How to Fix Adrenal Fatigue + Cortisol Dysfunction in Women

Do you feel like you’re constantly running on empty? Tired, wired, and stressed? You may be suffering from adrenal fatigue. Adrenal fatigue is a problem that is becoming more and more common in women, as stress hormones, like cortisol, run rampant throughout the body. Cortisol levels can become unbalanced, leading to the many symptoms of adrenal fatigue. Luckily, there are many holistic methods that can help balance cortisol levels and protect adrenal function. In this blog post, we will discuss what causes adrenal fatigue in women and how to fix it!

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What is Adrenal Fatigue?

Adrenal fatigue is the name for a collection of symptoms that occur as a result of dysfunction between your brain, adrenal glands, and stress hormones, like cortisol. When you encounter something stressful, your adrenal glands pump out hormones, like adrenaline and cortisol, that increase alertness, energy, and motivation (1). But when this stress response gets stuck in the ‘on’ position, like when you’re struggling with ongoing chronic stress, this is when adrenal fatigue begins to happen.

Adrenal fatigue, however, is less about the adrenals becoming ‘worn out’ and more about the body’s response to a constant stream of high cortisol.

Cortisol is a stress hormone that helps regulate many of the body’s systems, including metabolism, immunity, and blood pressure. When cortisol levels are too high or too low, it can lead to a variety of symptoms.

Symptoms of adrenal fatigue

The most common symptom of cortisol dysregulation is a “tired-but-wired” feeling. But what exactly does that mean? Many women with cortisol dysfunction feel groggy and fatigued during the day, and like they could fall asleep at 7 pm, but then find themselves unable to sleep at bedtime. This is despite feeling exhausted all day. Your body feels tired, but your brain keeps you awake.

Other symptoms of adrenal fatigue or cortisol dysfunction issues include:

Extreme fatigue
Unexplained weight loss/weight gain
Low blood pressure, even fainting
Cravings for salty foods
Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia)
Brain fog or difficulty concentrating
Abdominal pain
Muscle or joint pains
Irritability or anxiety
Depression or other behavioral symptoms

Other signs or symptoms of adrenal fatigue might be:

Fertility issues (early menopause)
Caffeine, sugar, or carbohydrate cravings
Frequent illness, poor immune health
Decreased sex drive or libido
Cravings for sweets

These symptoms can also happen as a result of Addison’s disease, a condition resulting in adrenal insufficiency when they don’t make enough cortisol.

The theory behind it

During any kind of stress—physical, mental, emotional—your adrenal glands release hormones to help you deal with it. Cortisol is one of those hormones. And in pre-modern times when this biological process developed, humans were facing stress in the form of things like natural disasters, predators, or similar. Basically, it was a short stressful event that would be over pretty quickly.

But today, our stress is chronic. It often doesn’t resolve quickly, it’s ongoing, and we’re not the greatest at dealing with it. So the adrenals sort of get stuck producing more and more cortisol because our brain keeps telling our body that we’re super stressed.

Watch: Do You Have MomFatigue?

Too much cortisol leads to desensitization

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After a while of this, researchers think that our cells become desensitized to all that cortisol—similar to the mechanisms that happen with insulin resistance and diabetes (1). The adrenal glands don’t actually stop producing cortisol, so the term “adrenal fatigue” doesn’t really tell the whole story about what’s going on. However, when the body becomes desensitized to cortisol, you can experience symptoms as if you weren’t making enough of it—or adrenal insufficiency (2).

We do need some cortisol, just not too much.

You’ve now moved into cortisol dysfunction territory. It’s a complex issue where your brain, pituitary gland, and your adrenals have their stress response mixed up (2). This can cause a domino effect, leading to hormonal imbalances and fatigue that can be difficult to treat.

The ultimate culprit? Stress—of ALL kinds.

What causes adrenal fatigue?

The biggest cause of adrenal fatigue is chronic stress, or not managing your current stress levels well. We all struggle with different kinds of stressful situations, and this includes:

Mental stress like money troubles, or high work demands
Emotional stress such as relationship problems, loss, or grief.
Physical stress like over-exercising, illness, or injury

Many people also don’t realize that things like a poor diet and not getting enough sleep also contribute heavily toward chronic stress levels.

Essentially, anything that puts your body into fight-or-flight mode increases cortisol production, and therefore contributes to adrenal fatigue over time.

Things that push your body into fight-or-flight include:

Nutritional deficiencies
Emotional, physical, or mental stress
Elevated blood sugar
Environmental toxins
Infections, such as SIBO or candida
Trauma
Chronic illness
Poor sleep
Isolation or loneliness

How to fix adrenal fatigue

Fixing adrenal fatigue, and protecting overall adrenal function relies on maintaining healthy cortisol levels. Some cortisol is ok—and actually healthy for you—but too much or too little cortisol has the potential to become a big problem.

Stress management is the first ,and most important, part of the puzzle to alleviate adrenal fatigue and support healthy cortisol levels.

Watch: How to Heal Adrenal Fatigue Naturally

Address your stress

Stress ramps cortisol production, so to fix this, it’s crucial to identify your biggest stressors and then implement strategies to bring cortisol levels back down after they’ve risen. Regular exercise helps burn off cortisol, as does meditation (3).

If there are avoidable stressors in your life, like toxic friendships or staying up late—fix them! If stressors are unavoidable, set (and stick to) your boundaries, and schedule in time for self-care in your planner or calendar. A commitment to yourself is a big step in the right direction.

Read: Quick Tips to Calm the Mind + Body

Don’t skip the fat

A huge mistake I see many patients making is skimping on important nutrients for adrenal health, like sufficient fats and protein. Healthy fats are the building blocks of hormones, and protein also helps support normal function in the adrenal glands. Plus, omega-3 fats like fish, flax, and oysters are anti-inflammatory which helps protect cells from the damaging effects of stress.

A good night’s sleep

If there’s one common problem among my patients who complain of chronic fatigue, brain fog, and other issues related to cortisol levels—it’s sleep. Ideally you should aim for more than 6 hours, and be asleep between the hours of 11 pm and 6 am. And the reality is there’s no quick fix pill you can take right before bed that will knock you out.

Getting a restful, complete night’s sleep depends on what you do during the day. Regular exercise, spending time outside, avoiding caffeine past 12 pm, and not scrolling social media in the evening isn’t the most exciting advice, but ask anyone who’s getting great sleep—and they probably feel pretty great following this advice!

Don’t skip meals

Intermittent fasting is great for weight loss and cellular health for some people, but if it’s not working for you, it might be a cortisol issue! If you have high stress levels already, skipping meals (even if it’s in the name of “healthy” fasting) isn’t a good idea. You might not feel it at the time, but your body runs off cortisol during times of fasting, because cortisol helps raise blood sugar when it gets too low.

If intermittent fasting is working for you—that’s great! But it takes time to train your metabolism to burn fat for fuel, instead of pumping cortisol to raise blood sugar. Work with your doctor or other qualified holistic provider to troubleshoot these issues.

Try adaptogens

I love these types of beneficial plants (and not just because I’ve included several of them in formulas on the East West Way!). Adaptogens do just as their name suggests—help you adapt! A few of my favorites are:

Magnolia bark and its unique flavonoids have been shown to support the production of serotonin, and calming neurotransmitter, GABA, which play a significant role in relaxation at the level of the brain (4,5).

You can find magnolia bark extract, along with magnesium and melatonin in Sleep Savior.

Rhodiola is an Ayurvedic herb known for its ability to support the body’s response to stress, health

y energy levels, and normal levels of cortisol. One study noted significant improvements in happiness, fatigue, and tension when supplementing with 400 mg daily over several weeks (6).

Tulsi, or Holy Basil is known as “The Queen of Herbs” for its many health benefits. The leaves of the Tulsi plant have anti-inflammatory properties, a wide range of antimicrobial properties, and have even been studied for their use against the effects of stress.

If you’re looking for an Ayurvedic herb that does it all, Tulsi is one of the best herbs for women.

Other ways to support adrenal function

Eat a balanced diet to support your adrenal glands, overall hormone balance, and cortisol levels. Emphasize plenty of quality proteins in naturally-raised poultry, fish, eggs, or meat, healthy fats from coconut, avocado, grass-fed dairy or ghee, and lots of nutrient-dense veggies, fruits, and greens.

Optimize nutrients to help your body and mind relax, such as magnesium. Modern women tend to be magnesium deficient, and this makes coping with stress and anxiety so much harder on your nervous system (7).

Exercise is a great way to burn off excess cortisol. In fact, studies show a decrease in reported stress in those who exercise just 20 minutes, three times per week (8). Don’t overdo it though, over-exercising places added stress on your body as well, so make sure you get proper recovery in between workouts.

And finally, relaxation techniques such as yoga, meditation, and deep breathing can help you manage stress levels—and keep cortisol in check. Research shows that just eight weeks of mindfulness meditation can help decrease stress hormones like cortisol (3). So if you’re feeling stressed, take a few minutes to yourself to relax and de-stress.

What to remember

If you’re feeling run down and like you can never catch up, it may be a sign that your adrenal glands are struggling. Don’t worry, there are things you can do to support healthy adrenal function and get your life back on track! We’ve outlined some of the best ways to promote healthy cortisol levels in the body, so give them a try and see how you feel. Remember, it takes time and patience to heal adrenal fatigue, but with these tips, you’re on your way!

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