The Real Reason You Feel Like Crap All the Time: How Stress is Holding You Back
“The Real Reason You Feel Like Crap All the Time: How Stress is Holding you Back"- Misty Creaghe
Let have a real conversation Supermom!
You’re doing everything right. You eat your salads, grind it out at spin class, get the kids where they need to go, check all the boxes at work, and still somehow feel like your body is falling apart.
Your hair’s thinning. You’re waking up at 2:00 a.m. with your heart racing. You can’t focus. You’re exhausted but wired. And let’s not even talk about that stubborn belly fat that won’t budge no matter how clean you eat.
Sound familiar?
That’s not laziness. That’s not "aging." That’s stress. More specifically, it’s cortisol gone wild.
Let’s break this down, mama-style.
What Is Cortisol and Why You Actually Need It
Cortisol is your body’s stress hormone, made in your adrenal glands. It’s not the villain—it’s the first responder. It gets you out of danger, helps regulate blood sugar, supports your metabolism, and even helps reduce inflammation in a healthy cycle.
Think of cortisol like a fire alarm. It’s meant to alert your body when something is wrong and help you react appropriately.
Cortisol is meant to work in a rhythm—high in the morning to wake you up and energize you, and low at night so you can sleep and repair.
That’s the natural circadian rhythm of cortisol:
🔺 High in the morning (around 6–8 AM) to give you energy and mental clarity.
⬇️ Gradually tapers off during the day so you wind down naturally.
🌙 Lowest at night so you can rest and restore.
When this rhythm is in sync, you wake up energized, think clearly, digest food well, feel calm throughout the day, and fall asleep like a baby.
But when you’re living in chronic stress, the rhythm turns into a chaotic mess.
What Chronic High Cortisol Actually Looks Like
So what happens when your stress isn’t just an occasional thing but an every-damn-day way of life?
You’re running on fumes—but cortisol keeps pumping. It’s like your body is stuck in fight-or-flight, even when there’s no tiger chasing you.
Here’s how it shows up:
You wake up tired but wired
You snap at your kids or coworkers
You crave sugar or salt (because cortisol affects your blood sugar)
Your digestion is wrecked—hello bloating, IBS, constipation
You get brain fog or forget simple things
You feel tense all day, even when you’re sitting down
You get anxious or depressed out of nowhere
You wake up in the middle of the night for no reason
Your cycle gets irregular, PMS worsens, or your libido tanks
You get frequent headaches, joint pain, or unexplained inflammation
And you still think it’s your fault.
No sis—it’s your cortisol screaming for help. And here's the truth bomb 💣 no one’s telling you:
As You Age, Your Stress Tolerance Drops
Let me be straight with you: You’re not 22 anymore. Neither am I.
And that matters.
Your body cannot handle the same stress load it once did—not because you’re weak, but because your metabolism, hormones, sleep quality, and muscle recovery all change with age. Your resilience tank shrinks.
So when you say, “My life isn’t that stressful—it used to be worse,” but you still feel like a hot mess...
It’s not because your stress is bigger—it’s because your body’s margin for stress is smaller.
And when you layer in under-eating, skipping meals, over-exercising, poor sleep, and 24/7 hustle culture?
You’re literally marinating in cortisol.
Cortisol Gone Rogue Wrecks EVERYTHING
Let’s look at all the ways high cortisol messes with your major body systems:
🧠 Mindset & Focus
Cortisol shrinks the hippocampus—hello brain fog and memory issues
You feel scattered, unmotivated, or like you’re always behind
💤 Sleep
Spikes at night mean insomnia, 2 AM wakeups, or never feeling rested
Lack of deep sleep means your body never truly recovers
🍽️ Digestion & Nutrition
High cortisol diverts blood flow away from digestion
You get bloating, constipation, diarrhea, or acid reflux
It messes with blood sugar, which messes with hunger, cravings, and mood
💃 Movement & Recovery
Intense exercise under chronic stress = more inflammation, not progress
Cortisol breaks down muscle if not regulated
You feel more sore, more tired, and less fit despite working harder
🔥 Inflammation & Hormones
Cortisol throws off progesterone and estrogen levels
Leads to fatigue, mood swings, acne, and low libido
Keeps inflammation high which impacts pain, disease risk, and fat storage
Your body is constantly fighting to protect you—but when that fight never stops, your system starts to crash.
Are You Accidentally Fueling the Fire?
Let me lovingly call you out on a few things:
🚴 That spin class or HIIT workout
You think it’s helping, but it’s actually fueling the fire. When cortisol is already high, intense exercise pushes it higher.
What you really need?
Walking.
Strength training.
Low-intensity movement that builds strength without spiking stress.
🥦 Skipping carbs to “be healthy”
Believe it or not—carbs calm cortisol.
Your brain needs glucose to shut off stress hormones.
When you skip carbs, your blood sugar crashes, your body panics, and cortisol rushes in to save you.
So yes, eat the damn sweet potato. Your hormones will thank you.
💆♀️ Waiting for a monthly massage or mani/pedi to "relax"
Girl. You need daily stress management—not something you do once every 6 weeks. That’s just putting a bow on burnout.
You need little daily rituals that actually regulate cortisol:
Journaling
Deep breathing
A slow walk with music or silence
A bubble bath
Reading something just for fun
Sitting on your porch doing nothing
For me? Writing this blog is my stress relief. Getting my thoughts out is a brain dump, a breath, a way to regulate. It’s not perfect. It’s not organized yet. But it helps me process and release.
Let’s Reflect—Because Awareness Is the First Step
Grab a notebook or your phone notes and take a minute right now:
1. Where is stress showing up in your life?
Hustle culture?
Work deadlines?
Managing the kids’ chaos?
Your intense cardio schedule?
Your never-ending to-do list?
2. What symptoms is your body showing as stress?
Hair thinning?
2 AM wake-ups?
Sugar cravings?
Digestive issues?
Fatigue even after a full night’s sleep?
3. How often are you doing real stress management?
Every day?
Once a week?
Once a month when you finally break?
4. Which cortisol-lowering tools do you want to try this week?
Here’s a few:
Carbs with every meal
Strength training 2–3x per week
10 minutes of deep breathing
Evening journaling
Walking without your phone
Reading something light before bed
✅ Pick two and commit to trying them daily this week. Not perfectly, just consistently.
You Can’t Heal Hustling
I know the world tells you to hustle harder, grind it out, and earn your rest.
But what if I told you the real glow-up happens when you start living in alignment with your biology—not against it?
You can’t outwork burnout.
You have to heal it.
With compassion. With awareness. With the right tools.
And yes—with carbs. 🙌
Something Exciting Is Coming… 🎤
If this post is hitting home, you’re gonna love what’s coming soon.
I’ve been behind the scenes working on something powerful for women just like you—high achievers who are tired of burning out and are finally ready to reclaim their energy.
📣 It’s called the Burnout Breakthrough Summit, and it’s going to feature an expert interview series on everything from stress to sleep, from mindset to metabolism.
This is not just another summit—it’s a movement.
A shift.
A wake-up call and a blueprint for finally feeling like yourself again.
👀 Keep your eyes peeled for the official launch later this month. You’re not gonna want to miss it.
Let’s heal your cortisol, one step at a time.
Because you’re not meant to survive your life.
You’re meant to flourish in it.
Misty 💛
1 Away Fitness | Your Burnout Recovery Coach
