Anxiety in the morning

[4sophie]

My anxiety is so bad in the morning,  I keep calling my therapist everyday because I'm so scared and restless. I don' t know what do do. My therapist has been very patient but I don' t know for how long. He gets very frustrated and sometime rushes me off the phone.

[MattyTaylor]

nausea is the worst! the past few days its hit me pretty hard. especially after meals.

[michigan07]

For me the panic is not the worse. I find the nausea and occasional dry heaves the hardest to go through. It just takes time and the right combination of therapy and if needed medication.

[MattyTaylor]

At first I was, I didn't want to go anywhere for a while but I've gotten a lot better. I've been going to work regularly and going out with friends. There are some nights where I feel crummy and stay in but everyone has bad nights every now and then.

[4sophie]

We're you afraid of going out or going to work

[MattyTaylor]

The first two weeks weren't great, I did have some side effects like increased anxiety, lightheaded, and nausea. But I'm a lot better off now that I was before, my anxiety has gone down greatly. When I do have some anxiety it is normally in the mornings right after I wake up. :)

[4sophie]

How do stop worrying about having another panic attack, taking medication and having possible side effects, and focusing on everything  your therapist said and taking it the wrong way. I'm exhausted and afraid to go to work and have a panic attack

[michigan07]

I take .50 Klonopin in the morning w/ my 40 mg of Paxil (not a fan of this ssri). I'm busy taking care of my son in the am, dropping him off at the in laws, and then heading to work so being busy does help. On occasion I take half of my Klonopin at night to help as prescribed. I stay away from Xanax because it's short acting and the Klonopin does the same thing but lasts longer. Management of medication and seeing a therapist has helped most.

[4sophie]

Did have bad side effects when you first were put on lexapro, and I thought that your anxiety  should have stopped while on lexapro?

[MattyTaylor]

I'm another person whos anxiety is worse in the mornings but I am not on xanax I'm on Lexapro. For me it is always best to get myself out of bed and immediately start doing something, take a shower, turn on the tv, get your mind off it as soon as possible. I found that laying in bed just keeps your anxiety fueled. Whenever I wake up in the mornings I'm up and out of the covers as soon as I can so I don't give my anxiety time to grow. But everyone is different and has different coping strategies.

[4sophie]

What do you do to handle the morning panic attacks? Do you take a larger dose of medication or do you ride it out.

[michigan07]

Also, Xanax is a short term acting drug hence why your anxiety is coming about after the time period you mentioned but we are all different too.

[michigan07]

I'm sure poor sleep can be a contributor, it has been sometimes for me. In general many not all people have some of their worse anxiety in the am. I have my worst anxiety in the am.

[4sophie]

Thank you for your post. I was taking .25mg of xanax once a day at night to help me sleep, but was waking up groggy and wean myself off. I even took an extra pill in the morning to help with my anxiety, but it only made me feel worse after an hour and half. Do you think that my increase in morning anxiety can be due poor sleep.?

[michigan07]

My worst anxiety is in the morning as well. Do you see a psychiatrist as well ? While medicine is not the whole answer to anxiety and therapy is very important he or she might be able to prescribe you something to help. Also, make sure you try your best to stay active and eat well. Take time for yourself to relax during the day as well exp before you go to sleep.