Physical and Mental Weakness and the Adrenal Gland

As the glands that produce hormones involved in stress response, the adrenals have a lot to do with an individual’s mental health. The main hormone responsible for this mental effect is cortisol which perpetuates and maintains a fight-or-flight response. To understand the role of this hormone and its association with physical health, it is important to acknowledge how the human brain is naturally trained to respond to threats. While these threats related to animal attacks in the olden times, they have been calibrated by the brain according to the modern times and now include examples like anxieties related to giving a presentation or attending a party.

Fight or Flight Response

Also known as acute stress response, the fight or flight response is a built-in mechanism in the human body that provides positive effects, for the most part. For example, if you suddenly see a vehicle approaching your lane, your body will trigger a stress response that will allow you to maneuver yourself out of the way quickly. The same response also helps the body respond quickly, even in non-threatening situations, like playing tennis with a friend, where it helps you perform at full capacity.

Problems related to mental health start happening when this acute stress begins to arise due to mental stressors instead of physical stressors. In such circumstances, the cortisol released by the adrenal glands prepares your body to act; however, there is nothing much it can do to get you away from what you perceive as a threat, such as an office presentation.

The excessive release of cortisol causes the blood pressure and heart rate to rise, sending the body in overdrive. But because of a lack of a tangible predator to fend off, the process needs to be completed. Your body tries its best to direct all its energy towards the threat, and in doing so, it slows or halts all other non-essential body functions at the moment. While this does not cause any significant harm to mental health in the short term, problems begin to arise when this acute stress converts into chronic stress.

The fight or flight response in the body is meant to be fleeting, meaning that as soon as the body has escaped or dealt with a threat, it must return to its normal state. However, in some people, the high cortisol levels fail to return to normal, harming different aspects of the body.

Chronic Stress Conditions

Chronic stress sets in when your body’s fight-or-flight response stays activated too often or for too long. The wear and tear that occurs in the body due to this prolonged stress have been related to the development of several mental issues, such as:

• Depression
• Anxiety
• The trouble with concentration and memory
• Psychotic issues
• Low openness
• High extraversion

While experts are not entirely sure about the association between high cortisol levels and the development of mental health conditions, it is safe to say that chronic stress makes one vulnerable to acquiring psychiatric illnesses. Further studies on this topic have revealed that both high and low cortisol levels can contribute to a posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, substance use disorders, and depression in some way. However, the poor regulation of this adrenal gland is not likely to be the primary cause behind these mental struggles.