Saliva Cortisol Test and Decision Making Skills

[cc120]

A study of 40 healthy females has found that cortisol levels in saliva are associated with a person’s ability to make good decisions in stressful situations. -

See more at: drlam.com/blog/saliva-corti...

[humanbean]

I have high cortisol. I believe it has been a problem for me throughout my life. A stressful experience of any kind leaves me trembling and shaking with a brain that seems about as much use as porridge, and it gets worse with age. I can't say I'm surprised that cortisol problems lead to poor decision-making. I go from being quite calm to being a wreck in what feels like a split second sometimes.

[cc120 in reply to humanbean]

Hi humanbean, yes I certainly experience those problems, trying to learn stategies and techniques to keep calm/calm down.

To help with adrenals/stress, reallyfedup123 suggests: a good multi vitamin before bed plus at least 1000mg VIT C and Liquorice root tincture (available from G Baldwins Herbal Suppliers)'

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

Also at moodcure.com/correcting_cor... suggests: a cortisol-regulating nutrient called phosphorylated serine (brand name Seriphos, and also a quicker-acting supplement called hydrolyzed casein or lactium (e.g., De-Stress by Biotics or "Womens Anti Stress Formula" by Swansons) has calming effects on the brain.

Also at en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Demys... - explains how adrenaline and cortisol work together:

'Just as your levels of adrenaline start coming down, so rises the amount of cortisol flowing through your veins. Moreover, cortisol has a much larger momentum than adrenaline, which means that even though it builds up slowly, it also takes a long time to go back to normal. And should you constantly be engaging in activities which require adrenaline, so will your levels of cortisol slowly increase.'

I have been taking Seriphos for a couple of months. I found that though it helped me to sleep deeper, it could also cause a slump in energy the next day (or was it just that I was extra relaxed due to a long, deep sleep?). I believe my cortisol levels are low during the day but high in the evening and night. So now I take half a capsule a day.

[cc120 in reply to cc120]

Also at: canaryclub.org/cortisol-str... - explains how high cortisol can effect sleep quality:

Sleep disturbances: Cortisol production follows a curve from highest levels around 8am, dropping throughout the day until the lowest levels are reached about 11pm. In early stages of adrenal fatigue the body compensates with high night time cortisol. In this case the person finds it difficult to relax from the stress of the day and has trouble going to sleep. High night-time cortisol results in reduced REM sleep which is neither restful nor restorative. This can lead to depression and reduced energy levels the next day. In later stages of adrenal fatigue, the body may produce adrenaline ("fight or flight" hormone) in an attempt to compensate for low cortisol.