Cortisol - Depression, weight gain etc?

[dom45678]

Hello
I am trying to determine why my Cortisol levels have been high for what seem to be my whole life.
I gain weight quickly, am constantly tired, have suffered from brain fog for at least 30 years, no sex drive, excessive estrogen and allot of chest fat and many other symptoms associated with high cortisol levels. Also being unable to sleep, stress builds up quickly etc. I have been diagnosed as having excessively high cortisol.

Because this has been the case my whole life, as far back as I can remember, I am trying now to determine why this may be the case.  Most people think I'm a health nut because I don't drink, I rarely drink coffee, I eat healthy food and cook at home. I also excercise but I have hacked at it my whole life.  Life is just getting too hard which adds to the depression as I can't imagine living like this for too much longer.  Everything is a struggle when you feel constant anxiety and stress.  It's not just a passing symptom, I'm not dehydrated or unrested. The unrest comes from not being able to.   Even when exercising, cardio is always a real hack despite doing ridiculous quantities of exercise in the past. I must be very tough to get this far without giving up.   Weight training makes me very nervy and I start to gain excessive quantities of weight around my waist and chest.  It's quiet unprecedented.  

When I see how others around me eat and live I think I'm holding some bad cards.  The rubbish people around me eat and the amount of alcohol they consume means that they should be where I am.  Instead they are rewarded with calmness of mind and plenty of energy to carry them through life.   I really isn't fair. It's an age old story.

I'm trying to determine just why I tip into this high cortisol situation so easily.  There must be a reason.. Yes I know what cushings disease is.  It might be that.  But there must be other reasons.  

Have there been any major discoveries in this area.  I'm trying to discover what I don't know.  

I think I found a solution once.  It involved exercising a few times a week, eating very tiny meals, not eating past 7pm and leaving out simple carbs from my diet.  Also no coffee or alcohol.  I seemed to come good very quickly, I lost tons of weight, started to sleep well, felt light on my feet.  It was my body recovering from all that stress.  The tiny meals is very tough but it worked.    
Unfortunately before long I just slips back into high cortisol world again.  The anxiety returns despite doing all the things I just described.  This method seems to have become less effective.  I think I have something triggering this which is what I am trying to find out.

If anyone can suggest where to head with this it would be truly appreciated.

Thanks.

[Paxiled]

My own feeling is that theanine doesn't work very well for anything.  But it might for you.  It doesn't directly affect the adrenals as adaptogens such as rhodiola, ashwagandha, holy basil, eleuthero, etc. do, it's more of a relaxant.  But as I say, it did nothing for me and I've never known anyone who felt it at all as a supplement.  But obviously some do benefit from it.

[dom45678]

With respect to the above, is Theanine a good alternative to lowering cortisol levels?  

Thanks

[dom45678]

I've only just started using Rhodiola. Maybe your suggestions will work better.  I couldn't find a clear enough indication on the web that Ashwaganda would lower cortisol levels, but if they do then that's great.

This is something I have had my whole life and seems to have become worse since I was around thirty years old. If I did have cushings disease then would a tumor continue to grow or would it remain the same size my whole life and would it be something I was born with.  

If it's thyroid issues then would it cause all the symptoms I have described.  I take after my father with regard to my symptoms though he wasn't around long enough for us to know for sure what this is.   Any stress or worry in my life completely runs me down for months at a time.  Coffee at the wrong time completely locks me up.  Pain in the pack of the head when trying to squeeze my brain for information when reading or having a conversation.  
I'm hoping someone who has been through this may at some stage come across this post and comment.  I'll be checking this for a long time.

I'm going back for more checks as soon as I can afford it.  

[Paxiled]

If rhodiola works, great.  It tends to be stimulating, but if it's helping you that's fine.  Holy basil and ashwagandha tend to be better for reducing cortisol production, as they're more balancing than stimulating.  Thyroid problems cause adrenal problems, but most doctors ignore this.

[dom45678]

Thanks for the tip about thyroid problems.  It could be connected or the root cause, who knows.  Does my description of the symptoms sound familiar?
I'll keep that in mind.  If you have any other tips in this area please feel free to put them forward.  Much appreciated.

[dom45678]

Thanks.. I was worried nobody would respond.  I know about these herbs but do they lower cortisol or raise it?  I'm using Rhodiola.   Tastes horrible but seems to work.  Could be psychological.  

I'm looking for the root cause.   If it's not cushing's it must be something close.

[Paxiled]

I'm sure you have, but were you tested for thyroid problems?  The adrenals are very interconnected with the thyroid.  Blood sugar problems can also interact with it.  Again, I'm pretty sure you've been tested for all this, but just thought I'd mention it.  There are herbs that can help lower cortisol, though in your case if it is something physiological in origin these obviously can only help with the symptoms and won't cure the cause.  Two good ones are ashwagandha and holy basil.