It will be important to order the three basic tests I order to know exactly the cause of that: :comprehensive blood work, saliva and hair tests.

The hearts response to position change can be highly variable and really depends on a lot of different variables including hydration status, emotional status, medications and many other factors. The normal response would be to increase rate and/or strength of contractions when going from lying to standing. Without all the variables there is no real possible answer to your question. As such, I have seen many people have a transient tachycardia when they first lay down to go to bed. The diagnosis of adrenal fatigue is a very popular but totally unproven theory that put out to public. I am not an exercise physiologist and really don't subscribe to this theory until it is proven and taught in the text books.

Is there such a thing as adrenal fatigue?

Answers from Todd B. Nippoldt, M.D.

Adrenal fatigue is a term applied to a collection of nonspecific symptoms, such as body aches, fatigue, nervousness, sleep disturbances and digestive problems. The term often shows up in popular health books and on alternative medicine websites, but it isn't an accepted medical diagnosis.

Your adrenal glands produce a variety of hormones that are essential to life. The medical term adrenal insufficiency (Addison's disease) refers to inadequate production of one or more of these hormones as a result of an underlying disease.

Signs and symptoms of adrenal insufficiency may include:

•Fatigue

•Body aches

•Unexplained weight loss

•Low blood pressure

•Lightheadedness

•Loss of body hair

•Skin discoloration (hyperpigmentation)

Adrenal insufficiency can be diagnosed by blood tests and special stimulation tests that show inadequate levels of adrenal hormones.

Proponents of the adrenal fatigue diagnosis claim this is a mild form of adrenal insufficiency caused by chronic stress. The unproven theory behind adrenal fatigue is that your adrenal glands are unable to keep pace with the demands of perpetual fight-or-flight arousal. As a result, they can't produce quite enough of the hormones you need to feel good. Existing blood tests, according to this theory, aren't sensitive enough to detect such a small decline in adrenal function — but your body is.

It's frustrating to have persistent symptoms your doctor can't readily explain. But accepting a medically unrecognized diagnosis from an unqualified practitioner could be worse. Unproven remedies for so-called adrenal fatigue may leave you feeling sicker, while the real cause — such as depression or fibromyalgia — continues to take its toll.

Is there such a thing as adrenal fatigue?

Answers from Todd B. Nippoldt, M.D.

Adrenal fatigue is a term applied to a collection of nonspecific symptoms, such as body aches, fatigue, nervousness, sleep disturbances and digestive problems. The term often shows up in popular health books and on alternative medicine websites, but it isn't an accepted medical diagnosis.

Your adrenal glands produce a variety of hormones that are essential to life. The medical term adrenal insufficiency (Addison's disease) refers to inadequate production of one or more of these hormones as a result of an underlying disease.

Signs and symptoms of adrenal insufficiency may include:

•Fatigue

•Body aches

•Unexplained weight loss

•Low blood pressure

•Lightheadedness

•Loss of body hair

•Skin discoloration (hyperpigmentation)

Adrenal insufficiency can be diagnosed by blood tests and special stimulation tests that show inadequate levels of adrenal hormones.

Proponents of the adrenal fatigue diagnosis claim this is a mild form of adrenal insufficiency caused by chronic stress. The unproven theory behind adrenal fatigue is that your adrenal glands are unable to keep pace with the demands of perpetual fight-or-flight arousal. As a result, they can't produce quite enough of the hormones you need to feel good. Existing blood tests, according to this theory, aren't sensitive enough to detect such a small decline in adrenal function — but your body is.

It's frustrating to have persistent symptoms your doctor can't readily explain. But accepting a medically unrecognized diagnosis from an unqualified practitioner could be worse. Unproven remedies for so-called adrenal fatigue may leave you feeling sicker, while the real cause — such as depression or fibromyalgia — continues to take its toll.

There is a summary from an expert at Mayo Clinic about adrenal fatigue and I would suggest referencing them for more information.

Thanks

Bill Greening MD

An ANSAR test would compare your autonomic sympathetic (fight or flight/adrenalin) nerve output in the lying and standing positions.

It may also be that your attention to the symptom when lying down may enhance your sympathetic response.

Athletes tend to have big powerful hearts that pump a lot of blood with each stroke.

When lying your heart may pump less per beat because it does not perceive as much of a work load

and so beats faster with less force to accommodate your body needs. Dr Wang's answer also makes sense.

Nothing is always one thing. This is one thing all students in biomedical students learn in class and witness in clinic. Just as an MD might try this drug and if it fails try the next drug, an acupuncturist will try this set of points and if it fails try that. And of course, much more background information is needed from you before either forms of treatment are attempted.

Unable to say "always" to any condition. It would be prudent to find out the results of any recent blood analysis and an postural blood pressure test. An EKG would be nice too - especially if your condition has involved any cardiac or vascular events. Rule those out first. If you were my patient, I would do the postural BP test myself, then perform a Hair Tissue Analysis test to find out what your cells have been up to for the last 3 months. Non-invasive, we just take a snippit of hair from the back of your head and send it off to Analytical Research Labs in Arizona. Two weeks later the provide a customized report of all the mineral imbalances, toxic metals, and accompanied supplement recommendations needed to clear up things such as conditions of unknown origin.

First of all true resting heart rate is measured when you first wake up in the morning before you stand up. You may want to compare true resting heart rate with your standing heart rate and see if it is still higher. FYI normally both standing heart and blood pressure will be higher than at rest.

As to adrenalin fatigue, there is no evidence to support this theory. Hope this is useful information.

FYI http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/features/adrenal-fatigue-is-it-real

Usually resting HR is best taken as soon as you wake up in the morning before standing up.

Then see if it is still lower

It could be that. Without knowing your medical history it would be hard to answer. Is this common for you? Is this the first and only time it has happened? Are you taking drinks or supplements with a lot of caffeine? How much activity are you doing and what type of activity? Generally when HR is below 60 and BP is below 90 systolic then that is a big issue. Your vitals can be too low and that signals a problem. You also might be under hydrated. This is often overlooked as a reason because it seems too simple but anything that throws your body out of equilibrium can affect your vitals either one way or the other. Your electrolyte balance could also be out of whack. Since this is not an easily identified problem I would certainly pay a visit to your doctor to find out for sure.

Hi Anonymous,

First off, nothing is 'always'. I would definitely suspect a circulatory issue, often associated with endurance athletes (I know, I know, low BP and low HR seem to please many practitioners, but often they can be too low). Adrenal fatigue can present in many ways for many reasons. Your symptom is certainly worth following up on. Please let me know if I can help in any way.

Allyson Lange, L.Ac.