When Adrenaline Hits

🧠 When Adrenaline Hits: What Happens to Your Body in an Emergency?

It’s a quiet afternoon — until someone suddenly collapses at your workplace. Or you witness a crash while driving to work. Your heart races. Time feels like it slows. You’re hit by a wave of energy, fear, and focus.

That’s adrenaline — and it’s powerful.

⚡ What Is Adrenaline?

Adrenaline, also known as epinephrine, is a hormone your body releases in response to danger, stress, or a life-threatening situation. It’s part of the "fight, flight, or freeze" response — your body’s automatic emergency mode.

In the right moment, it can give you the speed to act. But if you're not prepared, it can also cause panic, tunnel vision, or total overwhelm.

🩺 How Adrenaline Affects You in an Emergency

Here’s what you might experience when adrenaline kicks in:

• 🫀 Heart pounding — Blood pressure spikes to push oxygen to your brain and muscles.

• 💨 Fast, shallow breathing — You may feel short of breath or dizzy.

• 👁️ Tunnel vision — You focus on one thing and miss what's around you.

• 💪 Temporary strength — You may lift or move things you normally couldn’t.

• 🤯 Reduced pain sensitivity — You might not feel an injury until later.

• 🧍‍♂️ Frozen reaction — Some people feel locked in place or go blank mentally.

• 😰 Sweating, nausea, trembling — The body diverts blood from non-essential functions.

⚡ Case Study: The Day a Rugby Team Became First Responders

|      “Our captain kept saying to the boys: We aren’t stopping.”

When Heinrich collapsed on the field during rugby training in rural Taranaki, it wasn’t a drill — it was sudden cardiac arrest. And for the men around him, adrenaline took over.

This case isn’t just about survival — it’s about how human bodies and minds respond under pressure, and how training and adrenaline work together to save a life.

🧠 The First Few Seconds: Freeze or Fight

At first, teammates thought Heinrich was joking.

Then they heard a strange noise. He wasn’t moving.

|      “At first they thought I was playing a prank… then realised something wasn’t right.”

For a brief moment, confusion and hesitation — the "freeze" response — took hold. But as the adrenaline surge kicked in, instincts sharpened. Voices rose. People moved.

🚀 Adrenaline Effect #1: Tunnel Vision & Leadership

Coach Trent recognised the emergency and acted without hesitation.

|      “Right boys — he’s having a heart attack. Time to get into CPR.”

This rapid shift from shock to focused decision-making is a hallmark of adrenaline. Under normal conditions, few would think clearly. Under stress, the brain floods with chemicals that narrow your focus to the task at hand.

💪 Adrenaline Effect #2: Strength, Speed & Physical Endurance

Two players sprinted to the clubrooms to grab the AED — only to find it locked away. Adrenaline doesn’t wait for keys.

|      “Our coach told the boys: I don’t care what you do — kick those doors down.”

And they did. Two doors. Broken open. In seconds.
Under ordinary circumstances, they may have stopped. Waited. Called someone. But adrenaline made “impossible” actions possible.

Meanwhile, others began CPR rotations, trading off to keep compressions going for over 10 minutes — physically exhausting but sustained by the body’s natural fight-or-flight response.

😰 Adrenaline Effect #3: Mental Gaps & Emotional Shock

Liam, a teammate, had done first aid “many times.” But when it counted:

|      “He put the AED pads on backwards.”

Even with training, adrenaline can override memory. That’s why practical, realistic repetition matters — so when panic hits, muscle memory steps in.

Another team member said:

|      “It was hard to put into words. But it happened out of nowhere.”

After the event, several teammates cried, felt pale, or sat in silence — emotional aftershocks of the chemical crash that follows an adrenaline high.

🫁 Adrenaline Effect #4: Overcoming Fear of Rescue Breaths

When asked who would give rescue breaths, some hesitated.

|      “Our captain said, ‘You share beers with this man — what’s a bit of saliva?’”

That statement cut through the fear. Adrenaline fuels courage, but leadership channels it into action.

⚡ Why It Worked

1. Adrenaline created urgency — people moved, decided, acted.

2. Training created clarity — those who had practiced CPR could step up.

3. Teamwork distributed the load — no one person had to carry it all.

4. Emotion made it personal — they weren’t saving a stranger. They were saving Heiny.

🧯 Why First Aid Training Matters

When adrenaline surges, your brain needs rehearsed knowledge, not guesswork.

✅ Training helps you act with purpose.
✅ It reduces panic and mental blanks.
✅ It builds confidence to override the freeze.

With scenario-based first aid training, like what we offer at RealMed First Aid, you learn to manage adrenaline — not be overwhelmed by it.

💡 Final Thought

Adrenaline is natural. Panic is human. But preparation is power.
Know what to do before the emergency hits.

📎 Source:

Heinrich’s Story – New Zealand Resuscitation Council

📍 We Come to You
RealMed First Aid delivers interactive, group first aid courses across New Zealand. Our hands-on, scenario-based training builds real confidence for real emergencies.

RealMed First Aid is not an NZQA-accredited provider. While we do not offer NZQA unit standards or assessments, our training aligns with the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and adheres to New Zealand Resuscitation Council (NZRC) guidelines.