sudden waking with palpitations getting worse

[mixed up]

Heres my update from September 04:  I'm a 57 year old female- now since late Sept being treated with 25 mg zoloft and 5mg inderal for severe night panic and depression.  Zoloft is better than the wellbutrin i was taking. I still wake like clockwork ~4 hours into sleep, suddenly with palpitations and now PVCs--just had one about 20 minutes ago (every nite for years).  I also go back to sleep and then every couple of hours after that wake again, and so on till daytime. This does not happen during daytime naps. I  no longer have the emotional confusion and panic with these episodes thatI had with wellbutrin and seroquel previously, so I'm wondering if this really is just psychological. I tried klonopin in this mix, but the low mood swings were horrible--debilitating. Now i have PVCs off and on during the day since being on zoloft, averaging one every 5-10 seconds or so. i dont see my primary Dr till December and when I called his nurse a couple of weeks ago she said he said it was OK. Psychiatrist suggested Holter but my Primary said not necessary.
Had 3 sleep studies-last one with these events--inconclusive. can you please suggest how to be rid of this once and for all? It's been a lot of years and I don't need this at my age--I want to live. Thanks for an excellent forum,  mixed UP

[rob425]

Hello, 30 year old male here with no history of heart problems at all. Took Diurex about a week ago and started having heart palpatations. They slowed down after about a day and I do not get them except for when I think about them which is pretty much every few hours or so. No other symptoms whatsoever and able to play basketball with no adverse affects. In fact after excercising no palpatations at all.  I do have extreme anxiety and have been prescribed Wellbutrin before. I do not take it however. Wondering if the Diurex just unearthed a problem that had been dormant as I only seem to get the palpatations when I think about them or they somehow caused a blip on the radar that needs to be corrected.

[hangin'in there!]

Try to stay calm. An adverse drug reaction can be cured by changing the medication you are on. The sleep study has ruled out alot of dangerous possibilities so this is a good sign that you are in good health. Seizures/convulsions would not show up in a sleep study as you are only likely to suffer from these upon sudden ceasation of klonopin. So whatever you do, don't just stop taking your medicine!!

I can understand that you are scared, but I don't think you are in danger.  I just think that klonopin reacts really badly with you because you wake suddenly with what you describe as depressed breathing, you are lethargic and confused. You need to ask your doctor to wean you off the klonopin because of these problems and perhaps (if at all) try another medicine.  This is a good opportunity for you to heal and finally get your life back! Now that you know that you are also suffering from PTSD, maybe have your therapist write the doc a letter (if they haven't already) stating this and he will be able to prescribe something a little more suitable. I happen to think klonopin wouldn't be prescribed for PTSD anyway, so maybe this change in medication would be a blessing in disguise for you and your therapist!!!

So my advice is to go your doctor, tell him/her that you are having a bad reaction to klonopin and want to try something else, and then take it from there.  It will take 3-4 weeks to adjust to any new med. and to gradually withdraw from klonopin and these weeks may initially be uncomfortable but may well be worth the effort in the long run for you. You do have a long haul ahead of you, but you are over half way there.

Many cuddles and much support to you.  Email me directly if you like at ts.***@**** if you want my support at any time, I would be more than happy to be there for you.

Love from hangin'in there!

[mixed up]

Thanks--What do I do? I just woke violently, suddenly, AGAIN, short of breath, confused. I am supposed to call the Psychiatrist later today about the meds--What do I ask him to do? Evidently I wake this way with or without a respiratory depressant--which can mean, of course, that i am respiratorily depressed anyway--but wouldn't that, and seizure--have shown up on the sleep study this past August?  It takes a couple of months to get into another Dr should I decide to switch. i was glasssy eyed and slow breathing all day yesterday! I'm so scared!
Please reply,
MU

[hangin'in there!]

hello MU,

I would like you to read this page about klonopin that I have found on the net.  Copy and paste it into your address field after you have read this:


http://www.druginfonet.com/index.php?pageID=klonopin.htm


I suggest you pay particularly close attention to the list of adverse reactions, this is found at the very bottom of the page so you will need to scroll down.

I get the feeling that klonopin is the wrong medication for you!  50% of people taking it in the studies suffered from lethargy and tiredness as a side effect. Also, the depressed breathing and other breathing problems you are discribing sound like an adverse drug reaction; I'm shocked and appalled that your doctor hasn't paid any attention to this!

This information also describes behavioural changes that occured in patients involved in this study who were taking klonopin.  If you stop taking this medication suddenly, the study suggests, you are prone to seizures/convulsions.  They recommened gradually withdrawing from this drug over a period of time. You need to be very careful with this drug and be very vigillant about your expieriences with it.  After reading the information, would you agree that maybe this is not the medication for you? I'm only trying to help and believe everyone on medication should do a bit of research about it. However, I am concerned about you and this case.

I think you will find several other posts on this forum about klonopin and it's effects and how long they should last.  It may help you to read a few of these - maybe you could relate.  The medhelp. answers may also help you with your own questions about this drug ... I don't think it is the right one for you to be taking but then, I am certainly no doctor!

Good luck and post soon, with love from hangin'in there!

[mixed up]

Thanks again for the feedback. Well, now that I'm on Klonopin  @ nite, I am drowsy and dizzy most of the day. Does this wear off in a week or two?  Last nite i had 2 episodes. The first I managed to get back to sleep--no physical anxiety symptoms, but confused and lethargic. Then 4:30 I woke from not breathing--just too tired to breathe back in, and was confused like a nite terror, slurred speech, etc--not like the previous panic. I notice this during the day, but my shrink says that .25 klonopin won't come close to depressing breathing--can't exercise very well, too slow. I'm trying to eat better now, but still too confused/muddled thinking. no initiative or organization. Hope the cloud wears off. Can't take off work. I'm it--i live alone and hold everything up--no family support, no safety net, except sharp & aware support people here in my new town who listen and give feedback.I'll have time over the holidays, if I can hold out with weekly therapy till I see my primary in early Dec.Not that he would do anything different. Would like info/experiences on Klonopin effects and how long they last.  MU

[hangin'in there!]

PTSD is terrible - I also suffer from this and had done for many years unknowingly.  I started getting flash backs and worrying about my health/safety after my now 2 year old son was born.

Like you, Dr's diagnosed every depressive illness but PTSD and eventually thought if I was sick it had to be psychosomatic or all in my head.  Therapy helped me where the doctor's couldn't which is why I thought it important to make sure you got proper and thourough medical/psycological evaluation.

Now that you are more aware of what is happening to you, are you feeling at least a little better?  Sounds like this sleep clinic thing has been a great idea for you - how are they helping you to sleep these days? Sometimes you can feel a whole lot more in controll of PTSD after some quality shut eye!  Can change your whole perspective on life, can't it!!!

Are you eating better or does the medication make you a little nauseas and throw off your appetite? I try to force myself to eat well as I just found out I was pregnant but morning sickness reminds me of how queasy I felt when I started taking medication for PTSD (which I am still on). My medication took a while to get right - had to try a few types before we found one that I really responded to.  I call it my little miracle pill and I also still see my psycologist monthly (and now my DR. too)

I still believe that you should take a month or so off work - just untill you get on top of things.  Learning that you are infact suffering from PTSD can often come as a huge shock.  That's the nature of the illness, I think, and medication can certainly help to stop your brain racing between flight or fight. It's not something someone with PTSD can do on their own, without proffesional help. You don't need the pressure of work right now - you need time to heal.

Thankyou for posting back about how you are going!  Wonderful to hear you are finally on the right track - the long road to recovery.  Take care, with love from hangin'in there!

[mixed up]

Thanks!!!  I've had 3 sleep studies, the last in August 04--had an episode during it. No major results showed up on the important measures: heart, brain, or 02. So i feel it's not a cardio thing, although when I saw my psychiatrist 2 days ago he said he'd call my primary dr and recommed a holter, since I've stared having pvcs without the inderal.  i am now back on .25 Klonopin and .5 inderal at nite and same 25 zoloft in AM. i am responding better to the Klonopin this time, although dizzy most of the day--probably will wear off. Previous sleep pulmonology Dr said something i believe, and I need to pay attention to: normally people have heart rate increases and 02 variations during the nite, and some, like me, are really sensitive to that. Plus i was just recently (can you believe it--only now?) diagnosed with ptsd, which supports the sensitivity theory. So fortunately, last nite I had an episode without the panic, and then another later (~4:30AM) with completely stopped up sinuses (thanks to cpap)and not breathing thru my mouth. Therapy will deal with the respiratory issues and others--got in therapy yesterday from a cancellation. Thanks for directing me in the therapy direction. Meanwhile, trying to accept ptsd surfacing after all these years--somebody upstairs must have waited till the internet was invented, huh?   Much gratitude to you all,
MU

[I'mallheart]

have u considered seeing a cardiologist..i have same problem and take atenolol 25 mg..it works pretty well
just a thaugh
good luck
Dave

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

My only suggestion at this point is that you ask your doctors for a referral to a sleep clinic...there are such things and they have various ways of helping you with this kind of interrupted sleep cycle.

[hangin'in there!]

If you are wondering if this is psychological - I think it is. You need to see a psychologist - not a psychiatrist - and I believe you may be on the wrong medication and need weaning off completely before trying something new. They are not helping, are they?