By Alexis Nicoson, Student Pharmacist and Karen L. Kier, Pharmacist
On behalf of the ONU Healthwise Team
An adrenaline rush is a colloquial expression about the feeling of exhilaration and heightened energy that is brought on by an exciting or stressful situation resulting in the release of the hormone epinephrine. Adrenaline is another term for epinephrine and is often referred to as our fight or flight response.
When epinephrine is released in the body, it is preparing us for immediate action by increasing our heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate and blood sugar. It helps divert blood to our muscles and brain. Medically, we use epinephrine to stimulate the heart during CPR or reverse an allergic (anaphylaxis) reaction in the body.
