waking in a panic

rosie4 · Post by **rosie4** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 9:36 am

Please let me know if you can relate. IF i fall asleep on the sofa, i wake up in a panic (i feel startled and as if i'm confused/spacey). If i fall asleep in bed and wake up, i don't feel startled. Is this weird?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 1:21 pm

I'm not sure, as I've done this in bed only and not on the couch. Mine's the other way around. Hmm now you have me thinking - why the bed and not the couch?

Nervous1 · Post by **Nervous1** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 1:51 pm

I've done that usually if I take a nap or just fall asleep on the couch. I have a big thing with bed time. It's something I'm working on and it hasn't happened in awhile.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 2:59 pm

OMG! I really hate that feeling! Waking up with limbs vibrating sometimes and heart racing. I don't generally fall asleep on the couch, so this happens when I awaken in bed. It's an awful feeling that used to just TERRIFY me. While I still don't like it (and see it as a symptom that something's not quite right), it doesn't scare me as much as it used to. But it's unsettling, for sure!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 3:30 pm

I woke up in bed with this middle of last month.

I had a different type of chest pain and my anxiety was off the charts. I could not collect myself, I took my xanax. I could not pull myself together.

Took my self to the ER for the first time ever with this stuff. I am an EMT, walked in and told the guy that I had chest pain, likely from anxiety, but that it was different than ever before.

They took care of me, EKG, blood work, etc. Released me in a couple of hours. They drugged me up a little bit, came home an shoveled the driveway - Funny how that works.

Can't say I wake often in a panic, but it will keep me from falling asleep if I am panicing before bed.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 3:46 pm

I get that sometimes too. It used to scare me because I knew those feelings usually preceded a panic attack. I now try not to fall asleep on the couch and if I do, and happen to wake up feeling anxious, I then practice my breathing to calm the anxiety. That doesn't always work so I usually end up just going to bed and then I am fine.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 2:32 pm

my first panic attack i ever had was a spontaneous panic attack. These are the ones that come when you sleep. Wake you up out of a dead sleep and you got the symptoms. it was so bad i got so i was afraid to go to sleep. my anticipatory anxiety before going to bed at night was just as bad as the panic attacks.
i don't have any insight as to why the couch vs. the bed.
i just know it was awful and can feel for you.

derfy · Post by **derfy** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 3:19 pm

I can completly relate to this however mine has happened in my own bed and at other places such as when we are on vacation (In a hotel room) or if I stay the night somewhere else. When my husband travels occasionally for work my child and I stay with relatives and this is so embarrassing. The last time this happened to me was at my parents house and I woke up from a sound sleep shaking with panic. It felt like my blood wasn't flowing throughout my body right or something. I actually had to wake my parents up to talk to me and ended up calling my husband at 1am to try to talk me through the panic attack. I don't know why it seems to happen in the night or while I am sleeping!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 3:41 pm

i can completely relate to all you guys, lately when i wake up in the mornings i wake to a severe panic attack, my heart is racing, my skin is hot, my limbs a numb, i'm dizzy, and feel like i can't breathe. i also feel like i'm going to get sick, and then i can't fall back asleep because i get circular thoughts that will not go away at all. so i guess i'm adding myself to the list...what can i do to get rid of waking up like this?

i have to take xanax to fall asleep at night to aviod the attacks but every morning as soon as i wake it's like i'm hit in the face with everything and my day of panic starts all over...what can i do?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 4:00 pm

Hello!I can so relate to all of this.My anxiety usually is the worst in the mornings.It's harder to deal with then because your body and mind have been in a rested state and then when you wake up Bam it hits you like a ton of bricks!ncolombo what's happening is that the Xanax that you took the night before has wore off and that definately can cause a boost of adrenaline.Ask your Dr. if he or she can change it to the extended release Xanax.The extended release last about 12 hours.Hope that helps.Take care!