A lot of customers have been coming into the shop lately asking about teas that can help manage cortisol, so we thought we would share what we have been telling them with all of you.

Most of us have heard the word cortisol tossed around in conversations about stress, sleep, and burnout. It has developed a bit of a reputation as something to eliminate, suppress, or outsmart. But the real story is more nuanced than that, and understanding it is the first step toward actually doing something about how stress feels in your body.

Cortisol is a steroid hormone produced by the adrenal glands, two small but remarkably powerful glands that sit on top of your kidneys.  It is part of the body's stress response system, and in the right amounts, it is genuinely useful.  It helps regulate metabolism, reduce inflammation, control blood sugar, and sharpen focus when you need it.  Early in the morning, a natural surge of cortisol is what helps you wake up and feel alert.  This is called the cortisol awakening response, and it is a healthy, necessary part of your daily rhythm.

The problem is not cortisol itself.  The problem is chronic, elevated cortisol, which is what happens when the body's stress response never fully powers down.

What Happens When Cortisol Stays High

Your body's stress response is governed by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, commonly called the HPA axis.  When you encounter a stressor, whether it is a work deadline, a difficult conversation, poor sleep, or even a blood sugar crash, your hypothalamus signals your pituitary gland, which then signals your adrenal glands to release cortisol.  This is a beautifully designed system for handling short-term threats.

The trouble is that modern life delivers a near-constant stream of low-grade stressors.  The HPA axis does not always distinguish between a looming tiger and a full inbox.  When the stress signal never fully turns off, cortisol levels stay elevated, and over time, that takes a toll.  Research has linked chronically high cortisol to disrupted sleep, impaired memory and concentration, weakened immune function, digestive issues, weight gain particularly around the midsection, and increased risk of anxiety and depression. It can also contribute to what many people describe as feeling "wired but tired," that exhausted-yet-unable-to-rest feeling that has become almost normalized in our culture.

Where Adaptogens Come In

This is where the conversation gets interesting, and where plant medicine has something genuinely compelling to offer.

Adaptogens are a class of botanicals that have been used in Ayurvedic and Traditional Chinese Medicine for centuries.  What sets them apart from other herbs is their ability to help the body regulate its own stress response rather than simply sedating it or stimulating it.  They work by interacting with the HPA axis to help normalize the output of stress hormones, including cortisol.

As we discussed in our post So, What are Adaptogens anyway?  The term "adaptogen" was formally introduced by Soviet pharmacologist Dr. Nikolai Lazarev in 1947, though the plants themselves had been in use for far longer.  Modern research has since investigated a number of these botanicals in clinical settings with promising results.  Withania somnifera, known commonly as Ashwagandha, has been among the most studied.  A systematic review published in Science Direct found that ashwagandha supplementation produced a significant decrease in serum cortisol levels in adults experiencing chronic stress, with clinically meaningful reductions in Perceived Stress Scale scores after consistent use over approximately two months.  Some studies suggest reductions in cortisol of up to 30 percent with regular supplementation.

Schisandra chinensis, a berry-bearing vine used extensively in Traditional Chinese Medicine, has been shown to modulate adrenal hormones and support anti-fatigue effects via the HPA axis. These are not folk remedies with vague promises. They are plants with measurable, documented mechanisms.

What makes adaptogens particularly valuable is their bidirectional nature. Rather than pushing the body in one direction, they support balance.  If cortisol is running too high, they help bring it down. If the adrenals are depleted and cortisol is too low, they support recovery.  This homeostatic quality is part of what makes them so well suited for the kind of chronic, low-grade stress that defines many people's daily experience.

A-Game: Adaptogen Support in Your Cup

Our A-Game tea was blended specifically with the HPA axis in mind.  Ashwagandha forms the backbone of the blend, offering the cortisol-modulating, adrenal-supportive effects that have made it one of the most studied herbs in stress science.  Schisandra brings its own HPA axis support along with a reputation for improving mental clarity and physical stamina under pressure.  

Sipped as a daily ritual, A-Game gives your nervous system something it rarely gets in modern life: consistent, gentle support rather than crisis management.

Functional Mushrooms: The Other Side of the Cortisol Conversation

Adaptogenic plants are not the only tool in this category. Functional mushrooms have emerged as powerful allies in stress and cortisol support, and they work through some overlapping but distinct pathways. While adaptogens primarily interact with the HPA axis to regulate hormone output, functional mushrooms tend to work more broadly, supporting immune function, reducing inflammation, and promoting the kind of deep, restorative sleep that chronic cortisol elevation routinely steals. Many functional mushrooms also contain beta-glucans, a class of polysaccharides that support immune modulation and have been shown to help the body maintain balance under physical and psychological stress. Think of adaptogens and functional mushrooms as complementary rather than interchangeable. One works upstream on the stress response itself, the other helps shore up the systems that chronic stress quietly depletes over time.

While we don't blend tea with functional mushrooms, these chocolate bars are another way to bring this kind of support into your daily routine. The Reishi bar is the one most directly relevant to cortisol. Reishi, long called the mushroom of immortality in Chinese medicine, has been shown in clinical research to help reduce cortisol levels and improve sleep quality.  A 2024 study published in Heliyon found that participants taking Reishi extract daily experienced reduced cortisol, less fatigue, and meaningfully better sleep outcomes over eight weeks. Researchers attributed these effects to Reishi's influence on the HPA axis, the same stress regulation system at the center of the cortisol conversation.

The chocolate bar format is not just convenient. Cacao itself contains compounds that support mood and focus, making it a genuinely good delivery vehicle for functional mushrooms when you want the benefits without brewing another cup.

Building a Daily Practice

The science on adaptogens and functional mushrooms is consistent on one point: these are not acute interventions.  They work best when used consistently over time, in the same way that the stress they are addressing builds over time.  Clinical studies on Ashwagandha, for example, typically show the most significant cortisol reductions after 56 to 60 days of daily use.

This is why the concept of a daily wellness ritual matters so much.  A morning cup of A-Game.  A functional mushroom chocolate bar square as an afternoon reset instead of a third coffee.  Small, consistent choices that give your body the support it needs to regulate itself, rather than waiting for the crash and then trying to recover from it.

Cortisol is not the problem.  Chronic, unsupported stress is.  And your daily choices, including what you put in your cup and what you reach for when the afternoon hits, are part of how you change that pattern.