In the early days of my marriage I would get out of bed fifteen times everynight after going to bed to check that the stove was turned off...then to check that the doors were locked....then to check the taps were not dripping... ad infinitum.

Perhaps I was just taking my new found responsibility a bit too far but somehow with the encouragement of my husband I was able to bring these beginnings of what I now think were OCD behaviour, under control. Now I just go to bed and sometimes wake up the next morning and the doors have been unlocked all night - lol!

However just when you think you’ve got it all together.... this last night - yes this very, last night I woke with a slightly sore finger joint on my left hand - the ring finger. Suddenly I was seized with the thought that I wouldn’t be able to get my wedding ring off (I never take it off, so it was absurd). I tried to go to sleep again but just started to suffocate with panic about the ring. I went to the kitchen and grabbed some ice from the fridge and tried to cool down my finger in the hope that the ring would come off. No luck! I consciously tried to quell the rising panic and went back to bed and read and tried to distract myself. Eventually I fell asleep with the light on (bad for the circadian rhythms).

This morning I mentioned the  episode to my husband and he said "try soap" and after much pushing and pulling and rotating, the ring eventually came off!

I’m sure many people in our world have these experiences. However there is a very real underlying issue with cortisol as it is called the ’stress hormone of the body’ so we shouldn’t deny the fact that disturbances in cortisol will affect our wellbeing.

So whether it be too much or too little cortisol, for people with Addison’s Disease, CAH and Cushings disease there is a daily irregularity in cortisol supply as you said which I’m sure does cause various degrees of depression/anxiety and other odd emotions in us.

Yep Annalise there have been times when I feel like I’m in that boat that is going to sink soon or wanting to take a one way trip to China to escape all the responsibilities and infirmities but somehow with God’s help I just keep putting one foot in front of the other. The older I get the more I just try to put less pressure on myself and take time to relax in the joy of living. In other words to smell the roses - but I don’t like roses!