If you’ve ever felt exhausted but wired… anxious for no clear reason… or like your body just isn’t responding the way it used to—chronic stress may be the missing piece.
I (Jen) see this all the time, and I’ve lived it myself…. and honestly, am still living it.
When our bodies are under chronic stress, our hormones don’t just fluctuate a little… they shift into survival mode.
But once we understand what’s happening, everything starts to make a lot more sense.
How Chronic Stress Affects Hormones
Your body is always asking one core question: Am I safe?
When the answer is no (or even just not consistently), your body prioritizes survival over balance.
This means your stress hormone cortisol takes the lead—and other hormones take a backseat.
Over time, chronic stress can:
- Lower progesterone levels
- Disrupt estrogen balance
- Increase blood sugar instability
- Slow down thyroid function
- Interfere with sleep hormones like melatonin
This is why so many women feel like their hormones are “off”—even when they’re trying to do all the right things.
Common Symptoms of Hormonal Imbalance from Stress
You’re probably thinking like I did for a lot of years, “I don’t feel stressed all the time. My life is actually pretty chill.” And honestly, that’s one of the most frustrating parts. How do we know our body is under stress when it doesn’t always look like stress?
Instead, it shows up as:
- Feeling tired but wired
- Anxiety or a racing mind (especially in the morning)
- Poor sleep or waking between 2–4 AM
- Increased PMS symptoms
- Irregular or heavier cycles
- Sugar and caffeine cravings
- Low energy and burnout
If you’ve been experiencing these symptoms, your body is likely stuck in a chronic stress response.
A Moment from My Own Life
There was a season where I was doing everything I thought was “healthy” and honestly expecting some pretty significant weight loss results.
I was eating well. Exercising. Trying to slow down. Setting aside time to relax.
But when I would sit down to breathe or pray, my body didn’t follow. My mind wanted calm… but my body still felt alert, restless, and on edge.
And the weight… it wasn’t going anywhere.
That’s when I realized something important: You can’t force your body out of stress if you don’t have all the pieces in place to help your body feel safe yet.
Why “Just Relax” Doesn’t Fix Cortisol
You’ve probably heard it before:
“Just relax.”
“Take a bath.”
“Do some deep breathing.”
Yep. Been there, done that.
And while those things can help, they often don’t work when your body is stuck in chronic stress. Because this isn’t just mental—it’s physiological.
If your blood sugar is unstable… or if your nervous system is dysregulated… or if your body has adapted to constant stress… You can try to relax and still feel wired. And that’s not your fault.
How to Lower Cortisol and Support Hormone Balance
Instead of forcing calm, we want to create safety in the body. That’s where real hormone balance begins.
I had to start here, and this is where I suggest you start too:
- Eat regularly to stabilize blood sugar (prioritize protein with every meal)
- Support your body with minerals and hydration
- Get natural light early in the day
- Create consistent daily rhythms not hard and fast schedules
- Gently regulate your nervous system (not force it)
These small shifts signal to your body: You’re safe now. And when your body feels safe, your hormones can begin to rebalance.
Start Here: A Simple Cortisol Reset
If you’re not sure where to begin, I put together a simple guide:
“8 Ways to Downshift Your Cortisol Right Now”
These are practical, doable steps you can start right away to calm your nervous system and support your hormones—without overwhelm.
Because healing doesn’t come from doing more. It comes from doing the right things, consistently.
Do you recommend Hormone Replacement Therapy (patches, creams, pellets)? Does your book address this topic?
Hi Emi, Thanks for asking. In our research and in our own experiences, we’ve found that perimenopause and menopausal symptoms can be regulated through food and herbs, so we don’t recommend HRT as a first option. We talk a lot in the book about what is going on with our hormones and how to best support them. A lot of the symptoms we tend to experience during perimenopause and menopause are from the decrease in progesterone and there are some great foods and herbs that will bring progesterone backup. We detail that in the book. That being said, the book is mostly for women and girls who are still cycling regularly and made a huge impact in our lives and the lives of our daughters, and we’ve seen the same tools help as we’ve both transitioned into perimenopause. But the book isn’t targeted to perimenopause or menopause.