Fatigue is so common these days. We are exposed to a modern, fast-paced world 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you feel like you can’t seem to get away from the ‘busyness’, you’re not alone. I am sure that we all know what fatigue feels like – a persistent feeling of tiredness, lack of energy, or an overall sense of lethargy.
Fatigue can significantly impact daily life, and while occasional fatigue is normal, persistent or chronic fatigue may indicate underlying imbalances or mineral deficiencies in the body. To alleviate fatigue, many people turn to quick fixes like sugary snacks, caffeine or energy drinks, but these quick fixes will only provide temporary relief without addressing the underlying causes.
In this article, we’ll explore fatigue through the lens of the Root Cause Protocol (RCP), a holistic approach that seeks to identify and address the root causes of various health issues, including fatigue. Central to the RCP is the understanding that many health problems stem from mineral deficiencies and imbalances, including fatigue.
Minerals play a crucial role in various physiological processes in the body, including energy production, enzyme function, and hormone regulation. The Root Cause Protocol focuses on three key minerals: magnesium, iron, and copper. These minerals are impacted by stress, and when our minerals are out of balance, our bodies don’t have the building blocks needed to create energy. If we’re lacking energy, we feel fatigued. So here’s what it looks like in simple terms:
Stress + mineral loss = fatigue
Types of stress
By addressing stressors and supporting the body’s mineral needs through the RCP, you can work towards restoring balance and optimal well-being. But it’s important to know that there are various types of stress.
Nutritional Stress
When the body lacks (or has too much of) a particular nutrient, or is exposed to harmful substances through diet. Poor dietary choices, chemicals on our food, synthetic nutrients, and processed foods can disrupt mineral balance and compromise health.
Physical Stress: the strain placed on the body e.g. strenuous exercise, over-extending ourselves, working long hours, injury, pushing through when tired, illness, chronic pain. Physical stress can affect mineral metabolism, even if we don’t consider ourselves to be athletes.
Psychological Stress
Mental or emotional strain resulting from factors such as work pressure, relationship issues, financial worries, or traumatic experiences. Psychological stress can trigger physiological responses in the body, including the release of stress hormones like cortisol, which contributes to health problems.
Environmental Stress
Examples include pollution, toxins, electromagnetic radiation, mould and noise. Exposure to environmental stressors can create oxidative stress and inflammation in the body.
What’s happening inside the body?
When we experience stress, our body releases hormones to keep us safe because our body is programmed to ‘survive’. Historically, this programming kept us safe from things like wild animals or fighting between tribes. Even though these days the threats aren’t nearly as life-and-death, the programming continues to run, and these modern-day stressors cause our bodies to release stress hormones.
You might have heard of fight, flight or freeze mode – which is essentially our bodies trying to keep us safe. The body can’t tell the difference between being chased by a bear and a stressful day at work. The bodily response is still the same. When this ‘safety’ programming kicks in, we lose magnesium.
Magnesium is needed for your heart to beat (kind of important 😉), your brain function and your metabolism. In fact, there are thousands of metabolic processes that depend upon magnesium. Magnesium is critical for us to make energy in the little energy factories inside our cells (mitochondria), and energy is what we want, right? Not fatigue! (For more on magnesium, click here)
We also lose (bioavailable) copper when our body responds to stress, especially ongoing stress – like our busy lifestyles. Bioavailable copper is needed for digestion, natural antihistamines, enzymes and a whole host of hundreds, if not thousands, of processes that help the body to function. That means if these processes don’t happen, the body doesn’t work properly!
So here we are, experiencing ongoing stress regularly, yet our bodies were never designed for this 24/7 stress. It’s no wonder most of us aren’t coping so well!
Sustained stress + loss of minerals = fatigue
So, what can we do?
Well, in short, something you can do is to implement the Root Cause Protocol.
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- Start taking adrenal cocktails each day and be mindful of how you spend your time.
- Consider your diet, lifestyle, supplementation, and stress management. For example, you might need to take a break from your intense routine, or perhaps introduce a limit on screen/device time.
- Do what you can to ensure you get good quality sleep and enough sleep.
- You might also find the Supporting Balance Health Club useful to address the underlying root causes of fatigue, rather than just masking symptoms.
We want you to reclaim your energy and vitality for a healthier, more vibrant life and our team of Supporting Balance Consultants can help highlight specific steps that would be ideal for you and your unique circumstances.
If you’d like to learn more about fatigue, we recorded a live and informative webinar that you can access at your convenience – click here for the free webinar on fatigue. Fatigue is also one of the many topics we explore inside the Health Club, our online membership that anyone can join. We host live Q&As, we share resources, and we are here to guide you along your journey to better health.
Come and check it out! We’d love to support you.
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We are here to guide you on your journey to better health and we’d love to support you with your next steps.
If you’d like to learn more about ways to improve health naturally (which absolutely includes food), we’d love to share some more info with you. We regularly host online presentations on healthy food and health related topics. You can see our upcoming webinar or look through our webinar archive here.
If you need more personalised health and wellness guidance, our team of consultants are extremely knowledgeable and passionate about natural health. We can help you experience more energy, better sleep and reduce your health-condition-related symptoms. You can find out more here about consults we offer, and you can book a free consult advice call to discuss your options.