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New here - any suggestions to help avoid nightmares?

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osiris

MyPTSD Pro
I hope its ok to post.
I had the worst night sleep for a long time. Have been having violent nightmares that I can't remember for a few weeks but last night was absolutely hideous. I woke up and and was sick, remembered the whole thing and still feel ridiculously shaken 6 hours later.
I listen to meditation tracks to calm down and fall asleep, and I'm doing my best to avoid triggers during the day, although yesterday was bad and the thunderstorm sounds and lights in the afternoon set things up badly.
Anyone got any suggestions? Already I cannot bare the thought of going to sleep again tonight....

Huge thanks.
 
Go to your doctor and ask for something to help you sleep. I can get in to my doc way easier than a psychiatrist. Do you have a psychiatrist? Do you attend counseling? I know you're new but I don't know your backstory. Have you been down this road before?

Welcome to the forums!
 
Thanks @Deanna for the reply and the welcome.
I started seeing a T privately and am having EMDR. Don't have a psychiatrist. Its all a bit complicated as I am not in my home country and health care here is interesting to say the least. I am not even sure if 'my' doctor would be able to prescribe meds for sleep. I have only seen him four times in three years, and none of those times were anything to do with this. I have kept all mental health off my records and tried to self regulate - recently very unsuccessfully which is why I found someone who specialises in PTSD.
 
I find the worst causes are (for me) 1. stress 2. being triggerred and 3. garlic, in any form.

Reducing stress, leaving a podcast or the tv on, sleeping with less clothes on, help somewhat.

ETA, or maybe that's more to get to sleep? Only reducing the stress and triggers reduces nightmares.
 
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There’s a blood pressure medication that has the quirky side effect of making people forget their dreams. It’s widely Rx’d in the states for nightmares... although, clearly, being a blood pressure med? A great many people cannot take it. It’s called Prazosin.

Many other people use various sleep meds or antianxiety meds.

I’m someone who doesn’t take meds as a general sort of rule for daily problems (although if I’m being smart, I keep a bottle of Valium in the back of a drawer somewhere, for problem that crop up out of nowhere/ to stop a bad cycle from kicking off)... and my nightmare cycles fall into the daily-problem category. So I work around them. My focus not being on not having them, but being affected by them as little as possible. Things like
- triple sheeting my bed (Waterproof mattress cover, sheet, H2O cover, sheet, H2O cover, sheet)... so when I wake up drenched in sweat? I just pull the first layer off, dump them in the laundry with my wet clothes, step into the shower, and go back to bed. Elapsed time? Maybe 90 seconds. Jolt awake again? Strip the next layer of sheets, drop them in the laundry, climb into the shower, climb back into bed.
- Or doing things when I first wake up that yank me out of the nightmare thoughts/feelings. Swimming is a personal fave... because it’s not only exercise (burning off all the fight/flight chemicals swirling in my blood), but super sensory as well, and by definition (not drowning ;)) requires regulating my breathing.
 
Not sure if you mentioned already but have you tried talking to multiple pharmacists?

Oft times when stuck in a country I couldn't access health care of, pharmacists were a bliss. Seriously educated & friendly people. And 'trouble sleeping' is easy to sign & gesture out, ditto that a long time (count out numbers by fingers, months by calender lists turned, if don't know the language.) And allergies can be sifted through going by active substance contents. Circling people stuff in red with exclamation marks gets around the 'I reaall *can't * have thoooose please'.

They could recommend something less invasive, too. Not all medication is the same heavy chemistry.

And things like that.
Seriously, other angels to chat up.
 
Take a look at things like your diet and sleeping/waking routines as well as exercise. Slowing down the waking process should help with reducing the intensity of nightmares, if you remember them at all.

A lot of things in our diet influence our sleep patterns. Cutting out alcohol, for example, since it speeds up thr waking process.
 
Cutting out alcohol, for example, since it speeds up thr waking process.

Sadly already gone. What I wouldn’t give for some shots right now.
Diet is an issue and appetite all but gone, so will see if that makes a difference. Thanks for the advice.
 
Can you think of meds as something different?

From your shots note I got you were self medicating by alcohol in the past, so you know some stuff short term helps...

So see (other form) medication just like that (a form of help for problems that come up), also safer as with less side effects &, purchased in legal channels, definitely safer for consumption than the alternatives?

I get suffer & hide, damnedest. Hell, can measure how bad I'm doing by how willing I am to reach out to anyone.

Thing is, you got more to gain by hiding somewhere people still know about you & how you're doing, than not. If nothing else people can come up with more ideas how to ease the hurt :) Good schtuff. Don't have to take the ideas, but they're out there at least.

So also wellest done, you! :D
Talking about what is up, when every cell in your body wants you to not do that / do the exact opposite.

It's okay reaching out is exhaaaausting :wtf: Still kudos on doing it & don't stop doing it. :tup:

Where's my high five emoticon when I need it. *hi5s Osiris*
 
No need for meds today @Ronin when I am swimming in caffeine ? Wondering how long I can hold out before crashing. Music in my headphones and I’m considering burning down the whole house in my trauma diary now I’ve set the fire. Scary as hell after a lifetime of silence and lies. Appreciate the encouragement!
 
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