What is the Origin of Stress Hormone Imbalance?

This concept is fundamental to clinical endocrinology and psychoneuroendocrinology, used to diagnose and characterize disorders of the adrenal and sympathetic nervous systems. The term arose from recognizing that chronic, unremitting stress causes a physiological cascade that exhausts or overstimulates the stress axes. It provides a clinical framework for understanding stress-related pathology.

What is the Mechanism of Stress Hormone Imbalance?

Chronic psychological or physiological stress leads to sustained activation of the HPA axis, often resulting in hypercortisolemia, which is an excess of circulating cortisol. Over time, in some individuals, this sustained demand can lead to a blunted or hyporesponsive state. This imbalance profoundly disrupts glucose metabolism, suppresses immune surveillance, and interferes with the normal feedback loops of other critical hormones, including thyroid and reproductive steroids, thereby driving systemic dysfunction.

Stress Hormone Imbalance ∞ Area

Stress Hormone Imbalance

Meaning

Stress Hormone Imbalance describes a pathological deviation from the normal homeostatic set point and the expected circadian rhythm of hormones centrally involved in the body’s stress response, most notably cortisol and the catecholamines. This state can manifest as either chronically elevated or pathologically blunted hormone levels, reflecting a dysregulated hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. It is a key physiological signature of chronic allostatic overload.

Fractured light bulb and smooth sphere within an organic form, symbolizing endocrine disruption. This highlights the patient journey in restoring metabolic health via clinical protocols for cellular function.

Can an Employer Be Sued If a Wellness Program Causes Mental Health Issues?

Employer liability for wellness program-induced mental health issues hinges on demonstrable biological disruption and a failure to provide individualized, non-coercive support.

∞ Wellness Protocols
∞ Allostatic Load
∞ Metabolic Function Disruption

HRTioAugust 28, 2025

Stress Hormone Imbalance

Meaning

Origin

Mechanism

Can an Employer Be Sued If a Wellness Program Causes Mental Health Issues?

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