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Night sweats.
- Thread starter Fuzzyhead
- Start date
Hanna
Senior Member
- Messages
- 717
- Location
- Jerusalem, Israel
Yes, I do. Comes and go. This night I had to change pijama from socks to top, though temperature in bedroom was rather cool
For me, it is not linked to sex hormones - as I have been experimenting this for y-e-a-r-s (too young, normal menses).
There are differencial diagnostics that are to be ruled out (palu, etc).
One possibility is babesiosis (especially if Lyme has been diagnosed). My doc put me on Riamet for it (trial and error) at the beginning of July, and I had been totally free from this symptom untill december. Since then, I had 4 or 5 spells like this.
I don't know what is going on with you, but are your night sweats accompanied by other symptoms that come specially at the same time? (coughs for example ?)
For me, it is not linked to sex hormones - as I have been experimenting this for y-e-a-r-s (too young, normal menses).
There are differencial diagnostics that are to be ruled out (palu, etc).
One possibility is babesiosis (especially if Lyme has been diagnosed). My doc put me on Riamet for it (trial and error) at the beginning of July, and I had been totally free from this symptom untill december. Since then, I had 4 or 5 spells like this.
I don't know what is going on with you, but are your night sweats accompanied by other symptoms that come specially at the same time? (coughs for example ?)
charles shepherd
Senior Member
- Messages
- 2,239
Q and A on night sweats from Spring 2014 issue of ME Essential magazine
QUESTION: NIGHT SWEATS
Do people with ME/CFS have night sweats? This is a new symptom that is causing myself and my partner considerable distress.
ANSWER
Yes, night sweats, sometimes quite profuse, do sometimes occur in ME/CFS and this is a symptom that was highlighted by the late Dr Melvin Ramsay when he produced his original description of the illness. Here is Dr Ramsay’s description of one particular patient who
….used to waken in the night to find himself lying in a pool of water. His wife is a nurse and reports that his temperature in these episodes is 94 or 95 degrees F. His condition remains unchanged and the sweating episodes are still occurring.
However, there are other reasons why people have might have night sweats. The list includes infections such as TB and HIV, connective tissue disorders, tumours, going through the menopause and some prescribed drugs.
Among the 'red flag' signs/symptoms that indicate the possibility of a more serious cause are persistent cough, change in bowel habit or rectal bleeding, joint pains/stiffness, weight loss, recent history of foreign travel, risk factors for HIV and enlarged lymph nodes/glands or other unusual lumps.
So this is something that you must discuss with your GP - who can take a proper history, examine you to make sure there aren't any signs that indicate another explanation (enlarged lymph glands for instance) and arrange some blood tests (to check for indicators of infection or inflammation). At the same time it's worth keeping a diary of what happens each night with a record of your temperature (using a thermometer) at the time the sweating episodes occur. Referral for hospital-based investigations may also be necessary.
When it comes to treatment I'm afraid there isn't a great deal that can be done if the cause is ME/CFS - apart from simple self-help solutions like keeping cool at night, wearing breathable natural fibres and using a cold wet flannel.
QUESTION: NIGHT SWEATS
Do people with ME/CFS have night sweats? This is a new symptom that is causing myself and my partner considerable distress.
ANSWER
Yes, night sweats, sometimes quite profuse, do sometimes occur in ME/CFS and this is a symptom that was highlighted by the late Dr Melvin Ramsay when he produced his original description of the illness. Here is Dr Ramsay’s description of one particular patient who
….used to waken in the night to find himself lying in a pool of water. His wife is a nurse and reports that his temperature in these episodes is 94 or 95 degrees F. His condition remains unchanged and the sweating episodes are still occurring.
However, there are other reasons why people have might have night sweats. The list includes infections such as TB and HIV, connective tissue disorders, tumours, going through the menopause and some prescribed drugs.
Among the 'red flag' signs/symptoms that indicate the possibility of a more serious cause are persistent cough, change in bowel habit or rectal bleeding, joint pains/stiffness, weight loss, recent history of foreign travel, risk factors for HIV and enlarged lymph nodes/glands or other unusual lumps.
So this is something that you must discuss with your GP - who can take a proper history, examine you to make sure there aren't any signs that indicate another explanation (enlarged lymph glands for instance) and arrange some blood tests (to check for indicators of infection or inflammation). At the same time it's worth keeping a diary of what happens each night with a record of your temperature (using a thermometer) at the time the sweating episodes occur. Referral for hospital-based investigations may also be necessary.
When it comes to treatment I'm afraid there isn't a great deal that can be done if the cause is ME/CFS - apart from simple self-help solutions like keeping cool at night, wearing breathable natural fibres and using a cold wet flannel.
jimells
Senior Member
- Messages
- 2,009
- Location
- northern Maine
I've had this problem for years. They seem to be another part of PEM for me, that is, worse episodes of PEM correlate with worse night sweats. Like @charles shepherd mentioned, my under-tongue temp is always low. I just assume it's part of my numerous autonomic problems.
Like almost all of my symptoms, no doctor has ever investigated this. I don't imagine they ever will...
Like almost all of my symptoms, no doctor has ever investigated this. I don't imagine they ever will...
- Messages
- 16
- Location
- West Yorkshire, UK
Yes, I have night sweats at the moment. They are a real pain. I am relapsed last October and have had them most nights since then. I sympathise.
I bought a "Chillow" to try and keep me a bit cooler in the night. It is a water-filled pillow that you can slip inside a normal pillow. It has helped a little.
I think in my case they are either due to neurological trauma because of the disease or because of an inflammatory response. Why that should be worse at night I don't know?
However, if it is damage to the autonomic nervous system then this may explain the night sweats.
I bought a "Chillow" to try and keep me a bit cooler in the night. It is a water-filled pillow that you can slip inside a normal pillow. It has helped a little.
I think in my case they are either due to neurological trauma because of the disease or because of an inflammatory response. Why that should be worse at night I don't know?
However, if it is damage to the autonomic nervous system then this may explain the night sweats.
andre79
Senior Member
- Messages
- 122
Are you taking antidepressants or any other medication that could cause your night sweats?
That was my first symptom, one night I woke up drenched in sweat and it lasted for about two months, really bad, I would had to change my pijamas twice during the night. Then it went away by itself, because I stopped sweating, my skin and eyes went dry (sjogrens maybe?)
Then I started taking cymbalta and the night sweats returned (for two years that I was on medication). They were not the same like during onset, much more moderate, but still I would wake up with my chest and back wet.
Curious fact: i haven't had night sweats since i quit cymbalta two months ago and took a course of amoxicilyn for a bad cough i had. The amoxicilyn relieved many of my symptoms, including that. Makes me wonder about a bacterial infection, really.
That was my first symptom, one night I woke up drenched in sweat and it lasted for about two months, really bad, I would had to change my pijamas twice during the night. Then it went away by itself, because I stopped sweating, my skin and eyes went dry (sjogrens maybe?)
Then I started taking cymbalta and the night sweats returned (for two years that I was on medication). They were not the same like during onset, much more moderate, but still I would wake up with my chest and back wet.
Curious fact: i haven't had night sweats since i quit cymbalta two months ago and took a course of amoxicilyn for a bad cough i had. The amoxicilyn relieved many of my symptoms, including that. Makes me wonder about a bacterial infection, really.
andre79
Senior Member
- Messages
- 122
I think one side effect of Prozac is night sweats, you shouldn't stop taking it if you need it, though.
ahimsa
ahimsa_pdx on twitter
- Messages
- 1,921
I used to have night sweats quite a lot those first few (4-5?) years that I was sick. I still get them, rarely, but not very often.
For me, night sweats had nothing to do with menopause. I first got sick in 1990 at age 29. I just started peri-menopause last year at age 53. And I also was not on any medications at all back in the early 1990s.
My night sweats felt like a fever breaking. I would wake up and have to change my t-shirt and the pillow case (could not change the top sheet since that would require waking my husband to change the bed! I just shifted the sheet to one side).
When these night sweats happen I completely sweat through my t-shirt and pillow case. The sweat is mostly around my neck and chest, not underarms.
Like others have posted, overexertion seemed to be one contributing factor for night sweats. But they are also a bit random and hard to predict.
As @jimells posted above, I think the night sweats are related to the autonomic dysfunction. And, yes, mine were also pretty much ignored (written into my chart, I guess, but that's it).
For me, night sweats had nothing to do with menopause. I first got sick in 1990 at age 29. I just started peri-menopause last year at age 53. And I also was not on any medications at all back in the early 1990s.
My night sweats felt like a fever breaking. I would wake up and have to change my t-shirt and the pillow case (could not change the top sheet since that would require waking my husband to change the bed! I just shifted the sheet to one side).
When these night sweats happen I completely sweat through my t-shirt and pillow case. The sweat is mostly around my neck and chest, not underarms.
Like others have posted, overexertion seemed to be one contributing factor for night sweats. But they are also a bit random and hard to predict.
As @jimells posted above, I think the night sweats are related to the autonomic dysfunction. And, yes, mine were also pretty much ignored (written into my chart, I guess, but that's it).
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Agree with @ahimsa about the ME night sweat feeling like a fever breaking. That is exactly how it feels. I feel slightly better after them too.
Just regarding menopause, I have experienced hot flushes in the last 2 years and they are quite different to the ME night sweat. There is a whole lot more water to the night sweat in ME and for me it was concentrated on the chest. The hot flush of menopause has a distinctive quick flashing burn to it and it was more of a dry sweat for me with just a touch of moisture. Quite different.
Just regarding menopause, I have experienced hot flushes in the last 2 years and they are quite different to the ME night sweat. There is a whole lot more water to the night sweat in ME and for me it was concentrated on the chest. The hot flush of menopause has a distinctive quick flashing burn to it and it was more of a dry sweat for me with just a touch of moisture. Quite different.
ahimsa
ahimsa_pdx on twitter
- Messages
- 1,921
Yes, I agree. Now that I am finally experiencing hot flashes (or hot flushes, not sure of the name) I can say that they feel completely different from night sweats.
jimells
Senior Member
- Messages
- 2,009
- Location
- northern Maine
In the wonderful world of pharma, this seems to be quite common, that people can take a medication with no apparent adverse effects for years, then they suddenly develop a reaction to it. The worst part is that so many doctors will then just treat the new symptom instead of suspecting a new drug reaction. Whenever I develop a new symptom, I immediately start reviewing my medications.