What could explain experiencing low cortisol symptoms despite having high cortisol levels, and what mechanisms might contribute to this paradox?

High levels of cortisol mobilize a tremendous amount of sugar in the body. There is a condition called cortisol resistance where you have the adrenal gland that makes cortisol that sends a signal to the receptor, but the receptor is downgraded and resistive which causes to not having the return communication to the gland.

There will then be certain parts of the body that are completely deprived of cortisol and other parts of the body that have way too much cortisol. This is the reason why you can have a combination of both low and high cortisol symptoms.