"Adrenaline Rush" sensation as I drift off- Sleep Apnea? Need Relief
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I'm writing here because it'll be Agust 28th before I can even see a doctor. Lately, when I try to go to sleep, just as I start to drift off, I get something that I can only describe as a surge of adrenaline waking me up. This happened once a few weeks ago and has been consistent ever since, especially the last 2-3 nights. Sometimes it leaves a sensation in my chest, other times, in my brain. I've heard the adrenaline feeling is a symptom of sleep apnea.
My questions are if 1.) anyone else with sleep apnea can confirm this symptom as one that might be SA, or if it could be something else.
2.) In the time between now and whenever I can get to my doctor, is there anything I can take OTC, or a sleep postion, etc, that will help? I've tried melatonin, which didnt help, turning off all lights, winding down routines, etc. So if anyone can help me along with some info I would really appreciate it.
2 likes, 126 replies
r61590 josh95969
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DG-1966 josh95969
Edited
HI all,
I am not expert on this matter but will say what I know:
This phenomena is not so unusual and from what I have read (and experienced myself) it is generally due to high anxiety/stress.. possibly there are other causes and someone mentioned sleep apnea? I really don't know.. but re the anxiety cause - essentially the nervous system has become “trigger happy”.. I know it is a horrible thing to have as it can interfere markedly the sleep but it DOES get better with time, patience and acceptance.. while the rushes are disturbing, they are most definitely made worse and last longer when we react in a catastrophic way.. so the trick is to accept their existence, and develop a nonchalant “whatever…” attitude about them.. that’s hard I know when you are so sleep deprived but I think it is the key to them resolving more quickly..
I have always had them in times of extreme stress/anxiety and they have always resolved in time.. in the last year I have had them much worse because I got into trouble with benzo’s (off them now thank god!!).. these surges seem to more common with benzo/anti-depressant withdrawal which wrecks the nervous system for a time.. they are also more likely during menopause and possibly aging as there is apparently an increase in cortisol? Interesting Oprah talked about having these interfere with her sleep during menopause – how about that!
There are other interesting phenomena that can occur as we are about to sleep including hypnic jerks.. as well as exploding head syndrome.. these feel different to the adrenaline surges (I know because I have experienced all of them) – but all have the same outcome which is to pull you back from the brink of sleep.
So here are my tips:
· Accept, accept, accept! Develop a “whatever” to these and “roll with the punches”. This will be hard to do but even if you can do this a little it should help.. you can even try making fun of them, e.g. I have a few funny names for them to help de-catastrophise them e.g., “sucky surges”, “zippady zaps”. You can even try to smile or laugh when they occur to give the message to the brain that all is well..
· Manage your anxiety and stress the best way you can, diet and exercise are very important, google ways to reduce cortisol and you will find a myriad of ways to do this (meditation, yoga, cardio, black/green tea, magnesium powder, vitamin B)
· If you suspect you are menopausal or are aging, consider having full blood tests to see what your hormonal and other levels are doing.. perhaps you have some deficiencies and could benefit from supplements?
· Please do NOT resort to benzo’s. If you feel the need to take something then go for something less addictive such as OTC or herbal remedies.. if you start taking benzo’s it’s just a matter of time before you get into trouble with them.. it’s really NOT worth it.. in my view taking nothing is best..
· Practice good sleep hygiene, but make REST not sleep your goal.. you can even try a paradoxical intention, e.g. lie in bed with eyes open trying NOT to sleep.. also try sleep mediations, complicated counting, positive imagery/fantasy, recalling a plot of a story, reading for a time etc… you will need to experiment to find what works for you.. And don’t obsess about not sleeping, how it is going to affect your health and functioning etc….. as this just ramps up the stress/anxiety.. you will learn that you can function surprising well with little sleep.. it ain’t pleasant but it’s doable..
· Be ever so patient! And have faith that eventually these will subside.. they may not resolve as quickly as you want them to, but they WILL reduce! Your efforts and patience will pay off eventually J
· Remember you are not alone! When you are lying there being constantly hit with these just know there are others affected also, and others who have gotten through it XOX
I hope this helps!!
nav00909 DG-1966
Posted
DG-1966 nav00909
Posted
jeff79156 DG-1966
Posted
Please listen to this before you go down my path. I was on 30+ mg of valium a day (prescribed) and withdrawal from benzos when I cut down was brutal. Now I'm addicted to alcohol and zopiclone. Sometimes if I'm desperate for sleep I'll pound a 5th and slam 3 zopes... You don't want to live this way. I don't sleep at all, and I mean zero mins, without chemicals. This has since been confirmed in a sleep study where they confirmed I hit level 1 sleep a couple of times. Wishing you all the best, but in my experience, it doesn't go away, Just gets worse. Just Google, people have been dealing with this for a decade or more. Forget it, I'd rather od or liver fail and at least get to sleep along the way.
nav00909 DG-1966
Posted
I have also tried laughing or smiling at an adrenal rush (it’s what I coin them) at 4am but it’s hard sometimes when I awaken and actually have 10-15 seconds to feel the rush beginning, going to the legs/feet, into the arms and knowing the hbeat is about to go up to 75bpm from a sleeping 50. And then knowing that the hbeat won’t start to subside down back to a rest for at least 10-15 min while one just lies there is somewhat unnerving! When the rush ends it’s quite amazing to actually feel the heart palpitations literally drop right down and almost dissipate in seconds. Sometimes I wonder if I actually got up right away as it happens, do 30 push-ups and some squats...would I actually burn off the adrenaline really quickly rather than letting it just sit in my body wreaking whatever havoc it’s doing on my endocrine, coronary arteries (yes cortisol actually hardens them over time and can lead to other complications) and other internals for those 10-15 min? Or just let it be?
At this point I accept it...acknowledge that I’m both ‘wired and tired’...eyes are wide open and body is still exhausted...and I think of relaxing images or fun times with family and friends for that period. Sort of a little mini memory trip half way through the night
In the end I want to lick this more so for protecting longer term damage to my internals with excessive cortisol/adrenaline.
That’s why the Ativan seems so appealing at times 😞. It actually gives my body a break with a solid nights sleep and no excess adrenal overload.
DG-1966 nav00909
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yes I can see that Benzos would be appealing but they stop working quickly leading to increasing the does, and in the long run cause more damage/problems.. it might not apply to everyone but there is an adage that whatever issue you had that lead you to take benzos is amplified greatly when you try to come off them.. I struggled a lot to come off Ativan and really wish I had never been prescribed them. they are not even that good for sleep - the slower acting Benzo like valium is better.. but still hugely problematic.. if you need to resort to meds then an anti-histamine is the better way to go or a lower dose of an anti depressant like mirtazipne.. really i see these symptoms are being part and parcel of a bigger stress/anxiety picture and a holistic approach is the way to go.. so anxiety/stress/ management involving lifestyle changes is the way to go.. attending to diet and focusing on strategies that calm the body.. and an attitude of acceptance.. I was plagued with those symptoms for a very long time but slowly but surely they began to reduce.. I now sleep very well but I do expect a return of those symptoms periodically.. the challenge for me is to not overreact and treat them as an annoying but treatable symptom.. there are some good good books worth reading on anxiety, depression and sleep issues
"The Sleep Book"
"The Upward Spiral of Depression"
"Rewire your anxious brain"
jeff79156 josh95969
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DG-1966 jeff79156
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Yes, you are correct, it's related to GABA and is essentially a heightened exaggerated anxiety response. Which is why anxiety and stress management is the way to go [smile] AND acceptance, since fear/anxiety in relation to all of this only makes it worse, much worse. I understand the temptation to use alcohol to treat it but really you are creating another problem there and a big one. Hope this helps [smile]
jeff79156 DG-1966
Posted
Yes, I agree with you. I started on an ssri for anxiety and it has helped a little. I've also been on zopiclone (lunesta in the us) but with little relief. Unfortunately nothing but alcohol helps which is why I will continue to drink at least 4 days a week in order to sleep if drying out doesn't help in short order. On a side note, have tried magnesium, multi vitamins, vit b and omega 369 supplements. Nothing helps. Its the GABA receptors going nuts, telling us we should not sleep because its dangerous. Brain is basically fighting against you, don't know how you combat that without depressants.
DG-1966 jeff79156
Posted
hi Jeff, I don't know your story and I really feel for you, but I can assure that anxiety and stress is very treatable via NON medication means, and actually the medication and alcohol are likely to exacerbate the issues in times. I know this from experience. Did you have a look at my long thread to see what helped me? perhaps it can help you also. I would suggest that you get a good counsellor, or at least buy some good self help books. "The Sleep Book" by Guy Andrews is very good. We are all our worst enemies at times, i.e. we think and act in ways that ramp up our stress and anxiety. proper anxiety/stress management that involves changing the way you think and do things is the way to go and developing an accepting "I don't care about anxiety/lack of sleep" is absolutely crucial. it is hard to achieve but even if you can achieve it to some degree some of the time it will help tho. it can take time (a lot of time) to resolve these issues which is why patience and perseverance are also essential. Hope this helps
DG-1966 josh95969
Posted
Yes, you are correct, it's related to GABA and is essentially a heightened exaggerated anxiety response. Which is why anxiety and stress management is the way to go
AND acceptance, since fear/anxiety in relation to all of this only makes it worse, much worse. I understand the temptation to use alcohol to treat it but really you are creating another problem there and a big one. Hope this helps 
nav00909 DG-1966
Posted
Havnt replies in awhile. So after a few more months of constant rushes at night, I decided to see a functional medicine specialist to look at hormonal, HPA axis and gut analyses to get to the root cause.
Results so far have shown a huge link between bacterial gut health and its effect on the Vegus nerve and HPA not to mention gaba.
So far gut Analyses shows very high Bacteria strains which are known to affect gaba and receptors. Awaiting the Dutch test result this week to know about my cortisol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, testosterone and other hormones which could also be out of whack.
I can accept gaba and anxiety as the cause of my wake ups...I just want a root cause...not just because my ‘brain’ just decided one day ‘hey let’s chemically provide you a s**t show for the rest of your natural life’.
I can’t and won’t accept that. Genomics and gut science has proved again and again that bad gut health can cause anxiety, depression, HPA imbalance and a host of other issues.
I’ll ensure I post some results after I go over them with my functional med doc.
zak37162 nav00909
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Hey Nav, did you ever get back any results or figure anything else out? I'm almost certain this is exactly what is happening with me so you could really be making my life 100x better. Really hope to hear from you!
josh59910 josh95969
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Hi Josh I seem to have the same problem. I've had it for 5 weeks now it's like an adrenaline rush wakes me up as I'm falling asleep or when I'm asleep it's quite unsettling. I can't lay in in the mornings either I can be fast asleep and then suddenly get it does it over and over again most of the night. Do you have anxiety or anything in the daytime?? For me It does it in the daytime as wel.. mine first started at night then I started noticing that same feeling throughout the day randomly.
mike81648 josh59910
Posted
Hey Josh, if I may ask, how are you now? I just started dealing with this this week. I got in a car accident on friday and was afraid I had a concussion so I just kept telling myself "youre gonna slip into a coma if you sleep" and low and behold the first time this happened was after I tried falling back to sleep after waking up.
josh59910 mike81648
Posted
Hi Mike, that sounds awful im sorry to hear that. Yea I'm actually a lot better thanks, every once in a while I get it but it's been less and less. I got better once anxiety got better, obviously you can't control fear/anxiety in your sleep but eventually it will get better by its self. I think it's like your subconscious is still anxious / scared and it's panicking when ever that feeling of drifting off to sleep happens. But then agian you've just had a traumatic experience and it might take a while to settle down the only thing you can do to make it better is not worry about it because the more you worry the more your subconscious will think something is wrong and it will keep doing it, I learnt this the hard way. So basically I'd say it's normal and it will pass just like mine did. 😀