How To Wake Up A Sleeping Person with PTSD?

[Mina]

Petchen, thanks for the idea!

After looking around online, I've decided to purchase a "Sound Therapy System" by Sound Oasis. They have an alarm clock you can program to play a variety of sounds to wake you up - like thunderstorm, and chimes. They sell different sound cards with a variety of sound choices as well; I'm going to get the "spa" sound card, as I liked a lot of the samples on it. You can also program it to play sounds on a timer for when you are falling asleep. Has anyone tried one of these?

http://www.sound-oasis.com/products/sound_therapy_systems/sound_system_s650.php

 

[Luthien]

My vote is with Irton on this one. Leave us to sleep. I know I'm not getting enough of it. If you absolutely have to wake us up, Manic's reply was a great one.

That said, Sgt Bilko's reply was pretty funny...and She Cat's reply even more so, as she wrote a whole sentence without writing a single word...LOL.

 

[ISupportHer]

I've learned to just make a slight noise in the room or sit on the bed /move the bed slightly. I do not say her name, make a loud noise or touch her to wake her.

I have always used touch as a way to just convey I'm "there for her" during the day. Just walking by, a light touch to her elbow or shoulder. I learned the hard way to only do it when approaching from the front so she sees me. Never from behind.

As for DH, on depression message boards it means "Depressed Husband". DSO, depressed significamnt other, etc. Funny how those little letters can have such a varied meaning depending on where you are.

 

[pandora]

I just laughed out loud...I guess my mind still goes into negative thinking mode automatically...I thought DH....meant dumb husband....sorry to all the good men on this site!

 

[pandora]

And...I thought about this and the first thing that came to my mind...let them sleep...wake up for work, kids or emergency because I know alot of us suffer from insomnia. I know that if I am having a nightmare and I have a partner..I have said if i am making noises in my sleep or fidgeting alot..wake me because I would rather not go through it again in my nightmare..How??? I think that gently and quietly..no threatening moves also helps.

 

[Lionheart]

My general advice for waking up folks with PTSD....."Don't!!!"

 

[WorkingThruIt]

I've made some progress in being woken up. I haven't punched anyone in ages. I do still scream and sometimes try to get away. I freaked on my girlfriend one night and she grabbed me and kept saying "It's just me". The grabbing and holding was not helpful. I warn anyone new that will be around when I am sleeping.

I have to have surgery in about a month and I am concerned about the post-op nurses waking me. I've never had general anesthesia. The more deeply asleep I am when I am woken, the worse the response. To be more accurate, I guess it would be a longer freaking out before I am conscious. Doc and I should chat about that before I go under.

 

[trapped]

I used to have a rather sophisticated alarm system, because I was horrible about getting up in the morning (brain doesn't function til I get my meds in me in the morning).... I had a light with a timer on it, as well as a coffee maker with a timer, and then an alarm (that played reveille, which always gets me jumping out of bed in a flash). The coffee maker would come on first, and start brewing my coffee for me. Just before the coffee finished brewing, in case the nice aroma didn't wake me up, the timer turned my light on, and I had it angled so that it'd be pretty likely to be shining on my face (and it was a fairly bright light... it'd start out dim though and grow to being brighter). I HATED waking up to reveille but it was a sure way to get me out of bed, so if I hadn't woken up and fixed my coffee and manually turned off the alarm, then the alarm would go off and I'd shoot out of bed. Once I showed my friends and roommates this system, they started using the coffee and the light to wake me up, which is usually all it took.