Cortisol: The "Friend-Enemy" Wreaking Havoc on Your Body
If you were with me last week, we talked about the "mean girl" energy – women attacking other women because of their own unhealed trauma. But today, I want to talk about the physical "hangover" that follows.
What happens when you’ve been blindsided by a nasty comment or an aggressive confrontation, and no one is there to say, "Hey, that’s not on. Don’t speak to another human like that"?
You’re left standing there. Triggered. It’s like a physical earthquake. Your heart races, your mind starts spinning on a loop, and suddenly you’re back in that old, painful place.
What’s actually happening? Your body has just been flooded with Cortisol.
The Jekyll and Hyde of Hormones
Cortisol is a steroid hormone made by your adrenal glands. It’s often called the "stress hormone," and frankly, it’s a bit of a "friend-enemy."
The Good: We actually need it to live. It manages your blood pressure, helps you wake up, and gives you a burst of energy by turning nutrients into glucose. It’s your internal "get up and go."
The Bad: When it’s constant, it is shitty. Pure and simple.
When your body stays in "fight or flight" mode because you’re constantly stressed or triggered, cortisol stops being a helper and starts being a wrecking ball. It leads to weight gain, high blood pressure, soul-crushing fatigue, and a trashed immune system.
If you’re a migraine sufferer, listen up: Cortisol is a massive trigger. It constricts your blood vessels and ramps up inflammation, basically turning up the volume on your pain.
Why the "Trigger" Feels Like a Tattoo
When you’ve had a rough past – maybe caregivers who were dismissive or absent – your brain creates a story about safety. Trauma becomes imprinted on the emotional centre of the brain like a tattoo.
Think of your brain like a high-security estate:
The Amygdala: This is the Chief of Security. When you’re triggered, it goes into a frenzy. It’s like my Groodle, Peach, when she’s on high alert – barking at every leaf that blows past the gate.
The Hippocampus: This is the Filing Clerk. Usually, it organises memories. But during trauma, the Clerk trips over, the files fly everywhere, and nothing gets put away properly.
This is why trauma feels "stuck." It’s not a memory; it’s a present-day threat. Your body is reacting to an old ghost as if it’s standing right in front of you.
Is Your Body "Too Acidic"?
The body remembers what the mind tries to suppress. Have you ever felt stiff, achy, or just... "off"? Maybe it's acid reflux, a rigid neck, or digestive issues that won't quit.
Chronic cortisol elevation actually makes your internal environment more acidic.
Mineral Theft: Your body tries to stay neutral by using minerals like magnesium and potassium. High cortisol wipes those minerals out, leaving you "unbuffered" and acidic.
Leaky Gut: Stress makes your digestive lining more permeable. Toxins slip into your bloodstream, causing systemic inflammation.
The Shutdown: Your body redirects blood away from your gut to your muscles (so you can run from the "predator"). This leaves your food sitting there, causing chaos and discomfort.
Enough is Enough
Hypervigilance, "acidic" joints, and a brain that won't shut up... it’s exhausting, isn't it?
Most people I work with come to me because they are simply tired of feeling rubbish. They’re tired of being hijacked by their emotions and feeling like they have no control over their own peace.
Are you there yet?
Healing your past is intimidating – it’s like trying to swallow an elephant whole. But you don't have to do it alone. We all get lost without a map, and I can help you find yours.
Let’s do the work.
I’ve opened my Eden Rooms here in Daylesford – a beautiful, calm space in the gardens where we can sit and untangle this together. If you’re not local, Zoom works just as well.
I’m offering a special rate of $150 a session for the first month to celebrate the new space.
Take a look at my coaching page: www.fleurelizabeth.com/coaching and get in touch.
You don't have to stay stuck in the storm.
Fleur Elizabeth x
