Adrenal Insufficiency: Causes, Symptoms, and Medications That Help

When your adrenal insufficiency, a condition where the adrenal glands don’t produce enough steroid hormones like cortisol and aldosterone. Also known as Addison's disease, it can leave you exhausted, dizzy, and dangerously low on energy—even after a full night’s sleep. This isn’t just feeling tired. Your body needs these hormones to handle stress, regulate blood pressure, balance salt and water, and keep your metabolism running. Without them, even a minor infection or skipped meal can trigger an adrenal crisis, a life-threatening drop in blood pressure and electrolytes that demands immediate treatment.

Most people with adrenal insufficiency need daily corticosteroids, synthetic hormones that replace what the body can’t make. The most common is hydrocortisone, which mimics natural cortisol. Some take it in divided doses—morning and afternoon—to match your body’s natural rhythm. Others need fludrocortisone too, to help hold onto sodium and keep blood pressure stable. It’s not a cure, but it’s a lifeline. Skip a dose, get sick, or get into a car accident? Your body can’t respond. That’s why carrying an emergency injection of hydrocortisone isn’t optional—it’s mandatory.

Many of the posts here cover how medications interact with your body in real life. You’ll find advice on how to manage side effects from long-term steroid use, how to adjust doses during illness, and what to do if you’re on other drugs that might interfere. There’s also guidance on recognizing early warning signs—like unexplained weight loss, darkening skin, or cravings for salt—before things get critical. You’ll see how people balance these meds with other conditions, from high blood pressure to diabetes. And you’ll learn what happens when treatment fails or isn’t taken right.

This isn’t theoretical. People with adrenal insufficiency live with this every day. They know when to call their doctor and when to head straight to the ER. The articles below give you the real-world tools to do the same—whether you’re newly diagnosed, caring for someone who is, or just trying to understand why a simple cold can turn dangerous for some.