When life gets stressful, it’s easy to write off the tiredness, the tension, or the weird appetite swings as “just one of those things.” However, behind a lot of those changes is cortisol, the body’s main stress hormone, ramping everything up behind the scenes. The problem is that when your cortisol stays high for too long, it starts leaving signs all over your body. You don’t always notice it at first, especially if you’re the kind of person who just pushes through. However, in the long run, your system starts sending up signals that it’s been running on fumes for a while. If your body’s been feeling off, and you can’t quite figure out why, these are some clues that stress might be the one pulling the strings.
1. You wake up feeling wired or anxious.
If you’re jolting awake with a racing heart or feeling oddly on edge first thing in the morning, high cortisol might be behind it. Cortisol is naturally meant to rise around wake-up time, but if your stress levels are already too high, that rise becomes a spike—and it can feel like panic before your feet even hit the floor.
Instead of easing into the day, your system’s starting at full speed. You might feel restless, irritable, or like your mind is already running ahead of you. It’s not just “being a morning person”—it’s a sign your stress hormones are working overtime.
2. Your sleep is light, broken, or restless.
When cortisol levels stay high at night, your body stays on alert mode, even when you’re trying to rest. That makes it harder to fall asleep, harder to stay asleep, and way harder to get into the deeper, restorative stages of sleep. You might find yourself waking up multiple times, having intense or vivid dreams, or just feeling like you’ve barely rested at all. Even if you’re technically getting eight hours, your body may not be getting the break it really needs.
3. You’re gaining weight, especially around your stomach.
Cortisol plays a big role in how your body stores fat, and when it’s constantly elevated, your system starts holding onto energy, especially around the midsection. It’s the body’s way of preparing for “survival,” even if the stress is all in your inbox, not the wilderness.
You’re not blaming your habits here. Instead, you’re recognising that chronic stress changes your metabolism, appetite, and cravings. So, if you’ve been eating fairly normally but still noticing changes in your body, stress could be part of the puzzle.
4. Your digestion’s gone weird.
When cortisol spikes, blood flow is redirected away from the digestive system. That can lead to bloating, cramping, acid reflux, or constipation—not because of what you ate, but because your gut literally isn’t getting enough support to do its job. If you’ve been more sensitive to food, getting full too quickly, or constantly feeling a bit off in your stomach, chronic stress might be a hidden factor. Your gut and brain are deeply connected, and when one’s overloaded, the other feels it fast.
5. You’re constantly craving salty or sugary foods.
High cortisol messes with your blood sugar and energy levels, which leads your body to start demanding quick fixes. That’s why you might suddenly find yourself craving crisps, biscuits, or anything sweet and salty when you’re under pressure. It’s your body trying to regulate itself—just not in the most helpful way. The crash that comes after those cravings often adds to the fatigue and irritability, creating a loop that’s hard to break unless the underlying stress is addressed.
6. You feel tired, but can’t relax.
This one’s especially frustrating: you’re exhausted, but your body won’t switch off. You lie down but feel jittery, or you try to rest, and your brain keeps scanning for tasks or problems. That mismatch between tiredness and alertness is often a cortisol clue. High cortisol keeps your nervous system stuck in “go” mode, even when you desperately want to hit pause. You’re not lazy or bad at relaxing—your body’s just flooded with signals that say it’s not safe to stop yet.
7. You’re getting sick more often.
Chronic stress suppresses the immune system, which means you become more vulnerable to colds, infections, and slower healing times. If it feels like you’re always fighting something off or taking longer than usual to bounce back, stress could be the culprit.
Cortisol is meant to help in short bursts, but long-term exposure starts wearing your body down. You’re using up energy that would usually go toward defence and repair, which leaves you more open to whatever bugs are going around.
8. You’ve become more reactive or snappy.
If your tolerance for frustration has dropped through the floor, or if you’re snapping at people more than usual, high cortisol might be part of it. Stress hormones affect your ability to regulate emotion, especially when they’ve been running high for a while. No, you’re not dramatic or “too sensitive.” When you’re stressed out, the smallest things feel big. And if your body’s been in that hyper-alert state for too long, those reactions start showing up more often, and more intensely.
9. You’re getting more headaches or muscle tension.
Cortisol increases muscle tension and inflammation in the body. That means more tight shoulders, stiff necks, and those tension headaches that creep up by midday. It’s your body bracing itself without you even realising it. Eventually, that constant clenching can lead to chronic pain or discomfort, especially if you’re also spending a lot of time at a desk or holding stress in your jaw or back. The physical impact of stress can be just as real as the emotional side.
10. Your cycle or hormones feel off.
Stress doesn’t just mess with your mood—it can also throw off your cycle. High cortisol disrupts the balance of other hormones like estrogen and progesterone, which can lead to irregular periods, heavier flows, or unexpected PMS symptoms. It’s easy to blame it on other factors, but if your cycle’s changed around the same time as a stressful period in your life, the connection’s worth exploring. Hormones work in sync, and when one gets thrown off, the others start wobbling too.
11. You feel detached or numb.
When your system’s been under stress for too long, your brain can flip into a kind of emotional shutdown. Instead of feeling everything all at once, you start feeling nothing. Things that used to bring joy or sadness just feel flat. This isn’t a lack of caring—it’s your brain trying to protect you from burnout. High cortisol can flood the system so intensely that emotional detachment becomes a survival tool. It’s a quiet sign that your body’s way past tired.
12. You can’t concentrate or remember things.
High cortisol affects the part of the brain responsible for memory and focus. That’s why you might struggle to finish tasks, forget what you were saying mid-sentence, or feel like your brain’s just not firing like it used to.
It’s not about intelligence; it’s about bandwidth. When your body is dealing with chronic stress, your cognitive resources get diverted to survival mode. That leaves less room for sharp thinking, and it’s completely normal when stress has been dragging on for a while.
