Recovering from Burnout - Part 2
High Cortisol vs. Low Cortisol
In very (VERY) simplistic terms, there are 2 stages of chronic stress: the high cortisol phase and the low cortisol phase.
In less simplistic terms, our body’s cortisol levels fluctuate on an hourly basis, and how your body handles cortisol and how much it can produce all affect your stress symptoms.
There’s enough detail and nuance in life already, so for this masterclass and your recovery from burnout, I’m going to keep this as simple as possible.
First, let’s look at what the adrenals do in the body.
Every day your adrenal glands:
Change your blood pressure, raising it when you stand up, lowering it when you lay down
Turn off insulin after a meal, to ensure you have the right amount to get that glucose into your cells
Raise and lower cholesterol, depending on the threat/stress in your environment (cholesterol helps a wound clot faster if you’re injured while running away from a predator)
When your stress is high and your adrenals are pumping out tons of cortisol and adrenaline, your blood pressure, insulin, and cholesterol tends to be high. But, after years or decades of stress, your adrenals can get really tired and these three plummet.
How do you know which phase you’re in? Let’s look at the symptoms.
Symptoms of High Cortisol
Your stressed-out response creates high cortisol levels in our body and high cortisol symptoms are also very classic symptoms of stress.
Symptoms like;
Feeling high-strung or unable to relax
Anxiety
Trouble sleeping, your mind won’t stop spinning
No appetite or can’t stop eating (everyone is a bit unique with this one)
Weight gain, usually around the belly
Fertility and hormonal issues (specifically low progesterone or testosterone)
Indigestion - bloating, gas, gastritis (super painful acid reflux)
Possibly Metabolic Syndrome (a combo of high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and high cortisol)
Symptoms of Low Cortisol
You may feel the high cortisol symptoms for months or even years…and then one day, poof, your energy is gone. These are usually much more debilitating symptoms and your normal work/family commitments may feel impossible.
Here are some common symptoms of low cortisol:
Low blood pressure, especially if you feel dizzy when you stand-up quickly
It takes 30 mins or more to feel awake in the morning (might be hours)
Feeling foggy, trouble concentrating
Depression…especially if you’re usually anxious
Anxiety…especially if depression is your norm
Caffeine doesn’t give you the boost it used to
Unstable blood sugar - feeling a blood sugar crash even after a very healthy meal
Salt cravings
You’re feeling capital-T TIRED
If you’re not sure where your cortisol levels are right now (you may feel symptoms from both lists) you can have your cortisol levels tested. Message me if you'd like more info. This test will test your cortisol levels throughout the day, so you’ll see exactly what’s going on.
Some Skip The High Cortisol Phase
There’s a group of you who might be thinking, “hey! I didn’t get my high cortisol phase? I went straight to burnout!”. Or, you might be thinking your high cortisol phase was teeny tiny.
I’ve noticed that there’s a group of people with what I assume is a genetic quirk (because it seems to run in families), who go straight to low cortisol symptoms early in times of stress.
Other symptoms that go along with this quirk are:
- chronic low blood pressure
- chronic salt cravings (generally were mega salt lovers as children)
- lots of anxiety (also, beginning as children)
I’ve yet to see any study that looks at those of you that live with these symptoms, but I have a theory about what might be going on. Simply put – I think you were born with adrenal glands that are a little weaker than average. They still work, you can absolutely recovery, but you’re more sensitive to chronic stress than the average person.
This means that your body systems that rely on cortisol and other adrenal hormones may need a bit more tending.
Recently I met with a woman who fits into this category perfectly, she has all of the symptoms of low cortisol and has all of the chronic symptoms. Plus, she recently had a DUTCH test, which is one of the best tests for cortisol and hormones.
Surprisingly, her cortisol level was perfectly in range all day long…but she was EXHAUSTED. For her, her symptoms may be due to her cells not tolerating cortisol well (aka cortisol resistance). The cortisol isn’t getting into her cells, keeping her tired.
While I’ve worked with many people with these symptoms, she’s the first one who has had her cortisol properly tested, so I don’t know if she’s an anomaly or if cortisol resistance is common in this group.
Happily, there’s a lot we can do while we learn more about this group of symptoms. If you feel like you might fit into this category, follow the food and lifestyle recommendations in Part 4 and you’ll be feeling better soon :).
Got any questions or comments? Comment below, jump to our private Facebook Group, or the Ask Lisa page :)