High vs. Low Cortisol

Are you a ‘but coffee first’ type of person?

Exhausted but can’t sleep at night?

Are you anxious during the day and have racing thoughts at night?

You may be struggling with a disrupted Cortisol curve.

Cortisol gets a bad rep as most people have chronically high levels of Cortisol all day.

We need some level of Cortisol for motivation and drive. However, problems arise when it becomes unusually high at the wrong time. Or unusually low at the wrong time of day. 

Ideally we want our cortisol to rise first thing in the morning so we can get out of bed and get going with our day.

And as we approach the evening, we want this spike to slowly lower back down, so melatonin can rise and put us to sleep.

Today’s fast paced, over-stimulated environment, excessive electronic use, poor sleep, caffeine and working all hours of the day can disrupt this Cortisol curve. 

Which more importantly affects our ability to (want to) eat well and sleep well. Both of which, if we aren’t doing, will add excess fat to our midsection.

Signs of High Cortisol:

• High Morning Cortisol – Waking up in a panic or anxious. Waking up at 4/5am and not being able to go back to sleep.
• High Afternoon Cortisol – Running through your day and not feeling hungry / low appetite. Slow digestion.
• High Evening Cortisol – Feeling tired but wired at night. Active mind / Thinking a lot. Disrupted sleep / Night Owl.

Signs of Low Cortisol:

• Low Morning Cortisol – Hard to get up and going in the morning.
• Low Afternoon Cortisol – Unable to focus or concentrate. Drowsy in the afternoon. Mid day crash or needing a nap.
• Low Evening Cortisol – Tired but restless. Trouble falling asleep. Toss and turn all night.

Do you struggle with a disrupted Cortisol curve?

Most of us struggle with High Cortisol. Which can wreak havoc on our digestion. It puts our nervous system in a state of ‘flight or fight’ making it harder to break down the foods we eat. This can result in weight gain, especially around the midsection.

Regulating Cortisol for you, is one of the best ways to drop body fat in your midsection.