Posted by fragile on March 30, 2004, at 14:51:03
Hi, guys. This is my first post here, so bear with me.
Back in December, I stopped sleeping. It came out of nowhere, and I didn't sleep for 3 solid days. I could not calm down. I had about 10 different panic attacks during those 3 days, and they would last for hours. After not sleeping for so long, I began to shake, my heart would race, and i was very moody - i would cry at the slightest thing. I honestly thought I was losing my mind, and i felt like I was hanging on by a spiderweb strand. I thought I was going to wind up in a mental institution.
Finally, I had a particularly bad episode where I dozed off for a few moments, and when I went to get up, i could not stand up straight, and I nearly passed out. My fiancee rushed me to the hospital, (my first of many trips since_, and there they kept me for the rest of the night, ran every heart test and brain test possible, and concluded there was nothing wrong with me.
Nothing physical, anyway.
I was seen by the resident psych, and told to see a psychiatrist.That night, I was prescribed Ambien, and I have been on it ever since.
Now. That I have explained, here is my topic.
My doctor is very uneasy about me being on ambien so long. He thinks 20 is far too young to have sleeping problems. He started me on Effexor as well. I'm only taking 75 mgs, but, i'm seeing little to no change. More like, what change there HAS been, has not been significant. I have tried to not take the Ambien, but when I do, and then try to sleep, my heart races, I panic, I worry about not sleeping. Therefore, I do not sleep. I HAVE figured out, that the reason the Ambien works for me, is not because it makes me tired, but because it honestly messes me up so much, that I am not worried. I am calm, happy, and peaceful when i try to go to bed.
I am terrified of my doctor trying to take me off of it. The thought of being the way I was for those 3 days is unbearable. Imean, I have horrible anxiety attacks all day long and for no reason, but the time that it REALLY bothers me, is when i'm trying to sleep. That is when I cannot afford to freak out. I work full time, and the thought of getting in trouble at work makes it even worse when I have my "fits" as I have started to call them.Does anyone have any ideas as to what else I can take that will keep me calm, and hopefully, sleep without a sleeping aid? I have tried so many natural remedies, including medetation, hot baths, alcohol, chamomille tea, sex, pain pills, what have you. Excersize.... utter exhaustion will not knock me out, because i cannot calm my nerves. I am desperate. I cannot live like this. I do not want to put my life on hold. I don't care atthis point if I am on meds for the rest of my life - as long as I can continue with my life.
Please, any suggestions are greatly appriciated, and I will be taking whatever information I am able to collect to my doctor.
poster:fragile
thread:330375
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040329/msgs/330375.html