Extreme fatigue support page

[[be...]]

Good Morning Buddies 

 

Lockie, I am delighted to read that you got a window for your Birthday, sorry that it closed

I'm the same age and being exhausted is so frustrating. But we'll get out of it for good, right? 

 

My fatigue does not follow the windows and wave patterns, it's more or less constant  although I'd say it follows the quality of sleep I can get during the night (which in turn depends on many factors, but withdrawal adds light sleep with vivid dreaming which I don't think is very restful)... anyway, our mind and bodies are healing... and "this shall pass too".

 

Healing Hugs to all!

Julz xxx

 

 

 

 

Hey Julz: I think that's a George Harrison song. Anyway, I belong here because I sleep day and night and when I am awake I feel like my bones are filled with cement. :'( It's a project to get to the bathroom. I can't wait for Thanksgiving to be over. I don't have the energy to be social with people.

Bets

[[Ja...]]

Hi Bets,

Finally found someone else who sleeps all the time. Not a restful sleep by any means. Avid dreams that are exhausting and during the day I lay on the couch and doze off and on for 15 to 20 minutes than wake up for 15 mins than doze off again. I also feel like my bones are full of cement. I started drinking coffee in the morning just to be able to stay awake. It works sometimes but I never seem to get rid of the fatique.

 

Hang in there, I'll be praying for you...

 

Nancy

[[be...]]

Hi Bets,

Finally found someone else who sleeps all the time. Not a restful sleep by any means. Avid dreams that are exhausting and during the day I lay on the couch and doze off and on for 15 to 20 minutes than wake up for 15 mins than doze off again. I also feel like my bones are full of cement. I started drinking coffee in the morning just to be able to stay awake. It works sometimes but I never seem to get rid of the fatique.

 

Hang in there, I'll be praying for you...

 

Nancy

 

Thanks, Nancy: I had a very long bout of insomnia, and I must say that was worse. But I can no longer do much of anything. Social gatherings are out of the question. And to boot, I am allergic to caffeine. I just wish it would go away. But every time I drop my dose, it only gets worse.

Bets

[[...]]

Hi Bets,

Finally found someone else who sleeps all the time. Not a restful sleep by any means. Avid dreams that are exhausting and during the day I lay on the couch and doze off and on for 15 to 20 minutes than wake up for 15 mins than doze off again. I also feel like my bones are full of cement. I started drinking coffee in the morning just to be able to stay awake. It works sometimes but I never seem to get rid of the fatique.

 

Hang in there, I'll be praying for you...

 

Nancy

 

Thanks, Nancy: I had a very long bout of insomnia, and I must say that was worse. But I can no longer do much of anything. Social gatherings are out of the question. And to boot, I am allergic to caffeine. I just wish it would go away. But every time I drop my dose, it only gets worse.

Bets

 

Hi Bets, Hi Nancy,

 

Oh this vivid dreaming, sleep you just feel like sinking in and never fully wake up?  :'(

It is not fun... but I've always been a strong believer that sleep is Healing, that our dreams are our brains finally getting to process the information drugs have obstructed, trauma which has to be dealt with.

 

Of course it is "depressing"... but this is not depression. This is what I keep telling myself - I truly believe it.

 

Be kind to yourselves and allow your bodies and mind to heal... so far acceptance has been the only way I have found to deal with the otherwise inexplicable "fatigue".

 

All the best xxx

 

Julz

[[be...]]

Hi Julz:

 

I gotta agree with that thought process. Even tho I am exhausted I try to do things every day. I have to push myself, but so what? Does that mean less sleep? I can't let this get the best of me. And live like this. My only symptom, except for dry eyes. I guess I could be a whole lot worse.

Bets

[[He...]]

Bets, I saw on your blog that you exercise almost every day.  That is AMAZING that you do this with having extreme fatigue.  You should be very proud of yourself. 

[[Ja...]]

Juts, you know that's probably true because I dream a lot about unpleasant things from my past. People who have hurt me or left me, I guess I never really dealt with the hurts....I just pushed them down, now they are all coming to the surface in my dreams. Unpleasant but perhaps necessary.

 

Bet's your my hero that you can exercise everyday....of course I'm an old lady (70) so I am really fighting this, along with all the aches and pains that go along with aging. Oh, and how can I let out the constipation.....that's really fun!

 

Nancy

[[...]]

Bets, if you manage to exercise every day, you are my hero too!  I absolutely agree about "pushing ourselves", I do get out every day although not to do grand things, I would go nuts if I listened to my body all the time 

And I am in the process of trying to do more, to see more people, etc, I hope having extra activities to look forward to will make me want to do something else than take naps...!!

 

Nancy, my dreams have been so different and vivid since I began tapering off that I can only assume that this is what is happening. Plus from my reading, it seems those drugs hinder the brain's own ability to cope with "trauma".

 

Sleep quality seems to go through "waves and windows", although one does not refresh me more than the other, I get flooded with dreams (which seem to follow up like in a soap opera LOL) then sleep like a log. However in my own experience, the fatigue does not really lift, that's actually the reason why I wanted off tranquilizers in the first place, because I was always exhausted for no (other) reason, at 30 something years old 

 

Wishing you wellness and healing 

Julz x

[[Lo...]]

Hi buddies, looks like we have some newcomers! Welcome to the group Julz, Jaddy and Benzo girl.

 

Just a quick one from me to say hello . Had a nasty 2 days after my last window but seem to be picking up today. Still in struggletown but managed to get out and about , only logged 4 hours on the couch which is awesome after being bedridden again. Hopefully tomorrow ill be back on my feet tomorrow 

 

Happy healing buddies , keep strong.

[[...]]

Thanks Lockie!

 

I'm glad you are feeling like this "wave" is passing 

Four hours on the couch is what I usually log in too... hopefully you will indeed be on your feet tomorrow, whatever happens, I hope you feel good 

 

All Fatigued Buddies,

What do you do when your eyelids are not giving in to gravity?

 

I fall asleep if I begin to read or watch TV/films... after sundown at 4pm, cold wintry weather is not best to go out for a walk!

 

I've been thinking of trying mindfulness colouring with some background music, might try that today... I just get so bored that the tiredness wins, frustrating 

 

Healing Hugs!

Julz xxx

[[MT...]]

Julz, that's a lousy feeling when you're trying to pass time but you keep getting drowsy. You've got some good ideas for coping. When I'm super out of it I watch TV and do something at the same time like surf the web or check email. Mindfulness is a great idea in general but I don't do well with it when I'm that tired. It's a healing thing we can do for our brains.

 

I feel like I've been out of it all week. So exhausted. Fortunately we're back from our travels and I can get back into my routines. I'm not very good at getting off the recliner until 12 noon or so. Someday having energy is going to be amazing.

[[be...]]

Bets, I saw on your blog that you exercise almost every day.  That is AMAZING that you do this with having extreme fatigue.  You should be very proud of yourself.

 

 

Herckie: Thanks for reading my p-log. At least someone is. This is how I exercise. I go 5X a week. I do 1 hour of weight training and 1/2 hour on the step monster. I also do core exercises that I do at home. I do these every day. Even when I am feeling Oh so tired, I still force myself to go. I really feel that this has helped with my w/d. But when I get back, I lay on the bed and watch some bad TV. I have to go back to the gym in a half hour.

 

Jaddy: Good for you for being here. It is never too late to stop these nasty drugs. Were you joking or do you really have constipation? I did. None of the OTC chemical toxins worked for me. But I tried just plain old tree back and some aloe capsules to soften them. If indeed you are having trouble, I'll tell you this miracle stuff, which has to be bought in a heath food store. Both are made by Nature's Way. The tree bark is called this: Cascara Sagrada. I take two pills a day and it works like magic. The aloe pills say latex and leaf on the bottle. It also take two pills a day.

 

Lockie: thanks for much for the welcome!

 

A big  to all those who have fatigue. Off to the gym!

[[...]]

Hi MTfan!

Multitasking to stay awake! That is very like me LOL

I also practice mindfulness and it has helped in other fields  I do it in the morning when I feel awake enough, not at the time of the day when I know I am going to be fighting dozing off during meditation, it gets more anxiogenic than relaxing LOL.

 

I hope you settling back into some routines will help you cope better with withdrawal

 

Bets, your sports routine is quite impressive  Back in January I went 4 times a week in the morning but that finished me for the day while my gym buddies were all pumped up to get on with their lives! (needless to admit how envious I was!!)

 

Quite sure adding at least some mild exercise and fresh air every day is very important, physically and mentally.

[[be...]]

Julz: It was very difficult at first so I started out slow. Then I built from there. Now it has become a habit so it really doesn't bother me. But there are a few days that I am so fatigued I cannot go. The best I can do is lay in bed.

Bets

[[...]]

Bets, your approach is very sound! You seem to know when to push and when to allow yourself to rest 

 

I get very competitive with myself and remember where I was at 10 months ago! Obviously I'll have to start very very slow... I am not very good at "settling for less"  even if I know that is the right way to go (stubborn little me  )

 

Wishing you all the energy you need today! 

Julz xx

[[be...]]

Bets, your approach is very sound! You seem to know when to push and when to allow yourself to rest 

 

I get very competitive with myself and remember where I was at 10 months ago! Obviously I'll have to start very very slow... I am not very good at "settling for less"  even if I know that is the right way to go (stubborn little me  )

 

Wishing you all the energy you need today! 

Julz xx

 

Same here Julz. I stopped my exercise routine for nearly a year while I have been doing it all of my life and then decided to stay where I was and OH Boy! I couldn't walk for a week! So then I began baby steps. Seems I don't have fatigue today! What a blessing. I'll take even one day of it. Such a tiresome symptom.

Bets

[[...]]

Seems I don't have fatigue today! What a blessing. I'll take even one day of it. Such a tiresome symptom.

Bets

 

That is wonderful, Bets! 

Oh I really need to get back into exercise... best therapy in the World! I have to take myself by the hand and just show up  (oh yes I have been there, the week of post-workout agony!  )

 

What is difficult about fatigue - at least in my experience - is that it makes me feel more anxious... frustration of being tired and flat brings on anxiety, full circle!

 

I'll add an extra dose of mindfulness 

 

Best wishes!

Julz xxx

[[be...]]

Julz: Frustration is surely the operative word.

[[Lo...]]

Hi everyone , hows things ? Been awhile since i posted on here and just checking in. I think things are finally improving i had my best window yet a few days back, nearly felt normal again and the last two days i have been sitting at a better baseline. Also i am feeling genuine hope for recovery, and i mean actually FEELING it, not just telling myself im gonna be ok.

 

My days seem to be wavy now with waves of fatigue coming and going during the day rather than being totally washed out all day all the time. Also getting relief at night from about 6pm onwards for the last week.

 

Really hoping im turn a corner i know alot of people do around 6-9 months and the big 6 is just around the corner!

 

Keep strong buddies hope you are keeping well.

 

Becalm - sending hugs your way , hope you have pulled out of acute by now  :mybuddy: :hug:

[[bc...]]

Hi Lockie.....so glad that you are doing better....and getting bigger windows. That's awesome!  I, unfortunately....am still in a very bad place....still very symptomatic....severe depression/fatigue/fear......some bad headaches and eye pain....have some moments in the day where I can get out for an hour or so.  Still not feeling like "me" and I am getting quite frustrated, loosing hope that I will ever be the same again.  This is very difficult...just can't get thru it. 

 

Sending healing hugs back to you..... :hug:

[[MT...]]

I wanted to post something positive too. I managed to have 3 good days in a row despite the last two being preceded by only microsleeps. I went hiking with people I didn't know through meetup.com Saturday and was able to have that feeling of blending with the normals. Today I'm pretty wiped but it was all worth it. I'm having that feeling that there may be life after benzo wd even if sleep is long way away from being healed.

[[Bl...]]

Yesterday I was extremely tired and slept during the whole day. I than got up and ate something but shortly after I went back to my room to try to keep myself busy and I found myself closing my eyes when I was in the middle of doing something.

 

Than I woke up and watched a movie, surprisingly I ended up watching the movie but anytime it got towards the end I kept passing out. I had to go back 2 times to the part where I passed at and finally managed to watched the ending. Than I passed out afterwards. I really hope I'm almost at the end of my journey.

[[MT...]]

Super tired again today but I'm hoping to be able to hike with some folks tomorrow. Keeping my fingers crossed. Some days I just want to curl up and suck my thumb.

[[Lo...]]

Hi everyone! Ive just been lurking in the shadows reading everyone elses posts for the last few weeks and finally decided to get off my ass and do some posting . Well i havnt been the greatest at all, i tried one of those bioflow bracelets (magnetic therapy) and that sent my anxiety through the roof on the second day. When i started feeling better tried excersise and that sent me in a total tailspin and been feeling shocking for the last 10 or so days. Just seems whatever i try to do to help push things along my body crashes, so thats it for me just going to take it easy and rest up till next year then try excersise again. Fatigue has been killing me as usual but im starting to accept the situation we are all in so just going to kick back and let my body do the healing. Hopefully acceptance will make this process a bit easier.

 

Hope you all are keeping well - Lockie

[[MT...]]

Hang in there, Lockie. Acceptance is a powerful tool. There are times during all of this when all we can do is keep breathing and putting one foot in front of the other. Take extra good care of yourself.