Nausea from hammock?

I saw some older threads relating to motion sickness from sleeping in a hammock, but I don't think that's the cause in my situation.

I slept in my back yard about a month ago and got my usual 7-8hrs of sleep. Right when I stood up, I felt dizzy and off balance. It went away after a minute so I assumed I just got up too quick. It happens.

A few nights ago, I slept outside and this time I felt it again. Not really dizzy, but almost like my eyes were crossed. I went to work and had to leave after an hour since using a computer was making me nauseous. I felt like this off and on all day.

There was no motion to speak of, so I ruled out motion sickness. Has anyone else experienced this NOT due to motion sickness? What else could it be? My right ear has been hurting a little when I swallow, so maybe it's an inner ear infection, but I didn't have this last month when I got dizzy.

The coincidence has me a little concerend, but my other 20 or so hangs were fine.

It can be caused by a ear infection or a sinus infection...
Might be a warning sign of a cold creeping up on you...
Hope you feel better soon..

I doubt it has anything to do with the hammock. Better see a Doc for a checkup.

Dehydration?

Mark-
I'm a Parmedic, so I read your post just like I would a scenario that might be presented to me at the skills testing lab.
There is not enough information to give an informed opinion- or "diagnosis" but I came up with a list of questions I would ask you if you were my patient and some of the cuff ideas.

- how was your quality of sleep? was it better or worse than bed-based sleep?
- did you vary your diet, medication, or alcohol intake close to using the hammock?
- are you comfortable in the hammock or are you cramped and perhaps forced occasionally into an uncomfortable position?
- postural hypotension- ie. feeling dizzy when you stand up too fast can cause some of your symptoms. There are many causes for PH but I don't think exposure to nylon above ground level is one (just trying to make you smile).
- did you notice your pulse rate was different than normal- slower or faster- when the symptoms happened?
- Determining what your blood pressure was while your symptoms were going on would be informative.
- do you have any chiropractic issues that might contribute to positional hypotension?

Some wild guesses...
- Sleep apnea? Your description of your symptoms are close to what I experienced on occasion before I was diagnosed with sleep apnea. It may be related to many things AND the missing causative factor might be your position in the hammock and the duration of its use.
- A change in your sleep cycle. You may be sleeping more deeply or perhaps more shallowly than you are used to because of the hammock. You might not be aware of it. Lack of REM sleep or a sudden change in sleep habits can cause symptoms such as this but so can many other things.
- Something in the environment? Could you be near something that is causing an exposure to a chemical, an allergan, or perhaps carbon monoxide?

I'm just trying to help and give you a few things to think about. I agree with a previous poster that you should be careful with this and should seek out a doctor's opinion on this. It would be one thing if you were a little more tired and that was it...but this is affecting you at work and it has brought about symptoms that, by themselves, are serious enough to look into.
Don't want to scare you either. Good luck and I hope you can resolve the issue.

-Sarge

Another possibility.....

Vasovagal response - This can be brought on by a variety of factors, INCLUDING standing up quickly after having been lying down for an extended period.
(I know all about this one because I experience it a few times per year.)
Google it. You'll quickly learn a lot.
One way to avoid it is to pump your feet/calves a few times, get the pooled blood in your legs pumping before standing.

I'm not a doctor. Didn't stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night. Don't play one on TV.
(But I did play one when I was 7 years old with the little girl next door.)

You should see a real one. ;)

I'll get extreme vertigo a few times a year, and the docs usually have to medicate me up pretty good for a week or two till it passes, on my end it can be on onset of a systemic lupus spell....or a flare with the fibromyalgia. Regardless, before the vertigo starts, my symptoms will present themselves in the hammock first. That little bit of movement will cause me to feel carsick. Thank God this doesn't happen often, it is just a precursor before the other stuff goes into motion with my health, and I've learned to read it.

Get to a doctor, explain what is going on, have them check your ears, bloodwork and some other things. Always, always be safe rather than sorry.

i too think it was a vasovagal reaction to standing up quickly. it is very common.

Thanks for all the responses. I may see the doctor soon for something else (sharp pain in chest when doing situps) and will mention this as well.

Sarge - negative to all the questions you listed, except the type of sleep. In my hammock, I experience a deep sleep where I don't move an inch all night. As nice as it sounds, maybe it's not a good thing? I toss and turn a lot in the bed.

Also, allergies could be to blame. I'm usually only affected for a couple weeks in the spring, but I heard a lot of people having issues lately. Sleeping outside for 8hrs definitely wouldn't help.

Thankfully I'm feeling 100% today.

Do you hang with your head lower than you feet? If so, sinus pressure may be to blame. Glad you're feeling better and I hope this resolves without further issue. :)

You may want to share more of your whiskey before going to sleep. LOL

There was a thread on HF about Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo a few months back.

Here it is.

I was amazed at how common this is.

Gives a new meaning to "rocks in your head".