Falling Asleep Tremors

I have been having tremor almost every night my whole body would vibrate soon as I try to fall asleep, and a weird pain in my arms for a few minutes then it go away, this only happen at night when I try to fall asleep, am so worried can someone tell me why am feeling this way, I worried alot, and sometime feeling like my heart pulping so fast I think am having a heart attack, sometime it feel like something hold my head squeezing it together, please tell me why am having this tremor feelings every night . my Dr told me I have anxiety but do you think its just anxiety?

Hello everyone,

I have been experiencing wake/sleep internal vibration for approximately five years. I periodically search the Internet to see if anyone has discovered a physiological cause for this phenomenon. Several years ago I experienced a health crises that led my allopathic physician to test me for RA and lupus. Thankfully, I was introduced to a chiropractic physician who introduced me to the “food as medicine” lifestyle and forever changed my life. Through diet and lifestyle changes I avoided those nasty diagnoses, and the subsequent pharmaceuticals.

My passion for natural healing inspired me to leave my career as a bank manager and return to school to study holistic nutrition. Based on my education and my personal experience with internal vibration I have formed a theory. It seems to me that the trigger is hormones. I hypothesize this because I only experience the internal vibration when I wake up suddenly or if I doze off when reading/watching TV. I do not experience the vibration when waking up after a normal nights sleep. It feels like my body first receives a release of melatonin causing sleep then suddenly a rush of cortisol or another hormone involved in waking up. As a result of these two opposite hormones in a short time span I experience what feels like a car with a rough idle inside my core. Again, I disclose this is only a theory I am just as disturbed and preoccupied with the “why” as all of you. I am sure there is a simple solution once we discover the “what”.

I have included a link for anyone interested in learning more about (Circadian Rhythms and Hormonal Homeostasis: Pathophysiological Implications). I would appreciate feedback if anyone cares to read the article and explore this avenue of potential causation.

Thank you, sorry for the long post. 😊

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5372003/

Mine have continued for over 3 years, though I have other involuntary muscular movements all of the time. symptoms have grown over time--frequency and strength--and have made it a bit easier to talk about. Though I dont have much faith in my GP or neurologist helping and have undergone a battery of tests, I am hoping the cervical MRI tonight will reveal at least part of the source. My brain MRI (no contrast, though) rebealed nothing, yet I know these are nerve problems, & most definitely not anxiety. particularly because the symptoms I have and that many of you describe bear no resemblance to anxiety tremors, which I have experienced.

in my years of scouring manuals, research papers, disease resources and forums, this is a condition rarely discussed in this way. when it is, people have had similar experiences with doctors and others.

but here are a few options Ive learned need exploring, as at least a component of the problem: 1) MS. Symptoms vary widely but at least 37% of people diagnosed with MS experience these internal vibrations. MS can be difficult to diagnose because some symptoms mirror other disorders, and at least 2 lesions--visible on brain or spinal MRIs--must be present for a diagnosis. my MRIs, so far, show nothing, but that doesnt mean its not going on, just that lesions arent showing up yet.

2) Pinched nerve/nerves--either primary, close to the spine, and/or peripheral nerves. when the neuron firing in the brain cant reach the intended target in the body, this can be a byproduct.

3) Another movement disorder that causes blockage in the brain signals. one of my other symptoms is deep muscle movements that only recently have become more visible, but they began at about the same time. Theres a longer list of these.

4) Focal or complex partial seizures. These can vary slightly between individually, but theyre defined by conciousness and usually the ability to still move and iften completely unaware theyre taking place. Some people with larger, unconcioys seizures sometimes experience these as the 'auras' we have all heard about, but many people experience only these. Episodes with vibrating, buzzing, burning sensation, muscle contractions, localized tremor--even nearly unnoticable, spaciness, feeling of being out of it/daydreaming, sudden fatigue (mine is more prevalent now than episodic as my incidents have become more frequent), & sometimes there will be strong emotions of fear, joy or crying. i have experienced a surrealness--spiritual, out-of-body, supernatural. Also, my tremors are becoming more pronounced so my foot gets pulled to the side.

As you may have noticed, I'm leaning towards seizure activity, personally, but wouldnt rule out pinched nerve issues or early MS for my complete set of problems. Literally for over a year, I thought my bed was shaking or pushing up on its own, mainly because they were more subtle. Thankfully, thats changed and I know better whats happening, though the sense I am on a boat all of the time coupled with episodes if check-out and strong, grinding and traveling vibrations are frightening and very disruptive. Lets hope for answers for everyone soon. I simply wanted to validate those of you who know this is not anxiety and who are left feeling craxy by doctors, friends or family. youre not. And though some of the possible causes sound scary, the more likely ones really are not. I have definitely kept a symptom and episode journal and have found it so helpful in getting my own head around whats happening. This has made it clearer for doctors, even though just gradually. keep asking and pressing doctors for answers if yours continues or worsens. i see a therapist and otherwise am in the best place Ive ever been in my life. Anxiety simply isnt even in the top 10 possibilities. Let us know what you discover and thanks for starting this conversation.

I, too, have had these tremors. Started around summer of 2018 and, ironically, not long after I learned my older brother had been diagnosed with cancer. A whole host of things hit me -- internal shaking/tremors, "brain zaps" (yes, these are a real thing, Google it), acid reflux, hiatal hernia which made me feel like I was having a heart attack -- so it was like the Sizzler buffet. The tremors were troubling, though, for sure; initially I thought there was a minor earthquake (I live in N. California) but after a couple of these I figured it out. After my brother passed about 6 months later I continued to experience this. It wasn't until beginning of this year, and Covid, that some things came back for a visit. I'm absolutely convinced it's all stress-related. I try to do a lot of self-talk/relaxation techniques which do help, plus use melatonin, etc. Mind over matter. Live a healthy lifestyle, try not to take life too seriously and take things in stride. Nothing is as dire as it seems (for the most part). Just keep things in a healthy perspective. Good luck.

Hi there, I too have been dealing with these same exact symptoms. I have been dealing with bad GI issues at night like heartburn, etc. but I just don’t think they’re related.

It's absolutely disrupting my life, and the only way I can fall asleep and stay asleep is with Xanax, and i hate the thought of being dependent on it.

Has anyone been able to find out the actual cause, or found a non-medicated solution?

Hi all!

In the last several months I have also began to experience these internal tremors when attempting to fall asleep. They only occur when I'm attempting to sleep at night and never during the day at all. I have general anxiety and I most definitely believe these tremors are to do with it too. Im only 25 years old so experiencing these at my age did concern me to begin with. Some weeks they occur every night and I'm lucky if I manage to sleep before 4/5am! Fortunately some weeks they barely occur at all and I sleep relatively fine. Just wondering if anyone had any good tips on how to reduce them or help deal with them at all? The lack of sleep does effect me during the day sometimes and id like to at least try some different options!

Hi all. I'm 69 yrs old and have gone through this feeling of trembling while trying to fall asleep numerous times over the past 10 years or so. For me, almost positive it is anxiety. During the day I will find myself taking deep breaths. That is the start of my road done anxiety lane. I don't want to say it's nothing but for me, it always turns out to be nothing serious like MS or other diseases. My suggestion is to treat it as an anxiety disorder first. Look for subtle changes in your thinking or low level long term stresses that catch up to you. My adult daughter swears by CBD tinctures as sleep aid. That stopped here teeth grinding. I'm going to try it and post if it helps. I'm not advocating CBD use as I will exhaust all the normal stress relief first. Blessing

I used to have this problem with severe stress. Ask the doctor for advice.

I have been having these tremor/shakiness feelings since March. I think it stemmed from high stress levels of having to work from home remotely immediately due to covid. My job is incredibly demanding and I am essentially "on" all day. I'm currently still working from home and having a hard time separating the boundaries between work and home. I only feel the tremors at night time upon falling asleep or will wake up from a jerk and feel the sensation. It's definitely an unsettling feeling. I had a home sleep study done, so hopefully I'll get some answers, but from reading other responses here, it certainly sounds like anxiety.