Morning panics every day.

[rocklover]

My mind/body has been waking me up every day at around 5am with very high levels of anxiety and panic (sometimes a full blown attack), I also always have a stomach ache and feel very sick. My tummy always feels empty no matter what I have eaten the day before and I have to have toast straight away or i feel even sicker.

The panic eases off during the day and I usually feel better at around 2pm, but sometimes I can feel bad until I go to bed. I am currently taking Temazepam to help me sleep, but it doesn't stop me from waking early. This has been happening to me since May now and I can't seem to re-set my brain.

I have just withdrawn from Mirtazapine and the mental health team want me to try another SSRI, but I am pretty sure I don't want to go down that route again as I don't want to deal with yet more side effects/withdrawal.

Even if I feel positive when I go to bed and fall asleep happy, I STILL wake up in panic mode, I just don't understand how I can stop it from happening. It is making me very, very depressed. Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

[Robbie]

Give me your email and Ill give you a link to a panic attack course.

[mum83]

Hi Rocklover,
I know exactly what you are going through. I had this happen night after night a couple months back. It was SO frustrating. I read every book I could lay my hands on, relaxation cds, I would go to sleep relaxed and wake up with a panic attack at 3 or 4am. I couldn't take it anymore and I eventually had to start Mirtazapine to help me sleep. I'm only on a small dose (7.5) and it works for me. I know you have just got off Mirt, but with such a small dose I get very few side effects. (Side effects for me is strange dreams and sugar cravings occasionally) Sometimes I wake up fully alert in the middle of the night, but not in a panic like before. :hugs:

[rocklover]

Hi Rocklover,
I know exactly what you are going through. I had this happen night after night a couple months back. It was SO frustrating. I read every book I could lay my hands on, relaxation cds, I would go to sleep relaxed and wake up with a panic attack at 3 or 4am. I couldn't take it anymore and I eventually had to start Mirtazapine to help me sleep. I'm only on a small dose (7.5) and it works for me. I know you have just got off Mirt, but with such a small dose I get very few side effects. (Side effects for me is strange dreams and sugar cravings occasionally) Sometimes I wake up fully alert in the middle of the night, but not in a panic like before. :hugs:

Hi Mum83, it doesn't seem to matter what I take (Mirt, Temazepam, Zopiclone), I can get to sleep, but I always wake up at exactly the same time each morning. The symptoms are always the same, tummy ache and upset tummy, nausea, panic feelings, very tense etc etc. My mind seems to have set my body to this default setting and no matter how relaxed I am when I go to sleep, I always wake up in the same way.

This was all started off by some Citalopram I was prescribed, I had a bad reaction to it (despite having been fine on it before) and the morning panics began. They are not as bad as they used to be, but I am bloody knackered from always being up so early. I am going to speak to my dr about it just to make sure it's normal to be like this for months and months.

I drove a 3 1/2 hour journey back home last night, fell into bed at 2am exhausted and I still managed to wake up shaking from a deep sleep at 6.30am...so only just over 4 hours sleep. To say I am annoyed is an understatement, especially as I tend to feel sick for at least half the day afterwards. GRRRRRR!

[Belleblue]

Just a thought rocklover - do you remember I asked if you had discussed hormones with your GP? I say this because you mentioned in the past that you you thought you had some PND. What you describe is exactly how I felt when I was going through menopause - the other end of the spectrum to you I know. But at the time it felt as though I had been injected with a shot of extra cortisol which caused an adrenaline surge just on waking and no matter how tired I could not go back to sleep. It was purely hormone related and it was an exhausting time. Might be worth exploring further with your GP?

Wish I could find a solution for you. Take care now.
Belle x

[mum83]

Hi Rocklover, it's funny because Citalopram started my panic attacks off too! I only took one 20mg pill (back in July) and woke up in the middle of the night with THE WORST panic attack ever. It took me 3 days to get over the shaking, the horrible head ache, the feeling that I was MAD. It was so scary. After that I experienced attacks every night, until I was given Mirtazapine. I'm sorry it hasn't worked for you. I had to realise there was nothing wrong with me, it was as if my body had gone through a horrible shock (which it had) and I was suffering post traumatic stress. The fear of having another attack made me have more. I've now got over a lot of that fear for the most part. Please go back to your GP and discuss other remedies. Sorry I can't be of much help, but I'm always here if you need to talk. I understand what you're going through. :hugs: