Asperger Syndrome Tied to Low Cortisol Levels

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ShadowRanger
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06 Apr 2009, 6:40 pm

I can't post u-r-l's yet so I've had to include the whole article)

Low levels of a stress hormone may be responsible for the obsession with routine and dislike for new experiences common in children with a certain type of autism.

U.K. researchers found that children with Asperger syndrome (AS) do not experience the normal twofold increase of cortisol upon waking up. Levels of the hormone in their bodies do continue to decrease throughout the day, though, just as they do in those without the syndrome.

The body produces cortisol, among other hormones, in stressful situations. Cortisol increases blood pressure and blood sugar levels, among other duties, to signal the body's need to adapt to changes occurring around it. It's thought that the increase shortly after waking helps jump-start the brain for the day ahead, the researchers said.

People with Asperger syndrome notably have very repetitive or narrow patterns of thought and behavior, such as being obsessed with either a single object or topic. Though tending to become experts in this limited domain, they have otherwise very limited social skills, according to the study.

"Although these are early days, we think this difference in stress hormone levels could be really significant in explaining why children with AS are less able to react and cope with unexpected change," study co-leader Mark Brosnan, from the psychology department at the University of Bath, said in a news release issued by the school.

If these Asperger symptoms are caused primarily by stress, caregivers could learn to steer children away from situations that would add to anxiety, the researchers said.

"This study suggests that children with AS may not adjust normally to the challenge of a new environment on waking," study researcher David Jessop, from the University of Bristol, said in the news release. "This may affect the way they subsequently engage with the world around them."

The researchers, whose findings were published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology, will next study if this lack of cortisol upon waking also occurs in children with other types of autism.

-- Kevin McKeever



0_equals_true
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06 Apr 2009, 7:09 pm

What about lack of melatonin?

One thing I do have is a s**t load of adrenaline when I wake up, and throughout the day. I get quite fatigued in general.

Mentally I have trained myself into ignore the physical effect of it at the time. It is sort of like boy crying wolf to me, but I can't stop it from happening, only control my reaction.

I may try beta blockers.



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06 Apr 2009, 9:06 pm

it takes two cuppas to get going in the morning...;)

but then I'm not a kid anymore...;)



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07 Apr 2009, 3:23 pm

I've never noticed any particular lack of energy either, I've always had lotsa energy

The study says that levels of Cortisol were low in Aspies

Apparently, this doesn't make us have less physical energy, but means we can't easily deal with a hectic environment or lotsa unexpected things going on at once. Aspies instead generally just focus on our obsessions don't we

I've always thought that the reason for this is something to do with the way our brains work. However I can't explain the process scientifically. Maybe Cortisol is the answer, or at least is connected to the answer.

Why do we have increased memory and increased focus, in place of ability to do the things NT's do without thinking? Maybe this hormone has something to do with it?

I don't know what melatonin or serotonin are, will have to look them up some time.

I have been fatigued on many days before. I find it all depends on my diet and exercise though. If you eat things high in sugar or fat that will cause your blood sugar levels to spike or drop low and give you fatigue all the time. Healthy fruits and veg, and foods with no additives and no processed sugars or fats wont do that to your blood sugar, and will actually lower cholestoral.

If you eat high energy foods like jacket potato and baked beans for lunch, and cereal for breakfast, you shouldn't get fatigued in the day.

What are beta blockers!? They don't sound good



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07 Apr 2009, 3:47 pm

I eat a huge amount of fruit, banana, tangerines, apples, grape, etc. I hardly eat sweets or confectionary, they are just not that interesting. Sugar and fat get you addicted, but you taste bugs suffer as a consequence too. Therefore other thing may seem blander. I eat fresh fruit and veg, meat lean, and hardly ever use pre-packaged meals. Also I heal very fast which is good sign that I am not unhealthy.

I do constantly crave a taste I've yet to find though. :lol:

I have an extremely fast metabolism.

I also do martial arts every week, with warm-up circuit training at the beginning.

Like I said I have a s**t load of adrenaline. Adrenalin makes some people tired. You may have normal level of adrenaline, with less Cortisol in it.

When I sleep I naturally learnt to contort my body, and I would end up with limbs under my body. So my arm or leg would be completely dead in the morning, and I wouldn’t be able to move it without using my good arm. However this produces endorphins which counteract the effect of the of the adrenaline (a very hot shower helps too). Nowadays I try not to sleep on my limbs, by I contort them in such a way that there is some flow restriction without completely shutting of circulation.



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07 Apr 2009, 4:01 pm

Haahaa constantly crave a taste you're yet to find - that's a good one

That could mean you are always willing to try new things, I know I am when it comes to food, not gross things tho like monkey brains or rainforest grubs

Well the star sign I know with not liking sweets, fast metabolism is Gemini/Cancer June-July time

Is that accurate or couldn't be more wrong? ha ha

You sound like a very fit person... what could cause your fatigue then... perhaps you don't eat enough food at the right times or something



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08 Apr 2009, 5:29 pm

0_equals_true wrote:
I eat a huge amount of fruit, banana, tangerines, apples, grape, etc. I hardly eat sweets or confectionary, they are just not that interesting. Sugar and fat get you addicted, but you taste bugs suffer as a consequence too. Therefore other thing may seem blander. I eat fresh fruit and veg, meat lean, and hardly ever use pre-packaged meals. Also I heal very fast which is good sign that I am not unhealthy.

I do constantly crave a taste I've yet to find though. :lol:

I have an extremely fast metabolism.

I also do martial arts every week, with warm-up circuit training at the beginning.

Like I said I have a sh** load of adrenaline. Adrenalin makes some people tired. You may have normal level of adrenaline, with less Cortisol in it.
.


You sound like me, I'm quite hyper naturally and get adrenaline rushes easily.

The cortisol thing does sound plausible. I seem to have low blood pressure and get head rushes a lot when standing. That could be caused by low cortisol. The only 2 other AS people I know also have this.

Not that I think of it, after adrenaline-inducing situations or prolonged very heavy exercise I find those narrow thought patterns lessen.

It could reasonably be to do with cortisol.



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08 Apr 2009, 5:53 pm

@mechanicalgirl39 I am not really hyper to be honest. You might have a different way of dealing with adrenalin. Adrenaline for me is not like a 'rush' or a high, it is a downer, there is nothing good about it. I just have to try to block it out. Endorphin can be like a high. Also sometime I just get a natural high for no reason, fairly rarely these days.

@ShadowRanger I really do crave a taste I've never tasted, maybe it is a composite of other tastes. I don't believe in star sign but I would be a Torus. My fatigue is constant so it is not really down to that, as you would expect it to fluctuate. I thing the best explanation is adrenaline, hyper tense muscles from stress, but most importantly my senses. I don't want to give the impression I am hyper fit just that I am not unfit in that way, eating junk, etc. I could put on more weight, my executive dysfunction, forgetting to eat sometimes, and pain in my gut make that difficult. TBH with my metabolism it is hard enough maintaining weight, being able to put is on is another story.



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08 Apr 2009, 6:59 pm

I've also been thinking that due to low cortisol levels, it would explain why we do not feel stressed about people while doing our random behavior quirks? =/ I basicly have to be told to stop to actually stop o.O since i can't guess whatever the people around me are thinking or what their intentions are.

Oh and Tauruses like to charge, no big deal here. ;p (They also like arts and earth-related stuff)



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09 Apr 2009, 3:39 pm

0_equals_true wrote:
@mechanicalgirl39 I am not really hyper to be honest. You might have a different way of dealing with adrenalin. Adrenaline for me is not like a 'rush' or a high, it is a downer, there is nothing good about it. I just have to try to block it out. Endorphin can be like a high. Also sometime I just get a natural high for no reason, fairly rarely these days.

@ShadowRanger I really do crave a taste I've never tasted, maybe it is a composite of other tastes. I don't believe in star sign but I would be a Torus. My fatigue is constant so it is not really down to that, as you would expect it to fluctuate. I thing the best explanation is adrenaline, hyper tense muscles from stress, but most importantly my senses. I don't want to give the impression I am hyper fit just that I am not unfit in that way, eating junk, etc. I could put on more weight, my executive dysfunction, forgetting to eat sometimes, and pain in my gut make that difficult. TBH with my metabolism it is hard enough maintaining weight, being able to put is on is another story.


That's weird...

Yeah I do react to adrenaline differently, I definitely get high off it. I can get high on it at even the most inappropriate moments, like when I've just had an argument with someone. I get those highs for no reason too. But could just be because I get myself in a hyper mood or over enthusiastic about something.

Do you know why you have such a high adrenaline level? Problems with your adrenal glands?



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09 Apr 2009, 3:41 pm

Quote:
it would explain why we do not feel stressed about people while doing our random behavior quirks? =/ I basicly have to be told to stop to actually stop


Same here...

You should have met me when I was 15/16...I was way worse. I had this phase for a while then where the ONE subject I wanted to talk about was death, mutilation, and otherwise all things morbid. My mum talked to me and tried to get me to stop as I was freaking people out. I eventually did, but all I did was think about those things inside my head instead of talking about them out loud. When I had that obsession it was like it was the only thing that was real or mattered. I am over that one though...



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09 Apr 2009, 4:37 pm

I don't know if it is a widespread thing in AS'ers, but myself and another AS dude have this pattern where we have a really hard time waking in the morning, and feel a little hyperactive at night. Could this be to do with cortisol? Could we be getting a cortisol surge at night instead of early in the day?

I know I have less head rushes in the evening, and thinking about it, my thought patterns do tend to be more expansive.



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09 Apr 2009, 6:06 pm

mechanicalgirl39 wrote:
That's weird...

Yeah I do react to adrenaline differently, I definitely get high off it. I can get high on it at even the most inappropriate moments, like when I've just had an argument with someone. I get those highs for no reason too. But could just be because I get myself in a hyper mood or over enthusiastic about something.

Do you know why you have such a high adrenaline level? Problems with your adrenal glands?


That sounds advantageous up to a point, however beyond a certain level it could be a problem. I quite like jovial people, but I find very hyper people kind of annoying after a while. I guess it depends on the person and how you interact.

Yes it is constantly pumping out. The crying wolf scenario is about right, and a doctor said exactly that. Normally the fight of flight situation concerns the limbic system in the brain, and the adrenal gland thought the sympathetic and peripheral nervous system. But there comes a point where you adrenal gland is so overactive and you brain just says f**k this I’m going on strike. However it does take its toll on you body and really tire you out.



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09 Apr 2009, 6:14 pm

mechanicalgirl39 wrote:
I don't know if it is a widespread thing in AS'ers, but myself and another AS dude have this pattern where we have a really hard time waking in the morning, and feel a little hyperactive at night. Could this be to do with cortisol? Could we be getting a cortisol surge at night instead of early in the day?

I know I have less head rushes in the evening, and thinking about it, my thought patterns do tend to be more expansive.

I do tend to be overactive with thoughts in the evening and a hard time getting up. My body clock is out so I can't get to sleep until late.

I plan to try melatonin to help. I noticed red wine make me sleepy (in a nice way), and most red wine contains melatonin.

You could think of melatonin as sort of the oposite of cortisol.

Believe it or not stimulants make me tired. When they used to think I was ADD I tried the lot. It is funny because Dexedrine is used to treat narcolepsy yet it made me want to go lie down for two days. It isn't a nice sleepiness though, it is the so tired and worn out feeling.



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09 Apr 2009, 6:28 pm

0_equals_true wrote:

That sounds advantageous up to a point, however beyond a certain level it could be a problem. I quite like jovial people, but I find very hyper people kind of annoying after a while. I guess it depends on the person and how you interact.

Yes it is constantly pumping out. The crying wolf scenario is about right, and a doctor said exactly that. Normally the fight of flight situation concerns the limbic system in the brain, and the adrenal gland thought the sympathetic and peripheral nervous system. But there comes a point where you adrenal gland is so overactive and you brain just says f**k this I’m going on strike. However it does take its toll on you body and really tire you out.


How long have you had this, it could go away on its own. I had some unknown adrenal problem aged 17, very high levels, and sudden spikes that happened for no reason and made me go very white and hyperventilate. I grew out of it though, don't have it any more.



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10 Apr 2009, 9:28 am

Ah yeah that's a bit like when I did drugs when I was younger - I recognised things I'd never seen before, which was really weird, but I've always remembered that. How can I recognise it if I've never seen it before!!? Yet I do.... weird..

Oh you forget to eat? Gosh, well maybe you need to draw a rigid timetable up for yourself, even setting alarms to make sure you eat regular and on time. You could also try measuring your food portions to make sure you eat a certain amount as well. With prolonged adherence to such a routine, you should be able to regulate your eating and sleeping cycle, which would consequently see improvements in your general health and well being. Personally I wouldn't recommend throwing any drugs/pills/medication into the mix, they are likely to make everything more confused than it already is.

It's all easier said than done though. I over-eat and have insomnia. Not surprising really, I obviously get too much energy from the food I eat so I can't sleep. Sounds like you don't get enough long-lasting energy and get fatigue. If you eat slow-burning carbohydrates on a regular basis it might do the trick. If you get hyper in the evenings, maybe eating less in the evenings, or foods that burn quicker like lean fish could help. I know what I have to do, draw up a diet plan and stick to it. Maybe it's different for you.