Easily startled

I can't remember if I posted this before. (I'm foggy tonight) but I searched and didn't see it. I've noticed that I'm very easily startled. Even when I know something is going to happen ( stove timer going off, toilet flushing noise etc).
I don't know why it's happening but I'm wondering if it's a side effect of one my meds. I'm no expert on fibromyalgia do it could be related. I am just curious what may be causing this or if anyone else has the same issue.

I do that with volumes. My husband likes the tv to be very loud but it drives me crazy. Is it just me or are commercials very loud?
I don't remember being this easily startled before the medication but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. It does help that some one feels the same thing. The next time I go to my neurologist I will have to ask. I always mean to but I forget.

Angelic- I am 100 percent sure it's your Cymbalta causing it. I never had that problem until I took 2 doses of Cymbalta. Mine got extreme. I couldn't take it. It took very long time to stop that Side effect.

I've always been very high strung. If someone sneezes, I'll jump.
It doesn't take much to get my heart pumping wildly. My resting heart rate is right around 100. Taking Savella has not increased it.

Hugs, Robin

Yes, they deliberately make the volume of commercials louder than the show your watching to catch your attention. They do that with the music in the TV shows too. Not sure why on that part...

I've never taken cymbalta but I do startle easy. There are also times when background noises pester the daylights out of me. I was eating at a diner last night with my niece and a very loud group settled down two tables away from us. Everytime one particular woman laughed I just cringed. I was so tempted to go tell them to please quiet down.

Im glad I'm not the only one! I can be expecting the noise and it still makes me jump! I didn't use to be to so jumpy but now everything makes me jump. It's very hard to hide!
I will definitely ask my dr if it has to do with my Cymbalta. If its the Cymbalta I guess I just have to get used to it because the Cymbalta works so well for my depression ( does nothing for my arthritis or fibro) and its taken a lot of trial an error to find the right medicine. I can be jumpy if my depression isn't dragging me down.

I know what you mean. Even when I see it coming. And my reaction is so extreme that it can startle everyone else in the house too. It is like the nerves were just ready and waiting, all amped up. Flight or fight. I take a low dose lorazepam around lunch and i still startle when I know what is coming, I just dont jump as high or scream as loud for so long.

I think of it as my body just trying to keep life exciting. Keeping my fibro fog mind on its toes.

I definitely think there is something deeper to the "jumpy" thing and a tendency toward being very easily startled. My wife is EXTREMELY susceptible to this. She is easily startled from sleep, and easily startled by things going on around her. I can walk into a room she is in, and she often just about jumps out of her skin.

I also wonder about how this can be related to overall anxiety which has been shown as a common issue with fibro.

Hi Everyone,

I noticed the link to the article I posted above doesn't work so I copied and pasted the article in this post:

Fireworks & the Startle Factor With Fibromyalgia & Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Those 4th of July fireworks are great and all, but the BOOM they make isn't fun when you're easily startled, especially when being startled can cause myriad nasty symptoms.

That's the case with fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. It's not that we're "emotionally sensitive" - it's a physical response.

We have dysfunction in the stress-response system, which is made up 2 areas of the brain (the hypothalamus and pituitary) and glands that sit on top of your kidneys (the adrenals.) It's called the HPA axis, and it controls how your body deals with stress on the physiological level. The dysfunction means that we don't handle it well at all. In fact, those little bursts of adrenaline from being startled can lead to pain shooting through your body, dizziness, headache, nausea, disorientation, panic, and, soon thereafter, crushing fatigue.

On top of that, our central nervous systems are believed to be hypersensitive to stimuli (called central sensitization), meaning it's easier for us to be startled.

So that beautiful fireworks display can be an ordeal for us that leaves us feeling horrible for days afterward. It doesn't help that you often have to deal with crowds and horrendous traffic to go watch them.

Private fireworks are an even bigger problem for me than the big displays. When the neighbor's kids shoot off fire crackers at random times for the 2 weeks around the 4th, it's like I'm being assaulted in my own home.

I find that increasing certain calming supplements (theanine) and adding others in (DHEA, inositol) helps me through this time of year, as do deep-breathing exercises. I'm also more likely to keep my windows closed in the evening, and use the air conditioning more, to help deaden the sound. Some nights, I'll move to the opposite end of the house as well.

As for the big shows, a couple of times we've gone up on a mountain, away from the crowds, to watch them at a distance. It's a much better experience for me.

Does the BOOM of fireworks bother you? Have you found anything that helps? Leave your comments below!

Well I have never taken cymbalta! AND THAT IS TOTALLY ME LATELY!!! So excited it isn't just me. The kids are having a field day making me jump lol. But if I am washing the dishes and the kids talk to me and I wasnt expecting them to I jump, haha so jumping up from behind the couch has become a household favorite ! LOL and I jump everytime!

The bathroom fan I can't stand it, if the hubby has it on and is talking to me I have to turn it off.. It is nuts LOL

When Hubby is on nights and I am asleep and he is staying awake to work the folowing night, I swear he is ttearing the house down and jump out of my sleep and he will have used the microwave and he isn't a door slammer either... Wheeeew I feel so much better that others do too