How to test cortisol levels

 

  Hi, good reader, howdy, today I would like to share about the topic "How to test cortisol levels", the main reason why I choose that topic is because not many people care how to know their stress level, if you ask me why we must know about our stress level because it can help us how to prevent new loss where we are not ready to face it, as we know that there are many things that can make us stress, e.g. work under pressure, traffic jam, low payment, unappreciated work, unfair treatment from others, unsuccessful business plan, etc. as we know that stress will not come when we can't find a way how to enjoy the process, in order to find the enjoyment, we must know about the risk first, if we don't find any risk in ourselves, we will not find the enjoyment in our soul, the biggest risk can be taken from our knowledge, our endurance level and our perception, stress can come at any time, commonly stress is started from the pressure time, either from the target range, lack of experience, lack of competence or huge expectation, remember; stress will not come to someone who doesn't expect to win and doesn't fear to lose, life is a game, we must be ready to win or lose, life is a tragedy in close up, but when we can sit back to the new environment, life will be funny in long range.

Cortisol levels can be tested by:

1. A blood test: A nurse or lab technician will use a needle to take a blood sample from a vein in your arm. Your results will show the level of cortisol in your blood at the time of the test.
2. A urine test: Measuring the level of cortisol in your urine over a 24-hour period.
3. A saliva test: Checking salivary cortisol at midnight.
4. Taking a medicine called dexamethasone that suppresses cortisol and checking how levels of the hormone change via a blood test.

Blood tests are the most accurate way to measure cortisol levels. Saliva tests are also accurate but can be more difficult to collect, Urine tests are only useful for measuring short term or acute stress responses.

If you want to test your cortisol levels at home, there are several at-home cortisol tests available. Healthline recommends LetsGetChecked, RxHomeTest, Verisana, myLAB Box, and HRT.org as reliable options. These tests use different methods to collect samples such as finger prick blood samples, saliva samples, and urine samples. The collected samples are then sent to a lab for analysis. The results are reviewed by a team of physicians and nurses and are usually available within 2-5 days.

Please note that while these tests may provide information about your cortisol levels, they should not be used to self-diagnose any medical or mental health condition. It is always recommended to discuss your results with a doctor, hopefully this article can help you, good luck.