No sleep

[Eek]

This anxiety med withdrawal just gets worse and worse :( I had no sleep at all last night and only one to three hours every night for the last three weeks with no sign of respite. I've read this can go on for six months or longer, I'm not sure if I'm strong enough to last that long without going back on the meds, but I really don't want to as I'd have to go through all this again if I needed to come off of them in the future and they're evil meds anyway with some terrible side effects which get more likely the longer you are on them. The only solution my psychiatrist has come up with is a) go back on the meds or b) get addicted to clonazepam neither of which I want to do.

I'm at my wits end, so little sleep, I'm scared I'm going to die from lack of sleep soon.

[cattia]

I have a friend who had chronic insomnia and she did a sleep programme which helped her a lot. One of the things they told her which helped most was that whilst 7-8 hours of sleep may be best for optimum functioning, humans actually don't need that much and three or four hours a night is sufficient. I know you're not getting that much but it helps to know that you can get by on much less than you think. Also because you are so stressed about it, it's going to be hard to know how much is the medication withdrawn and how much is anxiety. What natural measures are you taking to relax and help your sleep?

[Mark13]

Eek

You won't die from lack of sleep, your body will take the sleep it eeds when you're truly sleep deprived.

Have you tried over the counter remedys? Such as the original Nytol (not the useless non-drowsy one).

[Eek]

Mark, unfortunately I can't take over the counter meds as they interact with my other medication which is a pain.

cattia I've been listening to a self hypnosis sleep tape before bed to try and help me sleep. Also this insomnia is weird, it's not like normal insomnia which I've had before. I get tired but not sleepy if that makes sense. When I do manage to fall asleep I wake up every 20 minutes or so, I can't stay asleep at all. It's like something has broken in my brain, it's horrible.

[Lilharry]

Eek - I"m having trouble sleeping at the moment too. As soon as I close my eyes all these crazy random words and thoughts pop into my brain and I can't control them and it makes me freak out and wake up. Do you feel like that at all? I wish it would go away. Just wanted to send you some hugs and let you know I understand what you're going through. I'm only getting a couple of hours a night too.

[Nansua]

Oh My I Do That Too , Just Crazy Thoughts Its Horrible I Have Been Taking Zzquil To Get Some Rest , I Hate HA

[Eek]

Eek - I"m having trouble sleeping at the moment too. As soon as I close my eyes all these crazy random words and thoughts pop into my brain and I can't control them and it makes me freak out and wake up. Do you feel like that at all? I wish it would go away. Just wanted to send you some hugs and let you know I understand what you're going through. I'm only getting a couple of hours a night too.

No it's not crazy thoughts in my case, my brain just won't go to sleep properly, I'm pretty certain it's withdrawal from Zyprexa as a lot of people have this as a side effect to coming off of the drug. I managed about four hours last night in half hour slots so feel a little better today but still very tired.