I have been been experiencing the exact same thing! For the past 3 nights I’ve barely slept because right when I start to fall asleep I get this burst of energy right in my chest. It’s like my body is telling me “no” you’re not going to sleep. And this happens continuously throughout the night. It’s making me dread going to sleep even though I’m so exhausted and sleep deprived. I was starting to wonder myself if this was a symptom of sleep apnea. Have you gotten tested yet?
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!!
This is not sleep apnea, I have exactly the symptoms you have been talking about for around 9 months. I was tested for apnea and was negative, well within normal range. My question is, do you drink alcohol? Do you drink a lot of alcohol? I personally do, especially since this started. I find if drink enough, I fall right to sleep, none of these issues. After much research, it seems this is a fairly common problem for alcoholics when they quit drinking. Either adrenaline rushes or twitches or both right when falling asleep. These is leading me to believe that there is an issue with our gaba receptors, which can go totally out of whack due to alcohol. So my plan is to try and dry out and see if this continues. Not saying it is only alcohol that could cause this but the prevalence of it in alcohol dependency forums makes me interested.
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
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]
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.
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
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.
Hi Mike,
Sleep apnea study was negative as well. Over the last few months I’ve been able to keep it partially under control by meditating before bed, limiting my strenuous activity and at times slipping in a cortisol manager pill (natural based).
However the surge still comes randomly in the morning like clockwork around 4-4:30am. Falling asleep has been better recently.
I’ve learned to deep breath ...slow breaths out for 5-10 min after it occurs to get my heart rate back to the fall asleep 50-55bpm but not always successful. Doing more research, I gather my hypothalamus is instructing the pituitary to make the adrenals kick out some cortisol. This is natural during the morning hours for everyone however mine seems to be on slight overload...kicks out too much?
During the day my symptoms have relaxed a bit after a consistent regiment of yoga 2-3x a week and and meditation daily. I’ve been offered Ativan .5mg low dose by my doctor for occasional use whenever I can’t seem to come out of it. I tried it for a few nights and I have to say it was the best damn sleep I’ve had in 6 months with no surge whatsoever and the subsequent day back to my normal self. It was an incredible feeling to simply have my life back. After 3 nights however, I stopped as I don’t want to get addicted and used to the drug being the solution. It was very hard to not take it the 4th night after staring at the bottle for 5 min. 😞 My sleep the 4th night was less so and 5th night was back to the usual occasional wake up 4am
I really hope I can lick this naturally. 😞
What an amazing email. Thank you for that ‘who cares, so what’ advice! I try that from time to time and it seems to work
yes if you can develop this attitude (even some of the time and to some degree) it should help - not immediately necessarily but over time.. This is what I did.. symptoms of anxiety (and I believe this is a symptom of anxiety) are always amplified when we focus on them negatively.. learn to not care and it begins to affect you less.. again it takes time, persistence and patience.. I would try the biofeedback thing also.. anytime a rush occurred i would smile (even chuckle at it) - in this way you send the message to the brain that all is well and it brings down your arousal level.. it took a long time to resolve but it DID! hope this helps
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.
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.
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"
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.
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. 😀
Hi josh- I am desperate for relief of this exact symptom. Did you get any answers?? Please help.
Hi Jill, im a different josh to the one that started this thread, but I've had the same problem.. it's a horrible thing but I believe it's an anxiety thing, I know it happens when your unconscious but it's still anxiety related. I had it so bad for weeks on end like 200times a night but now only get it a few times a week. I think Its something to do with being hyper aware even in your sleep. It will pass! Try not to dwell on it, it only makes it worse, I learnt this the hard way.
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.
Finalmente, sé que esto se publicó hace un tiempo y no sé si aún sufres esto, pero he estado pasando exactamente por lo que describes. Justo cuando estoy a punto de dormirme, me despierto de repente como un subidón de adrenalina que me hace levantarme y abrir los ojos. Esto ocurre durante la noche cuando intento dormirme, pero al final lo consigo. Llevo sufriéndolo unos cuatro meses. También sufro mucho de ansiedad, no sé si a ti también te pasa. Es como si mi cuerpo estuviera listo para dormirse y de repente me despierto de golpe. Creo que es peor cuando hago ejercicio antes o cerca de la hora de acostarme. También creo que tiene algo que ver con no relajarme lo suficiente antes de dormir, pero no estoy seguro. No he podido averiguar si era un sobresalto como el que se siente al caer o si tiene algo que ver con la apnea del sueño. ¿Has averiguado algo?