Waking up with a jittery feeling or feeling shaky may seem quite concerning to people who haven’t had any experience with tremors before, and rightfully so, but in fact, it’s not necessarily a red alert. Body tremors could happen for many reasons, and not all are serious. Nevertheless, you still should get yourself a thorough examination to be one step ahead of the problem, in case it is anything serious.
In today’s blog, we will be discussing why you might be experiencing uncontrollable shaking when waking up, and provide you with some useful advice that might help alleviate your shakiness.
Why am I Shaking When Waking Up?
Waking up feeling shaky or experiencing shaky hands could be the result of multiple reasons. The causes of uncontrollable shaking, or body tremors in general, range from serious underlying medical conditions all the way to simply having a little too much coffee, making it a very tricky condition to fully understand and diagnose, which leads people to be too afraid of it sometimes. You don’t need to panic every time you’re feeling jittery, because often, the reasons could be manageable. Here are a few good examples of why you might be experiencing body tremors, specifically when waking up:
Low Blood Sugar Levels:
Low blood sugar levels, also known as hypoglycemia, usually develop when your body goes through a major and surprising drop in its sugar levels, so intense that it causes physical symptoms, like shakiness. Hypoglycemia could happen to you overnight if you haven't had any food for several hours, as this could cause your body's glucose levels to dip during your sleep.
People with diabetes or metabolic disorders usually have a higher tendency to experience physical symptoms as a side effect of hypoglycemia. Aside from waking up feeling jittery, this condition also causes sweating, confusion, dizziness, and irritability.
Additionally, hypoglycemia could lead to seizures or loss of consciousness in its severe form. Hypoglycemia is more common in individuals with diabetes or metabolic disorders. Eating a small carbohydrate-rich snack before bed can help manage overnight dips in glucose levels.
Anxiety or Panic Attacks:
Conditions like anxiety can trigger your body's fight or flight mode even during your sleep, leading to a significant increase in adrenaline and cortisol levels, which eventually causes you to wake up having "anxiety shivers," not to mention rapid heartbeat, sweating, shortness of breath, and feelings of dread or panic, which could be completely overwhelming. Sleep quality can be directly affected by anxiety, leading to disrupted REM cycles and increased morning shakiness. It's crucial to manage stress and anxiety using a variety of methods, including deep breathing exercises, mindfulness, and, if necessary, professional assistance.
Sleep Disorders:
Some sleep disorders can interrupt your body's sleep cycle, causing many distressing side effects, such as shakiness. One good example of these sleep disorders is sleep apnea, which pauses your breathing for short periods during your sleep, causing a decrease in your blood's oxygen levels and, specifically in the brain, and an increase in carbon dioxide. Aside from uncontrollable shaking, sleep apnea causes fatigue, morning headaches, dry mouth, and excessive daytime sleepiness.
Medications:
Some types of drugs, such as antidepressants, anti-anxiety, and high blood pressure medications, tend to harm your body's central nervous system, causing side effects like uncontrollable shivering. These side effects usually happen at night when their effect completely wears off, causing you to wake up feeling jittery. The side effects can also include dizziness, and sometimes withdrawal-like symptoms if the medication dose is missed or wears off.
Caffeine or Alcohol:
As a stimulant, caffeine can produce sleep disturbances and uncontrollable shivering, particularly when ingested in excess or late in the day. Similarly, alcohol can cause poor-quality sleep and disturb sleep cycles even though it is initially a sedative. This may result in symptoms such as feeling shaky when you wake up. It's crucial to be careful while consuming caffeine and alcohol because they can both have negative effects on our capacity to sleep soundly. Overall, consuming too much of either could cause you to remain restless and experience an increase in your heart rate, in addition to the burden of having tremors.
How to Stop Shaking?
To properly address this type of uncontrollable shaking, you have to pinpoint the root cause first, as this is crucial for figuring out your treatment plan, and options in general. Here are some useful pieces of advice that could be helpful as a starting point, but do get yourself examined because it's the foundation of the cure.
Keep a Regular Sleep Routine:
Each one of us has an internal clock known as the circadian rhythm. This built-in clock helps your body tell if it's time to sleep or to be active, as it regulates sleep-wake cycles, hormone release, and other bodily functions depending on what time of day it is. Keeping a regular sleeping pattern helps your built-in clock to better synchronize itself, ensuring you a restful and quality sleep, enhanced daytime alertness, and keeping you away from uncontrollable shivering. So, remember that neglecting the well-being and synchronization of your circadian rhythm can lead to sleep disorders, fatigue, mood disturbances, and most importantly, uncontrollable shivering.
Keep Your Diet Healthy and Balanced:
Sometimes, waking up feeling jittery could simply be your body's way of telling you that it needs certain nutrients and vitamins. Therefore, keeping a balanced diet that provides your body with everything it needs could be the perfect way to keep any potential health risks at bay. Your body needs a balanced diet to get all the nutrients it needs to function at its best. Be sure to include a range of foods from all the dietary groups in your diet, such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and healthy fats, to help your body stop the shakiness.
Keep The Stress and Anxiety Levels to a Minimum:
Excess levels of stress and anxiety can have significantly negative impacts on your body, like causing anxiety shivers and sleep disturbances. Managing your stress levels is vital for your general well-being, not just for keeping the tremors away. So, make sure you do things that help you decompress, including reading, listening to music, going for walks in the park, or whatever else suits you.
Exercise Regularly:
In addition to reducing your body’s episodes of uncontrollable shaking, exercising regularly has more physical and mental benefits than you think. Keeping a daily exercise routine helps regulate your hormones, improves your sleep quality, boosts your cardiovascular health, and most importantly, reduces your stress levels. Moving your body for a few hours every day could seem like a chore, but it's significantly impactful, in every good sense of the word.
How the Steadi-3 Glove Can Help:
At SteadiWear, we are committed to helping individuals regain their independence and improve their quality of life. The Steadi-3 glove is a cutting-edge assistive device meticulously engineered to reduce the impact of uncontrollable shaking. Designed with user convenience in mind, the glove features a unique vibration-dampening disk that moves in the opposite direction of your tremors, providing immediate stability and control.
Its lightweight, battery-free design ensures hassle-free use, allowing you to focus on daily activities like eating, writing, or using tools without obstruction. The Steadi-3 glove is more than just a device—it’s a reliable partner in restoring your confidence and enabling you to enjoy a steady, functional lifestyle.
Conclusion:
You can enhance general health, maintain physiological balance, and lessen the chance of experiencing trembling in the morning by incorporating these routines into your everyday life. Consultation with a healthcare professional is important for additional assessment and customized guidance if symptoms continue or worsen over time. Cooperating with your healthcare provider is very important because they will work closely with you to come up with the most suitable and effective treatment plan depending on your specific needs and condition.
Resources:
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hypoglycemia/symptoms-causes/syc-20373685
- https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders
- https://nida.nih.gov/publications/drugfacts/caffeine
- https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-eating-plate/
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/stress-management/about/pac-20385101
- https://www.apa.org/topics/stress
