Please Help !!!!! Unusual Symptoms Here ! - Sleep Disorders Message Board

andrews · 08-10-2002, 08:35 AM

I'm a 37 year old male with some recent business related stresses over the past year. I also "used to have" generalized anxiety and panic attacks but not for some time. Well here is what i'm experiencing. Just last week i had a tough time going to sleep. Not ususal for me cause i've always been able to sleep very well. It started last sunday night. As soon as i was falling asleep it's like my body and mind refused. I would just jerk a little bit when i started to fall asleep but then it just kept happening all night. The next night it happened again and again although this time i had a full blown panic attack. One of the worst ever. I thought i was having a stroke. My body was hot, i couldnt even barely walk. I ended up taking 30mg of serax. About an hour later i fell asleep for 5 hours. The next day i had drug hangover. So now every night is the same without the panic attack, although like i said before, when i just start falling asleep my body jerks and awakens me and i also always feel nervousness, hot and my heart seems to speed up when i am just about to sleep then awaken. DOES THIS SOUND FAMILIAR TO ANYONE ? Just to let you know i dont drinf coffee or any stimulants at night. Warm milk lately. AM i going crazy or what ??? Please help...thanks very much...Andrew

Megherc · 08-10-2002, 03:18 PM

Sounds like some sort of withdrawal symptoms...like from sleep meds or antidepressants. Any previous history with these things?

#1...Go get a physical to rule out medical causes.
#2...Stay away from sleep meds, they only end up worsening existing insomnia.
#3...Be patient. Sleep can correct itself,with no medical causes, but sometimes it can take a long time.

andrews · 08-11-2002, 03:38 PM

no previous history with these meds at all. Just dont feel that the way i'm being "jerked" up just before i fall asleep sounds like insomnia to me. If at least i could see a similiar story here it would ease my mind

Fanatic · 08-16-2002, 08:15 AM

Hi, do you have something on your mind? Because having an over active mind can distract you from sleeping. Sometimes it is hard to tell when something is lying dormant at the back of your mind, but if there is it will cause a stress that may not even be detectable to you. I myself sleep roughly two hours a night, and when I started losing sleep I also suffered from anxiety attacks, mainly because I didn't know what was causing it. My sleeping did get better for a short amount of time (but now I have something very serious on my mind which is stopping me sleeping again) the point being though my sleeping did improve, so there's hope for you. Take care.

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-Human dreams...such fertile ground for the seeds of torment-

Megherc · 08-16-2002, 01:21 PM

I wondered about the history because Serax is a benzodiazepine, a class of anxiety/sleep meds so I wondered if you had them before. Benzos can be extremely addictive and tolerance to them can develop quickly, so be cautious with those! Type benzo withdrawal in your search for more information on benzodiazepines; there is one from the U.K. that is excellent.

Best to get a full physical to rule out any health-related causes. If it is a stress-related problem, taking measures to ease stress will help. Vigorous exercise, eating right and making sure you get adequate vitamins and minerals (no need for mega-vitamins, just regular ones).

Also, evaluate any prescription/OTC meds and any herbal preparations you may be taking. Even the "natural" herbs can effect our nervous systems almost as bad as drugs! Here's one random example.. I know one very healthy, normal bodybuilder who drank an herbal mix power drink after a workout one evening while working out with my son... despite my son's telling him the herbs were energizing and would interfere with sleep. My son's friend proclaimed "I sleep no matter what". So the next day, my son called him up....apparentely, his friend had been awake all night and quite miserable!! But even things taken during the day can cause problems too, so maybe it's best to avoid some of the supplements and herbs so popular today.

Also, alcohol is a definate no-no for sleep problems.

Anyway, process of elimination of any possible causes could provide an answer.