Scared to go to sleep!

[broken33]

Does anyone else have this problem? For years (20+) I have been scared to go to sleep at night. That's when I tend to have alot of panic attacks and I have to wait til the sun is coming up before I feel "safe" enough to go to sleep. Even then sometimes it's hard and I get so worked up I think I just pass out...

[Megan_Rae]

I have that same problem. I'm 20. It's almost like the fear of the dark, but not really. I'm a night owl and a bit of an insomniac as it is, so sleeping is usually a battle for me as well. I experience a lot of anxiety and lonesomeness at night. Sometimes what helps me is sleeping at the opposite end of the bed with either music or a movie playing somewhere near by. Disney movies or comedy tv shows are usually a good distraction for me.

[angelafal]

Hello! I'm in the same boat! It's 4 pm right now and I'm already stressing about sleeping tonight. I had insomnia for about two weeks and I finally started taking Ambien. It knocked me right out but I'm only getting about 4 or 5 hours. I guess that's better than nothing. I just can't seem to wind my brain down at night and now that I feel such pressure to sleep, I can't. It does make me feel better seeing that I'm not the only one that is feeling this way.

Happy Thoughts!

Angela

[soulartista]

When I first started the program I was at a place where I would wake up almost at the crack of dawn just so happy for it to be day! As soon as that sun began to set I began to have anxiety but I was almost fine during the day. At the worst I found some things that helped because at that time I just could not turn my mind away from my scary thoughts enough to relax and sleep.

I got a pair of headphones and listened to the relaxation tape. I mean I made a playlist that just played it over and over and over into my headphones. at first it was hard to fall asleep to, but pretty soon it was amazing. the relaxation tape helps get you ready for sleep when you do it (and participate in it the first time and again if you still feel tense) but lucinda's soothing voice and being that she was the only one i knew of at that time that knew what I was going through and she believed I could get better hearing that tape over and over helped. Then I would fall asleep to it and wake at some point in the night and turn it off because I was able to fall back asleep.
After a few weeks it was like Pavlov's law, I heard the beginning music in my headphones and i passed out. Even now I can close my eyes and hear the beginning music and her saying "we are about to take a journey" and it's been years hehe

also, EXERCISE. helped me to do that at night even though they say to do it earlier. also if i was too stressed to sleep i would clean until i was too tired to stay up.
You can do it! that part will pass! i sleep like a baby now. Still have anxiety about other things but not sleeping. I know it's scary you will be fine!

[ambrks]

Wow, I don't mean this in a bad way, but it's comforting to know I'm not the only one with this problem. I used to have no problem sleeping at night. Then I met my now husband and got used to having him with me all the time. So when we moved in together, he would go to leave for work at night and I started to get scared and couldnt sleep. I hate this because I used to be so independent and now I feel like I rely on others, especially my husband. I want to be relaxed and tired again at night time and sleep a normal amount of time. I tend to fall asleep for a few hours then wake up and this pattern continues throughout the night and I maybe get 5 hours of sleep.
On the bright side, I just started the program a few days ago and have been doing the techniques all throughout the day and sleeping has gotten better for me already. I'm no where near how I used to be but I'm confident that it will continue to get better. Also, reading seems to help me fall asleep faster, too. Try to read something positive and happy. For all of our sakes, I truly hope this program works for us and that in time we will all find a way to "be normal" again.

[Luis79]

I'm not only scared to sleep, I can't sleep at all. When I do sleep you would think that I would totally collapse. I fall asleep and after a few hours if I'm lucky I wake up with a jolt and that familiar unease in the pit of my stomach. I have to leave my apartment. I can't stay inside. I normally go out for long walks. Sometimes they work, mostly they don't. I just started the program so I'm not yet feeling any relief, but I know it will take much time and effort, but in any case, this condition sucks.

[lockdo]

Sometimes I am. We just have to relax. We need to take deep breaths and calm down. The relaxation tape will definitely come in handy!!!

[RainCloud]

Anyone here have interrupted sleep? Sleeping for a few hours, waking up, etc?