Cortisol is a hot topic these days, and with good reason—experiencing high levels of the stress hormone can result in a range of not-so-fun symptoms, including acne, irritability, fatigue, weight gain, sleep disturbances, high blood pressure, and even diabetes.
Of course, there are plenty of ways to manage cortisol. Practicing stress-reducing activities—like mindfulness, meditation, yoga, and breathwork—can help, as can following a healthy diet, limiting alcohol and caffeine, and prioritizing sleep.
However, if you have been highly stressed for a while, it might be helpful to distinguish between chronic stress and cortisol addiction. According to psychologist Laura Villanueva, “the main difference is that in chronic stress the person suffers and wants to get out of it, while in cortisol addiction there is a constant search for more tension, more emotion.”
That may sound counterintuitive—and potentially even masochistic—but experts say that cortisol addiction, especially in today’s high-stress world, might be more common than we realize. While not an official clinical diagnosis, cortisol or “stress addiction” is described as a subconscious pattern in which a person becomes psychologically and physiologically dependent on the stress hormone cortisol and the feelings it produces.
Worried that might be you? Read on to find out more about the difference between chronic stress and cortisol addiction.
What is chronic stress?
Chronic stress is a physical condition sustained over time in which the body remains in a state of “fight or flight” in the face of perceived external threats. According to Villanueva, this prolonged state is emotionally, cognitively, and physiologically debilitating:
- Emotional symptoms: anxiety, depressive symptoms, irritability, sudden mood swings and decreased libido.
- Cognitive symptoms: memory lapses, recurrent absent-mindedness, loss of mental agility.
- Physical symptoms: sleep disturbances like insomnia or excessive sleep, changes in appetite, digestive issues, high blood pressure, abdominal swelling, frequent headaches, low immune response, and hormonal imbalances.
The key factor? A chronically stressed person wants to stop feeling stressed, but does not know how or is unable to break the cycle.
What is cortisol addiction?
Here’s the thing: Cortisol addiction is often a consequence of experiencing chronic stress. At first, it’s an adaptive response; the surging cortisol allows us to continue functioning at high performance. The problem occurs when this sort of turbo mode becomes prolonged.
“In cortisol addiction, the system wears down more and more until the remedy is worse than the disease,” warns Villanueva. “In this case, we are not talking about running away from stress, but about actively seeking it out—people who feel a vacuum if there is no pressure, who ‘deflate’ on vacation and who unconsciously generate situations that reactivate their state of alertness.”
In other words, cortisol addiction could also be described as an addiction to drama. “The first part of a stress response is a release of endorphins, is a release of pain relief…So, we become attached, dependent on wanting hits of things that give us essentially that constant stream of pain relief,” explains Dr. Scott Lyons, author of the book Addicted to Drama. “In our nervous systems, our exaggerated responses are justified if we’re addicted to drama.”
Chronic stress vs. cortisol addiction
If chronic stress feels like being trapped in a fire, cortisol addiction is like lighting yourself aflame just to feel alive. “The main difference is that in chronic stress the person suffers and wants to get out of it, while in cortisol addiction there is a constant search for more stress, more excitement,” says Villanueva.
If you’re worried you may be addicted to stress, here are some signs to look out for:
- Constantly taking on more commitments even when your schedule is already packed.
- Inability to back out of commitments; people-pleasing; difficulty saying “no.”
- Unwillingness to take breaks or vacations; feeling restless or uneasy during downtime.
- Inability to sit still; difficulty relaxing without feeling the need to be “productive.”
- Procrastination
- Feeling unsettled or guilty when not working or when disconnected from your phone or computer.
- Creating tight deadlines or only feeling “alive” when faced with high-pressure situations.
- Frequent anxiety, impatience, or a constant sense of urgency.
- Feeling burned out or drained while also compelled to “keep going.”
- Neglecting exercise, sleep, meals, hobbies, relationships, and other self-care.
- Difficulty finding satisfaction; feeling cranky when things are “slow.”
- Using caffeine or other stimulants excessively.
How to break the cortisol cycle
Whether you’re addicted to cortisol or experiencing chronic stress, the body and mind end up paying the price. The only way to break the cycle? Learning to slow down and regulate your nervous system. “Self-regulation is the ability to know how much energy, attention, and emotion to utilize in our system to properly adapt to a stimulus,” Lyons explained in a recent podcast.
To that end, working with a therapist on managing stress can be extremely helpful; research shows that stress addiction is sometimes a trauma response related to a state of hypervigilance that developed during childhood. For more information, Villanueva recommends reading The Body Keeps The Score by Bessel van der Kolk, MD.
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