Afraid To Go To Sleep Because Of Ptsd

[Jessicak]

I am needing advice or wisdom from those who have walked through the same problem... Over the past 3 years since I was diagnosed with PTSD I have been able to reach a point that during the day time I can control or am very aware of triggers and for the most part able to remove myself before the triggering starts. Or avoid situations in the future that I found were triggers. But at night it is a whole different story. I can't seem to control my triggers at all. I might go a month or so without the nightmares but then they hit again. Not only that but I can't ever seem to reach a level of feeling safe enough at night for me to fall asleep. The moment my head hits the pillow and the light goes out I find myself becoming hyper vigilant. I have no problem with falling asleep the second I feel safe but most nights unless I have someone in the room with me it is like a mental battle that my mind has to stay awake. I become scared to death that the instant I close my eyes I will be unable to be aware of what is happening around me. I have tried having a light on, using soothing sounds even having my dog sleep with me on the bed so I had the comfort of another living thing close by but the fear is still there. Any advice anybody has as to how to help over come this would be most helpful!

 

[JEKBreatheandBelieve]

I had a lot of problems with sleep and still have the problems, but not nearly as frequently. I would have nightmares or lay awake because I was too anxious or avoid going to bed altogether because I was too scared. I have worked really hard and created a nighttime routine to help myself. My routine includes taking medications in a very systematic way because it was the only way to work (I tried several different medications and they either didn't work or I was allergic to them). The meds. alone don't always work. Here's what I do. First, I get in pajamas after I put my kids to bed. Then, I always do something self-soothing/comforting in the evening (color, watch TV, play a game...). When I get ready for bed, I heat up two heat packs. I have an iHome clock that I can leave a light on all night (I used to use Christmas lights, but they were too distracting). When I get into bed, I try to do a self guided-imagery that I wrote for myself based on the image of healing light and it helps with body memories and for relaxation. Some nights I journal- just basic what went on during the day, but not getting too deep. I read for a little while. I have at least one stuffed animal with me in bed. Also, I will often fall asleep to music playing very softly. For me it is the combination of all of those things put into a routine that helps me feel more comfortable about going to bed. It took me a lot of trials and errors to figure out what works best for me and sometimes it doesn't work, but most of the time it does. I hope something in this can help you.

 

[Neverthesame]

Welcome.

To be honest, I would rather have a dog watching my back than a person any day of the week.

• They never sleep through anything.
• Hypervigilance is fun for them.
• They cannot be bribed, bargained with or coerced. Your dog is loyal to you and you alone.
• Canine muscle tissue is several times more dense than a humans, making a 100lb dog stronger than a 200lb man.
• They won't steal the blankets.
• They will eat any bugs in your bedroom.
• They aren't bothered if you snore.
• They will clean crumbs off the sheets, instead of putting them there.

Anyways, thanks for letting me indulge myself there.

My actual advice may sound a bit silly, but I can't think of anything else that would work. Short of hiring armed guards. (That's probably very expensive though).

In most cities there is a store that sells surveillance equipment. Things like cameras, motion trackers, sound recording equipment that kind of thing.

It wouldn't be difficult to setup an infrared laser sensor at the door of your bedroom. Or anywhere else you want it. Then wire it to a speaker that will make a God awful racket should anything interrupt the beam.

As silly as this may sound, it's really a common bit of tech. If you have an electric garage door opener, odds are it came with a sensor to put at the bottom of the door. This of course is a safety feature to halt the door from crushing people, pets or property that happen to be underneath it while it is closing. This sensor is usually an infrared laser.

You could also purchase a home security system. (Though this can also get rather expensive, depending on the level of sophistication the system has. Ie: Doors, windows, fire, lights, motion detection.)

 

[Tinyflame]

Oh @Neverthesame . :p Dogs are a (Wo)man's best friend, hee. Nope, no crumbs just 2 Big Brown eyes. (Thanks for the giggle :) ).

 

[angrypanda]

Sleep has been a life long struggle for me. I wake up with panic attacks and my nightmares are nightly and horrific. I have 2 large labs who wouldn't let a bird fly by without barking and I find great comfort in that. I bolt lock all doors and have an armed gun accessible in a locked case. All these help me with rationality. That being said it only takes the edge off.

What helps the most is Benadryl to knock me out and I sleep on a hot pad. Helps me feel warm and grounded. My doctor started me on Prazosin which has good evidence of helping with PTSD related nightmares. I'm currently building up my dose. Fingers crossed!

 

[Jessicak]

@Neverthesame, I agree having a dog close by does help. The only problem with my dog is that, because she is older, once she is asleep she becomes dead to anything happening around her. Leaving me feeling unsafe still. As for your advice about security cameras, lasers etc. I do find that if I know all doors to my home are locked and windows are closed I am able to fall asleep a little bit faster. Or even just closing my bedroom door often times helps remove some of the need to be hyper vigilant. Thanks for the advice!

 

[Jessicak]

@JEKBreatheandBelieve, Thanks for the advice!! Everyone I have talked to has mentioned having a routine at night and how that seems to help. I have tried to do that and have found that the nights I do my simple little routine, a drink of hot tea, something to unwind my mind like a tv show, game etc. I find that it is much easier for me to begin to feel safe. The problem I am facing is once I have finished my routine and turned off the light to go to sleep, if I don't drift off within a few minutes my body kicks back into being hyper sensitive and alert. I will have to try having a light on and soft noises like you mentioned! Thanks again for the advice!

 

[Myanxietyhasanxiety]

I related so much to this post.

Last night I didn't sleep. It was one of those nights. So the advice here is helpful!

I still haven't found a sleep plan that works for me. I have tried many methods. I actually did buy the dog (haha, just recently too) He's a golden retriever and It has helped a little, but when the anxiety takes over and I'm overtired I find its difficult to be rational in thought.

If by 3:30am, I haven't fell asleep, I gave up and just go for tommorow. Probably not the best advice but that's what I resorted to.

I do find that if I can unwind, relax, tech free, immediately after I put the kiddo to bed, I will sleep. But it's a small window of opportunity