Electric shock feeling

Question

This is my first time posting on this site and just curious if anyone else has had this happen to them and if it is anxiety... Sometimes maybe an hour after I fall asleep I will jolt awake,kinda like an electric shock feeling,  when this happens I have alot of fear running through my head and I feel kinda confused for maybe 2 mins, then I can easily go back to sleep. does anyone know if anxiety can cause this, I have just recently been told by my doctor that I have pretty bad anxiety, so I am pretty new to all these symptoms. thanks for your help......

AyaShumori · Answer

You certainly are not alone.  I have experienced a sharp,  sudden shock feeling.  Almost like a jolt or a sudden sting in certain areas of the body.  That is indeed one of the many symptoms of anxiety.

annaxoxox · Answer

I was also taking 10mg Celexa but I was on it for about 4 months. I decided to go off of it and have been having severe withdrawal symptoms. And you doctor is wrong, 10 days on is more than long enough to have wthdrawals. Since I was on for 4 months I tappered off slowly but it is still terrible. I have those electric shock feelings as weel as a bunch of other withdrawal sysptoms. I did some reseach online and the electric shocks IS related to withdrawals from SSRIs but can also be triggered by other things. Apparently SSRIs are the hardest meds to come off of (withdrawal wise). I have one through this multiple times in the past and had the same problems. The syptoms went away eventually, unfortunately I can't remember how long it took. It has been a little over a week for me this time. Here are some helpful links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SSRI_discontinuation_syndrome
http://theblondepharmacist.wordpress.com/2007/11/17/brain-shivers-brain-zaps-brain-shocks/

Jones33 · Answer

I took Celexa for 10days 10mg.  I could not handle it.  I tapered off it and have been off for a total of 10days and started having brain aches and zaps which scarred me.  My family doctor who had prescribed the Celexa for Anxiety and Panic says the aches and shocks are not withdrawls symptoms but something else, he stated I was not on them long enough to have withdrawls.  I just can't beleive that it is not related to the Celexa or Anxiety.  Anyone else have these issues?

sonia_ji · Answer

yes.i 've been through these electric shock feelings...............it happened wid me in my starting early days of anxiety.......it looks like some onweis snatching your veins.......anxiety has a link wid these electric shock feelings....

Fuel1212 · Answer

Have you figured out what causes the electrical shocks. I have been having them on an off for a few months now. When it is bad I feel so uncomfortable, and have a cloudy head for the day. I have tried running a few miles thinking that it might be adrenaline I need to burn off. This works sometimes but I am still not convinced that this is anxiety. My heart does not really race and my body is still very sleepy however still get the jolts. Thanks!

urbanpreacher · Answer

thank you very much for your reply...no I am not taking any meds for my anxiety, my doctor wanted to see how things went for the first little while first.. and no im not taking any vitamins but i am definately going to now, Im scared to go to sleep at night because of the feeling that comes over me.. very scary... thanks for your input

DragonTU84 · Answer

I have had this same incident occur. Trust me, you are not the first. First of all, are you on any meds. for your anxiety/panic? Do you take your vitamins daily? SSRI anti-depressants caused this adverse reaction to me, since I seem to have a very overly stimulated autonomic nervous system.

The electrical shock feelings are all too familiar to me. I still don't know if they are related to Panic or not, but I just linked them as part of my overly sensitive ANS and the panic attacks, because the Lorazepam coupled with my Toprol seems to be doing the trick, and as well as taking a mult-vitamin to assure no vitamin deficiencies are causing my symptoms. Lack of Vitamin B12 is a good candidate to cause both neurological and physiological symptoms like anxiety, depression, panic attacks, and the symptoms much like those you described, so I always take my vitamins. And low and behold, vitamins ALONE got rid of my withdrawal symptoms from the SSRI's, which just made the symptoms that they made appear while I was taking them 10-fold.

I still would like a definitive answer though if panic attacks and the electrical shock feelings are linked, or if they are just part of my overly sensitive ANS or part of some other problem all together linking the two (the panic attacks and the electrical surges).