Post Benzo Freedom Withdrawal Support Group

[[wi...]]

Rebecca,

Thank you for the encouragement and links.  It helps to keep in mind realistic expectations.

Wish

[[ve...]]

Thanks for the update and info on post acute withdrawal Rebecca.  I'm not sure I agree with Dr Lemis' statement that "post acute withdrawal USUALLY lasts for 2 years". I think some symptoms "CAN LAST" "up to" 2 years", but most folks find that they feel significantly better by around 12 months and  that many symptoms are gone or significantly better by 14-18 months.  At least it was the case with me and others I have read around forum.  In any case, it does give hope for those who are still struggling beyond that first year to eighteen months. 

 

Best,

 

Vertigo

[[ve...]]

Quick update.  Went with 500MG L-Tryptophan about 20 minutes before bed at 10:30PM and slept solid til about 3:00AM.  My wife woke me with some tossing and turning and I'm having a hard time falling asleep, which is unfortunate. I could be wrong but I think I am sleeping lighter with the L-Tryptophan or it may be interfering with "sleep maintenance".  I just took an L-Theanine and will see if I can catch some sleep here in a minute.  I think I'm going to take a break from these supplements once the melatonin arrives and give that a try for a week or two by itself.  I may also try the L-Tryptophan one more time earlier in the evening, maybe a few hours before bed instead of half an hour before bed.

 

Happy dreams everyone,

V

 

[[ve...]]

Update on the Theanine.  Seemed to help me if it's the night before I can sleep in a little bit.  I fell back asleep around 4:30AM and slept through to 8:00AM after the alarm went off at 6:45, woke up a little groggy, possibly from not getting the full night's sleep.  Woudn't work well for me consistently on weeknights but I may try this again Friday night before bed rather than at 4:00AM!

 

V

[[Su...]]

Hey guys

 

I haven't been checking in as much lately but I wanted to drop by and say "hi"

 

I posted something on my blog today that Princezz found comforting.  I know it has helped me.

 

It's from a Dr. Melemis in Canada who specializes in this field-  there is more on his website (link below)

 

"Post-acute withdrawal usually lasts for 2 years. This is one of the most important things you need to remember. If you're up for the challenge you can get though this. But if you think that post-acute withdrawal will only last for a few months, then you'll get caught off guard. . .

 

How to Survive Post-Acute Withdrawal

 

Be patient. Two years can feel like a long time if you're in a rush to get through it. You can't hurry recovery. But you can get through it one day at a time.

If you try to rush your recovery, or resent post-acute withdrawal, or try to bulldoze your way through, you'll become exhausted.

 

 

Post-acute withdrawal symptoms are a sign that your brain is recovering. They are the result of your brain chemistry gradually going back to normal. Therefore don't resent them. But remember, even after one year, you are still only half way there.

 

 

Go with the flow. Withdrawal symptoms are uncomfortable. But the more you resent them the worse they'll seem. You'll have lots of good days over the next two years. Enjoy them. You'll also have lots of bad days. On those days, don't try to do too much. Take care of yourself, focus on your recovery, and you'll get through this.

 

 

You'll go for weeks without any withdrawal symptoms, and then one day you'll wake up and your withdrawal will hit you like a ton of bricks. . . if you're not prepared for it, if you think that post-acute withdrawal only lasts for a few months, or if you think that you'll be different and it won't be as bad for you, then you'll get caught off guard. But if you know what to expect you can do this.

 

 

Practice self-care. Give yourself lots of little breaks over the next two years. Tell yourself "what I am doing is enough." Be good to yourself. That is what you must learn in recovery.

Sometimes you'll have little energy or enthusiasm for anything. Understand this and don't over book your life. Give yourself permission to focus on your recovery."

 

 

If I honestly assess my progress this feels pretty much "right on"  I'm almost at the 14 month mark and feel over half way there.  I expect to be fully recovered by the end of the year.

This is a long, arduous process but as Vertigo and Pamster and Jenny (and countless others)  have proven-  we get through this.

 

 

Wishing everyone here amazing healing.

 

Becca

 

 

http://www.addictionsandrecovery.org/post-acute-withdrawal.htm

 

 

http://www.addictionsandrecovery.org/benzodiazepine.htm

 

Thank you for posting this...this describes to a T what I feel...I was not prepared for w/d lasting past 12 months and therefore the disappointment and sadness made it worse.  I wrote a success story at 14 months off because I was doing amazingly well, but then I experienced a waved at 15 1/2 months off...knowing that this is normal is quite comforting. I am now in my 17th month and am at peace w/the fact it might take a full 24 months to be completely healed.

 

 

[[gi...]]

I didn't take l-tryp for 3 nights to see if it was indeed interfering with my "later" sleep. Not taking it kept me up 60- 90 minutes longer than when I do take it. Then I fell asleep and woke right back up within 30 minutes. Then off and on all night.

 

I took it last night, conked out in 15 minutes, and slept a solid 4 1/2 hours until the neighbor dog woke me up.  I'm going to take it again tonight to see if I sleep as well again.

 

John, I feel your pain re: jetlag sleep. I didn't sleep more than an hour a night while in So Africa and was a basket case for weeks after we got back.  Australia was a bit better, since we went west; but I was still up more than not. Coming back is still a nightmare, 1 month later.  Insomnia is bad enough, but when you add jetlag to it, it's just not fair.

 

Good luck to you; I hope you find your perfect "coctail"!

 

g

[[ve...]]

I didn't take l-tryp for 3 nights to see if it was indeed interfering with my "later" sleep. Not taking it kept me up 60- 90 minutes longer than when I do take it. Then I fell asleep and woke right back up within 30 minutes. Then off and on all night. I took it last night, conked out in 15 minutes, and slept a solid 4 1/2 hours until the neighbor dog woke me up.  I'm going to take it again tonight to see if I sleep as well again. John, I feel your pain re: jetlag sleep. I didn't sleep more than an hour a night while in So Africa and was a basket case for weeks after we got back.  Australia was a bit better, since we went west; but I was still up more than not. Coming back is still a nightmare, 1 month later.  Insomnia is bad enough, but when you add jetlag to it, it's just not fair. Good luck to you; I hope you find your perfect "coctail"!

g

 

Hi G.  Well, at least you know that the L-Tryptophan makes a difference for you Ginger .  My doctor agreed to prescribe Silenor for me but it's really expensive! On my insurance plan, it comes to about $5 a pill (6mg dose) so even if I cut it in half to get 3mg, which some research indicates can be enough to make a difference in sleep maintenance, it's still almost $3 a pill per night .  I would probably not take it every night and most likely would use it for travel only, but it's not cheap! To make matters worse, it only comes in one of those sealed packs so 30 days is a minimum prescription for about $170, for a medication that has been generic for decades but has been repackaged in a different (much lower) dose for insomnia . 

 

My doctor does not seem to have free samples but I'm going to try and find some from another doctor to give it a try on my next flight.  I can't see taking it every day but on a trip where the jet lag is bad, I could see paying a couple bucks a night to get better sleep with no side effects or dependency.  I didn't take any L-Tryp or any other supplements last night and fell asleep fine and slept thru to about 4:45AM, which is my typical pattern, about 6 hours of good sleep, but waking about two hours earlier than I actually need to be awake .  I feel relatively rested but again, the afternoon sleepiness and fatigue usually creeps up some time after lunch, due to not enough sleep and then I'm either really exhausted by 4 and gut it out or I cave and lie down for a brief siesta of no more than an hour before dinner.  Interestingly, I still fall asleep very easily on days I take a nap.  I've experimented to see if I can sleep longer the next night after I had no nap in the day and it makes no difference.  So I think I need the extra sleep right now.  Yesterday was no nap so I will probably try to catch one today or tomorrow if I can. 

 

Well, I don't know if there's a perfect cocktail Ginger, but I am hopeful about the Silenor.  If it works, I'll see if either my current doc or I might have to find one who would prescribe the 10mg generic and much cheaper doxepin, so I can remove half of the contents by capsule to get to 5mg.  My understanding is that Silenor is just low dose doxepin.  It's kind of silly since the Silenor is out there using the lower doses for insomnia, not depression.  I know a few people who take Trazodone for sleep even though it was originally an a/d, but I think there can be more side effects there. Same with Elavil/Amytriptoline which seems to be prescribed for sleep sometimes as well, even though it was one of the original antidepressants.

 

Don't wanna get ahead of myself as I'll first see if I can get ahold of a sample of Silenor to try.  I've already got a couple of good leads.  I feel your pain about your sleep troubles on trips to Africa and Australia.  I fortunately do not have any International travel planned this year, but those trips across the country still seem to take me too long to get adjusted to only a three hour time difference, sometimes a week of 4 hours of sporadic sleep a night which I know for some is a regular occurrence, but would be very difficult for me to do long term. I remember how bad it was during taper and feel fortunate that at least those days are gone. Meanwhile, I think I'll give the melatonin a try (1 to 2mg) to see if it might get me to 7 hours of consecutive sleep here . 

 

Ultimately, this is about trying to complete a five year journey.  From super anxious and having early morning insomnia in the early years after my father was diagnosed with cancer to getting through the mistakes of using valium a few years ago, to tapering off over about a year, getting shingles, losing 30 lbs a little too quickly on an exercise program, left me with possibly some burned out adrenal glands.  About a year and a half of benzo recovery took me to last March 2011, where I declared my benzo recovery to be mostly (95%) completed.

 

The quest for significant positive health change compared to pre benzos, has been elusive.  A couple of setbacks in terms of gaining back some weight I had lost since 2011, in the last six months and ongoing sleep maintenance insomnia where I get up a couple hours earlier than I need to, has been frustrating.  Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful for how much progress has been made, yet still hoping for better and better health.  Now,it's about trying to get to levels of sleep quality and health excellence I have never experienced before.  It's a lofty goal but I'm still hopeful it can be achieved .

 

Vertigo

[[mt...]]

HI V

I have dropped my L tryptophan to 250mg and taking it at 10pm. I got the capsules so I am just biting one in half.  I think that is working better for me.  Normally I go to sleep at 200am but find I am feeling tired and falling asleep earlier now at about 1am.  Hope this continues and I can get on a schedule of 1130pm to 8am or 9 am wake up.  Sorry the L-tyrosine did not help- it has done wonders for me.  I am feeling better as each week progresses.  Slowly filling up those neurotransmitter stores I assume...

 

I have an appointment 2/20 to speak with a Dr who specialises in thyroid/adrenal health.  I picked him as I read an article he wrote speaking to HPA AXIS and thyroid treatment.  He has knowledge on HPA AXIS dysfunction and  treating thyroid when it is depressed can cause alot of negative symptoms.  And one major issue with benzo use is the depression of the HPA AXIS.  So want to move forward with some trepidation.  Don't want to jinx any improvements I have made so far....

 

I am also trying to avoid WHITE flour and sugar and avoid high oxalate foods.  High oxalate is an issue for me as I get bad bladder pain when eating too many fruits and veggies...which is why the juicing effected me....I was juicing ALL the high oxalate fruits and vegetables.  Geezzz  its endless.

 

Here's wishing you and everyone else on the forum continued healing and 8 hours of deep nourishing sleep!

Mimi

 

 

 

 

[[ve...]]

Hi Mimi. I was not aware that you had stopped or reduced the juicing.  I think everything in moderation is a good idea.  I still do about three super green smoothies a week with half a cup of frozen blueberries and half a banana, some walnuts, a little protein powder...  I find that I have some sugar cravings on days I don't do the smoothies but I try not to overdo it.  There are some who think that too much sugar and/or white flour can lead to candida or yeast infections which can also impact sinuses and other immune response.  I've been lucky so far to have fewer sinus infections in the last year or so since I cut back on breads, pastas and sweets.  Unfortunately, the last couple months since end of the year has been a little slide but I hope to lose back about 10lbs between now and the summer.

 

Yep, the L-Tyrosine just didn't seem to agree with me so that's checked off my list.  The melatonin arrived today so I will probably try 1mg tonight before bed, no other supplements.  I don't expect much as some have said it might take a week or two to build up and I don't know if 1mg will be enough.  I have two kinds, one that dissolves under the tongue, supposedly leading to faster action and the other are pills to swallow, but both are only 1mg so I have more flexibility to take what I think is needed.  I'll maybe do 1mg a night for a week, then increase if necessary.  I did end up catching a 45 minute siesta today before dinner, hope it doesn't negatively impact my sleep tonight. 

 

If things are not significantly improved after a week of using melatonin (in terms of getting 7-8 hours sleep a night), I may try the combination of melatonin with L-Tryptophan to see if that works.  Finally, there is the Silenor option, which I hope will only be needed for jet lag when I travel, but would consider taking it a couple times a week if it truly works without side effects, just to start getting more night time sleep and deeper rest consistently.  Keep us posted on your thyroid report in the coming weeks.  Hope the neurotransmitter stores keep building up and that you are enjoying life after a year off benzos, Mimi .

 

 

V

[[ji...]]

Hi Vertigo,

 

As you may remember, I've had severe insomnia for around ten months. I was only getting 0-3 hours a night. I have been on sleep restriction therapy for three week and I'm now sleeping 6 hours. I'm going to work the program until I get 8-9 hours a night. If this can help MY sleep, it can help anyone. Let me know if you would like the details.

[[ve...]]

Hi Vertigo, As you may remember, I've had severe insomnia for around ten months. I was only getting 0-3 hours a night. I have been on sleep restriction therapy for three week and I'm now sleeping 6 hours. I'm going to work the program until I get 8-9 hours a night. If this can help MY sleep, it can help anyone. Let me know if you would like the details.

 

My goodness, how did you survive on less than 3 hours a night Jittery?  I remember during my taper, I had some nights where I only had sporadic sleep for about 4 hours or so but I usually caught up during some days during the day or after a few days of hardly any sleep, I'd be able to sleep for 5 hours here and there... Glad you are back up to 6 hours a night, which is where I am now. 

 

Before benzos, I was probably somewhere between 5 and 6 hours, but I was getting up at 2:30 or 3:00AM and fully awake for a couple hours, then lucky to get back to sleep, very choppy and was not great.  That sort of thing only happens now when I'm traveling and get jet lag.  So how does the sleep restricted therapy work?  I honestly can't remember the last time I slept for 8 consecutive hours. It must be over five years ago.

 

 

[[ji...]]

It's been tough, that's for sure esp. since I have a baby. Basically you limit your time in bed to the average number of hours you sleep. In your case, six hours. Pick your waketime and then count back six hrs to find your bedtime. You must get up at your waketime everyday no matter what. If you can't sleep at any point in the night get up for 20 minutes and do something boring and then go back to bed. Nothing in bed but sleep and sex...no tv or reading etc. Once you've slept through your sleep window for five days in a row move your bedtime back by 30 minutes. The first week was terrible and you may get even less sleep than you're used to, but that's normal and it gets much better.

[[pa...]]

I have a few minutes before picking Kids up from school. I noticed the recent posts about sleep and supplements.

First of all, hi again to V and I do hope that the melatonin helps. It has been a big help to me over the last few years. Hopefully, you can take this for awhile and then take some breaks from it with some success. You have my best wishes for lots of good night's sleeps!

Hi jittery! I'm so sorry that your sleep took a turn that way. Last year, after 1 year post taper from valium, I developed some really bad insomnia that lasted about 2 months. I'm guessing that I lost about 40% of my normal sleep. I had 5 nights within that 2 months where I slept 0 hours. I had about 5 nights of 1-2 hours and probably the same amount for 2-3 hours and so on. I also am on call, part time status for work. I have been trying really hard to make a good impression on being available because I want this job full time so much. Also, when I turn down work, I don't get paid, so you can see the kind of pressure this can put you under especially with insomnia problems popping up right and left.

I still don't know if the late term insomnia was caused by my second taper from remeron. I've always been on very low doses of this medicine so I never expected a taper from it to affect me this way. I will say that since going back on it, I have never again experienced a protracted insomnia problem like I did a year ago.

I have heard about the sleep therapy restriction you posted about and I almost considered doing that. I am glad that it worked well for you and you are now getting a better night's rest!

Again, V, good luck with the melatonin! I'll keep checking back to see how things are going for you on this board. Hope you have a great weekend!

[[ve...]]

It's been tough, that's for sure esp. since I have a baby. Basically you limit your time in bed to the average number of hours you sleep. In your case, six hours. Pick your waketime and then count back six hrs to find your bedtime. You must get up at your waketime everyday no matter what. If you can't sleep at any point in the night get up for 20 minutes and do something boring and then go back to bed. Nothing in bed but sleep and sex...no tv or reading etc. Once you've slept through your sleep window for five days in a row move your bedtime back by 30 minutes. The first week was terrible and you may get even less sleep than you're used to, but that's normal and it gets much better.

 

Thanks Jittery. Thanks for sharing the plan that is working for you.  In my case, I'd have to go to sleep at midnight, yet last night I got to sleep at 10:30 and slept til about 5:00AM.  I've read that the sleep before midnight or especially between 10 and 1AM is most important in terms of the quality of sleep.  I realize it might only be a brief period but it might not be best for me to push my bed time later.  I generally don't go to bed at 10:30 though, usually ends up being more like 11:00 or 11:30.  Lately I've slept til around 5:30. Hopefully the melatonin might help get me to seven hours and 6:30AM wake up, maybe even 7 on weekends.

 

V

[[...]]

mimi - what kind of doctor would that be?  a neurologist?  endocrinologist?  thanks so much

 

[[gi...]]

30 days for about $170 -- ?? !! OMG - you'll lose sleep trying to figure out how you're going to pay for it!! 

 

We have similar sleep patterns.  When I wake up "for the last time" it's usually hours before I  normally get up, so by lunchtime I'm a zombie.  Like you, too, a nap doesn't affect my ability to fall asleep at night. 

 

I don't understand me at all: last night, I clocked a good 6 hours asleep, with only 3 big wake ups - 2 by my snoring husband.  I'm thinking maybe the reason I did so well last night was because I'd spent the previous 4 hours using a lot of brain power, nonstop. What's funny is this afternoon, an hour after a very big workout, I damn near fell asleep while watching a video at a doctor's office.  I wonder how I'll do tonight...it's anyone's guess!

 

Sweet dreams -

 

g

 

 

[[ve...]]

30 days for about $170 -- ?? !! OMG - you'll lose sleep trying to figure out how you're going to pay for it!!  We have similar sleep patterns.  When I wake up "for the last time" it's usually hours before I  normally get up, so by lunchtime I'm a zombie.  Like you, too, a nap doesn't affect my ability to fall asleep at night.  I don't understand me at all: last night, I clocked a good 6 hours asleep, with only 3 big wake ups - 2 by my snoring husband.  I'm thinking maybe the reason I did so well last night was because I'd spent the previous 4 hours using a lot of brain power, nonstop. What's funny is this afternoon, an hour after a very big workout, I damn near fell asleep while watching a video at a doctor's office.  I wonder how I'll do tonight...it's anyone's guess! Sweet dreams -

g

 

Six hours is pretty good G, compared to how you've reported your previous sleep. Did you also take L-Tryp and Theanine last night?  I took the L-Tryp and one 1mg melatonin.  I slept from 11:30 to 5:45, dozed a little more til 7AM.  I also remember dreaming.  Overall, a pretty good night's sleep.  I will try just the melatonin tonight and see how that goes. 

 

Interesting about the exercise making you sleepy.  That used to happen to me a year ago when I was lifting weights and lost the 30 lbs over three months.  I'd work out usually in the morning around 7AM and sometimes that fatigue would start at noon rather than 3PM.  However, I'd get an energy boost in the mornings, wake up very alert around 5AM and not "need" any coffee or tea.  Sometimes I'd work out right then at 5 or 6AM.  It'll be interesting to see what a little more exercise does for me since I've not really worked out since the beginning of the year other than light walks with the dog.

 

Yep, $170 a month is too much for Silenor, although if the 3mg dose is enough, it would be half the $170 cost (and that's if using it every day which I wouldn't do) since the 6mg tablets can be cut in half.  I'm going to get some free samples and if they work, I may try to find a doctor to prescribe the generic doxepin (for travel situations).  Those 10mg generics would also have to be divided in half to get a 5mg dose (they come in capsules so a little more of a hassle to open up and pour out half) but I'll see if I can find a doctor who will agree to prescribe it, assuming the Silenor works, which has yet to be determined.  Maybe if I double the melatonin to 2mg, it will help?  Some articles I read suggested that 1mg or even 1/3 of 1mg may be enough and that larger doses might actually impede sleep.  I'm prepared to go up to 3mg as an experiment to see if I can get 8 solid hours of sleep, but ultimately do not want to take more than 3mg and not every day of the week.

 

Have a great weekend everybody,

 

V

[[An...]]

Hi V

 

The melatonin I buy in Spain only comes in 5mg tablets. I used them for 9 months - I found at the end I was waking up groggy but that grogginess seems to have gone now I have discontinued (I didn't taper and had no problems)

 

I am still sleeping well without anything now which is the best.  I don't count the hours I sleep though. I tend to sleep best on 6 or 7 and 8+ makes me feel overtired!  I could probably sleep 12 hours a night if I didn't set my alarm!

 

Good luck with it.

 

Angel

[[gi...]]

Hi V,

 

I take 1000mg l-trypt & (how ever many mgs is in 1 tab of) l-theanine every night. I have for the last 18 months.  BTW I took l-trypt for 4 or so years, 10 years ago, but then it was taken off the market. And so I went back on pharmaceuticals...and the rest is history.

 

I don't know if I've told you this b4 but since I was a kid I've been a VERY light sleeper. Up until puberty I was a regular sleep walker, but since then have only had 2 episodes that I know of; both very bizarre one! The first was in college (age 19); the most recent one was about 25 years ago.  I also talk in my sleep, but that's also calmed down over the years. Everyone in my family talked in their sleep; my sister had night terrors her entire life. I was the only one who wandered the house like a zombie, though.

 

Have a good day -

 

g

[[ve...]]

Hi V  The melatonin I buy in Spain only comes in 5mg tablets. I used them for 9 months - I found at the end I was waking up groggy but that grogginess seems to have gone now I have discontinued (I didn't taper and had no problems) I am still sleeping well without anything now which is the best.  I don't count the hours I sleep though. I tend to sleep best on 6 or 7 and 8+ makes me feel overtired!  I could probably sleep 12 hours a night if I didn't set my alarm!  Good luck with it.

Angel

 

Thanks Angel.  That's great that you were able to stop the melatonin without s/x and still continue to sleep well, a sign of good healing .  I agree that one can sleep too much.  In my case, I think 7 to 8 hours is a good goal.  I remember when I was a teenager staying out late and sleeping til 11 or noon and waking up feeling groggy and like I slept too much. Don't have to worry about that problem now .  Hope you have a great weekend and have some fun!

 

 

V

[[ve...]]

Hi V,

 

I take 1000mg l-trypt & (how ever many mgs is in 1 tab of) l-theanine every night. I have for the last 18 months.  BTW I took l-trypt for 4 or so years, 10 years ago, but then it was taken off the market. And so I went back on pharmaceuticals...and the rest is history. I don't know if I've told you this b4 but since I was a kid I've been a VERY light sleeper. Up until puberty I was a regular sleep walker, but since then have only had 2 episodes that I know of; both very bizarre one! The first was in college (age 19); the most recent one was about 25 years ago.  I also talk in my sleep, but that's also calmed down over the years. Everyone in my family talked in their sleep; my sister had night terrors her entire life. I was the only one who wandered the house like a zombie, though.

Have a good day -

g

 

No, I didn't recall reading about the sleep walking G.  As far as the L-Tryptophan, I've found 500MG has been enough for me at the moment.  I'm hoping that maybe the melatonin will kick in and that I will be able to drop the L-Tryptophan.  I have no trouble falling asleep.  Also, I have always been able to read before bed and get sleepy that way. Some of the experts say no reading in bed, but I guess I'm one of the lucky ones, although my wife isn't always too happy about it if I read for too long .  My wife sometimes snores and I've found that if I ask her to use a breathe right strip, it seems to help.  I wonder if your hubby would be willing to give one a try since you said his snoring has woken you up from time to time.

 

V

[[ji...]]

It's been tough, that's for sure esp. since I have a baby. Basically you limit your time in bed to the average number of hours you sleep. In your case, six hours. Pick your waketime and then count back six hrs to find your bedtime. You must get up at your waketime everyday no matter what. If you can't sleep at any point in the night get up for 20 minutes and do something boring and then go back to bed. Nothing in bed but sleep and sex...no tv or reading etc. Once you've slept through your sleep window for five days in a row move your bedtime back by 30 minutes. The first week was terrible and you may get even less sleep than you're used to, but that's normal and it gets much better.

 

Hi V,

 

My sleep psych actually told me that time doesn't matter as far as restorative sleep, it's just the first two hours of sleep that is critical. So as long as you dont' get interrupted from 12-2, you are still getting deep sleep.

 

I'm glad you got good sleep last night! This program is really working well for me and I feel so much better. I'm confident I will be able to get back to 8 hours a night in the next few months.

 

Thanks Jittery. Thanks for sharing the plan that is working for you.  In my case, I'd have to go to sleep at midnight, yet last night I got to sleep at 10:30 and slept til about 5:00AM.  I've read that the sleep before midnight or especially between 10 and 1AM is most important in terms of the quality of sleep.  I realize it might only be a brief period but it might not be best for me to push my bed time later.  I generally don't go to bed at 10:30 though, usually ends up being more like 11:00 or 11:30.  Lately I've slept til around 5:30. Hopefully the melatonin might help get me to seven hours and 6:30AM wake up, maybe even 7 on weekends.

 

V

[[...]]

guys can u help me with something.  i think what i have - from this adrenalin racing thru me almost non stop for 3 weeks is adrenal fatigue;  i get so weak i cannot move.  is there anything that can be done to stop these adrenalin surges.?  i saw some research on cortisol helping it.  i have been in such turmoil for so long i woke up at 4 am thinking of reinstating or something.  i can't stand feeling like this anymore.  it is exhausting day in and day out for so long - in my 8th month off.  is all this adrenalin attacking my organs?

so sorry to be so paniced but i am

did u guys live thru this much adrenalin for months and months without it destroying you?  i feel so defeated;  maybe i shoudld take a week off and find doctors - endocrinologists?

is there nothing that can stop this intense anxiety ?

 

[[ve...]]

guys can u help me with something.  i think what i have - from this adrenalin racing thru me almost non stop for 3 weeks is adrenal fatigue;  i get so weak i cannot move.  is there anything that can be done to stop these adrenalin surges.?  i saw some research on cortisol helping it.  i have been in such turmoil for so long i woke up at 4 am thinking of reinstating or something.  i can't stand feeling like this anymore.  it is exhausting day in and day out for so long - in my 8th month off.  is all this adrenalin attacking my organs?

so sorry to be so paniced but i am

did u guys live thru this much adrenalin for months and months without it destroying you?  i feel so defeated;  maybe i shoudld take a week off and find doctors - endocrinologists?

is there nothing that can stop this intense anxiety ?

 

Hi Pan.  Sorry you are having the adrenalin issues now.  I also had them in months 11 to 14.  I would have the jitters in the morning and feel anxious.  I read a few books that were helpful, one was The Schwartzbein Principle 2.  Another was "Tired of being Tired" which led me to some super green smoothies and a few other nutritional changes.  I found that the adrenalin which hyped me up most mornings led to afternoon fatigue, some of which I've reported on this thread in earlier posts.  I also found that mindfulness can be helpful.  One book is the Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety by Forsyth.  Another is The Mindful Way Through Anxiety, came out last year by Roemer.  Are you using any caffeine now? First thing is probably to try and eliminate caffeine and probably chocolate!  I didn't stop the chocolate (did stop coffee) but the books usually tell you to .  Some exercise can also be helpful, 20 minutes on a treadmill or exercise bike.  Reinstatement is not an option Pan. You've come too far to go down that road.  It's ok to have the thought but I strongly urge you to stay away from benzodiazepenes.  Well, hope you have a better day today.

 

Vertigo

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thank j

no never caffeine or sugar

i will get those books.  one doctor said it was as if i am getting worse.

but worse happens and goes away right

i guess i am just so scared right now