Plain-language definitions
Glossary
- Cortisol
- The body’s main stress hormone, released by the adrenal glands.
- Sleep debt
- The running total of sleep you’ve missed versus what you need.
- Rumination
- Repetitive, circular thinking that produces distress but no resolution.
- Vagus nerve
- The main nerve of the body’s “rest and digest” calming system.
- Allostatic load
- The cumulative wear-and-tear of repeated stress on the body.