An ADHD Guide To Cortisol + 13 Tips To Lower Your Cortisol Levels
If you’ve ever felt tired all day but wired at night... if you’re doing all the ADHD treatments and still feel like something’s off... if you have low motivation, high anxiety, mystery inflammation, sleep issues, and a weird cycle of pushing through then crashing, episode 49 on ADHD and cortisol is for you.
We talk a lot in ADHD spaces about dopamine. And yes, dopamine is important for motivation and attention.
However, there’s another layer that doesn’t get talked about enough:
Your nervous system
Stress hormones
And specifically cortisol.
If dopamine is the gas pedal, cortisol is the engine heat. It tells your body when it’s go-time—and when that go-time never turns off, you burn out.
Cortisol levels might be the thing that’s actually making you tired, sick, wired, inflamed, anxious, and still feeling off even when you're doing everything “right.”
Most people assume that fatigue means LOW cortisol. But it’s the opposite. Many of us, especially those of us with ADHD or AuDHD, actually have high cortisol, and that’s why we’re stuck in a chronic stress loop.
We are so used to this - it’s not showing up and putting us in"fight or flight" anymore, so we don’t realize what’s happening.
Your body has decided that stress is the new normal.
Here’s what we’re chatting about:
What cortisol is, does, and how it's connected to ADHD
Inherited cortisol and generational stress
The weird symptoms no one tells you are cortisol-related + what your body might be trying to tell you
13 ADHD friendly ways to lower your cortisol levels
Listen below, stream it on your favorite podcasting app, or scroll to access the full blog post.
What is Cortisol Anyway?
Cortisol is made in your adrenal glands and is released in response to stress. It’s part of your body’s fight-or-flight system.
You need it. It helps you get out of bed, concentrate, stabilize blood pressure, manage inflammation, and metabolize glucose — it’s like a Swiss army knife for your survival.
However, when your body thinks you’re in danger 24/7, whether the danger is a monster under your bed or your email inbox, cortisol stays high.
It’s meant to spike and drop. Not to linger. And this lingering is what causes issues.
Example:
Let’s say you wake up already stressed because you’ve snoozed five alarms, you’re late, and you forgot a deadline. Your cortisol shoots up.
Then you have caffeine, you’re immediately looking at a phone or computer screen, you have road or public transportation rage, you forgot your something at home - your body is like “oh we’re running an avalanche/tsunami/army of robots gone wild? Let me get into gear here.”
If you live like this every day, eventually, your cortisol stays high. Or worse, it flatlines.
People with ADHD tend to experience this cycle more than neurotypical folks because of constant executive stress.
Research published by CHADD shows that…
ADHD is linked to dysregulated cortisol levels, including higher levels in the evening and lower levels in the morning, which directly impact our ability to sleep and wake.
If your mom had high cortisol while pregnant, you may have even inherited stress sensitivity from the womb. Your body learns early that stress is the norm and that rest feels unsafe. So this “executive stress”is physiological and can be generational.
Even small things—planning meals, replying to emails, remembering appointments—can feel huge and overwhelming. Your body reacts to that overwhelm with a stress response, whether you’re aware of it or not.
Over time, this leads to something called allostatic load, the scientific term for what happens when your body takes on too much stress for too long, and it starts breaking down.
Chronic cortisol dysregulation wears out your nervous system, your immune system, and even your ability to regulate inflammation.
Research shows that people with ADHD not only have altered cortisol levels but also show higher markers of inflammation and lower levels of BDNF, (Brain-derived neurotrophic factor) which is critical for brain health.
There are actual impacts on brain growth, cognitive function, and resilience.
Cortisol is a biological stress load that can affect your memory, sleep, metabolism, and ability to emotionally regulate. It’s physical. It’s hormonal. It’s full-body.
Why Don’t ADHD Adults Hear Much About Cortisol?
Dopamine is important — it helps with motivation, pleasure, learning, and attention. But what’s often missing from the conversation is that dopamine doesn’t exist in a vacuum.
It’s deeply connected to other chemicals and systems, like your nervous system and your stress hormones.
This is where cortisol comes in. Cortisol is your body’s main stress hormone.
Inherited Cortisol and Generational Stress
You may have inherited your cortisol dysregulation — literally.
As I mentioned a moment ago, if your mother had high cortisol levels while pregnant, that stress transferred to you. Not metaphorically — chemically.
Your developing nervous system received the message: “This world is unsafe, and you must be on high alert.”
This means that before you even took your first breath, your stress response may have been set to “chronic vigilance.”
This is sometimes called generational cortisol. You could have trauma or stress from your own life — AND your body is wired based on someone else’s survival state.
It’s not your fault that you “can’t relax.” Your body is doing exactly what it learned to do: stay ready.
Research from CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) shows that ADHD is tied to altered stress response, especially lower morning cortisol and higher nighttime cortisol.
This pattern creates that classic “wired and tired” feeling.
You're dragging all day, and then at 11 PM? You suddenly feel alert and inspired and want to put together Ikea furniture or start an online business.
Even more: Chronic high cortisol has been shown to reduce BDNF — brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Since BDNF helps you form new brain connections, this means that less BDNF = more emotional volatility, less cognitive flexibility, and slower recovery from burnout.
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If your ADHD feels like “nothing works,” “rest doesn’t help,” or “I’m always tired but can’t sleep,” it might be a cortisol issue.
Signs of Cortisol Dysregulation
Emotional Signs:
Feeling tired but wired
Dreading your inbox
Constant low-level anxiety
Irritability
Anxiety or unease when you finally sit still
Getting overwhelmed by small decisions
Rest not feeling restful
Revenge Bedtime Procrastination - scrolling your phone, watching TV, even when you want to go to bed
Obsessively checking texts, emails, and plans
Physical Signs:
Twitching eyelid
Neck hump developing
Constant jaw tension
Random bruises
Sensitivity to light
Feeling inflamed or bloated
Sugar or salt cravings
Waking up nauseous
Grinding your teeth
Getting sick frequently
Periods are heavier or more irregular
The ADHD and Cortisol Connection
What This Looks Like for ADHD Adults
Long commutes
Email inboxes
Social media notifications
Getting notifications while you’re trying to rest
Having to choose between three brands of paper towels
Being cold
Waking up late
Fluorescent lights
Loud cafés
Forgetting someone’s name
Putting off your taxes
Running into someone unexpectedly
Opening a message and forgetting to reply, then spiraling about it two weeks later.
ADHD brains are constantly scanning for potential mistakes and consequences 24/7.
ADHD & Cortisol: The Push-Crash Loop
Let’s talk about what cortisol dysregulation looks like in ADHD life, not just in theory, but in your actual day-to-day. This is the Push-Crash loop.
You push through using urgency, panic, masking, adrenaline, caffeine, and cortisol
You get things done, but it doesn’t feel good. It feels like survival
You finish... and crash. Either physically, emotionally, or both
You can’t get out of bed, you cancel things, or you feel totally disconnected.
Then you feel guilty for “crashing” and the pressure builds again.
And repeat.
This is where high cortisol starts to mimic or become executive dysfunction, shutdown, or burnout.
You’re not lazy. You’re not flawed. You did try hard enough.
Your stress response system is overbuilt and under-supported.
Your body might be in functional freeze — a trauma-informed term for when you’re still technically functioning (working, emailing, socializing), but you feel detached, robotic, irritable, zoned out, or just... not there.
You may even get scared of rest.
Let’s repeat that: If you feel anxious when you rest, that’s cortisol. That’s your body saying, “danger happens when I stop moving.”
And here’s what people don’t understand about ADHD:
Even joyful things — like planning a trip, decorating a room, or taking on a new hobby — can spike cortisol.
Because novelty takes energy.
And when your baseline is exhaustion masked by caffeine, every new thing feels like a threat.
This is why so many ADHDers get stuck in cycles like:
Hyperfixation → overstimulation → irritability → guilt
Procrastination → panic → hyperfocus → shutdown
Social energy → masking → anxiety → isolation
Cortisol is the hidden engine behind all of this.
13 ADHD Friendly Ways To Lower Cortisol Levels
Let’s talk about real strategies. These are science-backed, sensory-friendly and don’t require you to take energy you don’t have and change you’re entire life.
1. Rocking
It might sound strange, but rocking, literally sitting and gently rocking back and forth, has been shown to regulate the nervous system.
It stimulates the vestibular system and soothes the brain.
JFK did this for chronic pain and memory. Rocking chairs help with dementia, back pain, and even emotional regulation.
It's not just a “crazy person in a padded room” thing, it’s a healing motion
2. Deep Breathing
Try box breathing — in for 4, hold for 4, out for 4, hold for 4. Just ten rounds of that can lower cortisol. Don’t overdo it — shallow, gentle breaths are enough.
3. Use Scents & Smell
Scents like lavender or sandalwood calm the amygdala and reduce stress responses. Use essential oils, candles, or just smell something grounding.
4. Use Weighted Pressure Tools
A weighted blanket, compression vest — any object that provides grounding, deep pressure touch input. This regulates cortisol through tactile sensory input.
5. Coloring or Repetitive Creative Tasks
Anything low-stakes, tactile, and focused can bring cortisol down. Adult coloring books, beading, sorting, even mindless doodling.
6. Walking
Movement, especially outdoors, helps clear cortisol buildup. A five-minute walk is enough. You don’t need to power-walk or track steps.
7. Gentle Stretching
Somatic release techniques like shoulder rolls, bouncing your knees while seated, laying on the floor and rolling side to side — these things help shift your body
8. Reduce Stimulation Late in the Day
Dim the lights, lower the volume, and use blue light filters. Cortisol is sensitive to stimulation, even background noise and lighting.
9. Say No to Sudden Plans, Group Texts & Nighttime Notifications
These sneak into your rest time and cue your body to stay alert. Yes, a group text at 10 PM can spike cortisol. So can wondering if someone is mad at you.
10. Create a Bedtime Routine That Feels Safe
Warm lighting, slow transitions, silence or white noise. Your nervous system needs a winding down ritual — and it needs to believe that it’s not going to be startled, messaged, or asked to produce something at 11:30 PM.
11. Magnesium
This isn’t medical advice, but supplements like magnesium can help buffer cortisol.
Talk to your doctor - not everyone can just take magnesium.
I have a friend who says his doctor told him to stay away from magnesium because he has high blood pressure, but magnesium is really great for menopause, and needed.
12. Create Boundaries with Social Media
Cortisol spikes every time you see a notification, open a DM, scroll through polarizing content, or get hit with someone else’s urgency.
Even if you don’t feel “stressed,” your nervous system logs it. Your body can absolutely respond to seeing terror in the news as though you’re actually there.
13. Reframe How You See Rest
If you feel twitchy when you’re resting, like you're doing something wrong. Your body has to learn what safety feels like again. And it will.
Final Thoughts
If you’ve felt like none of your ADHD strategies work...
You’ve done— timers, planners, rewards, breaks — and you’re still exhausted...
Rest makes you anxious, and you feel weirdly addicted to urgency...
You crash for days after one good push of productivity
.. it might be cortisol.
Your nervous system was probably shaped by stress before you even had language to describe it.
Perhaps your mom’s stress hormones bathed your developing brain in cortisol.
Maybe you grew up in a home that was loud, unpredictable, or emotionally inconsistent, or school punished you for not sitting still.
Maybe masking took everything out of you.
But now, you get to show your nervous system that safety is real.
That pushing isn’t the only way - our body doesn’t have to live in survival mode forever.
Here’s a quick recap of signs your cortisol might be dysregulated:
Tired in the morning, wired at night
Can’t relax, even when nothing’s urgent
Weird symptoms: gut issues, fatigue, inflammation, fog
Constant cycle of over-functioning → crashing → guilt
Feel numb or spaced out after “relaxing”
Wake up anxious, nauseous, or both
Can’t remember what you walked into the room for
Emotionally flooded by things that shouldn’t feel big
Don’t forget:
You can regulate without overhauling everything, so start small.
You are able to unlearn the belief that productivity is safety.
You’re not failing at being a person.
You’re a body that adapted and a brain that tried to survive.
You might be a lot, but you’re not too much.
FAQs:
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If you want to get your cortisol tested, here are the options:
1. Blood tests
Having a blood test can show your cortisol at that exact moment. They’re helpful for ruling out extremes, but they don’t give a full picture of your daily rhythm.
2. Saliva tests
Saliva tests, especially 4-point saliva tests done at home, are best for seeing your cortisol curve across the day.
Do you spike in the morning and taper at night like you should? Or are you flatlining until midnight?
3. Urine tests
Urine tests can show some patterns too, but are less common.
If you work with a functional medicine doctor or an ADHD-aware practitioner, they can help interpret your results.
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Inflammation
Autoimmune flares
Gut dysfunction
Sleep disruption
Emotional instability
That feeling of being “always on” but getting nothing done
Eventually, when cortisol stays high for too long, your body says “no more,” and your levels flatline.
This doesn’t mean your stress goes away. It means your body gave up trying to regulate it.
This is why so many ADHDers end up with mystery fatigue, thyroid issues, digestive problems, and weird skin stuff — because cortisol has systemic effects.
And it’s rarely addressed in ADHD treatment.
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Episode 49: Show Notes
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