Hormone explainers
Short, guided stories on cortisol, sleep and the hormone system, in the order we usually walk through them with you.
Morning: cortisol rises sharply after waking while melatonin stays switched off.
Move across the chart to scrub through the dayThe series
Eight chapters, in order
Each chapter is a short guided story: how cortisol works, how it goes wrong, how it connects to sleep and the other hormones, and where to start.
Cortisol has a dose-dependent effect
Too little and too much both cause harm. Move a cortisol level along the curve and watch what changes.
Open chapterHow HPA dysfunction evolves
Under chronic stress, the daily curve flattens in four stages.
Open chapterThree ways to measure cortisol
Awakening response, slope and total output, all from one daily curve.
Open chapterCortisol's partners
What turns cortisol down, what buffers it, and its see-saw with melatonin.
Open chapterFoundational vs. top-line hormones
Sex hormones are the canopy. Cortisol and thyroid are the roots.
Open chapterThe hormone cycle and its stop points
Hormones feed each other in a loop. Stop it at any of six points and see the tools used there.
Open chapterSleep, cortisol and the hormone web
Twelve links between sleep, melatonin, cortisol, insulin and the sex hormones, grouped into five short steps.
Open chapterThe pyramid of interventions
Built one layer at a time, from sleep and circadian rhythm at the base to supplements at the top.
Open chapterFor the exam room
Walk through it together
Every chapter opens as a guided story. Press Present to put it on screen one step at a time, and move through it with the arrow keys or a presentation clicker.
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- FFull screen
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Chapter 03 · MeasurementWhere to start
Start at the base.
Sleep, rhythm and the everyday basics come before anything marketed at the top of the pyramid. The series ends there, and it begins with how cortisol works.