Has anybody had their cortisol levels checked while in withdrawal?

I'm just wondering what the results were.  Thinking of getting mind checked.

I have had mine checked 4 times with saliva, 3 or 4 times in the mornings with blood and in November using 24 hour Urine test. All of the saliva showed high at night. All the morning blood test were normal. The 24 hour urine test showed high morning, evening and night.

 

They were all at home tests except the morning blood draws so I do not know how accurate they are. I do wake up between 2:30 am and 3:00 am but the past two weeks I am able to go back to sleep most of the time.

 

PG

Thanks PG.  That's very interesting.  Do you feel like the blood tests are more accurate than the saliva and urine ones?

Mine was completely out of whack. I did saliva. Early morning saliva peak.

Thanks PG.  That's very interesting.  Do you feel like the blood tests are more accurate than the saliva and urine ones?

 

the saliva and urine are suppose to be more accurate because it is checked over a 24 hour period. The blood is only checked once in the morning before 8 am.

 

PG

I did the 8am, 12pm, 5pm and 10pm saliva tests on x2 occasions. The first all readings were very high. I felt the surges in my body constantly. The second occasion they were normal for the morning and afternoon and low for the evening. I didn’t understand how they were low because I felt wired at night and couldn’t sleep still. As reassurance, know the cortisol levels so eventually balance out as you heal. I feel much better now.

I did the 8am, 12pm, 5pm and 10pm saliva tests on x2 occasions. The first all readings were very high. I felt the surges in my body constantly. The second occasion they were normal for the morning and afternoon and low for the evening. I didn’t understand how they were low because I felt wired at night and couldn’t sleep still. As reassurance, know the cortisol levels so eventually balance out as you heal. I feel much better now.

Problem in benzo withdrawal is usually glutamate (and sometimes norepinephrine). If you have a problem with cortisol, you can usually see it, it manifests physically -- acne, in extreme cases moon face, etc.

I did the 8am, 12pm, 5pm and 10pm saliva tests on x2 occasions. The first all readings were very high. I felt the surges in my body constantly. The second occasion they were normal for the morning and afternoon and low for the evening. I didn’t understand how they were low because I felt wired at night and couldn’t sleep still. As reassurance, know the cortisol levels so eventually balance out as you heal. I feel much better now.

Problem in benzo withdrawal is usually glutamate (and sometimes norepinephrine). If you have a problem with cortisol, you can usually see it, it manifests physically -- acne, in extreme cases moon face, etc.

 

Is there a test to check glutamate and what is it called?

 

PG

Is there a test to check glutamate and what is it called?

There are ways, but I don't think it matters. And besides, glutamate levels can be easily reduced with anticonvulsant drugs (gabapentin, oxcarbazepine). The problem isn't glutamate in and of itself, but its interaction with glutamate receptors. And there are no tests to measure upregulation and sensitization of glutamate receptors which is what ails most of us. Similarly to GABA. We don't have too low GABA levels, we have dysfunctional GABA_A receptors.

Is there a test to check glutamate and what is it called?

There are ways, but I don't think it matters. And besides, glutamate levels can be easily reduced with anticonvulsant drugs (gabapentin, oxcarbazepine). The problem isn't glutamate in and of itself, but its interaction with glutamate receptors. And there are no tests to measure upregulation and sensitization of glutamate receptors which is what ails most of us. Similarly to GABA. We don't have too low GABA levels, we have dysfunctional GABA_A receptors.

 

Okay and thanks!

PG

I had my hormones checked not too long ago. I had low cortisol but extremely HIGH epinephrine and norepinephrine. They even did a CT scan of my stomach to make sure it wasn’t an adrenal tumor. Which it wasn’t so they just told me my body was severely stressed.