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So for the last week I've been waking up form 2am-6am in panic. Sometimes like i cant swallow, or breath..like someone is smothering me. ts so scary. . . but when i get this way i take either a half my ativan (.5) or the whole thing if its real bad. Last night I decided to take a half of my ativan before bed (an hour and a half before bed) so maybe it would prevent me from waking up in the middle of the night in panic. I was kind of anxious anyway so i took the ativan and than i went to sleep. I woke up in extreme panic around 4am sweating and with my heart pounding and this tense uneasy feeling in the middle of my chest(hard to desribe, maybe as if the middle of my chest is where all my panic is stored)and it was a different type of panic. I was incredibly out of it (im guessing and hoping it is because if the ativan)and couldnt even get up to distract myself or make myself feel better because i felt SOO tired, like i was sedated or very very drunk,an completely out of it. My head was racing with incomplete thoughts that made NO sense whatsoever. I also did have a nightmare (usually dont when i wake up on panic) which may have made my panic worse. . ? And the feeling of being SOOOO out of it and feeling like i couldnt control anything made me even more panicy. . yet i couldnt get out of bed because like i said i was soooo tired. usually when i wake up on panic i become pretty much awake and get up and try and feel better. So my question is, do you think it was the ativan that made me soo tired and out of it when i woke up in panic and caused my panic to be worse? I think my dream possibly overcame the strength of the ativan which caused panic. . So now what i am going to do is NOT take an ativan before bed and of i wake up in panic THATS when i'll take the ativan. . ? what do you think? I was so frightened and i even tried texting a friend at am while i was feeling bad and when i saw what i sent her it made NO sense. . so thats how out of it i was. . now i am scared i will lose control. and i hate that tense weird poundy as if my chest was jittery but not shaking. . feeling. anyway, Any advice?? also, I have to point out that the ativan has helped me plenty before. this is the first time it seemed to make things worse because the out of it feeling freaked me out bad. I was also getting weird like im on a boat head sensation. . anyway, thanks for reading. Just nervous it'll happen again. if i didnt have these waking up in full panic episodes i'd have much much less anxiety.Its just hard to control it when i wake up with a full blown one you know?

Hi Holly,

I have Ativan but haven't taken it yet but I would put money on it that the tired, "out of it" feeling may have been from the ativan. But I wouldn't be afraid of the medicine. If you have had luck on it before, I would still use it unless things like this continue, then I would talk to your doctor.

I understand about waking up in panic- I haven't experienced it quite like you, but I also never took ativan. That stuff might not be right for you. Occasionally if I can't breathe and can't fall asleep because of it, I will take a Xanax and I will sleep all night through. Maybe that ativan is causing bad side effects like making your panic worse. I would look into it because your body has to recover by sleeping good. My problem is the relaxation tape from the program- I can't relax and my breathing becomes worse and my chest starts to hurt- I don't know what to do to get through the tape...

yes the relaxation cd is kinda hard for me cause of the focusing on my breathing part. the ativan works fine other times. just last night it was so bad and didnt help me. unless it wore off because i took it around 10pm and i felt the panic around 430 am

Hi there. I looked this up on Ativan (lorazepam) and it said that "Peak effects roughly coincide with peak serum levels which occur ten minutes after intravenous injection, up to one hour after intramuscular injection and about 120 minutes after oral administration but initial effects are noted before this. A clinically relevant lorazepam dose will normally be effective for 6 to 12 hours, making it unsuitable for regular once-daily administration; it is therefore usually prescribed as two to four daily doses when taken regularly."

So, if taken as a pill, it seems that it peaks at 2 hours but wears off between 6-12 hours after taking it. So, it seems that at 6 1/2 hours, it probably had not worn off yet.

Good luck and I hope you can sleep better. I have a hard time as well some nights.

Rob.

so wait. . i am a little confused. are you saying it did or didnt wear off at 6 1/2 hours?? i take a pill under my tongue. youre supposed to swallow it but it seems to work faster when i put it under my tongue. do you think it may not have as strong as an effect when put under my tongue but it just works faster??

Hi Holly, Flyer correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Flyer was saying that the ativan was still in your system when you woke up. It is just at its strongest point at 2 hours, but is still working to up to 6-12 hours. The effect isn't stronger if it is put under your tongue, it does enter your system faster as you said though, the reason being the many number of blood vessels under your tongue. I would have to say that it does sound like your ativan aided in your being out of it. Especially if it makes you sleepy in the first place, but if you woke up with it still in your system it would definately have that effect. I have taken medicine before during panic attacks to make me tired and calm me down and the way it made me feel sent me into a really bad panic, I felt tired and out of it, which made me even more panicky, but it was the medicine. It might have just been a bad night with your dream and waking up in panic with the medicine still in your system and that making you feel worse. But if Ativan has helped you before, like wonderwoman said, don't be afraid of it. Just realize that if you do experience an effects again like this that it is the medicine and you're okay.

OOh ok so the effect is not as srong when i put it under my tongue than swallowing it? I'll def swallow it fro, now on than. thanks you all so much!
ps- i had a panic attack today without an ativan. I still feel anxious and taking the ativan would have made me feel better faster but i wanted to see if i can do it with out an ativan. . . I am just afraid of getting dependent on it.

I'm wondering if you're letting it disolve under your tongue it actually takes longer to reach your bloodstream than if you swallowed the pill. hmm..also, are you by any chance taking melatonin? because that sometimes gives me nightmares and makes me wake up in a panic. Although, I'll take it anyway because it works so well in making me fall asleep!

noi dont take melatonin. i took it a few nighta ago and it gave me a weird sinking feeling in my head so it made me panicy. . yet, not as panicy as i am now and it did make me very tired. . . though its not that i dont get tired i just keep waking up every so often with uncomfortable physical symptoms and tonight i woke up with a bad cheat pain. . i just wake up feeling either like i am going out of control or like im going to die. either or. . and last night and tonight are worse. i just feel like it will not go away. and numb