Electric/Energy surge to brain when trying to fall asleep

Signs and symptoms
1

Hi guys, I'm new to the site but glad I found somewhere to share my symptoms.

I'm getting a sort of electrical shock when trying to fall asleep. This electrical shock seems to be described on other sites as 'jumps' or 'zaps' or 'surges of energy'. It happens not when I'm sleeping but the moment I am about to fall asleep. Its like a sort of butterflies feeling in the stomach and then a rush/surge of energy to the brain which gives you a 'jump' and electrical feeling in the head and sometimes upper body. The more extreme they are sometimes produce a twitch in maybe the arm or leg. Its not painful but I guess is quite scary when it happens. These can happen numerous times a night.

Many friends/family I have spoken to say this is normal and they are familiar with the symptoms (I understand what they mean as it can be quite similar to when you suddenly wake from a bad dream) but mine seem to be a lot more often and extreme. I know my symptoms don't seem to be normal.

I've been having these for about 5-6 weeks now (some nights are worse than others) but generally its been more or less every night. This has turned into a vicious cycle because when you actually close your eyes at night to go to sleep you are actually waiting for the 'shock' to happen instead of trying to sleep. Obviously the less sleep you have, the less functional you are the next day and so on and so on. You then get sleep deprived which I believe also may trigger this.

The only other thing I can add to my symptoms is sometimes during the day I get a spaced out/empty/dizzy/cloudy feeling in the head (hard to explain). Sometimes this can turn into a sort of brain/head sensation where you feel you need to kind of 'shake it off'. Again, its hard to explain, something like if you have restless feet and you need to kick out of it but its in the head so you need to give yourself a shake to snap out of it.

I have read quite a bit about anxiety/stress and these symptoms may fall into this category but the issue I have with this, is that I have nothing to be anxious/stressful about! All is OK with job, money, house, relationship etc so I'm not sure how this all started. Could I be anxious about this illness? Again, a vicious cycle?

About me - I'm a fit and healthy 35 year old guy. I actually exercise quite a lot (go to gym/swim 4 times a week and have run numerous marathons over the past year). Although this fitness regime has stopped since I have started having these symptoms as I am feeling quite weak/tired due to not getting much sleep due to it. I have no major prior illnesses and I am not on any medication. I don't want to get in the habit of taking sleep medication.

I have been to the hospital and spent the night where they performed numerous blood tests/Heart ECG/X Rays/Urine and all came back OK. The only issue I had was slightly high blood pressure (but not high enough to be put on any medication). I have also been for an MRI scan and EEG epilepsy test. I will find the results with these in about 5 weeks time.

Anyway, that's my symptoms and hopefully someone might feel at ease that they are going through something similar.

Reading similar posts on the internet I don't think anyone has come to the conclusion on what in fact is causing these problems, even though a lot of the people actually been for tests and seen doctors. Has anyone experienced these issues?

Thanks guys, feel free to get in touch smile

2

Hi. I can't believe I have read this!! I have been suffering from exactly the same symptoms as you for more than two years now! Nobody has been able to give me any answers and there have been times I felt the medical professionals didn't believe me. I researched this again today as I had an incident in car a couple of days ago when I wasn't aware of my momentary actions so went back to docs and now going for more tests. I have had the mri and ecg but all ok. The only reason I have ever been given is anxiety but like you I don't feel anxious about anything. I do exercise regularly and my diet is good. I also smoke and have a family history of strokes. Just reading your blog has made me feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders and someone I can relate to.

3

Incredible, this has very recently started happening to me. It's always at night and it's like I'm a little short of breathe ans I get this like jump start feeling in my chest and forehead. It's like I had stopped breathing and my body was jump starting.

its very disconcerting to say the least and I then feel very anxious afterwards.(even though. I am not an anxious person by nature at all). 

Had an ECG and all was well although Blood pressure was slightly higher than normal. It's given me a lot of relief just reading your post. 

Please share with me anything else relevant that you find out.

4

Ok so what is wrong then? I have it as well, sometimes is only when i try to sleep, but diziness is prezent douring the day,, not all the time, today i went in london for a quick trip, and i felt so soft, and dizzy, i had to take 2 magnezium tablets to be able to get from that condition... Its so bad, and plus i feal bloated on left side under ribs, i dunno if it has any conection.....lets take it logical, if my go doesent help me with nothing.... Since this happens only when we try to sleep, i think, probably a hormone issue, maby adrenal glands? Thyroid? I dont even want to go to a small stroke cause it will be badsad . It makes me hate my life even more. Lets try to find something in common, and hopefull, we can find a cause or something....

5

This has happend to me a few times. I've never been too concerned about it, but it was always a 'Wow, what the hell was that' experience.  I was just reading something about weird occurance that happen in your sleep and came across 'Exploding Head Syndrome'.  I was searching to see if the two experiences were related and came across this thread.  I wonder if this experience is a variant of it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exploding_head_syndrome

6

Also, I believe your body releases a chemical that paralizes you when you  are in a deep sleep.  Everytime this has happened to me, it has been when I was very tired and about to fall into a deep sleep.  I always assumed the experience was my waking mind trying to snap myself out of it while falling alseep.  I definitely think the two are related.

7

I also had same thing... For over two years. I got over it with a pill which i have forgot the name. But i can get back to you with it. But when i did not take it, it would start again.

then, i found a wonderfull homeopatic doctor that made me take those homeopatic pills and after three, four mounths, i don t have them anymore even if i dońt take the pills now. But, i must admit, yesterday i had one little one!

now, i almost do not ever sleep even if i don t have those shocks for waking me up as soon as i am falling asleep. So, i am pretty desprate about this situation as i am also losing memory, and much more...

but, thank god i found have learned a meditation technique, which i do when i am in bed and i have learn to not create negativity around the fact that i don t sleep. The technique is called Vipassana. Courses are given for free in vipassana meditation centers around the world. 

I wish you all to get better and find sleep again.

 

8

I have been taking medication, because I used to have a psychosis. I have been of medication for 18 months, at times I get very angry, and symptoms return, so I take medication. These medication has left a tremendous impact on my nervous system. I may have used it in a wrong combo. Anyways it doesn't matter. Now I am having the exact symptoms, but my symptoms are anxiety related. Though actually I am not experiencing any anxiety anymore. Interesting it stays the same. Because I am a mad genius, I have learned a meditation technique that enables me to be mad and still reconcile, calibrate, and equilibrize to normal condition through doing excessive love meditation. You can rewire your neurological systems with intensive anti-thesis. When I fear, I visualize love, and all is cured. 

9

Thank you so much! I'm so glad I found this. So I'd have this happen for about the last 3-4 years, but very rarely. And for the last month or so it's been happening basically everynight. I can't stand it, it makes me not want to go to sleep because I have no idea what's happening to me, and it follows exactly what you described.

But I was wondering if anybody experiences sleep paralysis and or old hag syndrome. I've had that for some time now and when I asked my doctor he said I had a very mild case of narcolepsy. Not the type where you fall asleep randomly, but some other variant, or something to that degree. So I was wondering if this could have something to do with the sleep paralysis or a form of narcolepsy. If anybody had any ideas on that please let know!

10

Also, I forgot to mention. I've had the sleep paralysis/old hag sydrome for years while I had never been on any medication. But the electric shock thing has only started a few months after being on percocet. I don't know if there's a causal link between the two, but I'm not sure. I have found information on "Brain Shivers" etc. for people on certain anti-depressants and the effect sounds very similar, the main difference being the time at which they occur. As we all know, the percocet is not an anti-depressant at all, but I thought similar things could be at the bottom of this. http://www.howtodothings.com/health-and-fitness/a4391-how-to-understand-brain-shivers.html

11

Some have suggested the experience resembles a "funny bone" except that it shoots through the entire body, starting from the head.

Immediately following this shock is a light-headedness which may last for up to ten seconds. It is thought to be a form of epileptiform activity [1][2].

That page I posted has some good information. The first four lines are off of that page. I've heard some people even compare the feeling to "hitting a funny bone in your brain". So now I'm thinking it might have something to do with an imbalance in the chemicals in your brain. If this is frequently caused by stopping anti-depressants, than it might becaused by a similar phenomenon with some sort of natural chemical imbalance.

12

Thanks to the original poster. I have been experiencing very similar symptoms for the last 3-4 years. But only in the last couple of weeks has it progressed where the "spaced out" feeling during the day has become constant and to the point where I do not want to be in social situations or, really, outside at all. I've been hoping that rest and sleep will help, but so far, they have not. 

I'm interested to hear any updates from the original poster and the first reply. 

I do have a few differences in my symptoms and other observations. My "electrical rush" seems to start from my chest/heart and not the stomach. Part of me thinks that it is a heart related issue, but I've been to a specialist for preliminary tests and nothing was wrong. Also, I actually do not get the rush all that often. Usually only after a night of drinking alcohol. But I get the "spaced out" feeling a lot. Further to that point, what makes me think this may be anxiety/mental is that generally, the spaced out feeling goes away after a few glasses of alcohol. And I begin to feel more "into it" or focused. But if I over do it with the alcohol, then the next day I am sure to have the spaced out feeling throughout the day. So, obviously, I have been not drinking recently, but yet, the symptoms haven't gone away so far. 

13

As in this thread and many other sites, the person who posted seems to discontinue from the engagement to the replies he received leaving no progress on how we can benifit from our shared symptoms. i hope this message can re-kick this engagement so we can all update each other on the progress of the shared symptoms in this thread.

what i may add to the symptoms that have been mentioned by GD10( brain electric shock and cloudy brain feeling during the day) is that i witness pin and needle prick sensations on different parts of the body and arm and leg jerks as well( when trying to fall asleep, or even during the day when am just resting or lying down)

went to nuerologists, psychologists, but with no cure or clue of what they think i may have. they just give you anti-deppressents and sleep pills ( i guess thats becuase they think you are crazy with the symptoms you are telling them, so they guess lets just make him forget by giving you happy pills and pills that make you sleep, lol) but thats not solving the underlying problem that we have.

with all the sites that i have visited, there doesnt seem to be a medical break through with these conditions, so i guess thats making it harder on us. but i hope with sharing each others experience it could somehow ease the pressure off a bit.

 

14

Oh my god this is so similar to what happened to me last week! I was on holiday in Bulgaria, and to be fair my friend and I had been partying all week, drinking and lack of sleep was a regular thing the entire time. One night I just had to go to sleep, I was so exhausted, and as I lay in bed, just as I was about to go to sleep it felt like a massive surge of energy hit me in my chest and all I wanted to do was run laps of our apartment. This lasted about 2 seconds and then my brain sort of shut down? I couldnt move my body for about 2 minutes and my brain was like it was dead, all I could think was 'oh my god what is happening to me?!' but nothing else. Then I snapped out of it and woke up my friend and I was quite frankly a bit scared to go back to sleep after that!

I am a healthy 21 year old woman, I eat cleanly and go to the gym 5 days a week. I dont take drugs or drink often (with the exception of that holiday). The only thing I could put it down too is dramatic lack of sleep?

15

Not sure if these are the same. I had these after I stopped taking Cipralex (Escitalopram ). I had these for 6 month. I called them "ping" but on wiki they call it "brain shiver", "brain zap". had them every 5 minutes for weeks. No pain, only at the back of the head. Doen't go anywhere else. People here are discribing other things.

16

Hi guys, 

I've dealt with the same awful sensations quite a lot in the past, and while I don't know what it's called medically I can definitively say that it is caused by stress and lack of sleep (for me at least). 

It got really bad at one point, so if it’s to the point of really interrupting normal sleep here are some things you can try:  

-Put on soft music that's easily audible but not disturbing…it's hard for the brain to get into that exited state when soft music is playing. I usually listen to an album from Deuter called "Atmospheres" which you can get on Spotify or Amazon.

-Sit up straight in bed and do 10-15 minutes of meditation in the correct pose. This is a bit tougher because your eyes will naturally want to close, but stick with it. Afterward the sensations usually have dissipated. 

-Some exercise can help, such as jogging in place, sit-ups, etc. 

-Get a shoulder/head massage if you have a partner or somebody who can do so.

There are also some drug options:

-A combination of inositol and valerian root worked well for me. I used close to a dozen OTC sleep aids but this cocktail was best and had the least sides.

-Sertraline (Zoloft) is also effective, but only after 2-3 weeks of use

-Benzos such as Xanax and that family can also be used, but they can be highly addictive. Use only in extreme cases!

This is not professional medical advice and you should talk to your doctor before taking any substances J

Cheers

17

Hi guys, so its been approx 9 months since my original post which started this discussion.  Apologies for not coming back sooner.....I felt in order to try to combat these issues I wanted to 'get away' from reading these forums.  But I also understand it is a good place for people to talk about their issues which can ease peoples minds.

So let me give you an update:

Firstly, DO NOT WORRY.  These symptoms are not life threatening.  I have had every test available and all results came back OK.

I admit it is quite confusing/scary as I still to this day do not know what brought on these symptoms and how they actually went away (but they do go away!).  I was given no medication to combat it.  I had a couple of weeks off work and was told just to rest up, also wasnt allowed to drive and basically I just need to put my feet up and relax (you will all agree that that is easier said than done).  There was a slight chance that it could have been minor epilepsy but this was not the case.

The only advice I can give and what has worked for me was some basic lifestyle changes (apologies if these seem a bit obvious but they do actually work).  I dont take any medication.

- Morning ritual.  I now spend an extra bit of time in the morning when I get up and leave for work.  I dont try to 'rush' out of bed and into work.  Take your time having breakfast, have a shower, watch some TV.  I now dont tend to leave the house until I am 'ready'.  I might be late for work but I dont try to combat the day until i feel i am awake and ready.  Try and get into a routine.

- Change of diet.  Eat plenty of fruit and veg.  I have cut down a lot on caffiene and now drink natural drinks like green tea.  Some porridge or muesli for breakfast.  Bananas in the afternoon and some fish for tea.  Changed to Skimmed Milk.  Stay hydrated throughout the day with water.

Must admit that I still drink alcohol quite a bit on weekends (cut it out in the week).

- Meditation and breathing exercises.  I find this helped a LOT.  I bought a basic/beginner guide off Amazon for a couple of quid.  A 5-10 minute breathing exercise just before bed relaxes the mind.  This really helps and I still do some of these exercises when i'm getting a bit stressed out.  I also found that using an extra pillow so my head is higher when trying to get to sleep helps.

- Music, i found some soothing tunes can help with sleep.  You can download some stuff from iTunes.  These can be used with the breathing exercises just before bed.

- Exercise.  I was quite fit when these symptoms started happening so not sure how big a part this plays in the recovery.  I find that fresh air helps.  Have a good stretch and go for a walk in the evenings.

In general, I just had a new outlook in life and learned to chill out a bit more.  Try hard to not get stressed about things which are not important in life.

I think thats it from me.  Hopefully trying some of my advice above will help you guys.  I know they sound very basic but it does help.  I do still get days when i'm spaced out (especially in evenings) but again following some of my tips above seem to help.  Dont worry about these symptoms and be happy this is nothing serious.

Any questions i'll be happy to help.

18

I'm not going to lie, reading these posts made me feel a lot better.

At first, I had a minor spasm in my left foot, and being the hyponchondriac that I am, I thought I was developing some sort of neurological disease. After about a month of constant twitching and nothing else, I just sort of shrugged it off. But just two nights ago, I was woken up by "surges" in my head. Almost like that feeling you get when you "fall" while you're sleeping, but they were more consistent. Last night, I could not fall asleep because this "tingling surge" sensation kept going to my head/stomach/and chest region. After reading these posts, I put on some soft music and it did help me fall asleep. But this morning, I was woken up by the same sensations. Also, during the day there is almost this anxious tingingling sensation in my chest/stomach. I wonder if all my symptoms could be related

About me- 19 year old male who started college a month ago. Work out regularly, so I don't believe lack of excercise could be the cause. I have been playing with my dosages of anti-depressants and ADHD medications, which I read could possibly be a reason for these symptoms. I am going through the most stressful time of my life trying to adjust to college and all of the work. Hopefully I'll fnd some answers somewhere! Good luck to you all, as well!

19

This is going to sound crazy but here's how I've dealt with it. The surge, I think, is a physiological response to your awareness of yourself being between the physical and spiritual realm. When you get these, you are very tired and your body has issued the chemicals that prevent you from moving. You're paralyzed and you feel like you're completely vulnerable as you become aware and these surges come. At first they are scary and you might even cry out for help - not physically of course but within your 'state' - like a desperate prayer. I actually started taking advantage of these states to pray, not in desperation, but in peace and with sincere inquisition because it's in this place I think we're out of the physical and into the spiritual world, a little closer to God.

20

What you're describing sounds like sleep paralysis, which is sort of what happens when your mind is awake but the message hasn't gotten to the body to wake it up

. Sometimes it happens to me, but only in the middle of the night and only when I sleep on my back/stomach. It's very scary and I can only move my feet for a brief period of time (a minute or so), but I always snap out of it. 

I haven't heard of it happening right when falling asleep, but with all the partying who knows. There's an article on wikipedia about the condition that might be helpful - from what I gather there's no known cause but it's not an ailment to be worried about either.