The ZAPPING sensations in the brain discussion! post here if youve ever had them!

[Kamuix]

Hello everyone.. I would like to bring up the zapping sensations because they've been a bit of a problem for me and despite google research it's difficult to find out what they can be caused by. Research will sometimes suggest at worst Multiple Sclerosis but swim doesn't show other symptoms of that problem.

my drugs use is.. (over christmas holidays i had a semi binge and the biggest one swim has ever had) Kratom about 2-3 times a week, DXM 4-5 times a week, Alcohol 1 - 2 times a week, codeine 1 times a week, marijuana 2 - 3 times a week. That concludes my 2 week long drug use patterns in case anyone wants to know. Before that it was generally the same drugs but only once a week and Alcohol maybe twice a month.

The one time in the past sI experienced the zapping sensations was almost 2 years back when he last came off of SSRI's so he was always thought that serotonin may play a role. Swim also thinks that DXM could maybe be what causes it because DXM has an SSRI and when I do dxm they go away.. then return not long after 30 hours after having not used dxm.

but ANYWAY.. the reason I decided to post here was to get your guys experience with the zapping and under what conditions you had them and what you maybe thought caused/causes them etc.. Any thoughts are welcome!

NOTE: with me these zapping sensations can sometimes be short and hard to notice and sometimes longer and feel more disturbing.

NOTE2: Swim recently linked these zapping sensations to his sleep paralysis and if he's having zapping sensations before bed and he tries to get to sleep, it will put him into a sleep paralysis which is a disturbing like feeling where he cannot move and feels a rush of fear and a feeling of a presents! however this sleep paralysis/sleep seizure(what he has seems to feel like a combination of these two condition's and he had no idea why) goes back to when swim was 14 where he had them for the first time.

NOTE3: From 14 and up I would let's say having problems sleeping for about 2 weeks because of the paralysis, but then wouldn't have them for another 6 months so it's a coming and going thing every now and then for me..

 

[lazywhitefox]

no need to use "swim" here. I had these when i was detoxing off benzos. They've gone away but it took close to a year. I have no idea what causes them. I always noticed that mine were stress related. I have some interesting mannerisms since getting clean too. I sometimes get so stressed that I'll catch myself making an odd face. It's not completely subliminal but I wouldn't do it if I felt that I could. Drugs will change you. Sometimes for the better, but most of the time for the worse. I don't know if this is something that non-users/abusers deal with, but I doubt it.

 

[Kamuix]

Hmmm Interesting. well I only use benzos once in awhile so I know it's not related to that but yea drugs do you change you.. many for the better in my case but of course it has it's down sides, most of them get humans in the long term which is why it always does them for the worse in the end because let's face it.. most humans are just to flawed to use drugs responsibly. But not so much just because were human, it's this society were living in that's run by sociopathic politicians(even though you know not know it now, you will in the future). that's the ultimate reason why people are unhappy when you really look at it in depth.

But anyway.. the only drug I use close to benzos is kava but I don't even use that very much but who knows maybe it can help relieve them even though it'l probably go away in a few days since drug use has been ceased for the time being.

Another thing I just thought of is I have a highly sensitive CNS so honestly there's just too many possibilities to narrow it down anytime soon but it's good to hear what others experience that'll help for sure!

 

[Bearlove]

Brain Zaps are normally a sign of Serotonin Syndrome and often associated with stim/MDMA use/abuse. Check the directory in my signature for further information.

 

[Eyes On the Roll]

i would get a zapping/electrical sensation in my brain while peaking on high doses of mushrooms.. but have never had them associated with mdma or anything else.

like i said, i've only had electric/brain zapping sensations when peaking on shrrooms, never sober

 

[Cohesion]

I felt this after a few weeks of forgetting Paxil frequently. After 4 weeks it was more frequent but definitely reminded me to take it.

Paxil w/d.

(Though I would add "Body zaps", too).

 

[Albion]

I get these really badly in the days following MDMA use. I get them when falling asleep. I get to the crossover point between awake and asleep, and then a pulsing series of zaps wake me right up again. They start off weak, and get steadily stronger until I open my eyes.

They're quite violent. Feels like I'm being shocked with a defibrillator. I can see my fingers twitch when the shocks hit me too.

 

[TheAzo]

Brain Zaps are caused by withdrawal from SSRIs (common), aftereffects of serotonin release agent binges (MDMA, MDAI, etc - MDAI binges seem particularly bad), serotonergic psychedelics (rare event, occurring during the experience), and benzo withdrawal (uncommon).

Considering your drug use pattern, I think the DXM is definitely the culprit. 4-5x a week is way too often to be getting high on DXM.

Hence, my advice would be to stop taking DXM, and stay away from drugs that release or inhibit reuptake of serotonin for a good long while.

 

[Kamuix]

I think you guys are right and that serotonin has a lot to do with it. Honestly though I used dxm last only 3 nights ago so I didn't give it any time to go away so it'l probably go away in the few days or a week or so.. I'll keep myself posted!

i would get a zapping/electrical sensation in my brain while peaking on high doses of mushrooms.. but have never had them associated with mdma or anything else.

like i said, i've only had electric/brain zapping sensations when peaking on shrooms, never sober

I completely forgot but now that you post this I remember the exact same thing happened to me on LSA! It happened really only as I was peaking.. then within maybe an hour or so later It went away.

I'll have no problem staying off DXM for awhile so i'll keep posted just for the info. Also i have always been a dxm user and really didn't have this problem until this crazy holiday when I used that much so and it feels like when I stopped taking SSRI's, and dxm has an ssri so... makes sense..

I get these really badly in the days following MDMA use. I get them when falling asleep. I get to the crossover point between awake and asleep, and then a pulsing series of zaps wake me right up again. They start off weak, and get steadily stronger until I open my eyes.

They're quite violent. Feels like I'm being shocked with a defibrillator. I can see my fingers twitch when the shocks hit me too.

Ahh yes.. mine probably aren't as bad as they were with you then but again MD's release more serotonin but your post helps me clarify my discussion.

 

[lasthurrah19]

I get them if I miss a day on Cymbalta, or sometimes when I'm dissociating badly I'll get them when I come back into reality so to speak, which can be once or twice a day or many times an hour. They don't really disturb me but are inhibiting sometimes if I don't feel safe driving.

DXM does seem the culprit with you. Good luck and feel better soon.

 

[Suns81]

Ok .. I have started getting these brain zapds over the past two years, a time when I wasn't TAKING antidepressants or coming off of them at all. It would sound like the sound effect on movies when someone gets shocked, zeroing in on my head somewhere and sometimes it felt like I had been quickly slapped/ snapped at the same time.

I am a daily IV user of hydromprphine and crystal meth. I've been steady on it for 5 years without an attempt to stop. Prior i was clean 1.5 years, on top of a 15 year career in addiction that began with alcohol and progressed to pills, coke, other pills, meth, heroine, fentanyl, other pills. About 12 or 13 years ago I was diagnosed with Servere rheumatoid arthritis, and a bunch of odd symptoms insued. I could barely walk or use Mty hands most days and the swelling and pain just jumped from one joint to the other every morning.

Anyway ... noee I am having those shocks again, though not entirely frequently but I am having violent muscle spasms or twitches. I have a lot of pain in may body from weakened bones due to practically OD ing on steroids following a bad accident that caused my arthritis to flare up bad. I didn't know what I was doing .... thought the prednisone would help the inflammation. Well it did but also found my cracked sternum for worse and I received a stress fraction in my vertebrae. Following back s surgery to rebuild the vertebrae and put a plate, my vertebrae nearby broke again... just 5 days out from the first surgery. After the second, a few months later, my back is presently broken and he says there is nothing else he Can do. I've vecer been able to walk straight up since and I can't even sit for without intense pain, unless I use my back brace. I Also have no cartilage left in my leg ankle so I can't put weight in it whatsoever. Which puts me on crutches or in a wheelchair, just waiting for pandemia to receed so maybe they will operate on my ankle but not holding my breath. I have to take antibiotics for the rest of my life bc if frequent blood infections that I used to get. The meds keep that infection at bay but make my nauseous beyond belief.

So brain zaps and violent muscle spasms are the topic of the day. Can anyone relate to my story and maybe offer me a suggestion as to what this could be ? How to make it stop? The spasms are often when I'm lying still, as I'm falling asleep and they wriddle my body, jarring my back. Sometimes I have thrown my phone right across the bed because my arms snap hard in a spasms.

Hope someone can shed some light!!

Also, I've been reading Bluelight since inception practically but never wrote in successfully. A couple times I lost a big message right before posting and was to frustrated to write it again. So hello all!! Thank you for all the years of support and comport .... stepping out into the (green) light .... (blue?) Light??? Cheerio.