Exploding Head Syndrome

[Ryker]

Does anyone else here experience Exploding Head Syndrome? I know it's associated with stress and wondered if there were any other people here who do.

When my sleep patterns are normal it's extremely rare, but stay up all night working and drink too much coffee and then try and sleep at 5am and it's pretty much guaranteed.

[gypsylee]

What are the symptoms of it? :)

[Ryker]

As you're falling asleep, or during sleep you're woken by incredibly loud bangs that are, well, a bit like your head exploding.

It varies, but it's mostly like a shotgun going off by the side of my head, and I feel the shock-waves too. Occasionally it's like a large electrical crackle, like lightning or a huge electrical discharge. It's another one of those things that's very scary unless you know what it is and then it's actually quite interesting and exciting.

[gypsylee]

As you're falling asleep, or during sleep you're woken by incredibly loud bangs that are, well, a bit like your head exploding.

It varies, but it's mostly like a shotgun going off by the side of my head, and I feel the shock-waves too. Occasionally it's like a large electrical crackle, like lightning or a huge electrical discharge. It's another one of those things that's very scary unless you know what it is and then it's actually quite interesting and exciting.

I think I may have had this a few times in my whole life. I mostly get the body twitches which aren't half as scary.

[raggamuffin]

Once you know the medical phenomenon behind a symptom and realize it can't hurt you, this often helps you chalk yet another strange bodily reaction to anxiety. This in turn should remove most of the fear and worry which often exacerbates symptoms.

Ed

[Ryker]

Once you know the medical phenomenon behind a symptom and realize it can't hurt you, this often helps you chalk yet another strange bodily reaction to anxiety. This in turn should remove most of the fear and worry which often exacerbates symptoms.

Ed

So true. Can you imagine if hiccups, growling stomachs, flatulence, tingling funny-bones, goose-bumps, headaches etc. all manifested after puberty and education and nobody ever explained them!

This place would be FULL of "My skin goes all wrinkly when I go outside - OMG I freak out and think I'm going to die! Does anyone else get this?"

Knowledge saves all sorts of embarrassment.

[raggamuffin]

I had a savage bout of hiccups yesterday that lasted 15 minutes. I began to ponder if they'd never go away. I recalled a woman on the news earlier in the year who'd had hiccups for 2 months. Terrifying.

Ed

[Ryker]

Watch it. You can die of hiccups.

That is unless you drink copious amounts of chamomile tea.

Ugh. God I hate chamomile tea. Tastes like alcohol-free flat lager with cat-piss.

[raggamuffin]

Chamomille tea is quite an odd taste. Very sickly. Twinings do a chamomile and honey which is quite nice.

Ed

[somebody]

Yes.

I experience them a lot. It feels like my head is full of blood and I can feel every single cell in my head moving. It feels like listening to a flowing river.

It is often associated with anxiety / stress and it is caused by high blood pressure. There are quite normal, thought, it seems that "anxiety and stress people" have them more, more often.