Addison's Disease

Addison’s is a rare autoimmune condition when your adrenal glands stop producing hormones, specifically cortisol and aldosterone. These hormones support a lot of bodily functions including regulating your body's response to stress, energy levels, blood pressure and levels of sodium in the blood. I treat my Addison’s by taking steroids 3 times a day, every day and without steroid replacement therapy I cannot function.

At the time of diagnosis, I was in a state of adrenal crisis with some of the symptoms I
experienced extreme fatigue, loss of consciousness, nausea and vomiting, salt cravings and hyperpigmentation of my skin. An adrenal crisis is a life-threatening condition if left untreated and living with Addison’s disease requires ongoing management and proactive steps to stay well and out of adrenal crisis. For example, if I am exposed to a virus or get the common cold I have to increase my steroid medications to avoid going into an adrenal crisis. For a person with a functioning adrenal gland, their body would naturally produce more cortisol to deal with the physical stress of contracting a virus or illness.

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