lowering cortisol with lifestyle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2fko_dbxs0

Interesting and simple video about cortisol, stress, and relation to blood sugar.

Per his info- Sleep activates growth hormone which deactivates cortisol. No sleep? > then high anxiety next morning.

(edit: prob good to test cortisol vs assuming)

I remember not to long ago it was said that grazing lightly all day was probably good for you. Problem is you always have elevated blood sugar then. Its hard for me not to graze as I get really hungry unless Im digesting something, ill try this and test my sugar levels.

Post Edited (astroman) : 2/11/2019 8:58:41 AM (GMT-7)

He does have some vids that seem a little to promising, but this one is pretty simple and just part of the anxiety/cortisol/blood glucose equation. Many lymies have anxiety, and lack of sleep. And I'd guess many of those have glucose issues but seldom test it.

The key to taking any video (or written blog) seriously is to understand it, research it, and then see how it fits in your health "puzzle". Sleep does affect cortisol, and vice versa, its a viscous circle.

There is not one online Dr who is 100% correct with their information, as there are too many scenarios with individuals.

Look at all the weight loss techniques and diets. They clearly work different for different people. I see repeat fat people in the gym every time and many work out harder than I do. Clearly exercise is not the answer for these people, but something else is definitely not right in/with their bodies.

Another example is how many "thyroid experts" there are online. Many have misleading information. Only a few actually get it.

I find it hard to take half the "lyme experts" seriously. Killing critters is not necessarily the end game. Supporting the individual body systems is just as important.

Ive always preferred "grazing" since my meals can be smaller then, and I dont like big meals. Ive never felt good with an empty stomach, but I give it a shot and test my glucose for a week or two (If I last that long).

astroman said...
Sleep activates growth hormone which deactivates cortisol. No sleep? > then high anxiety next morning.

Don't take this too seriously. Lowering cortisol too much will cause a compensatory increase in adrenaline, which will make your sleep problems worse.

Also, this can happen:
https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=30&m=4105378

Taking huge doses of vitamin D will lower cortisol in the same way as rifampin, by inducing cytochrome P450 enzymes. Not a good idea.

Hey astroman -

I've had this long time issue where I would need to eat before bed otherwise I'd wake up in the middle of the night sort of stressed and hungry and have trouble falling back asleep.

Since starting to chelate mercury a few months ago this previously minor annoyance has become a major problem. The mercury people are constantly going on about their adrenals so I finally looked into this adrenal fatigue thing and the relationship to cortisol levels.

Looking back at when I was treating Lyme, I was definitely taxing my adrenals then - I would crave chocolate, and need to take adaptogens like maca and rhodiola to get through the day. I'd also have this crushing fatigue at times.

I've found chelating mercury to be way harder on my adrenals then even Lyme herxes and my old crutches helped a bit but were ultimately insufficient.

I finally bit the bullet and started taking hydrocortisone to raise my cortisol levels and to try to take some of the load off my adrenals and give them a break. Since starting this I've slept incredibly well and even when I've had crushing mid afternoon tiredness, 5 mg of hydrocortisone and it completely lifts.

This is while doing a really heavy mercury chelation round that previously would have left me sleeping 4 hrs a week. I even jumped on my bike and did a decent ride today which I have struggled to do recently due to general tiredness from the chelation.

I'm now a total believer in the whole adrenal fatigue thing - especially when already semi-weak adrenals are being taxed a heavy treatment that causes a lot of stress. This can cause low cortisol in some people which according to this guy can be safely supplemented:

https://www.amazon.com/safe-uses-cortisol-william-jefferies/dp/0398075018

"If your cortisol drops too low during the night your blood sugar drops too. Your body compensate by releasing adrenaline as an emergency measure to mobilize more sugar. This has the effect of waking you in an instant. This can be reduced by eating high protein snack before retiring e.g. sardines, nuts of high quality protein shake."

https://www.livingnetwork.co.za/lifestylefunctional-medicine/hormones/adrenal-fatigue/