Happy April Fool’s Day! Today can be full of (un)expected pranks so I thought it would be fitting to explore how our own body can fool us.
Cortisol is a steroid hormone released from the adrenal gland. It is a response to long-term stress; meaning, cortisol levels start to lose their ability to self-regulate when the body is exposed to a stressful trigger for a prolonged period of time.
Keep in mind that stress not need only be physical. Mental and emotional stress can spark physiological changes in the body too. This is especially important for patients who deny stress in their lives. Perhaps this is in an effort to show me how resilient and strong you are. I respect that but the adrenal glands do not change the way that you work because you are more resilient. Ironically, I find that the more resilient the patient, the most important it becomes to check for adrenal health because they tend to push themselves to the limit more.
The outer part of the adrenal gland (aka adrenal cortex) starts releasing cortisol at the first signs of stress but the central region of the adrenal gland (aka adrenal medulla) also produces and releases adrenaline and noradrenaline, which are both a hormone and neurotransmitter. This means they work faster than cortisol to initiate physiological changes in the body to respond to stress in order to help you survive.
[Adrenaline and noradrenaline are also referred to as epinephrine and norepinephrine. The former is the language often used in US-based sources whereas the latter is the language often used by UK-based literature.]
Current demands of society expect a lot of us all the time – more so than even a decade ago. It is more difficult to take the time to destress and relax. Instead of taking time to rest, we find ways to push ourselves to the limit. Cue in sources of stress that we do not often recognize until they present as symptoms over time that it becomes difficult to pinpoint they came from stress. For example, difficulty falling asleep, waking up in the middle of the night without cause, irritability, overwhelm, brain fog, and food cravings.
What I do in practice is check for cortisol levels because they cannot fool you. In more severe cases, I also check for catecholamine levels and explore whether or not they are metabolizing well (more on this later).
While we cannot anticipate every possible prank that our family, friends, and maybe even coworkers can play on us today, self-awareness is the first step to recognize if our own body is playing a prank on us. Take the time to tune into what your body may be telling you.
May you be more on the delivery side of pranks delivered today rather than on the receiving end.