Is this a valgus nerve issue? Extreme night terrors!

[Freedom11]

I am a 33 yo man with some serious trauma from an unsafe childhood and a stupid decision to join a rather unhealthy reality show at a young age. So moving forward I’ve been struggling with Depersonalization and dissociation since 2014!


With the dissociation life became even more complicated. It affected my sleep tremendously and my symptoms of night terror has caused harm to both me and my family. I’ve broken my tailbone from lumping out of the second floor bedroom window and I’ve caused my wife and kids fearful situations during my episodes of night terror.


So last night I did something different than what I usually do when I just close my eyes to fall asleep. So usually when I’m exhausted and have been gaming late at night I’ve experienced violent episodes of night terror, and last night I felt the spinning / fear as I was falling asleep, but I started to stretch my upper body and massage my neck and skull and felt that goosebump sensation as I started to feel more at peace and calm. I did some breathing techniques and then went to sleep. I have not slept this good without anesthesia before! Could this be a valgus nerve issue?

 

[parrotthepolly]

Great to hear something works for you. It's common to get night terrors and somatic responses with PTSD since the nervous system remembers everything and plays it out over and over.

 

[Sideways]

usually when I’m exhausted and have been gaming late at night

Is this making your night terrors better or worse?

Between the gaming and sleep, could you add a guided relaxation to help your mind wind down?

You can also speak to your doctor - there’s medication that can help with night terrors.

 

[DSkyler]

There are some definite acupressure points that can be massaged and activated. These can have positive effects for sure. I’m a licensed massage therapist and have some knowledge of this. You tube has tons of videos for such points. I often use them for stress while sleeping or waking up from bad dreams. Anything that helps kick in the vagus nerve is good as it takes the body from ‘fight and flight’ to ‘rest and digest’.

I also use airbuds with bilateral stimulation music, again from youtube, and specifically EMDR ones. These stop my limbic system and right brain from flooding my rational thoughts.