I don't like adrenaline.

Aspen

Aspen

Senior Member
Messages
145
@Booble Yes!!! Enthusiasm crashes me immediately. I get all flushed and have air hunger and instant brain fog. It’s like a limb got chopped off, not to be able to give in to enthusiasm. I love to geek out about pretty much everything in life. Some days it seem like it takes all my energy just NOT to burst out in some silly antic when something awesome is happening. I used to looove adrenaline, I had a motorcycle and I rock-climbed and had an exciting career... now it’s my nemesis (scary music plays...*dun dun duuun*).

I’ve been browsing just now to try and get tips on managing cognitive exertion - I’ve been sick 18 months and I‘ve pretty much figured out my physical exertion limits (staying within them is another matter altogether, haha!;)) But I haven’t gotten good at recognizing signs of too much cognitive exertion yet, and I think it’s contributing a lot to the severity of my illness. Some days I just can’t focus at all, light and noise is painful, so it’s obvious I shouldn’t do anything. But other days I can do a little browsing online or hanging out with my kids, or maybe a video chat with a friend, and then it isn’t til later I realize my coathanger pain is off the charts or my eyes don’t work anymore, and I have no idea when it started.

Anyone know of threads I could check out to help me learn my cognitive exertion signs? Which reminds me, I’d better sign off now before I read too much and crash myself. :xeyes:
 
B

Booble

Senior Member
Messages
1,359
I'm all about enthusiasm too so it's just crazy that I have to pay for it with feeling intense fatigue (but not where I could sleep), nausea and basically like I'm going to die. Just because I've been excited! Ridiculous.
 
H

hapl808

Senior Member
Messages
1,705
Yes. Not necessarily anxiety for me, but as you said any enthusiasm / adrenaline causes me almost worse PEM than physical activity (although my CFS is currently severe enough that I'm housebound anyways). It's frustrating to try not to get excited about anything for fear of the PEM crash - especially since I really enjoy adrenaline. Some supplements seem to help me a bit with that (magnesium, ashwagandha, tyrosine, etc), but I still have to carefully limit anything that might cause that.

Anyone else have good treatments for that?
 
W

Wishful

Senior Member
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5,314
Location
Alberta
I don't know whether adrenaline is involved, but socializing and driving--worse with bad driving conditions--trigger my PEM. I think adrenaline might be involved with both of those triggers. Math or logic or trying to figure out computer problems doesn't trigger my PEM.

I stopped my physical triggering of PEM, but not the cognitive triggering. I was going to add a grumpy face for that, but really I should be happy to have made any progress, so I'll add a smiley instead. :)
 
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Booble

Senior Member
Messages
1,359
Some kinds of enthusiasm give me good feeling chemicals and I feel on top of the world without crashing. I'm unclear the difference but I think it's enthusiasm that has come with a little anxiousness prior to it. That's why I think adrenaline. My regular enthusiasm feels more like the good oxycotcin & serotonin which feels lovely.
 
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Booble

Senior Member
Messages
1,359
crowtor said:
I carry a beta blocker in my pocket. That should tell you enough. Having said that I prefer crashes from excitement to crashes from physical exertion.
Click to expand...

Fair point!

And good on you for keeping some beta blocker on hand. My heart beats go spastic and then I regret it.
 
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