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Why 4 a.m.?

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Why 4 a.m.?

7 years ago 0 +0 / -0 11213

Hi Ali Baba,

I am sorry to hear you are dealing with this. Waking up in a panic would not be a pleasant experience at all. I have heard many, many members speak about this. It is very common to awake in a state of panic when your anxiety levels are high. This program can help you to take control of the anxiety. With your overall anxiety levels lowered your sleep panic will subside as well. Exercising, eating well, avoiding caffeine, sleep hygiene and relaxation techniques throughout the day will be helpful. Check out the section on relaxation techniques or look into yoga and meditation. Relaxing your body throughout the day and before bed help lower your nervous system which will help prevent the fight or flight response triggering while waking. Also, work on challenging your anxiety about going to bed. Session 3 talks about how to challenge anxious thoughts.

Keep us updated on how you are doing at this.

Ashley, Health Educator

Here to help :)

7 years ago 0 +0 / -0 1

for me it is somewhere between 12 to 3pm but once or twice in a month.At 4 am i feel very secured because in India it is believed that God's time starts at 4 am so i feel relieved. In the daytime i think how useless and meaningless thoughts of fear i experience duing panic attack, but during the attack they appear real

7 years ago 0 +0 / -0 1

Hi Ali Baba

You're not on your own with the 4am wake up call! I too wake up with the racing heart and all the other lovely symptoms that come with this disorder .... Over the past 20 years I've gone from diving out of my bed in the middle of the night, out the front door and running down the street trying to escape myself to lying in bed afraid to move in case the panic gets worse ...... I've learnt that racing down the road in the middle of the night doesn't help much because you have to get back home after so don't try that :-)

I wake regardless of what type of day I've had ...... it makes this a very frustrating and complicated disorder because it's hard to pin point a trigger when you've been zzz - blissfully unawares to the panic building .......

I do the breathing exercises as soon as I wake with the panic .... if that doesn't work I move on to the '6 thoughts' at a time that I read on one of the posts ... did you come across that one?

I only get out of bed now as a last resort and write down what's happening at that specific moment ...... but I do keep a journal of every episode so I can try to see a pattern.

I'm sorry I've no scientific answers as to why our bodies wake us in the middle of the night - I'm still looking for my own answers - I'm just trying to work through this programme and learn a few tools to manage these noctural attacks - but take comfort that you're not the only one up in the middle of the night. :-)

7 years ago 0 +0 / -0 4027

I was awakened this morning at 3am, by worry, and couldn't get back to sleep until I talked to someone on the phone to ease the stress. It doesn't happen often, but this is the most stressful time of the year to me. Getting individual help is best, but everyone is on vacation. I can find a sub until I get more regular visits/

7 years ago 0 +0 / -0 3

Every time I have gone into an episode of panic disorder, I get awakened at 4 a.m. - like clockwork, in a state of panic. It lasts for hours... I am in one now that is just starting to slow down... It is exhausting and makes for a stressful evening because I am nervous about going to sleep and waking up so miserably. I am not sure if anyone is out there... because these boards seem awfully quiet... but I sure could use an answer. Even if someone can just tell me they experience something similar and don't know why.

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Why 4 a.m.?