5 Signs of High Cortisol to NOT IGNORE | What Lowers Cortisol?

Cortisol is that steroid hormone that  is produced by your 2 adrenal glands,   which sit on top of each kidney. When  you are stressed, cortisol is released   into your bloodstream. But Having the right  cortisol balance is essential for your health,   and producing too much or too little cortisol  can cause health problems. In this video,   we will look at 5 signs of your body  having higher than average cortisol. So without further a do, real  quick before we get started,   hit the like button down below for the  YouTube algorithm, and lets get started.
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First off, Everyone has high cortisol from  time to time, and levels vary throughout   the day. It’s part of your body’s natural  response to threats of harm or danger. But,   if your body consistently makes too much cortisol,  thats when something could potentially be off.   Because its The adrenal glands that make the  hormone, but the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal   axis that controls how much your body releases.  ANd when it does get released, Most of the cells   in your body have cortisol receptors, to take in  the cortisol and do important tasks with it like:   control blood sugar, reduce inflammation, regulate  your metabolism, and can even help form memories.   ANd really the only way to validate if your  cortisol levels are in fact higher than normal,   is to get them checked, either with blood, urine  or saliva. And yes, its normal that it peaks in   the early morning and declines throughout the  day, reaching its lowest level around midnight.   Sometimes if you work a night shift and sleep at  different times of the day, this can change too,   but the normal levels, lets say from 6 a.m. to 8  a.m. are about 10 to 20 micrograms per deciliter,   and around 3 to 10 mcg/dL closer to 4 pm.  But there are some clues we can use to help   us determine if it is indeed high. Starting with  the first being Weight gain, especially in your   face and abdomen. This is known as the moon face.  Where the face becomes more round, full or puffy.   The sides of the face, you can see become so  round from the buildup of fat that the ears   can’t be seen from the front. Also you get the Fat  depositing over the sides of the skull which adds   to the face looking rounder. This is often but not  always tied back to cushings syndrome, which comes   with an array of its own symptoms, one hallmark is  the Pink or purple stretch marks on the stomach,   hips, thighs, breasts and underarms. The second  symptom is: Excessive hair growth in females,   otherwise known as hirsutism. Which affects about  10% of women in the US. Having chronically high   cortisol is not the only cause of hirsutism,  we know that conditions like PCOS, acromegaly,   and sometimes pregnancy can cause this to occur as  well. You may have even experienced it by trying   minoxidil which does go away once you stop.  The third symptom of high cortisol is whats   called the buffalo hump. This may be more of a  direct association with cushings syndrome though,   where you get the fat production that often  gets deposited in the neck, which is known as   lipodystrophy. Hopefully if you have experienced  this, you have already discussed with your   endocrinologist a plan to treat it by that stage. A fourth symptom of high cortisol is: just having   weak bones, which can lead to osteoporosis and  sometimes fractures. This is because Elevated   cortisol levels interfere with osteoblast  formation and decreases bone building,   which then reduces bone density. Basically, more  bone tissue is broken down than is deposited.
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And lastly, easy bruising. Now this isnt only  indicative of high cortisol. Chemotherapy,   blood thinners, and aging are also some examples  where bruising easily can occur. But the way in   which Cortisol causes it, is how it breaks down  some of the dermal proteins and how it weakens   the small blood vessels. In fact, sometimes the  skin may become so weak it develops this shiny,   paper-thin quality which allows it  to be torn easily too. This is an   issue because it increases the chances of skin  infections. Which is something we dont want.
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And remember, there can be more symptoms than just  these 5, a few others can be elevated blood sugar,   high blood pressure, and mood swings. Many  conditions share these similar symptoms,   which is why if you suspect any of these, its  important to discuss them with your primary   care doctor to find the right treatment plan that  is tailored for you and get a proper diagnosis. In the meantime, a few tips you  can take to help manage cortisol,   be it that you have been diagnosed with cushings  syndrome, adrenal gland tumor, on corticosteroids,   or lets say none of those, and you feel  like your cortisol is always elevated. Yes,   speak to your doctor, but also Start  by changing up some lifestyle measures   that you can start implementing  today like getting quality sleep,   which is in fact treating conditions like  sleep apnea or insomnia that affect this,   exercising regularly, combating stressful thinking  patterns, practicing deep breathing exercises,   and a current favorite of mine known as  shinrin yoku, which is forest bathing,   since we have some evidence that people who  practice forest bathing, “salivary cortisol levels   were significantly lower in the forest groups  compared with the urban groups.” and how “Overall,   forest bathing can significantly influence  cortisol levels on a short term in such a way” Also, if you are in the clear to try supplements  by your doctor, adaptogens can be a great starting   point. 2 of my favorites are Ashwagandha  which we talked about a lot on this channel,   studies show us that a “high-concentration  full-spectrum Ashwagandha root extract   safely and effectively improves an individual’s  resistance towards stress and thereby improves   self-assessed quality of life.” Secondly, rhodiola  rosea: which extracts shows us an “anti-fatigue   effect that increases mental performance,  particularly the ability to concentrate,   and decreases cortisol response to awakening  stress in burnout patients with fatigue syndrome.”   Both of which I link down below in  the description that you can check   out as well as videos discussing them in  more detail for you down there as well.
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Im more curious to hear from you guys though. what  are your thoughts? Let me in the comments below.   Also, hit that subscribe button too if you found  value in this, and ill see you on the next one.