Hello.. ok for months now this has been happening, along with anxiety, buzzing and you name it!
When I try to relax.. or upon waking and just lying in bed, I get these jolts.. like my shoulder jerks or stomach area or leg. I dont know what to think and most doctors dont either. Help.. is it hormonal, anyone else??

thanks again..
LISA

I hope it is, I have had it many times. My theory is that when we tense up during the day and then try to relax the muscles twitch and jump. I think it's very normal and maybe hormonal. I've seen my dog do it in his sleep, so maybe it's just the body relaxing.

I get this when my stress/anxiety has been high. It's almost like my body doesn't want me to go to sleep. As soon as I start to doze, bam, I get a jolt and wake up. It does go away when I'm calmer. So that's good to know!

I have been getting the "jolts" for about a year now ( if you look at my posts, I am a twitching/jolting queen now!) I get these jolts either when I am not getting enough sleep or right before my menstrual cycle or even around ovulation.

They are scaring even though I know I am ok..but I don' t like them.

I have had the gammit of tests and everything was normal. One Neurologist told me it very well could be related to hormone flucuations.

I do think stress/anxiety does aggravate it though too...like our bodies have trouble switching from wake to the relaxed sleep cycle and we jolt.

I hope that helps.

Take Care,

Sunny~

Hi to all of you wonderful shaking recks, I can't tell you how relieved I am. For a year now I have had myself with parkinsins and many other problems but afraid to say anything. This menopause thing is really something, I have been so down and finding this site is a God send. Bless you all I can't wait to read myself more!

hi ladies,


yes, I get these "jolts" too .... for me, this usually happens just as I'm about to fall asleep ... how lovely..lol..

it feels as if I'm suddenly JOLTED awake, it's weird. It doesn't happen all the time, but enough.

I am another one who has had lots of the jolts falling asleep. Sometimes the whole body jolts, other times just a leg! Its it a strange sensation, but you know, I never worried about it. I definitely think there is a link between hormone levels, stress levels and these peculiar spasms.

I have had head shakes or maybe its my neck, you know like my head jolts. Thats why I was worried I had parkensins! Sometimes when I am just sitting my head will jolt once or twice.

Dear 'Ann56'
Have had my share of jolts,from the small to the ones that jerks you almost out of bed.I think I could have been a good actress for that film"The Exorcist'
Actually have found that since giving up coffee, except for the occasional cup,that my shakes are much less.
Anxiety leads to tension,so we tighten up our muscles and as we try to relax into sleep the electric main is switched on

Rest assured you are not the only 'Mover and Shaker' out there.

Stay Well
Elizabeth

Hi guys,

As a teenager, I remember getting a few strong jolts just as I was falling asleep. My father was a Dr. and I asked him about them. He said "Oh, those are just "Myoclonic Jerks". I have had them off and on most of my life (I am now 55) and I guess now they are called "Hypnic Jerks" and it sounds like at least 50% of the population experiences them at one time or another. Rest easy on this one...

Cathy

YES, I have had these twitches for 3 years, since turning 48. At first I called them "twitches". After seeing a neurologist, I discovered I have "Primary Myoclonus" which just means I have the (myoclonic) jerks and no other neurological condition or disease. Some people just have this. Maybe the onset of peri was the catalyst for all this sturm and drang. 3 years ago, when this all started, I also had some dizziness/off-center feelings and occasional wave of fear/adrenalin feelings. This would lead to scary crying jags. My doctor and I called just called it "anxiety." Not uncommon with peri. I had never even heard of Xanax or Ativan before that. I wasn't depressed and didn't want to go on an AD. Also, my hot flashes have been few and far between. (Still at 51!) I take very good care of myself--exercise, clean-ish diet etc. (except for those pesky 10 lbs.!) Anyway, mostly I jerk in my head, neck, shoulders and upper arms when I am not doing anything, like when I'm trying to fall asleep, when I am waiting for a light to change, when I am waiting for an appointment or when I am in my easy chair watching something dull on TV. I was taking bc pills for a couple years which helped some, but the doc told me to go off and check back for HRT after menopause. I also was taking Buspar. (non-addicting anti-anxiety drug) I really don't know if that works. I was also taking Ativan as needed, which worked pretty well to take the edge off. When I was on the pill, I needed much less Ativan. I was taking a.25mg. dose once a day, if at all. The neurologist gave me Klonopin which is specifically for twitching/myoclonic jerking AND panic attacks. (I might have a form of those too) He wants me to take 1mg. per day. I'm on half the dose now, and it makes me kind of sleepy in the morning. I sleep well. It does seem to calm down the jerking. The jury's still out on that one for me. K-pin is a benzo and habit forming, possibly addicting. I'm willing to take the chance right now because that's what the drug is FOR. 3 years ago, when I found this website, there was no mention of the jerks as I experienced them. Thank God, it's here now. I hope to hear from some other "jerks" out there!

Dear'rubyrena'
From one 'jerk' to another I would say take your Meds. and these in-voluntary moements will eventually become less and less.Tension and anxiety make the muscle contrat suddenly and before you know it up you jump.

So relax.
P.S.I hope we are not the only'Jerks!' around

Warm Wishes
Elizabeth

I have this too! My head tremors and different body parts jerk, flinch or jump as I'm falling asleep. I thought it was perscription drug damage, but I had some of it before I ever took the meds. I also had balance problems for a while, all this around the time of peri. I have been planning to go to a neurologist to check it out.

Has anyone start falling asleep and your body jerks and your out of breath? I find sometimes i will go to sleep and a few min. later i wake up grabbing for something cause it almost feels like my heart stop beating and i am gasping for air.So scared there is something wrong with me.

So happy to have found this and the other post about "twitches."

This has probably been the most disconcerting symptom for me (OK, fine, besides the out-the-roof anxiety and unstoppable crying). Like many of my girl pals out here, I was convinced that I was experiencing early Parkinson's symptoms or late MS symptoms or had ALS. (If I'm completely honest, I still suspect I have all three.)

Anyhoo, the twitching is maddening. I had a meltdown last fall and leading up to that, they were really bad. I remember going to exercise to try and work off the anxiety. When I finished running, I would have these tiny twitches just beneath the skin all over my legs. It was so freaky. And I was having the body jerks, too. Bigger, visible twitching legs and arms.

I've been on Sertraline since then and the twitching has subsided. But I have to go off this med due to hair loss. And I'm pretty nervous about it. Last time I tried to go off (though too quickly, I admit), I was twitching all over the place.

There's a part of me that is convinced that in addition to all of my other afflictions, I have developed a serious, terminal nervous condition and will always have to be medicated in order to keep it manageable.

Isn't it weird how the mind plays games on us? I mean, even as I write this I'm thinking, "These other women are fine. I'm the only one who isn't suffering from perimenopausal symptoms. Their twitching is normal. Mine is terminal and permanent. I shouldn't even be writing here. I should be posting to some death message board."



Sukie

LOL Sorry to laugh, but everytime some new symptom comes up and stays for awhile, this is exactly what I think--that the same symptoms that others here on PS have are benign for them, but in me it's for sure a deadly disease that will never go away or will worsen and I will die. And at the time, I'm thoroughly convinced of that.

I'm embarrassed to admit that several times I have called the doc and begged to get in that day, since I'm convinced that if I wait it will be too late and the disease will kill me.

When will I learn? All of it has resolved eventually. But I am realizing more and more that I'm feeling better and better as I slowly increase my thyroid meds.

Hi Polarb~ Have you ever been checked for sleep apnea? My ex husband had it and you do in fact stop breathing for a sec or two when your sleeping and you wake up gasping for air and/or jerking. It's something you really should look into and have treated if that is in fact the problem.
J

No, please do laugh! We have to take breaks from this h*** on occasion and laugh!

To that point:

I'm in the process of buying my very first home. A wee studio condo in Chicago. I'm at the inspection part of the process and the inspector was telling me about the dangers of lead paint. (Can you see where this is going?) I then started to reflect back on the two times I had chipped layers of paint off of old fireplaces. There was undoubtedly lead paint that was being disrupted. But I have no obvious symptoms. But putting all of that together, today, I was panic-stricken:

"I have late-onset, adult lead poisoning."

At work, I started Googling lead poisoning like a madwoman and made a note to myself to schedule an appointment with my doctor for testing.

(Musical Diseases is how my anxiety manifests itself. The music plays and when it stops, I plunk my a** down in the first available disease.")



Sukie

Thanks for that info! I get those jolts too when trying to fall asleep every night! I have an order for a sleep study but didn't think I was going to use it...I may do so now, however!


TJ

I have been losing my mind with this also. I have a neuro appt. thinking it is seizures that happen every night. I fall asleep fine and then jolt awake and even end up on the floor. I go from bed to couch all night long. I awaken with a jolt and I think it feels like my stomach muscles are tight and I can't breath. It lasts a few seconds and I fall asleep again and bang it happens within 15 minutes of falling asleep. Over and over and over again all night. The only reason I think it may not be seizures is because I give up at 4 in the morning and take a shower. Then I lay back down on the couch and I'm able to fall asleep and stay asleep but only for about 3 hours. Then I still wake up with a jolt. It all seems silly in the daytime but at night I am so scared. I got layed off from work last spring. I can't even imagine working again with this problem even if I could find work. My husband watched me once. He falls asleep the second he hits the pillow while I'm gasping, laying on the floor, grabbing covers and convulsing all night while he is snoring away. He said it just looks like someone stabs me, I jump up and all my body goes stiff. Now I know that there are seizures that only happen when asleep but then how could I fall asleep during the day and can sleep few at least a few hours. I feel like I will never again be able to sleep at night . My last neuro did do a sleep study but I could not fall asleep. I did for about an hour and had the jolt. He just said NO sleep apnea. Said it didn't sound like panic attacks at night and that he didn't know what I had. Just threw me Klonopin. I tried xanax before bed and it did absolutely nothing. NOw I'm not used to taking xanax so wouldn't it work if what I'm having are night panic attacks? Does anyone take klonopin? I think everynight I think it won't happen again and so I don't try the klonopin. Also I feel that if that doesn't work, then what am I going to do? Could hot flashes cause this feeling also?

Sukie,
Thought I might be able to put your mind at rest regarding your muscle twitches after running. I will get it in my thighs after a run, especially if I happen to sit down immediately after the run. (not something I normally do) I'd never given it any thought before, but after reading your comments, I googled, "twitches in muscles after running." After reading some sites, it seems to me that twitching in muscles if pretty common after exercise! (my husband just said that it has happened to him after a power walk)


(from Jillita Horton, Associated Content)

"Muscle twitching is a common result of strenuous muscle exercise and weight lifting exercises.

To think that twitching muscles might mean a neurological disease, is like thinking that a little gas means you have stomach cancer. Exercise is perhaps the No. 1 cause of muscle twitching. The fancy name for muscle twitching, in the absence of clinical weakness, is benign fasciculation syndrome. Fasciculation means muscle twitching.

Intense aerobic exercise has a tendency to cause muscle twitching or benign fasciculations -- once the aerobic exercise is over and you have taken up a restful position, such as in front of the computer. You may find a lot of muscle twitching going on in your legs, calves and arches of your feet.

Bench pressing, pull-ups and intense triceps routines may trigger twitching muscles as well. Muscle twitching following strenuous exercise is perfectly normal. In fact, rather than let the twitching muscles induce fear that you have a deadly disease, remind yourself that muscle twitching means you conducted a rigorous workout -- and that's the way workouts should be: rigorous.


Benign Fasciculation Syndrome:

"Though twitching is sometimes a symptom of serious diseases such as spinal injury, muscular dystrophy, Lyme Disease, multiple sclerosis or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), it is much more often due to more benign causes (BFS, over-exertion, etc), and virtually everyone will experience some episodes of benign fasciculation during their lifetime." (wikipedia)

Hope this helps! At least, I learned something.

jem

bravo! what an excellent & funny description of something so many of us do. i have not found the late-onset, adult lead poisoning one yet, but i sure follow a similar pattern when i get going. i appreciate the laugh - musical diseases, indeed (i'm trying real hard today to not play that one).

xo,ellen

Ellen,

So glad to have brought a chuckle your way.

xo

Sukie

runr,

Thank you for posting all of that information. Would you believe I actually read that very excerpt from one of my own Google searches when I first started freaking out?! I'm really glad you posted it, though, for the benefit of everyone else out here.

I actually don't worry about the tiny twitches described in the excerpt you posted (because of that very information that you provided). I worry about the big twitches: the ones that have nothing to do with exercise and aren't "just below the skin." The big twitches that make my limbs jerk.

What was weird about the "below the skin" twitches is that I have exercised off and on my entire life and never, ever, ever experienced that. I think it probably had todo with the fact that I was so anxiety-ridden during that time. But I don't worry about those too much any more--thanks to this information.

Now if I could just convince myself the big ones aren't going to kill me!

Thanks again.

Sukie

Hi, Suki,

You're welcome! I just didn't want you to be afraid to exercise. Sorry, but I'm a bit of an exercise drill-Sargent as far as trying to encourage people to get moving and all.

I'm sorry that you and others are having body jolts and twitching. It sure sounds annoying and scary. I've never experienced it except for occasionally jerking while falling asleep. However, I can definitely relate to the being worried about MS and other diseases. I had a bad case of "cyberchondria" yesterday, and was wondering if I have MS, as I have about half of the symptoms. (I hate how perimenopause symptoms can also be symptoms of so many diseases/cancers) I've been dealing with carpal tunnel syndrome for several months, and made the mistake of googling numbness and tingling. Ugh.

Thanks for responding yesterday!

take care,
jem