Desperate for answers... Anxiety and sleep

[sonikaur]

Hi. I am a 21 yr old female who has been suffering from anxiety my whole life. For the past four months i have been in constant anxiety mode. I have tried every antideppressant possible all of them being to sensitive for me. I realize when i get a good sleep my anxiety is gone, but i havent been sleeping in months. Whenever i fall asleep i feel so anxius and wake right back up panicing. My doctor put me on Ambien and it really helps with the anxiety at bed time so i can at least sleep peacefully for 4 hours. I love the way it makes me feel all relaxed and nothing can go wrong, yea but it stopped working and i dont want to take more then 5mg. I also dont want to become dependent on it for sleep everynight, but i have become dependent on it. I have been taking somekind of benzo or sleep aid for the past 2 yrs. But after a bed svt episode in december, i have been needing something stronger for my sleep anxiety. My doc also recommended me Lunesta but im too scared to try it, its 3mg. I think that might be a too high of a dose. Does anyone know what can help me sleep without anxiety? Has anyone else tried Lunesta for sleep anxiety. I have tried not sleeping with any med but end up staying up all night panicing even though i am super tired. Please help me get back to sleep so i can focus more on my life. Thanks

Soni

[lynn57]

I agree with Mammo as far as the exercise during the day and relaxing before bedtime.  I, too have to watch T.V. or read to fall asleep.  Pure quiet is my worst enemy.  I also use an air cleaner for white noise.  I don't know which benzo you are taking, but there may be a better one for you.  Ambien did nothing for  me when I had insomnia due to anxiety.  Neurontin (gabapentin) helps with sleep due to anxiety and has no dependence issues.  Also Atarax (Vistoril) is a good anti-anxiety, sleep aid.  It is a heavy duty antihistamine that also has anti-anxiety properties.  There are many meds you can discuss with your doctor besides actual "sleeping pills" such as Ambien and Lunesta. The worse your sleep is the worse your anxiety will be.  I wish you a good night's sleep and a doctor that understands how hard it is to be "tired and wired".

[mammo]

Hi.  I think I would follow your doctor's advice on this, we really have no way of knowing what wiil work best for us until we try it.  Try doing things that are relaxing before going to bed, like a warm bath with some lavender scented candles and bubble bath.  Listen to relaxing music, and I have found that allowing myself to fall asleep while reading, or watching TV works best for me.  If I try to go to sleep in the quiet, all I do is think and that leads to trouble.  A therapist once told me to think of my favorite place to be, and imagine that as you try to fall asleep.  For me it's the ocean, so she said to hear the waves, the birds, feel the warm sand beneath my feet and the sun on my face, and just keep going with it....it does work.  Make sure you get some exercise during the day to use up the adrenaline, it will make you more tired at night and ease your anxiety....even if it's a long walk.  A good nights sleep is very elusive to those of us with anxiety, we just have to keep trying to invent ways to relax.  I hope this helps and take care.