Question: What causes a headrush?
Answer: Orthostatic Hypotension. When changing positions, your body needs to regulate cardiac output and peripheral vascular resistance in order to maintain adequate blood pressure. Specifically, the body must maintain constant blood flow to the brain. When in a sitting position (or when lounging like the ancient Greeks)the hydrostatic pressure (pressure caused by the physical effect of gravity on your blood) is much less than when you are standing (pressure is directly related to column height). The heart will therefore beat a little faster/harder and your blood vessels will constrict a little more when you are in a standing position compared to sitting. Sometimes a person will change positions faster than the body is able to adapt to the change in hydrostatic pressure, resulting in a brief period of inadequate blood flow to the brain. This causes the dizziness experienced. The heart will usually the beat a bit harder/faster, causing the blood flow to be restored. If this does not occur, the drop in blood pressure will lead to syncope(fainting).
As for the first question, I would think its because he touches himself at night (see comments to this entry ). But I don't know, I'm not a doctor...
I know someone out there has another question.
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1 comment:
Wow. I like knowing that there's a name for it. Is it more prevalent in those of us who are taller? Here's where I fess up that I have, on more than one occasion, fainted from a particularly strong head-rush.
I read somewhere that tall people are more like to have bad knees and backs because they're over-nourished. That is, our bodies are over-engineered for height, and the fact that we eat well enough to grow so tall means that our size over-reaches our joints. Any thoughts?
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