How ‘bout this one? As old idioms go out of style, new ones, for better or for worse, appear. One is Adrenaline Rush. I don’t know the exact year it appeared but I would wager less than 30 years ago. Someone who reads this site might be able to pin down the actual year and in that case I could lose my bet.

     Examples:

   Some people who ride roller coasters say that they enjoy it because it gives them an ADRENALINE RUSH.

   "I enjoy this job. It gives me an ADRENALINE RUSH. I want to stay with it." - From a Texas Repo-man on Discovery Channel.

    Best Wishes Everyone
    Brian Costello
    Seattle, Wa.

If you want to search the Internet for the phrase, you should spell the first part ADRENALINE. Funny though, in the States it is normally called epinephrine…

In Swedish, we say adrenalinkick. That should be transparent to you-all. I have found no first-time date, but "kick" for an exciting experience, not necessarily drug induced, is reported from 1959.

Anders

Dear Anders,

  Thank you for pointing out the spelling error. Since I’m using a library computer I’m racing against the clock and these things are bound to happen. Thanks again.

  Sincerely,
  Brian Costello
  Seattle, Wa.

i’m not sure of the exact date, but i am quite certain that adrenaline’s/epinephrine’s physiologic effects were known well before 1974.  the name adrenalin was given to the isolated crystal in 1901.  i’d bet the saying (or a synonymous one) was used in medicine eighty years ago or more.  as for its appearance among the laity, i don’t know.  i’ll check….

david

unfortunately, while doing my medline and pubmed searches of cataloged medical journals (which only go back to the late 60s) i found that one of the scientists doing much of the research on epinephrine at that time was named R. A. Rush.  and i don’t have access to the full texts.  DANGIT!  can anyone else find a quote outside of medicine, maybe in a movie or song lyrics with this idiom?

david

This isn’t what you’re referring to, is it?

Developmental regulation of phenylethanolamine N-methyl transferase in avian sympathetic nerves

-Tim

yep, that’s the same dr. rush, still studying neurochemistry well into the 80s and beyond.  prolific, isn’t he?

needless to say, without that PNMT, those poor growing nerve endings would likely never get the adrenaline rush they need to grow  :’(

still can’t find references to the "adrenaline rush" in the laity, mostly due to the number of google hits and the popularity of the phrase.

david

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