Cortisol
Stress can make me sick?
It turns out the "fight or flight" response that once helped protect our early ancestors in times of peril is now turning against us and running us ragged. Cortisol helps to prepare the body for potentially life-threatening situations. Unfortunately, many women live stressful lives and these daily stressors often trigger the release of cortisol. Are you sluggish during the day and restless at night? Are you depressed or anxious and don't know why? If so, a cortisol imbalance may be to blame.
Cortisol in women
Cortisol is a hormone produced by the adrenal glands, which sit atop the kidneys. The hormone has earned the nickname "the stress hormone," because it's released as the body's natural response to stress. Cortisol can be helpful in the short term, but chronic stress can cause the adrenal glands to become overworked and often leads to a medical condition known as adrenal fatigue.
While stress affects women and men alike, women are more susceptible to the effects of chronic stress and cortisol imbalance. Women have a lot of roles to perform. As caretakers, nurturers, wives, mothers, and many times business professionals, juggling it all can become overwhelming. When you factor in the hormonal changes women face as they age, the combination can really get the cortisol pumping.
Symptoms of cortisol imbalance in women are similar to those typified by other hormonal imbalances such as perimenopause and menopause and often include the following:
- Fatigue
- Depression
- Weight gain
- Bone and muscle loss
- Foggy thinking
- Anxiety
- Irritability
Studies reveal that women who eat balanced meals and partake in physical activity 3-5 times a week, and who actively try to reduce stress levels, live longer, healthier lives. If the chronic stress persists, over time, the adrenal glands can become overworked, which can present a whole new set of problems. So it is important to find ways to control chronic stress and arrest elevated cortisol levels before adrenal fatigue has a chance to develop.
There may be times when this process cannot be arrested with diet and lifestyle changes alone. When a hormonal imbalance needs to be fully evaluated, LifeTime Health Center can help. Using diagnostic hormone testing to identify hormonal imbalances and a combination of natural bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT), we include customized nutrition and fitness programs to meet the needs of each patient. Testing is quick and easy and typically provides the solution you've been looking for to overcome chronic stress and symptoms of cortisol imbalance.