Irukandji syndrome is in the news again. In addition to the jellyfish sting causing severe pain, nausea and breathing difficulties, the research states there is a feeling of impending doom after you’re stung. I’m sharing this current news from Australia and a recent study because I’m curious about the mechanisms and short- and long-term impacts on serotonin and other neurotransmitters, likely affecting anxiety, depression, pain and insomnia. And I’d like to help create awareness since there is not 100% consensus on what to do right away after a sting and less awareness in the medical community than I feel comfortable with.
From the ABC article published this week in Australia: “Another child has been flown to Hervey Bay Hospital with a suspected Irukandji sting after swimming in a creek off Wathumba Road on K’gari (Fraser Island) in Queensland, Australia on Wednesday afternoon.
The key points of the article:
- “Three young girls and a boy have been flown to hospital with suspected Irukandji stings in the past two days
- The jellyfish stings can cause severe pain, nausea and breathing difficulties
- A Toxicologist is calling for more research into their movements and physiology”
The yahoo news article expanded on the symptoms: “They have this severe body pain, often low back pain, nausea, vomiting, and this feeling of impending doom that sort of lays over the top of this whole thing.”
I found the latter interesting as impending doom is a classic sign of low serotonin. So I went digging into the research. I was enlightened and surprised by what I found.
Raising awareness on this worldwide increasing threat
This 2022 paper, Raising Awareness on the Clinical and Forensic Aspects of Jellyfish Stings: A Worldwide Increasing Threat is eye-opening and concerning and also mentions the impending doom symptom.
Irukandji syndrome is a severe illness produced by the envenomation i.e. injection of venom, of some species of small jellyfish from the Cubozoa class, known as box jellyfish.
It consists of a clinical picture dominated by systemic symptoms similar to a catecholamine surge, including hypertension, tachycardia, intense pain, and muscle cramping, eventually leading to pulmonary edema, shock and cerebral hemorrhage.
Also listed are symptoms of anxiety, restlessness, headache, localized sweating and impending doom. A feeling of impending doom is a classic symptom of low serotonin.
With regards to Irukandji syndrome it’s becoming a worldwide problem: “The first cases described happened in the northern Australian territories. However, similar disorders have been observed all over the tropical waters, including Thailand, the Caribbean, Florida, and Hawaii.”
The good news is that the authors state “Irukandji syndrome is typically not deadly, especially if supportive care is given early” and “not all encounters with species capable of producing Irukandji syndrome result in this clinical state.” They also share that typically the severe pain only lasts a few hours but do mention one case where “pain recurred up to a year later.” I discuss possible longer term effects below.
As you read the paper, be aware there are many types of jellyfish with many different mechanisms. Cubozoa includes the deadliest jellyfish species and includes Carukia barnesi and Chironex fleckeri. (commonly known as the Australian box jelly). It’s the Carukia barnesi that causes Irukandji syndrome.
The images in the above paper are graphic so be warned.
There is not 100% consensus on what to do right away
What is also really concerning is that there is not 100% consensus on what to do right away. This 2017 paper, Cubozoan Sting-Site Seawater Rinse, Scraping, and Ice Can Increase Venom Load: Upending Current First Aid Recommendations, published by Hawaiian researchers, found the “best outcomes occurred with the use of venom-inhibiting technologies (Sting No More® products)” and they state not to use a sea water rinse. They also found vinegar and heat treatment were less effective with certain types of jellyfish.
And yet the tentative recommendation from the above 2022 paper is to use vinegar, heat, sea water, and careful removal of remaining tentacles with tweezers quickly because only “about 1% of nematocysts (stinging cells) discharge upon initial contact.” They do suggest using Sting No More® before removing tentacles in order to deactivate the nematocysts.
I’m not sharing any of the above as conclusive in all situations but more to illustrate what both papers state: further research is needed in different places of the world, as different jellyfish species seem to react differently to the treatments.
There is also less awareness in the medical community than I feel comfortable with hence my desire to share this so you are more aware if you or a family member is stung by a jellyfish.
Are there possible long-term impacts on anxiety, depression, pain and insomnia? (and the potential role of amino acids)
Just like we have long-term impacts on anxiety, depression, pain and insomnia with Lyme disease and other infections like Bartonella – due to effects on serotonin, GABA and other neurotransmitters – do we need to consider these long term impacts after a jellyfish sting too?
I have to wonder if there are also longer term impacts given the trauma of the situation and the many medications that are needed to save your life: nitroglycerin, opioids, benzodiazepines and others.
If mood, anxiety, pain and sleep issues persist after the acute recovery phase (which can take up to 3 months and more) and there are other signs of low serotonin, GABA, dopamine and endorphins, it’s important to consider the use of targeted amino acids. I recommend tryptophan or 5-HTP for low serotonin symptoms (worry type of anxiety, insomnia and low mood), GABA for low GABA symptoms (physical anxiety and tension), tyrosine for low dopamine symptoms (depressed with low energy and poor focus) and DPA for low endorphin symptoms (pain and weepiness).
It would be wonderful to see research in this area.
Is there a possible role for GABA right after the sting too?
Given there is “hypertension, tachycardia, intense pain, and muscle cramping”, would the amino acid GABA help?
With Irukandji syndrome, “there have been reports of blood pressures as high as 300/180 mmHg” (normal is 120/80 mmHg). In one study, 80mg GABA was found to reduce mild hypertension and it’s possible that a higher dose of GABA may help right after the sting. It may also help to alleviate pain and muscle tension/muscle cramping too.
It would be wonderful to see research on GABA use right after the sting too.
Resources if you are new to using amino acids as supplements
If you are new to using GABA or any of the other amino acids as supplements, here is the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution (you can see all the symptoms of neurotransmitter imbalances, including low GABA and low serotonin).
If you suspect low levels of any of the neurotransmitters and do not yet have my book, The Antianxiety Food Solution – How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood, and End Cravings, I highly recommend getting it and reading it before jumping in and using amino acids on your own so you are knowledgeable. And be sure to share it with the practitioner/health team you or your loved one is working with.
There is an entire chapter on the amino acids and they are discussed throughout the book in the sections on gut health, gluten, blood sugar control, sugar cravings, self-medicating with alcohol and more.
The book doesn’t include product names (per the publisher’s request) so this blog, The Antianxiety Food Solution Amino Acid and Pyroluria Supplements, lists the amino acids that I use with my individual clients and those in my group programs. You can find them all in my online store.
If, after reading this blog and my book, you don’t feel comfortable figuring things out on your own (i.e. doing the symptoms questionnaire and respective amino acids trials), a good place to get help is the GABA QuickStart Program (if you have low GABA symptoms). This is a paid online/virtual group program where you get my guidance and community support.
If you are a practitioner, join us in The Balancing Neurotransmitters: the Fundamentals program. This is also a paid online/virtual program with an opportunity to interact with me and other practitioners who are also using the amino acids.
I do hope these 4 young Australian children are doing well after having been stung.
Have you or a family member been stung by a jellyfish? Where did it happen and what type of jellyfish? What symptoms did you experience? What was the treatment and what was recovery like?
Have you or your family member had any long-term lingering symptoms of anxiety, depression, pain and insomnia? Have the amino acids or other solutions helped?
If you’re a practitioner have you seen long-term lingering symptoms of anxiety, depression, pain and insomnia in your clients/patients who have had a jellyfish sting?
Feel free to post your questions and feedback in the comments below.
Over the past three years My anxiety and depression has quadrupled – 5 HTP helps to reduce anxiety. gABA seems to have a drugged affect on me that doesn’t feel good. My symptoms are generally
Hyper- angry with a close loved one- my head feels like it wants to explode- this also happens when talking about world changes the past few years.
The depression is the worst- just wanting to cocoon in bed and very weepy-
Im a 63 yo woman.
Maria
When 5-HTP helps we increase to see if higher doses help further. Too much GABA can cause a drugged effect and I have clients start with 125mg to prevent this.
When I hear hyper-angry, head wants to explode I think low blood sugar and glutamine; when I hear wanting to cocoon in bed I think low dopamine and tyrosine; when I hear weepy I think low endorphins and DPA – and explore all these possible root causes with clients.
We also look into medication side-effects and sex hormone changes as these symptoms are common in menopause.
Diet is also key to address – real foods, no gluten/caffeine/sugar, quality animal protein, organic veggies/fruit, healthy fats etc. My book “The Antianxiety Food Solution” is a great place for this foundational change. I also cover food sensitivities, gut health and more. Read about it here https://www.everywomanover29.com/blog/the-antianxiety-food-solution-by-trudy-scott/
You don’t mention a jelly fish sting so I’m not sure if things got worse after that. If this is the case please do share more.
I beg of you to read the medical story of a friend, also in Australia. I am wondering if she is suffering with the syndrome you have written about. She has all of her information / symtoms made public on Facebook asking for help and definitely says she’s dying, has said this for a long time, but the hospitals keep sending her home, despite severe pain and difficulty breathing, claiming there is nothing wrong with her (that they see). She has been struggling for a long time and has been begging for help, to no avail. Ryan’s Rule etc no one understands her symtoms. Under Mia BD Vida, I have copied and pasted a link under the website url area in the area provided below this with my name and email.
Link: https://www.facebook.com/bella.dvita.52?mibextid=LQQJ4d
Thank you 🙂
T
I am sorry to hear about your friend (I posted the link you provided in the actual comment). Do you know if she was stung by a jellyfish before all this started?
I see she mentions thiamine deficiency and SSRI side-effects – both can also cause some of the symptoms she describes. Even though there is supposedly no Lyme disease in Australia, I’d also recommend working with someone to rule out Lyme-like or another infection. Hopefully she has a ND or herbalist on her health team.
And the amino acids I mention may offer some relief from pain and help with sleep until she finds a solution.
My 19 year old Grandson is Autistic an non verbal. He has always taken medication to help him sleep since age 5. Around the 5th of Dec 2022 he stop sleeping at all the medication no longer put him to sleep, he literally is up all night for days and no sleep throughout the the day. I need help any suggestions.
Charolet
I’m sorry to hear about your grandson. When something suddenly stops working we look for changes in diet (like accidental gluten exposure), an infection, new stresses (which can raise cortisol and affect sleep and anxiety), something in the environment (like mold or even phenols from Christmas trees (more on that here – Christmas tree phenols as a trigger for anger, meltdowns, anxiety, hyperactivity, insomnia, aggression, self-injury and autistic symptoms? https://www.everywomanover29.com/blog/christmas-tree-phenols-as-a-trigger-for-anger-meltdowns-anxiety-hyperactivity-insomnia-aggression-self-injury-and-autistic-symptoms/)
You don’t mention the medication but many meds prescribed for sleep (like SSRIs, benzos, Z-drugs like Ambien) can lead to tolerance so more and more is needed for the same effects.
Dear Trudy,
I was in the Whitsundays a few weeks ago and had a long chat to a nurse who crews on the yachts around there. She does the medi-vacs and gets sting victims to the nearest hospitals, usually by meeting an ambulance at Airlie Beach. She says the stings stop being excruciating after about 24 hours and there is no “anti-sting” or treatment besides CALMING the patient “these nerve attacks will pass”
Her comments were thus: For Irukandji or Box jellyfish stings, nothing helps except painkillers. Her ONLY JOB as she nurses patients on the speedboat to the ambulance is to calm down their spiking cortisol by calming the fear that they think they are dying. She says it’s very rarely the sting/poison that kills. It’s the fear of dying, that brings on heart attacks and/or brain aneurysms – which can kill.
Being interested in these things, after she told me that, I said it reminded me of childbirth! I was really fortunate to attend birthing classes taught by a lady who described labor as: “The thing a woman’s body was designed to do, assisted by its own brilliant hormones, and a midwife, plus medical care if required if something goes wrong.” So when I delivered my 10lb boy, I had that trust in my body, a bit of happy gas, and many stitches afterwards…. Faith not fear.
Meri
Thanks for sharing this feedback from a nurse who is involved in these medi-vacs. I do hope her and others involved in these rescues read the research paper I share and the start to understand the many mechanisms. It really is much more than simply “calming the patient” and “fear of dying.” There is a huge catecholamine surge. It’s this lack of awareness and knowledge by some in the medical community that I really don’t feel comfortable with.
Also, per the blog, it would be wonderful if the amino acid GABA was studied and deemed to be safe to use during the initial stages/medi-vac, as an additional way for her and others to help calm the person.
Thanks for sharing this Trudy. It is difficult to find good research related to jelly stings since each species varies. I was happy to see your finds and useful information.
Having been stung by a number of gelatinous sea jellies I researched local stingers here on the central coast of California but not a lot is known about some of the deep sea pelagic drifters.
Lifeguards confirm that the local medical community is sorely lacking in knowledge about dealing with marine species and I suspect that it is a global issue that is likely to increase as ocean temperatures and acidification rise and create better conditions for these creatures.
Appreciate the shares on the other impacts to the body. Having had toxic mold in my body for a long time (and now navigating through the aftermath) I understand the challenges of having medical professionals that are not aware, and some unwilling to research, of the impact of toxins and envenomation on the body systems.
Glad I found you through one of the summits I attended and thanks for sharing this.
Diana
Thanks for the kind words. What kind of effects did you experience with your stings? Did you have any cortisol or serotonin or GABA impacts? and what helped?
And yes I agree … the difference in species, the likelihood of this becoming a global issue, many in local medical communities lacking in knowledge and the parallels with mold toxicity (and other chronic issue like MCAS, Lyme etc).
I definitely believe food and nutrients are the best medicines.
Jokes have been made, but in some cultures it is an accepted treatment to use urine on the venom wound site. Preferably the victim’s own as the body starts making antibodies immediately. Someone that was nearby may assist also in this way because the body will shed chemical compounds/?pheromones that other bodies will pick up. Urine itself is sterile so that alone could decrease infection of the area, generally.
I have heard there is research on the relationship at the cell level of some venoms using nicotine receptors to attach to and maintain the infection. Using nicotine gum or patches ousts the venom bits which the body can then work to discard and relieve symptoms.
Daphne
Thanks for posting about this as urine comes up often. According to Dr Lisa Gershwin, a world-renowned expert on the jellyfish and director of the Australian Stinger Advisory Services at the CSIRO, urine is not advised. She explains more here https://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2014/08/28/4076213.htm.
This research supports this: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26761033/. The authors also say: “the most striking inhibition of both tentacle firing and subsequent venom-induced hemolysis was observed using newly-developed proprietary formulations (Sting No More™) containing copper gluconate, magnesium sulfate, and urea.” (they are Hawaiian researchers)
Please share a link to the research about nicotine receptors and jelly fish stings.
This is very foreign to me, does this person think anxiety is caused by low serotonin? You can easily remove any anxiety just by blocking serotonin so that’s obviously not the case.
Very strange statements overall
” A feeling of impending doom is a classic symptom of low serotonin”. Obviously the stung party is going to experience a strong stress response, serotonin will increase drastically. Clearly this is not only wrong by cause of faulty aetiology, but simply for the fact that there will not be low serotonin in this case. The feeling of impending doom is clearly prolactin and cortisol heightened by C02 deficiency caused by hyperventilation.
And the whole “X is a symptom of Y hormone” is clearly faulty logic.
Paymond
Yes, low serotonin is one of the many causes of anxiety