon as I have results, but I'll also be checking the thread to see if anyone else chimes in.

Later!


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## jenny v

> I'm still amazed at the response, though I did have an awful time trying to get to sleep last night.


You may have lows during the day and highs at night, so you wouldn't need the HC at night. That 24 hour saliva test will tell you everything.

Keep in mind, long term use of HC cream builds up in the fatty tissues of the body, so if you do need HC it's better to have a doctor prescribe Cortef (which is the pill form of HC).


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## ifthespiritmovesme

*Every time I have taken low doese of Prednisone, it reulted in in me feeling so much better that I would like to be on it forever.*


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## AlmostEasy

ifthespiritmovesme said:


> *Every time I have taken low doese of Prednisone, it reulted in in me feeling so much better that I would like to be on it forever.*


What kind of problems are you having? Hypothyroid or something more extreme? I've strongly identified with newly discovered, for me, Hashimoto's Ecephalopathy (for which the primary treatment IS chronic Prednisone) and am getting thyroid immunity labs run ASAP.


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## Octavia

ifthespiritmovesme said:


> *Every time I have taken low doese of Prednisone, it reulted in in me feeling so much better that I would like to be on it forever.*


I think that's a pretty common "response" to Prednisone, even for the healthiest of people who, say, take it for poison ivy or something like that (as opposed to a bigger health issue). I know on the few occasions I've taken it (long before any thyroid issues), I absolutely LOVED being on it.


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## jenny v

I'm the opposite--Prednisone made my skin glow, but I gained a ton of water weight, was starving all the time and became really irritable. I was a bloated, hungry b*tch, lol!


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## ifthespiritmovesme

AlmostEasy said:


> What kind of problems are you having? Hypothyroid or something more extreme? I've strongly identified with newly discovered, for me, Hashimoto's Ecephalopathy (for which the primary treatment IS chronic Prednisone) and am getting thyroid immunity labs run ASAP.


I have a number of problems, and do not yet have a diagnosis....still working on that. I am evidently both hypo and hyper, lots of immune problems, probably adrenal insuffucuency.....metabolic issues, antibodies,etc. I would take Prednisone even if I knew it would shorten my life! Just to feel "normal" for a few days would be so worth it.


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## ifthespiritmovesme

jenny v said:


> I'm the opposite--Prednisone made my skin glow, but I gained a ton of water weight, was starving all the time and became really irritable. I was a bloated, hungry b*tch, lol!


Gads - Wish I could find something to make me hungry....I have to set alarms to remember to eat.


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## AlmostEasy

THYROGLOBULIN ANTIBODIES <1 < or = 1 IU/mL CB
THYROID PEROXIDASE ANTIBODIES 1 <9 IU/mL CB
T4, FREE 1.2 0.8-1.8 ng/dL BH
TSH 2.16 0.40-4.50 mIU/L BH
T3, FREE 3.6 2.3-4.2 pg/mL BH
CORTISOL, TOTAL 13.0 mcg/dL CB ****Did not request, doctor threw in for some reason
Reference Range: For 8 a.m.(7-9 a.m.) Specimen: 4.0-22.0
Reference Range: For 4 p.m.(3-5 p.m.) Specimen: 3.0-17.0
* Please interpret above results accordingly *
T3 REVERSE, LC/MS/MS 17 ng/dL EZ

Pretty unbelievable, all normal.

My 4 sample cortisol wont be in for a few days, but with my rT3/fT3 ratio being >20 (21.2 if I did the math right) I'm not expecting much.

I'm really struggling guys, is there anything here that I'm not seeing?


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## jenny v

Ignore the cortisol results and wait for the saliva results. Blood cortisol is pretty useless--saliva is a better test of what's going on in your system throughout the day.


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## AlmostEasy

Alright sorry for the whining lol that was very early this morning when I got the results. Yuck.

I'm just flabbergasted since my temps are so low. I do then fit the bill for "Wilson's Syndrome" but I feel it will be quite the struggle to get any doctor to prescribe me Armour or Synthroid with these numbers.

I suppose I'll have the whole picture when the cortisol lab comes in. I have started on collagen, milk thistle, and pregnenolone in the meantime but I'll wait to try non dessicated adrenal until it's actually confirmed, it's quite expensive.

Thanks for the reply


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## jenny v

If it helps, my blood cortisol results showed completely in the range, but my saliva cortisol results showed the true picture--I'm low across the board (and at two points, really below the range). It's amazing how different the blood vs. saliva results can be!


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## AlmostEasy

Alright, results are in:

let it be known that I work 2nd shift so my sleep schedule is way different than the norm. I was unable to find any articles on this so I took it upon myself to measure upon my own personal waking and 2 times during they day, and then before my own personal bed time. I don't know if this ruins or tarnishes the results but i'm sure my circadian rhythm is way off.


1:30 PM (Awaken) - 0.59 mcg/dL
7:00 PM - .05 mcg/dL (error??? that's extremely low)
11:16 PM - .26 mcg/dL
3:20 AM (Bed) - .20 mc/dL

Here are the ranges provided by Quest:

Reference Range:

 8-10 AM: 0.04-0.56
 4-6 PM: < OR = 0.15
 10-11 PM: < OR = 0.09
So, upon rising I'm slightly high. My second reading is extremely low, not sure what to think about that (how much room for error is there in saliva testing?). And then my next two are absolutely too high.

From what I've read this is indicative of the beginning stages of adrenal fatigue (too high cortisol due to chronic stress), which honestly confuses me a bit because my symptoms time frame is way off from that idea. My problems started like 7 years ago and peaked around 5 years ago.

Since these results took so long to come in I got ancy and ordered and have been taking the following for adrenal fatigue:


Collagen Types 1&2 - 6g/day
Pregnenolone - 25mg/day
Milk Thistle - 150mg/day
Licorice Root (Non DGL) - 1-2g/day

Can't say if it's really helping or not. The licorice root definitely makes me feel strange, though it may be ending up slightly in the green. Although Licorice Root is supposed to prolong plasma cortisol levels so maybe that's not something I really want. I'll drop it if it starts to bother me.

So that's that!

Thoughts?


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## johnc1013

thats very interesting. i had decided to try the same thing but i'm thinking i'll wait until i get my cortisol tests back. i don't know if this is any help but i saw a video where the dr. said he didn't rely exclusively on cortisol tests. he relied more on symptoms and he started you out on low dose cortisol just to see how you react - just like you did. in his words there's no harm at all in trying this. He said if you react positively as you have done then you definitely had adrenal fatigue. After seeing this and reading and hearing repeatedly that you should fix adrenals first then realizing the only cortisol i could get without a prescription was the 1% cream. i got some but i may wait to try your experiment until get a cortisol test done since I've learned that will skew the results. If i find that video again i'll post it here. I did find this article though about low dose cortisol protocol.

http://www.health-matrix.net/2013/06/24/heal-your-adrenals-with-this-easy-program/

Oh another thing the dr in the video said was the cortisol sometimes can be discontinued after a while as its no longer needed however in this dr's own case he has stayed on it. Probably depends on age somewhat. as i recall he also said that the cortisol is the feel good hormone while the adrenalin is the feel bad hormone. maybe thats oversimplified. but he said when you can't make enough cortisol you'll make adrenalin instead and thats what makes you jumpy. (maybe a more experienced poster will chime in on that)

finally since you're an experimenter i'll mention an experiment i did with garlic and ginger. assuming i might have gut bacteria problems since adrenalin can make the bacteria grow 10000 times faster in vitro i decided to work on my gut health. I've also heard good gut health can help in the conversion of t4 to t3. (i got all of this from watching videos on youtube) i use garlic and ginger a lot when i cook but this time i ate a big handful of first raw garlic then raw ginger. after doing this i felt almost euphoric but it took about 10 to 15 minutes. the first 5 minutes i am drooling over the sink because its so hot and then when it hits the stomach i almost barfed. but after that's over i'd say much increased well being. also it seemed to get my high BP down back to normal. I'll do a separate post on this later if this continues to work and it hasn't fixed everything but i think it may be killing off bad bacteria. it's not worth doing this if it doesn't make you feel really good because it is really hot. made my nose run, eyes water, drool and nearly barfed. it's gotta be raw though. i had no idea how hot this stuff was until i ate it raw... cooked is nothing compared to raw. after about an 30 minutes to an hour i consume probiotics. so far this has been worth the pain because it's taken me from feeling very poorly with high bp and racing heart to normal bp and pulse and feeling somewhat euphoric.


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## hydrangealucy

Hello! I was searching through the forum for information on treating adrenal fatigue and I'm glad I found you! I'm very curious to see how you've been making out. After a 24 hour saliva cortisol test, it was determined that my cortisol levels are low all day long. (In addition, I have hypothyroidism.) So, since April, my dr has had me on pregnenolone and dhea in the morning, along with dessicated adrenal supplement, and licorice root between meals. I had an allergic reaction to the dessicated adrenal, so I had to stop taking that. I also recently had to stop the dhea because of some side effects believed to be caused by too much testosterone. I am taking vitamin D and B12 as well. So we are kind of playing around to see what is the exact cocktail that will work for me. My Dr now wants me to try hydrocortisone (starting at a low dose of 5 mg) to see if it will help. I'm a little leary of taking hydrocortisone since it is synthetic. I'm wondering if you've continued to use it, and also if you'd considered dessicated adrenal supplements. If not, why not?

Thanks so much in advance for any advice you can offer! I'm so tired of feeling crappy! -_-


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## jenny v

*hydrangealucy,* I would look into a group on Facebook called FTPO-For Thyroid Patients Only (Adrenals). It's a group on Facebook that is part of the Stop the Thyroid Madness site and they are adrenal experts! I'm still figuring out my adrenal issues so I hesitate to make any recommendations, but this group has helped me a lot. I think 5 mg of hydrocortisone is a very low starting dose and might cause even more issues, but the ladies at FTPO would know better.

Also, is your doc checking your Reverse T3 levels? If those are high, it means your adrenal issues are preventing the thyroid meds from making it into your cells.


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## hydrangealucy

Hi Jenny V! Thank you so much for taking the time to reply! That's a good idea to check that FB group.... I'm actually already a member, but hadn't thought to go that route! I will check and see if anyone there can help.

My dr has been checking my Reverse T3 and it's been running on the low side ( I think), and he's never suggested that it was an issue. Here are my labs since I've been on Naturethroid, from March til now.

Thanks again for your help! 

10/30/2014 7:06:00 AM

8 ng/dL

(Ref Range 8-25)

09/08/2014 6:41:00 AM

11 ng/dL 8-25

05/07/2014 7:17:00 AM

13 ng/dL

8-25

03/04/2014 7:29:00 AM

11 ng/dL 8-25


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## AlmostEasy

Howdy hydrangealucy!

I've not continued with the hydrocortisone actually. I was trying all those supplements for adrenal fatigue (as well as dessicated adrenal) and I found that they weren't really helping in the way that I had hoped they would. This also coincides with the information that my cortisol is in fact HIGH so that may indicate... I don't know? That was on a day where I wasn't stressed at all. Perhaps the beginning of adrenal fatigue or something, perhaps a thyroid problem as my basal body temperature is way out of whack.

Because of how narrow minded my doctor was I sort of decided to go another route for my cognition issues. I've finally decided to say goodbye to my current one and I couldn't be happier that I did. NEVER stick with a doctor that doesn't respect what you're telling them, when you've obviously educated yourself. My doctor looked down on me like a little kid playing doctor on the internet. Little does she know a lot of the information that I discovered is light years ahead of the information she's working with. I found a doctor that was right up to speed with me and I haven't been this excited about my recovery since I found out I had a problem.

I'll be trying Armour thyroid meds as I may have Wilson's Temperature Syndrome. Once I try that and give it enough time to draw a conclusion I'll post back.

But on your situation if your levels are low definitely keep on with the supplements. Definitely careful with the DHEA though it's not recommended to mess with that unless your blood test shows low levels. That's very irresponsible IMO to suggest it without one. If you haven't check out "Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome" by Jonathan V. Wright. There's a section on Hydrocortisone that you would definitely benefit from reading, as well as everything in it really, it's really the holy grail of AF information. Basically it says up to 20 mg is fine to take daily but you'll want to wean off of it ASAP and it has ranges of time in which you can expect to be on it, I can't remember off the top of my head but I think the MAX was like 1 year? Usually much less. And weaning off is very important as well.

Good luck!


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