What is Addison's anyway?

So what is Addison’s Disease?
Honestly, I’m still confused about what the whole thing is. I know it has to do with the adrenal glands and that they believe that author Jane Austen died from it. Phoebe and Jane! (JFK had it too and they also believe Osama Bin Laden has it.)

From the Mayo Clinic web site:
Addison's disease is a disorder that results in your body producing insufficient amounts of certain hormones produced by your adrenal glands.

Your adrenal glands are located just above each of your two kidneys. These glands are part of your endocrine system, and they produce hormones that give instructions to virtually every organ and tissue in your body.

In Addison's disease, your adrenal glands produce too little cortisol, which is one of the hormones in a group called the glucocorticoids. Sometimes, Addison's disease also involves insufficient production of aldosterone, one of the mineralocorticoid hormones. Addison's disease can be life-threatening.

Also called adrenal insufficiency or hypocortisolism.

From this web site:
http://www.vetinfo.com/dencyclopedia/deaddisons.html

Most dogs with Addison's disease initially have gastrointestinal disturbances like vomiting. Lethargy it also a common early sign. Poor appetite can occur as well. These are pretty vague signs and it is extremely easy to miss this disease. More severe signs occur when a dog with hypoadrenocorticism is stressed or when potassium levels get high enough to interfere with heart function. Dogs with this problem will sometimes suffer severe shock symptoms when stressed, which can lead to a rapid death. When potassium levels get high heart arrhythmias occur or even heart stoppage which also is fatal. In some cases, especially secondary Addison's disease, there are no detectable electrolyte changes.

SYMPTOMS
Vomiting
Diarrhea
Lethargy
Depression
Lack of appetite
Tremors or shaking
Muscle weakness
Pain in hind quarters

Phoebe had ALL of these symptoms.

:o(

The whole stress thing makes me very, well: STRESSED!

When Phoebe was still in the hospital the vet had told me how if I knew there was going to be times when she would be under added stress, that I should give her some extra prednisone. So far there hasn’t been any added stress. She did well at Petco groomers a few weeks ago, which I was a little nervous about, but Phoebe is such a trouper, she did just fine. :o)