EndoAxis

Cortisol, Sleep, & Circadian Rhythm

Dr. Liz Bartman

Our diurnal rhythm is strongly influenced by our free cortisol throughout the day and complemented by sleep cycles at night. Cortisol is the daytime hormone; melatonin is our nighttime hormone – and our body does best when we follow these natural rhythms. Our sleep is important for recovery, memory consolidation, and stress reduction (1).

Stages Of Sleep

Stage 1: Non Rem

1-5 minutes – transition from wakefulness to sleep (5% sleep cycle) There are slow eye movements and a release of muscle tension.

Stage 2: Non Rem

About 20 minutes – disengage from surroundings, transition to actual sleep (45-55% sleep cycle). Respiration deepens, body temperature drops, and eye movements cease.

Stage 3: Non Rem

Deep Sleep – 20-40 minutes, (15-25% sleep cycle). Restorative sleep – tissue repair, muscle growth, energy restoration **This stage is necessary for improved energy

Stage 4: Rem

REM: Rapid Eye Movement. This usually occurs around 90 min after falling asleep. (20-25% sleep cycle). The body becomes immobile, and the nervous system fires up. Because of this nervous system stimulation, REM sleep is likely most responsible for cognitive function and memory consolidation. Reduced REM sleep may be correlated with an increased risk of Alzheimer’s Disease (2). **necessary for cognitive function

The Importance Of A Good Sleep

Deep sleep is important to calm and prepare the body for REM sleep. REM sleep is to stimulate the brain and nervous system for optimal brain health. One sleep cycle includes at least all 4 of these stages of sleep. Sleep cycles through these stages, and we experience multiple cycles per night.

It is easier to wake up during lighter stages of sleep than the Deep/REM stages of sleep. Cortisol can easily shut down our sleep cycle. Cortisol is there to protect us – activating our fight or flight response. We will prioritize safety over sleep if necessary. When we compromise sleep, we lose out on optimizing health: less cognitive capacity, less tissue repair, less ability to handle stress.

Most Adults require 7-9 hours of sleep per night, which means more than one sleep cycle.

Dr. Liz Bartman

Director of Clinical Sciences and Education

Dr. Liz is a naturopathic doctor with over a decade’s worth of experience in functional medicine. She currently serves as the Director of Clinical Sciences and Education for an exciting new company called EndoAxis. Having worked in Urgent Care prior to opening her private practice, Dr. Liz is well-versed in conventional standards of care and enjoys bridging the gaps of treatments and research in both the conventional and functional fields to provide tailored, evidence-based therapies to her patients. She graduated from the National University of Naturopathic Medicine, followed by the completion of a 2-year residency in Portland, OR. She maintains a practice in Salem, OR with a focus on hormone optimization and graceful aging through an epigenetic and nutrigenomic lens. She is finalizing her advanced certification in genetics and genomic medicine through Stanford and has sought additional training to broaden her professional pursuits in areas including advanced functional nutrition, nutrigenomics, environmental health, and botanical research. Having previously worked as an educational consultant at Precision Analytical, she has educated and consulted with physicians from around the world on complex hormone cases and has spoken professionally about hormone health, environmental toxin impacts on health, and nutrigenomic medicine.