You know that feeling, don't you? The weight creeping on around your middle no matter what you try. That 3pm slump where you'd sell your soul for a nap. The sugar cravings that feel almost primal. The brain fog. Those nights where you're absolutely exhausted but somehow still wired.

And someone—probably several someones—has told you it's adrenal fatigue.

Well, after 23 years of working with women in clinic, I'm going to let you in on something: the real story is more interesting than that. And honestly? It's more fixable too.

Your Adrenals Aren't Actually "Failing"

Here's what I wish more women knew: your adrenal glands don't just pack it in and give up on you. I've never seen it happen in all my years of practice.

What I have seen, many many times over, is a communication breakdown between your brain and your stress hormones. We call it HPA Axis Dysregulation—your Hypothalamus, Pituitary gland, and Adrenals getting their wires crossed.

Think of it like this: your brain's trying to send clear instructions, but the signal keeps dropping out. Your hormones are stuck buffering. And your metabolism? It's just trying to keep up with the chaos.

Why I Stopped Using "Adrenal Fatigue" Years Ago

Look, I used to use that term too. We all did. But the more I learned—and the more I saw in clinic—the clearer it became that it wasn't the full picture.

The idea was that your adrenals get exhausted and can't produce enough cortisol anymore. Sounds logical, right? Except that's not what's actually happening.

Your adrenals are responders. They take orders from your brain. When stress becomes chronic—and I'm talking about emotional stress, under-eating, overtraining, the perimenopause rollercoaster, inflammation, shocking sleep—the whole communication system gets dysregulated.

Instead of that nice, smooth cortisol rhythm you're supposed to have, you end up with:

Cortisol spiking at completely random times
Barely any cortisol when you wake up (hello, can't get out of bed)
Cortisol surging at night when you should be winding down
Blood sugar all over the shop
Cravings that won't quit
A metabolism that feels like it's moved to another country

So it's not about failure. Your body isn't broken. It's just responding to what feels like a constant survival situation. And honestly? Once women understand that, the guilt starts to lift. That matters.

Here's What Stress Actually Does to Your Metabolism

When your body perceives stress—even the quiet, invisible, "I'm fine" kind—it triggers a whole metabolic cascade:

Your body flips into fat storage mode

Cortisol tells your system to hold onto fat, especially around your belly. Why? Because from a survival perspective, that's your emergency fuel tank. Your body thinks it might need it.

Your blood sugar becomes a complete mess

Stress signals your liver to dump glucose into your bloodstream for quick energy. Makes sense if you're running from danger. Makes less sense when you're just trying to answer emails.

Over time? Insulin spikes, cravings hit hard, energy crashes, and you store more fat. This is why you crave sugar even when you know it's not helping. It's not a character flaw—it's biochemistry.

Your thyroid slows right down

This is the bit that catches people out. Cortisol actually blocks the conversion of your inactive thyroid hormone (T4) into the active form your body can use (T3).

The result? Even if your thyroid blood tests look "normal," you might be dealing with:

Sluggish metabolism
Cold hands and feet
Hair shedding
Fluid retention that won't budge
Weight gain that makes no logical sense

I can't tell you how many times I've seen this pattern in clinic. It's frustrating—but it's also fixable.

Stress Changes Your Behaviour (And That Changes Everything)

Here's something I notice all the time: stress doesn't just mess with your hormones. It changes what you do.

When women come to see me utterly exhausted, I often hear:

"I'm skipping breakfast because I'm not hungry"

"I just graze all day, I don't sit down for meals"

"I live on coffee to get through"

"I know I should eat more protein but I just... don't"

"I stay up late because it's the only time I get to myself"

"I'm too tired to move much"

None of this is a willpower problem. It's your nervous system trying to cope. And those coping mechanisms? They feed right back into the metabolic stress cycle.

Sleep Is Where It All Falls Apart (Or Comes Together)

I'm just going to say it: if your sleep is a disaster, your metabolism will be too.

Poor sleep makes your body temporarily insulin-resistant the very next day. It also keeps evening cortisol elevated, which means you stay wired, inflammation gets worse, emotional eating kicks in, and fat burning basically stops.

One bad week of sleep can completely derail your progress. I've seen it happen again and again.

Perimenopause Changes the Rules

If you're over 35, we need to talk about this.

Once oestrogen starts becoming less predictable, it amplifies your entire stress response. Your metabolism doesn't follow the same rules it used to.

Stress plus perimenopause is like throwing fuel on a fire:

Deeper fatigue
Stronger cravings
More bloating
Worse inflammation
Stubborn weight gain
Sleep that's even harder to come by

Your metabolism becomes more sensitive during this time—but here's the thing I always remind my clients: it also becomes more responsive to the right support.

The Part Nobody Tells You: This Is Reversible

After 23 years of doing this work, I can tell you with absolute certainty: you can retrain your stress response. You can rebuild your metabolic resilience.

It's not about perfection. It's about consistency with the right foundations. Here's where I typically start:

Rebalance your cortisol rhythm

Eat a protein-rich breakfast within 60–90 minutes of waking
Don't smash coffee on an empty stomach (I know, I know - I love coffee too, just not on an empty stomach please)
Move gently in the morning—nothing intense
Consider magnesium support in the evenings

Stabilise your blood sugar

Every meal needs protein, fibre, and healthy fat
Have a protein-based snack around 3pm
Don't go more than 4 hours without eating during the day

Support the stress-thyroid connection

Key nutrients that I often see depleted:

Zinc
Selenium
Magnesium
B vitamins

Important note: Please don't just start randomly supplementing. Work with someone who can properly assess what you actually need—especially if you're on medications or dealing with thyroid or perimenopausal symptoms. Appropriate testing can really help here, rather that just guessing.

Calm your HPA axis

This is where herbal medicine really shines. Some of my go-to's (when appropriate):

Rhodiola
Withania (unless you have nightshade sensitivities)
Passionflower
Licorice (only if blood pressure allows)
Chamomile
Holy Basil

Again, herbs are medicine. They need to be matched to your situation, not just taken because they're "good for stress."

Restore metabolic flexibility

Strength training 2–3 times a week
Eat consistent, balanced meals
Get morning sunlight exposure
Walk after dinner when you can

These aren't sexy recommendations. But they work. They rebuild your body's ability to regulate energy, burn fat, and stay resilient under pressure.

You're Not Broken—You're Just Exhausted

Let me say this clearly: your metabolism isn't stubborn. It's stressed.

Once you understand what stress is actually doing inside your body—not just the vague "it's bad for you" stuff, but the real mechanisms—you can stop guessing and start healing.

If you'd like personalised guidance on where your metabolic stress is actually coming from, I've created something to help.

👉 Take the Metabolism Detective Quiz and uncover the pattern driving your symptoms.