The adrenal glands are absolutely integral to the whole sleep process. However, of course it’s not as simple as that! It involves a whole cascade of other glands and hormones, the correct nutrition, and all the pathogens and stressors that our bodies face on a daily basis.

The two most prominent adrenal hormones involved are cortisol and adrenaline. Cortisol is well known as the main anti-inflammatory hormone, but one of its main functions is keeping our blood sugar balanced and preventing hypoglycaemia.

Cortisol should be at its highest in the morning, and gradually taper off during the day. People with deregulated adrenal glands may experience this to be the other way round, and they can become very wired in the evening, thus interfering with the sleep process. For some people cortisol starts to rise too early, and this can explain why they wake up during the night.

Any kind of emotional or physical stressor can cause this dysregulation. Many people have stressed lifestyles, or particular anxieties, and find their sleep disrupted, due to cortisol imbalance, and the cascade of other hormonal disturbances this can give rise to, as well as overactive brain function and rumination that anxiety can bring about.

We are bombarded with physical stressors these days - including bacteria, viruses, modern and fungi, heavy metals, chemicals in the environment and foods and processed foods, microplastics, radiation and EMFs. These have an inflammatory effect on our bodies, raising cortisol in an attempt to control this. However, when the stress exposure is ongoing, cortisol can fail to work properly and lead to the body being in a chronic proinflammatory state, as inflammatory molecules again unsuccessfully attempt to heal and repair the affected tissues. This can lead to the nervous system being in perpetual sympathetic mode, finding it difficult to go into parasympathetic mode which is needed for relaxation, rest and repair. Some of these stressors are difficult to avoid - but taking care of our immediate environment is important – such as using an air purifier to control mould, fungi, bacteria and dust, and switching off devices or having them on airplane mode when not using them, which is an absolute must if we have our phones by the bed at night.

 Artificial light at night confuses the body’s internal clock - the circadian rhythm, or the suprachiasmatic nucleus - which regulates heart rate, blood pressure, inflammation, and the workings of every organ and gland in the body. Exposure to light at the wrong times shifts this rhythm, and disturbs the internal clock. As well as affecting sleep, it will disrupt hormone balance, brain and neurological function, emotional balance, and health issues affecting every system of the body. As cortisol is affected by light exposure, early morning outdoor light anchors the body’s circadian rhythm. And at night, dim light and is important to allow melatonin to rise, which signals sleep.  

 Even dehydration will be experienced as a stressor and lead to higher cortisol production, so this is an area that requires ongoing attention. Aldosterone is the adrenal hormone primarily connected to fluid balance, and consequently is integral in maintaining the correct blood pressure. And as blood pressure is also connected to cortisol and adrenaline balance, and these factors affect sleep, it is easy to see how the harmony of adrenal function has a big impact on sleeping well.

Whilst cortisol is produced in reaction to chronic stress, acute stress leads to high levels of adrenaline production, leading to the classic fight/flight reaction. Many people wake during the night in a state of acute stress, or semi-panic – indeed 3am is often referred to as ‘the graveyard of the soul’ – when subconscious fears come to the surface.

 Our dietary and lifestyle habits can make a major difference to how our adrenals perform during the night. There is a lot of confusion about food intake before bed, and what works for different people is very individual. It’s thought that we shouldn’t eat within three hours of settling at night, as this can overload the body with energy, in the form of electrons, and put the digestive system under pressure, disrupting many systems, and interfering with the body’s ability to relax. If sugar is eaten too late at night, this can cause a spike of insulin during the night – leading to a drop in blood sugar, and cortisol can then rise too early, in order to help access glucose stores in the liver to replenish blood sugar – and the rise in cortisol will interfere with sleep, as it shouldn’t rise until early morning. On the other hand, if people are short of energy to get them through the night, blood sugar can drop for that reason – again causing a rise in cortisol – so for some people, having a small amount of food before bed might be helpful – but whether this needs to be carbohydrate, protein or fat, depends very much on the person’s individual metabolism, and can involve a bit of trial and error. An neuropeptide called orexin regulates sleep, wakefulness, and appetite, and if someone is hungry during the night, their orexin may rise, to alert them to seek food, but as this rise will wake them up.  

Although exercise is vital, and can help with all the factors necessary for balanced adrenals and sleep, exercising at night can obviously keep the body ramped up, and the nervous system in sympathetic mode, which is counterproductive to the rest and repair mode it needs to go into at night.

Breathing exercises are a valuable method for calming cortisol, and activating the parasympathetic/rest and repair system. There are many methods, such as Pranic breathing – breathing through alternating sides of the nose, or 4-7-8 breathing -inhaling for four seconds, holding briefly, and exhaling slowly for eight seconds.These methods stimulate the vagus nerve, and lower heart rate and cortisol.

Histamine works closely with the adrenal glands, and whenever the body is faced with any threat it goes into action to try to eliminate that threat from the body, be it the respiratory system as with pollen, dust, moulds and fungi, bacteria, other airborne pathogens or the digestive tract in response to threatening foods. If the general level of histamine in the body is too high, it will circulate to the brain and cause agitation and difficulty sleeping. Children are particularly affected by this.

There are many energy based therapies which work on rebalancing the nervous system - along with homeopathic remedies, herbal remedies and nutritional supplements - which can help to calm the mind, and lead to a more peaceful night. From a nutritional point of view, there are many nutrients that are involved in maintaining optimal adrenal function. Magnesium is the most well-known anti-stress nutrient, but there are several different types - glycinate, citrate, malate, taurate, threonate - so it is worth getting these checked by a kinesiologist or Bioresonance practitioner, to find which is the best type, and brand, for you. Vitamin D is very important for controlling inflammation, thus helping to reduce cortisol - this usually needs to be paired with vitamin K, to help calcium metabolism. B vitamins are vital for the nervous system, and this and vitamin C have important roles in the immune system and adrenal function.

A calming nighttime routine helps your body transition to parasympathetic mode, enabling your nervous system to rest, rather than staying on high alert. A warm bath or shower helps to normalise your temperature – very important for sleeping well, and meditation, breathing exercises, and journaling can help to calm the mind.

Although it can take quite a bit of experimentation, reducing emotional and physical stressors, taking care of nutrition, using beneficial light sources, engaging in the correct level and timing of exercise, and using natural remedies and methods, will help to create the correct balance of hormones, energy, and anti-inflammatory markers, with better and more restful sleep being a natural by-product of this.