Just a quick note. Scalded milk releases Triptophan, a mild tranquilizer. I have a remote for my boom box so I can turn it on or off from in bed and I too use it to go to sleep. I never hear all of the disc it works that well. I like your Idea of taping yourself.
What works for me in the mornings is hot tea, hot shower and either the TV or the radio on straight away for company and to re-establish that feeling of reality. If it's a good day, I go out for a walk before breakfast because seeing other people helps a lot. Sometimes it's hard just to get out of bed and that's the toughest. I focus on one step at a time. I say ' just pull the covers back' and then ' just sit on the side of the bed' and then ' just put on the radio' and so on. Once I get going it's better. I was thinking of making a recording of myself saying positive things and then using that as a wake-up, because sometimes it's hard to remember what to do.
In the evenings, it's all about routine for me. Nothing negative - no news, no sad music etc... Just calm music, hot milk and I've written down a bunch of stuff to tell myself before I go to bed, to give my mind directions on what I want it to do during the night e.g. I will sleep peacefully, I will have nice dreams, I will wake relaxed and calm. Then I put on a recording of ocean waves to go to sleep to. It seems to work most nights but I don't know why.
I was the opposite of you. Panic was only at night, right before bed. I realized that it was happening bcuz I had my 1st attack at night in bed. Then I kept having them bcuz I was overly worried about having them (my book calls it "precipitant anxiety" or something like that). And I never sleep thru the night (haven't in YEARS and has nothing to do with the panic/anxiety) so when I'd wake up, they'd start all over again. Not only THAT, they'd come in waves, so I'd be in a constant state of frenzy and terror for like 3 hours at a time. I was a hot mess lol
But after realizing what was going on and making proactive steps to help myself, it's gotten easier to deal with. Yes, I do still have "attacks", but they are relatively small compared to how I was in the beginning and easier to prevent from going into full blown panic attacks. I had to re-train my brain.
Yes, I can relate. Derealization sucks, plain and simple. I've had it before and lately I have had a soft touch of it, Mine right now is more depersonalization and dissociation during certain moments during the day.
I woke up dreading the day this morning as well. Read my thread about panic attack at a restaurant.
Jimmy: Freud would say you don't want to leave the womb. Actually I would say that you have had so many lousy days that you wake up expecting to have another. It is so hard to get up and get mobile when there is nothing to look forward to. When you wake up try to focus on one (or more) things you really want to do and are looking forward to doing so there is no room for thoughts of how lousy the day will be. It doesn't have to be any thing big. For me it is a nice cup of tea since I can only have two I want to really enjoy them. And while I have them I think about what I really want to do with the Day. It is hard to not think about the pain I am in, and I too will go have a hot shower to take my mind off things. Every one has to find their own incentives. It is very tiring trying to find something good in each day especially if you don't like your job or you don't have enough money to do the things you want to do.
AmJ: I used to panic every night at around two thirty. Some times the terror would go for hours. The only thing that helped was to write down what I was thinking so that I could realize just how stupid my thoughts were. I would have a cup of Mint tea or sleepy time at the same time. Have you found the trigger that is causing you to wake up? It could be something as simple as going to sleep thinking about facing the traffic in the morning. Does it happen on the weekend also. If not then the trigger is something to do with your work.
Around a month or so ago I posted a panic attack as it was happening so people could see they were not alone but by then I was so conditioned to kill panic attacks with writing that it was gone before I could finish the post. It is a bit funny to think about now. I started by shaking so bad I could barely open the computer and even then I couldn't think clear enough to type, I couldn't find the keys! I was so confused. When I started to lose the attack I started to type faster so I could get it all down but no such luck. I ended up sitting there wondering what I was doing cause I felt fine. I just closed the computer and went back to sleep and the next day was fine. Now if I wake up in the night I just say, "Not again" and go back to sleep. It started with me waking up one night and I was so mad. I told myself I wasn't going to do this any more. And promptly went back to sleep. (in my blog)
Just so you people know that it does get better, it just takes time.
I also find morning difficult to get through. I get the gloom and doom thing and also some depression. I have to fight these feeling most morning. Their is no real truth in them. It does get better as the day progresses. I am glad you brought this subject up. Now I see that I need to challenge this anxious and negative feeling right off first thing in the morning and nip it in the bud. Thanks Jimmy.
When I first began weaning off of Xanax I would have terrible morning anxiety. It really was upsetting because I had to have a clear mind to go to work. To help this I would take a hot shower in the mornings to wake me up a little and open my senses then I used a CD in the car on the way to work that helped to relax me. It was a self-help relaxation cd that reminded me to breathe and relax. Mornings are stressful with work, traffic, or even negative thoughts of what the day holds. Good Luck! On a similar note: Does anyone struggle with nighttime anxiety? Whenever I attempt to sleep at night without Xanax I panic in the middle of the night? It is so tiring because I cannot sleep. I try breathing but I wake up half drowsy and terrified.
It seems for me usually the mornings are the worst. I just woke up and the same feelings of terror/derealization/losing control always seem to rear their ugly head when I wake up. Anyone else experience this?
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