In adolescence, the control system in the brain (hypothalamus and pituitary) is just getting started in the conversation with
the key endocrine glands outside of the brain: adrenals, thyroid, and gonads (ovaries in girls, testes in boys).
If we decide the threat is real, and that we need to act quickly to reduce its impact, we trigger a cascade of events affecting multiple systems in our body, including three
key endocrine organs — the hypothalamus and pituitary
gland in our brain, and the adrenal
glands that sit atop our kidneys.