Chatting about some of the long-term impacts of stress and how it can lead to hormone issues down the line.
Hi friends! How are you? I hope you’re having an amazing day so far! I’m taking an F45 strength class and have calls lined up the rest of the day.
For today’s post, I wanted to chat a little bit about stress. I talk with clients every day, and this is a huge theme. We’re all stressed. It can be emotional, physical, or environmental stressors, and the results compound over time. When stress becomes chronic, it can unfortunately wreak havoc on the body, affecting things like our digestion, immune system, glucose tolerance, sleep, and hormones.
Today, I wanted to focus specifically on hormonal imbalances caused by stress, and what you can do about it. Please keep in mind that as always, this post is not medical advice. Talk to your doctor about personalized recs for you and get the help and support you need. If you’re ever curious about functional lab testing to see how stress is affecting your body’s balance, email me gina@fitnessista.com subject TEST.
How Stress Can Cause Hormonal Imbalance
When we’re stressed, our body releases cortisol, which is known as the stress hormone. When it’s in small amounts, cortisol can be helpful. It gives us energy and adrenaline to deal with the task at hand. When the stressors are chronic, our body is flooded with excess cortisol, and it eventually stops responding as well. High cortisol eventually leads to low cortisol, which gives us that apathetic, fatigued, and worn down feeling.
Cortisol can also interfere with the production of sex hormones, like estrogen, progesterone, DHEA, and testosterone. Ample hormones are crucial for our menstrual cycles and reproductive health. High levels of stress can also impact thyroid function, which plays a huge role in metabolism and energy.
When cortisol is high, it can lead to mood swings, weight gain, and mental health struggles. The adrenal glands, which produce cortisol, become overworked, which can lead to adrenal fatigue. This is also called adrenal insufficiency, where the body isn’t reponding to cortisol the same way it used to.
This ongoing imbalance can contribute to a range of symptoms, from irregular menstrual cycles and fertility issues to fatigue, anxiety, and depression.
Here are some of the things we can do about it:
How To Manage Stress Induced Hormonal Imbalance
Stress management is one of the hardest, but one of the BEST things we can do for our health.
Here are some of my favorite strategies:
1. Adopt a Regular Exercise Routine
Stress can be an incredible way to reduce stress, but it’s important to remember that exercise can be an extra stressor the body, particularly if it’s especially long and intense. General movement can help lower cortisol levels, increases endorphin production (your body’s natural mood boosters), and is obviously a good thing for overall health. I’m sure many of my reader friends are already active, but this is just a reminder to stick with movement and keep exercise a part of your routine. Just make sure to alternate intensities and include at least 1-2 days of rest each week.
2. Practice Meditation and Mindfulness
The impact of meditation and mindfulness stratgies is profound. The help to decrease cortisol levels and can make a huge difference in mood, productivity, focus, digestion, and sleep. Meditation can also help with insulin sensitivity!
It doesn’t have to be a formal meditation session. Instead, you can do things that help you feel at peace, like working on a puzzle, reading a book, chatting and strolling with a friend, or staring at a blank wall in silence. The key is to take the Zen feeling that you have during these times and translate it to the chaos of the rest of the day. It’s easy to feel peaceful while you’re meditation, but how do you feel the rest of the day?
3. Maintain a Healthy Diet
The foods we eat can affect our hormone balance. For example, a lot of women create adequates amount of estrogen, but aren’t able to detox it properly, which can lead to estrogen dominance symptoms. You want to make sure you’re getting in lots of leafy green veggies, broccoli, aspagus, artichoke, and healthy fats. Highly processed foods, sugar, and caffience can also affect our body’s stress response and our hormone levels. I like to get protein and plants in every meal, with lots of healthy fats, too.
Blood sugar balance also makes a huge difference. Make sure to have a protein, carb, and healthy fat in each meal and snack, try walking or easy exercise after carb-heavy meals, and I also like to eat my starches and desserts LAST so the protein and fiber can blunt the glucose spike.
4. Prioritize Sleep
Quality sleep is essential for hormone regulation. When you’re under extreme amounts of stress (and chronic, everyday stress), sleep can be one of the first things to suffer, which increases cortisol levels. Aim for 7-9 hours each night. If you need help getting better sleep, email me about working together — sleep troubleshooting is one of my favorite things because sleep is one of my favorite things!!
5. Stay Connected and Seek Support
I think there’s enormous value in real-life, face-to-face connections and support. Surround yourself with friends and family members who lift you UP and don’t constantly drain your energy and joy. Talking about stress can help alleviate it, and the power in knowing that you’re not alone. If you feel overwhelmed, seek out the support of a therapist or counselor.
6. Incorporate Stress-Relief Techniques Into Your Routine
Just like the mindfulness component, incorporate activities every day that bring you JOY, like a hobby, time in nature, crocheting, reading, etc. Even when the entire day feels like a huge chaotic scramble, it’s worth it, even for five minutes.
A friendly reminder that managing stress isn’t just about reducing it in the moment, but creating long-term habits that impact your overall wellbeing and happiness.
If you’re struggling with stress or suspect you might be dealing with a hormone imbalance, check out this post on how to fight stress. It’s an old post but I still agree with these tips! 🙂
So tell me, friends: what are some of your daily stress reduction habits?
Xoxo
