Tired, Snappy, or Foggy? It Might Not Be “Just Stress”
For years, I thought I was just “good under pressure.” I convinced myself that powering through was strength. Teaching college classes in the mornings, working ER nights, and trying to hold everything together in the few hours between. Coffee for breakfast, maybe a quick snack if I remembered, and adrenaline carrying me through the rest.
I told myself I was fine... until I wasn’t.
After weeks of stacking shifts, I noticed my body wasn’t keeping up. I felt shaky, foggy, and on the edge of tears before the day had even started. I thought I just needed more sleep or stronger coffee. What I didn’t realize was that I was caught in something I now see often with my clients: the stress–blood sugar loop.
Stress and Blood Sugar Aren’t Separate
Most of us think of stress as “mental” and blood sugar as something you only worry about if you’ve been diagnosed with diabetes. But the truth is, they’re deeply connected.
Under stress, your body reacts the same way it has for thousands of years. Cortisol and adrenaline kick in, telling your liver to dump sugar into your bloodstream for quick fuel. It works beautifully if you’re running from danger. But when the “threat” is a stack of grading, a demanding boss, or a toddler meltdown, it backfires. If you’ve skipped meals or run on caffeine, the sugar spike doesn’t last. It crashes, and your brain panics, sending out even more stress hormones.
Round and round it goes. Stress raises blood sugar, blood sugar crashes create more stress, and your body is caught in a loop.
How the Loop Shows Up in Real Life
Looking back, I can see the signs clearly. They’re the same ones I hear women describe to me every week:
The 3 PM crash. Foggy brain, irritability, and that desperate craving for sugar or caffeine. A quick fix that fades fast.
Emotional swings. Snapping at little things or crying over something minor, then feeling guilty later.
Restless nights. Waking at 3 AM with my mind racing, too exhausted to function but too wired to sleep.
Even the basics feel overwhelming. By the time I’d get home from a night shift, figuring out what to feed my kids felt impossible.
At the time, I thought this was just normal for women doing too much. But it wasn’t just stress alone. It was the way stress and unstable fuel were feeding each other.
When I started fueling my body more steadily, the changes weren’t as noticeable at first, but they were steady, and they added up. I wasn’t hitting the wall so hard in the afternoons. I could handle stress at work more calmly. My sleep slowly started to settle. Most importantly, I finally felt more capable. Like my body and mind were working together instead of against each other.
Breaking the Cycle
The shift didn’t come from pushing harder. It came from small, steady changes that gave my body the stability it was asking for:
Eat on rhythm. Instead of going six or eight hours without fuel, I started eating every 4–5 hours. It kept my blood sugar from dropping so low that my brain thought it was in danger.
Protein first. I learned to anchor my meals with protein: eggs, Greek yogurt, or even a quick protein smoothie. Eating protein before carbs kept me steady instead of on a rollercoaster.
Breath as a reset. When I felt tension building, I’d pause and take a few slow breaths. It sounds small, but it’s a way of telling your nervous system, “You’re safe.” That single cue often stopped the loop from spiraling further.
Here’s the part I wish I had known sooner: you can’t separate emotional health from metabolic stability. Your thoughts affect your blood sugar, and your blood sugar affects your thoughts. It’s not about discipline or positivity. It’s about whether your cells feel safe and steady.
Living on adrenaline and then crashing wasn’t my body turning against me. It was my body’s way of begging for consistency, fuel, and care. Once I started listening and gave it that steadiness, I got back something I hadn’t felt in years: a steadiness that finally made resilience possible.
