Low Cortisol- Ways To Increase

[Sagitarrius90]

Hello everyone

What are some effective solutions to raising my low morning and afternoon cortisol without hydrocortisone or any othet prescribed medication (My doctor and other doctors refuse to acknowledge my 4x saliva test).

After going thru various posts i was interested in the possibility that progesterone could help.

Im 28 male and i used to exercise quite vigariously, my caffiene intake was high and i was dieting. Ive been doing this on and off for about 10 years.

Its been about a month and im only having 1 coffee a day going to the gym once or twice a week without very little effort and keeping calories high (peat style diet with emphasis on 1% milk, broth, OJ, 100-150g protein, alot of salt etc)

As of now i think these supplements will help but want to see if anyone else can help chime in and help any other people in my situation recover.

Just started taking these supplements to increase cortisol production

B5- assists in the production of cortisol and acetyl coa

Licorce root- doesnt seem to be working

Anti aromatise- DIM, was doing low dose aromisin

T3- 2mcg x3 4 times a day

Progesterone- 20 mg a day tops (penis function still good)

Vitamin c - anywhere from 1g to 10g

Vitamin e - 200mg a day- anti estrogen

Vitamin k- 300mcg a day - help with mitochondria function

D3- 4000iu

Taurine with carbs 3-6g

 

[Dave Clark]

I just wanted to mention this, which was recently brought to my attention: I did not know that when doing a saliva cortisol test it is recommended to stop any/all cortisol lowering substances, i.e. DHEA, herbs, etc. 72 hours before the test, since they can lower cortisol. I suppose it may not reflect how your body is naturally producing cortisol. For instance, if you test low. it may not be because you naturally have low cortisol, but because these substances are lowering cortisol. My doctor didn't know this, and when I did my test I was using fairly high dose DHEA, herbs like rhodiola, cordyceps, etc. I tested below baseline and he wanted to give me hydrocortisone, which I didn't use. I will retest again with the 72 hour break. Plus, I have reduced my DHEA and some of the adoptogenic herbs I have quit using. Pregnenolone is another, probably progesterone as well.

 

[Sagitarrius90]

I had mine tested like 4 years ago without any cortisol lowering substances and just a month ago.

It was actually lower 4 years ago then it was now but not by much and i was alot more stressed and uneducated about health years ago.

Just a bit desperate as im a muscle head and im taking as long as it takes off the gym so i can feel great again. Month in and i legit feel the same it sucks.

 

[Hans]

Hello everyone

What are some effective solutions to raising my low morning and afternoon cortisol without hydrocortisone or any othet prescribed medication (My doctor and other doctors refuse to acknowledge my 4x saliva test).

After going thru various posts i was interested in the possibility that progesterone could help.

Im 28 male and i used to exercise quite vigariously, my caffiene intake was high and i was dieting. Ive been doing this on and off for about 10 years.

Its been about a month and im only having 1 coffee a day going to the gym once or twice a week without very little effort and keeping calories high (peat style diet with emphasis on 1% milk, broth, OJ, 100-150g protein, alot of salt etc)

As of now i think these supplements will help but want to see if anyone else can help chime in and help any other people in my situation recover.

Just started taking these supplements to increase cortisol production

B5- assists in the production of cortisol and acetyl coa

Licorce root- doesnt seem to be working

Anti aromatise- DIM, was doing low dose aromisin

T3- 2mcg x3 4 times a day

Progesterone- 20 mg a day tops (penis function still good)

Vitamin c - anywhere from 1g to 10g

Vitamin e - 200mg a day- anti estrogen

Vitamin k- 300mcg a day - help with mitochondria function

D3- 4000iu

Taurine with carbs 3-6g

Cortisol synthesis and turnover is reduced in hypothyroid. So focus on improving thyroid function.
Also, as a male you might do better on preg and DHEA than progesterone.
Then you could throw andro in the mix as there is a synergistic effect between andro and DHEA.

 

[Sagitarrius90]

Big mention here i am on trt (doctor prescribed) 100 mg test e a week and i have access to aromasin if estro signs come into play.

I always thought you fix adrenals, thyroid, testosterone and hgh in that order?

Would 4mcg thyroid a few times a day help? (Tyronene)

Calories around 2600 with alot of fructose and sucrose. Probably need to have more dairy as i take a supplement for it.

Protein is always suffice as im used to having 200+ which is over kill ive since dropped it to around 100

 

[Sagitarrius90]

Bump :)

 

[Vinero]

Not eating carbohydrates is a good way to increase cortisol. Fasting works great too.

 

[Sagitarrius90]

Is there such thing as increasing cortisol in a healthy way or am i getting things mixed up..

I was in the camp that lowering cortisol will eventually (long period of healing and rest) allow healthy cortisol responses aka eventually having normal cortisol in the AM and slowly lowering throughout the day. I developed low cortisol because of being stressed 24/7 with over exercise and starch, estrogen dominance (low androgens)

Wouldn't fasting be detrimental in the healing process and in turn sabatoge any effort of regaining cortisol levels?

 

[Vinero]

Is there such thing as increasing cortisol in a healthy way or am i getting things mixed up..

I was in the camp that lowering cortisol will eventually (long period of healing and rest) allow healthy cortisol responses aka eventually having normal cortisol in the AM and slowly lowering throughout the day. I developed low cortisol because of being stressed 24/7 with over exercise and starch, estrogen dominance (low androgens)

Wouldn't fasting be detrimental in the healing process and in turn sabatoge any effort of regaining cortisol levels?

Sorry I was being sarcastic. I don't think increasing cortisol should be anyone's goal. The goal is to have high progesterone, pregnenolone, DHEA and androgens. Those hormones have many of the same effects of cortisol like increasing blood sugar and anti-inflammatory, but without the negative effects of cortisol such as osteoporosis, diabetes, thinning skin, suppressed immunity etc. Ray Peat has written that when when there is a progesterone deficiency, we tend to produce excessive cortisol.

 

[wintagal]

Big mention here i am on trt (doctor prescribed) 100 mg test e a week and i have access to aromasin if estro signs come into play.

I always thought you fix adrenals, thyroid, testosterone and hgh in that order?

Yes, fix adrenals before adding thyroid. Thyroid increases cortisol breakdown.
Grapefruit juice slows the breakdown of cortisol by inhibiting P450 enzyme 3A4, which breaks down cortisol. That will also slow the breakdown of testosterone since it uses the same enzyme. And estrogen. And lots of pharmaceuticals - do your research on interactions. The effect of grapefruit juice can be significant - that's why it's so hard to find these days (statin interactions)

 

[Sagitarrius90]

I'll give it a try but I doubt this would be the fix... I had always assumed my progesterone levels are low ; years ago I got it tested and I was at the very low end of the spectrum it was measured from 1-100 and I was around 5 or 6.

Would using progesterone at a higher dose increase cortisol production and if I notice any estrogen symptoms I could use my aromasin? Would this kick start my system or is that dangerous/stupid

 

[fradon]

Hello everyone

What are some effective solutions to raising my low morning and afternoon cortisol without hydrocortisone or any othet prescribed medication (My doctor and other doctors refuse to acknowledge my 4x saliva test).

After going thru various posts i was interested in the possibility that progesterone could help.

Im 28 male and i used to exercise quite vigariously, my caffiene intake was high and i was dieting. Ive been doing this on and off for about 10 years.

Its been about a month and im only having 1 coffee a day going to the gym once or twice a week without very little effort and keeping calories high (peat style diet with emphasis on 1% milk, broth, OJ, 100-150g protein, alot of salt etc)

As of now i think these supplements will help but want to see if anyone else can help chime in and help any other people in my situation recover.

Just started taking these supplements to increase cortisol production

B5- assists in the production of cortisol and acetyl coa

Licorce root- doesnt seem to be working

Anti aromatise- DIM, was doing low dose aromisin

T3- 2mcg x3 4 times a day

Progesterone- 20 mg a day tops (penis function still good)

Vitamin c - anywhere from 1g to 10g

Vitamin e - 200mg a day- anti estrogen

Vitamin k- 300mcg a day - help with mitochondria function

D3- 4000iu

Taurine with carbs 3-6g

cortisol is made from fat/cholesterol. your body may have cortisol but it just may not be able to break down fat to use as fuel.

from what i read there are two kidns of fat. white fat and brown fat. white fat is hard to turn to fuel. brown fat is ready to be used as fuel and turned into fatty acids by cortisol.

if you have more white fat than brown that would account for low energy. the remedy is ice cold showers helps convert white fat into brown fat.

you may also want to consider jumping rope. i jump for 5-10 seconds then rest for five seconds...repeat. start with heart rate at about 110 bpm then eleveate to 120-130 bpm.
do this for thirty minutes to an hour. you are basically burning through stored fat at the 110bpm then moving to burning sugar/muscle at the 130bpm. this will flush out any insulin resistance you may have and also help the body learn how to make cortisol again.

 

[olive]

Grapefruit juice and liquorice

 

[Sagitarrius90]

thanks for the replies everyone.

With someone with rock bottom or pretty darn close to rock bottom cortisol levels would grapefruit juice and licorice nonstop throughout the day even do anything or would it be negligible? Only way to find out is to try I guess

 

[Andman]

I'll give it a try but I doubt this would be the fix... I had always assumed my progesterone levels are low ; years ago I got it tested and I was at the very low end of the spectrum it was measured from 1-100 and I was around 5 or 6.

Would using progesterone at a higher dose increase cortisol production and if I notice any estrogen symptoms I could use my aromasin? Would this kick start my system or is that dangerous/stupid

rasing progesterone is probably always a good idea, raising cortisol is not. forget fasting and working out when youre not feeling good, youll have plenty of time to do that later

what symptoms do you have anyway? didnt see them in your posts really. also pulse and temps would be a good starting point to see whats up with your metabolism

 

[Sagitarrius90]

Why wouldn't cortisol be good? It's needed to a point. I've always felt like crap for years. It all started with over exercise, drinking tons of caffeine to compensate for my low energy and dug myself a serious hole.

My symptoms are extreme brain fog in the AM and as the day progresses everything improves. Pretty bad constipation which I've been using cascara and doctor prescribed constella which is an IBS-C peptide.

Temps are slowly improving since being off the gym for over a month. I do go once or twice a week nothing strenuous. I eat roughly 2600-2700 high carb, low fat and moderate protein. I have progesterone and t3 on hand.

I feel my thyroid improving but again I have tests showing low cortisol and I cannot find a doctor to treat it. So I want to raise cortisol to have a healthy cortisol curve meaning high in the morning and lowering as the day goes on. Mines backwards but low throughout the entire day.

I don't have a lot of stress in my life the thing is I don't have too many emotions since I am always tired and my brain feels foggy

Licroce root does seem to give me a good boost it wakes me up. I saw progesterone can increase cortisol but don't know how smart that would be.

 

[sweetpeat]

I saw progesterone can increase cortisol but don't know how smart that would be.

It's not necessarily a bad idea. There are a number of guys using progesterone on the forum. There's even a thread about it. "Progesterone in men" I think it's called.

The thing is, if your cortisol is that bad then something's probably going on with your thyroid as well. Which one you choose to work on first is up to you. Sometimes improving one helps the other. But low temps and constipation are classic hypothyroid symptoms.

If you decide to try the progesterone, you should probably start with a pretty low dose and see how it goes. It can sometimes blunt cortisol (temporarily) if the dose is too high. At least that's my experience. I would suggest experimenting with timing as well. I find taking it at night can help with morning cortisol. Or give me insomnia lol. It's very dose dependent. You may find it helps to cycle it as well, taking days off from time to time.

 

[Soundios]

You mention that you are on TRT and I think this may have a part to play alongside your past history of strenuous workout and high caffeine intake. You may be deficient in Pregnenolone due to the introduction of exogenous testosterone. It might be worth having a pregnenolone test, as many guys on TRT are deficient in this area.

 

[Sagitarrius90]

Im trying to raise preg by eating beef liver twice a week around 200 g eac time, t3 keeping sugar high and taking progesterone.

Im thinking the issue is directly cortisol as i have energy but i just feel like i dont get stressed when i should be, just in a fog and again 4x saliva test showing cortisol being low.

 

[peep]

You need Potassium for Cortisol. Otherwise your Progesterone will stay high without going into Cortisol.