Do You Struggle with Sleep? Here's How to Fix It!

Do you struggle with sleep?

Here's how to fix it!

🛏 In fact, I've got 14 scientifically proven ways for you to fix it - be sure to watch this video and get the free download.

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More about cortisol and sleep:

An excerpt from Jenny's book The Resiliency rEvolution.

How cortisol affects our sleep

At times throughout our day when we’re exposed to stress, cortisol is released. Everyday life is full of discreet stressful moments all day long. We feel we recover in between them, but cortisol’s effects are long lasting. It takes quite a while for cortisol to dissipate in the body. The half-life of moderate amounts of cortisol in the circulation is approximately ninety minutes.(20) However, with large amounts, the half-life increases to 120 minutes.(21) This means that two hours after a major stressor, the body still has elevated levels of cortisol and will for many hours afterward.

Because of these repeated episodes of stress throughout the day, cortisol levels often do not decrease as normally expected as the day goes on in order to prepare the body for sleep. Elevated levels of cortisol in the evening are a sign of stress.(22) And poor sleepers tend to have higher levels of glucocorticoids in their bloodstream.(23) In addition, researchers compared patients with insomnia to those without sleep disturbances. They found that “insomniacs with the highest degree of sleep disturbance secreted the highest amount of cortisol, particularly in the evening and nighttime hour,” which suggests chronic insomnia is a disorder of sustained hyperarousal of the body’s stress response system.(24)

The National Sleep Foundation reports that 74 percent of adults in the United States experience a sleeping problem a few nights a week or more, and about 75 percent of insomnia cases are triggered by some major stressor.(25) The effects of sleep deprivation are thought to cost US businesses more than $100 billion a year.(26)

Poor sleep can also lead to a vicious cycle. Stressing out about sleep leads to more stress, more cortisol release, and even worse bouts of insomnia. Sleep deprivation even increases activity of the sympathetic nervous system (the gas pedal) and makes the parasympathetic nervous system (the brake) less effective.(27)

How to get better sleep

The #1 way to get rid of cortisol is with a short burst of physical activity. A Micro Burst. People who exercise regularly fall asleep more quickly. They sleep better, and they wake up feeling more rested. Exercise also makes you more resilient to stress so the body's producing less cortisol to mess with your sleep. Just 5 to 10 minutes of short burst exercise a couple of times throughout the day will improve the quality of your sleep and help you manage your stress.