The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is one of the body’s main communication lines between the brain and adrenal glands. Through this network, your system manages stress, hormones, metabolism, and immune activity.1 When it’s working smoothly, you’re more likely to feel calm, clear-headed, and steady. HPA axis dysfunction is when this network loses its natural flexibility.
When the brain senses pressure or challenge, the hypothalamus releases a signal known as corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH). This reaches the pituitary gland, which then produces adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). In response, the adrenal glands release cortisol, the hormone that helps your body meet demands and maintain balance.2
Cortisol helps you stay alert and responsive, but once the stress passes, your brain signals the system to slow down and return to equilibrium. When this feedback loop functions correctly, it enables you to adapt to life’s ups and downs with ease.
However, when stress becomes ongoing, whether from unrelenting pressure, trauma, or chronic illness, this communication network can lose flexibility. Over time, it may struggle to reset itself after stressful events, creating what researchers call HPA axis dysfunction, a state in which both brain and body remain on high alert, even when no real threat is present.3,4
Research shows that chronic activation of this system can alter cortisol rhythms, disrupt hormone balance, and affect both emotional and physical health.5,6
What is HPA Axis Dysfunction?
Put simply, HPA axis dysfunction occurs when the brain and adrenal glands fail to communicate as smoothly as they should. When this happens, the body’s built-in stress and hormone balance can become disrupted. The HPA axis, which links the hypothalamus, pituitary, and adrenal glands, typically regulates cortisol and other key hormones, thereby supporting energy, mood, and immune function. 6,7
When this system becomes dysregulated, it can take several forms:
- Overactivation: persistently high cortisol and hypervigilance
- Underactivation: low cortisol, fatigue, or burnout
- Flattened rhythm: irregular cortisol patterns throughout the day
- Feedback resistance: the brain struggles to switch off the stress loop
Chronic stress can desensitize this network, disrupt cortisol rhythms, and even affect the hippocampus, the brain region that helps regulate the HPA axis.(6,7) The result is a body staying locked in a stress pattern long after the external pressure is gone.
Why HPA Axis Dysfunction Matters
The HPA axis influences nearly every major system in the body. When its rhythm becomes dysregulated, you might experience:
- Fatigue and low energy
- Sleep disturbance
- Mood instability and anxiety
- Immune and gut disruption
- Hormonal imbalances
Scientific reviews link HPA axis dysregulation to chronic fatigue syndrome, depression, PTSD, and inflammatory conditions.4,5
Many people refer to this kind of imbalance as “adrenal fatigue.” However, at re-origin, we view it differently, not as adrenal failure, but as a brain-based loop of stress sensitivity. In other words, it’s the communication between the brain and body that becomes stuck in a heightened state of alert. The good news? That loop can be rewired through neuroplasticity.
You can explore how this process works in our article How To Rewire Your Brain: 8 Strategies for Lasting Change
Signs and Symptoms of HPA Axis Dysfunction
While HPA axis dysfunction symptoms can look different for everyone, a common pattern we have noticed in the re-origin community is a sense of being chronically stressed or exhausted even after getting plenty of rest. These signs of HPA axis dysfunction often reflect a stress response that’s been “stuck on,” leaving both mind and body in a heightened state of alert.
Common symptoms of HPA axis dysfunction include:
- Persistent fatigue or low energy
- Feeling “tired but wired”
- Difficulty sleeping or waking up unrefreshed
- Anxiety, irritability, or mood swings
- Brain fog or poor focus
- Cravings for sugar or salt
- Weight gain (especially around the abdomen)
- Hormonal imbalances or low libido
- Frequent illness or slow recovery
- Lightheadedness when standing
These signs of HPA axis dysfunction often overlap with chronic stress, burnout, or trauma-related patterns, all of which involve an overactive stress circuit in the brain. Recognizing these patterns is often the first step in learning how to treat HPA axis dysfunction and begin healing HPA axis dysfunction through brain retraining and lifestyle support.
What Causes HPA Axis Dysfunction?
There isn’t just one cause of HPA axis dysfunction. It tends to accumulate over time as various forms of stress, including physical, emotional, or environmental stress, accumulate. Eventually, the system that’s meant to bring you back to balance starts to lose its rhythm.
Listed here are common causes of HPA axis dysfunction:
1. Chronic Stress and Trauma
When life keeps the pressure on for too long, cortisol levels stay high. At first, it helps you cope. But when that state becomes the norm, your body stops responding to cortisol in the same way. The feedback loop dulls, and recovery takes longer.3,5 Experiences of early adversity can also shape how your HPA axis reacts later in life, making it more reactive to stress.7
2. Sleep and Circadian Rhythm Disruption
The HPA axis operates in sync with your body’s internal clock. Late nights, screen light before bed, or shift work can confuse that rhythm. Cortisol may rise or fall at the wrong times, leaving you wired at night and foggy during the day.6
3. Chronic Illness and Inflammation
Ongoing inflammation or infection sends constant “danger” messages to the brain. When that happens, the HPA axis stays switched on, even when you’re trying to rest. Over time, this constant activation can leave you feeling drained and disrupt hormone balance.8
4. Lifestyle and Environmental Load
It’s not only emotional stress that matters. Nutrient gaps such as low magnesium, B vitamins, or vitamin C combined with overtraining, skipping meals, or toxin exposure, also signal to the brain that something’s off. The body interprets all of that as a threat.4,6
Even though these pressures can alter how the HPA axis functions, the brain can learn to regain balance; the same neuroplasticity that allowed the stress loop to form can help unwind it. That’s the heart of the re-origin approach: teaching the brain to recognize safety again so the whole system can reset and you can return to full health.
How to Test for HPA Axis Dysfunction
Clinicians may assess HPA function through:
- Saliva or urine cortisol tests: measure daily cortisol rhythm and identify flattened curves.4
- Blood tests: assess morning cortisol and ACTH levels.2
- ACTH stimulation tests: evaluate adrenal responsiveness.
- Symptom mapping, which involves tracking daily energy, mood, and stress tolerance, often reveals more than a single lab value.
At re-origin, we focus on the functional behavior of the nervous system and how quickly your brain and body can return to calm after stress. Our program teaches step-by-step tools to reset that pattern from within. To see how this process works, explore: What is re-origin?
HPA Axis Dysfunction Treatment
If you find yourself struggling with signs of HPA axis dysfunction, just know that recovery is possible through a blend of lifestyle shifts, brain retraining, medical care, and supportive nutrients. Here are a few suggestions to consider:
1. Lifestyle Foundations
Healing the HPA axis begins with small, consistent habits that help the brain and body regain their rhythm.
- Restorative sleep: Try to aim for steady sleep and wake times. It can be helpful to give yourself a full hour away from screens before bed to let your system unwind.
- Stress regulation: Build in gentle pauses during the day, a few minutes of mindfulness, slow breathing, journaling, or guided relaxation can help your nervous system reset.
- Balanced nutrition: Choosing whole, nutrient-dense foods can help to keep blood sugar steady. Try to eat regular meals that include enough protein and healthy fats.
- Gentle movement: Move your body in ways that feel good to you. This can include movement such as walking, yoga, or light stretching without pushing into exhaustion. See: Somatic Exercises: The Ultimate Guide to Enhancing Your Well-Being
- Reduce overload: Cut back on caffeine and information overload, and create real space for rest, reflection, and recovery.
2. Brain Retraining and Nervous System Regulation
By practicing daily neuroplasticity-based exercises, you can break old stress patterns and develop new, healthier responses. Over time, the brain learns to signal safety, allowing cortisol rhythms and energy to stabilize naturally. Learn more in the video below:
3. Supportive Nutrients and Clinical Care
Under the care of a clinician, nutrients like magnesium, B-complex vitamins, and vitamin C can support adrenal and nervous system function. Adaptogenic herbs such as ashwagandha or rhodiola may also be beneficial.
A knowledgeable healthcare provider plays a key role in recovery by identifying underlying issues and ruling out conditions that may look similar to HPA axis dysfunction, such as thyroid disease, anemia, or sleep apnea. They can run tests to check cortisol patterns, thyroid function, and other important markers, then create a treatment plan that weaves together medical care, lifestyle changes, and brain retraining for a truly integrated approach.
In summary: recovering from HPA axis dysfunction starts with helping the brain and body communicate clearly again. True healing occurs when lifestyle foundations, clinical care, and brain retraining work in tandem to restore balance.
Healing HPA Axis Dysfunction
Lasting recovery begins with rewiring how the brain perceives stress. Through consistent practice, the nervous system learns to interpret signals of safety instead of danger. As these pathways strengthen, hormone balance, energy, and emotional resilience follow.
At re-origin, our evidence-based program blends brain retraining, nervous system regulation practices, and community support to help you move from survival mode to restoration.
Members often report:
- Better sleep and steady energy
- Less anxiety and overwhelm
- Greater focus and clarity
- A renewed sense of calm and control
re-origin has helped me to start my life over with enthusiasm and hope. I now know I can change my thought patterns and, therefore, I can change my entire life and destiny. – Debra O., re-origin member
Ready to start your healing journey? Learn more about the program here.
