my mini coma's - Sleep Disorders Message Board

being_me · 03-29-2006, 10:47 PM

hi. this is my first post. I guess I should mention that I have bipolar, along with social anxiety. I take 375mg of effexor and 1250 mg of epival.

I'm 24 now and since I have been 14, my chronic oversleeping has been getting worse. lately I have been unemplyed and my sleep has been exceeding 24 hrs, up to 40 hours, only waking several times and finding myself too physicaly spent to even lift my head to look at the clock. I am completely oblvious to external stimuli such as people or an alarm. regardless of the intesity of both. when I do finaly wake. it feels as though I am experiencing vertigo, a severe headache, and that I need to learn how to walk all over again. much the same as someone comming out of a coma.

On occasion I must wake up. it takes nearly an hour or two for my mind to register, that I should wake up. I havn't been able to wake myself up for many years on my own. I need someone to help me and they experience sever frustration as I do with this.

At the same time my body is in constant fatigue, but my mind is always in a state of curiousity, wich leads me to never be able to get myself away from my interests through the day. when I do go to sleep on a work night. I usualy stay up realy late, and function well with only 4-6 hours of sleep. any longer. and I become too impaired( mentaly and physicaly) to function at my best. but left to stay asleep...I will sleep excessively.

does anyone else have the same sleep issues as I do, along with being bipolar? if so. what have you found to combat this and establish a proper sleep routine? with out the assistance of others waking you up? why won't my mind tell me to wake up? doctors are no help, as they suggest a louder alarm. even the mention of a sleep specialist is shunned. if only I had the problem of not being able to sleep. I feel the medical community would welcome me with open arms.

I'm also tired of being dubbed as being lazy. I'm not. I'm sleeping my life away and I need help. please suggest something. there is very scarce resources on the topic of excessive sleeping.

I apologize for the spelling mistakes and scrambled grammar. my mind is not firing on all cylinders at the moment. thank you

blueskies20 · 03-30-2006, 10:46 AM

Hi,

My situation is not exactly like yours. I am not bipolar, but I am finding lately that I have been sleeping a lot, like 10-12 hours. I find that if I need to get up for something then I will. It's usually not a problem - I just have to make sure that I set my two alarm clocks. But if I know something is not pressing, I may set my alarm for a reasonable hour and the sleep through it or keep on pressing the snooze button.

Could it be your schedule that allows you flexibility in sleeping? I've found that because my schedule right now allows me to sleep more, I end up sleeping A LOT more even though I don't need to be. But like you, when I know I need to be up at a specified hour, then I will get up then, but I always tell my bf to call me just to make sure I am up.

I don't know if sharing my experience helps you. I just thought I'd put in my two cents about my oversleeping.