sleep terror

[Pattrick007]

I have not slept properly since I was very young - by the time I was 10 I was already spending hours awake trying to fall asleep - I have a very high anxiety level which is somewhat genetic and alot caused by my older brother who would terrorize me by trapping me in sleeping bags, hanging me off the balcony, throwing me off things, and taunting me and quick punches - from the time i was 17 I started medicating myself with alcohol but would only sleep until 3 am - lie awake until 6 thinking over my problems. Then at 35 I found Imovane and became quickly a fan - I slept well but after getting to the point of using it constantly for a number of years it also stopped helping me sleep through the night. When I try and sleep on my own one of two things happens either i cannot get to sleep or more commonly i go through a period of a few hours in which as soon as I start to fall asleep I have terrifying visions of falling through the sky and I immediately wake back up - this can occur many times before i finally fall asleep. I have never been able to nap. Any ideas?

[Paderla Anitha, DNB]

Hello and hope you are doing well.

You seem to have chronic insomnia. Inability to sleep could be problems with initiating sleep or maintaining sleep is called insomnia. Problems with breathing (Obstructive sleep apnea), certain medications, restless leg movements and sleep walking/talking could contribute to insomnia.
The first step would be to rule the causes for insomnia like sleep disorders. Next it is treated with both medical and non medical therapy. Medical (sedatives) are given in the temporary initial phase, this is combined with non medical measures like sleep hygiene, relaxation therapy, stimulus control, and sleep restriction which are referred to as cognitive behavioral therapies. As the non medical measures help to restore your sleep rhythm, the sedatives are withdrawn.

I would advise you to consult a sleep specialist who would assess with first a sleep questionnaire, and then he may ask for a polysomnogram, which is an overnight sleep study as this helps to detect sleep disorders.

Hope this helped and do keep us posted.

[allmymarbles]

You might have sleep apnea, or be deficient in Iodine or magnesium. Another possibility is that your adrenals are producing too much cortisol. Talk this over with your doctor. Going short on sleep can cause anxiety - not necessarily the other way around. You may have a physical rather than an emotional problem.