Fear of dying from exhaustion

[[Mr...]]

Does anyone else experience this?

 

After long term sleep deprivation, stress and fatigue - I often fear that I will die from exhaustion.

 

Sometimes my body feels like it's grinding to a halt. Intense feelings of fragility, nausea, palpitations, and so on add to the idea that my body is struggling to sustain itself. My main fear is that my heart will suddenly stop due to sheer exhaustion.

 

This fear also leads to a significant fear of not sleeping and fear of exerting myself in almost any way, since that amplifies the exhaustion. It also sometimes leads to a fear of dying in my sleep if I'm extremely tired before bed.

 

This has been an almost continual fear during withdrawal and has been very hard to shrug.

 

 

Does anyone else experience this?

 

 

Has anyone overcome it? Could you share experiences and advice?

[[Mi...]]

Your body will sleep before you die of exhaustion. Nothing to fear. If it worries you that much maybe talk to your Dr about non habit forming sleep aids.

[[Mr...]]

Your body will sleep before you die of exhaustion. Nothing to fear. If it worries you that much maybe talk to your Dr about non habit forming sleep aids.

 

Are you positive? 

 

 

Hmm.... I hear valium and zopiclone are non-habit forming and non-additive at low doses. Very easy to get off. Simply split your pill in half for a week then stop! At least that's what a doctor told me once

..  

 

 

I'm thinking my fears contributes a lot to my current sleep problems, a vicious cycle

[[li...]]

The other night I didn't sleep at all. Then during the day I was exhausted and took a 4 hr nap. When I awoke I felt so fatigued. I could barely lift myself out of bed. I was so scared. I thought for sure I was going to die of exhaustion. In my head I thought all kinds of bad things. I went to urgent care and they did EKG and blood work. All normal. My BP was normal too. And I felt better as the day progressed.

 

 

[[Aj...]]

22 years of ME tells me that is extremely unlikely even though I have hoped I would die.

[[Ca...]]

Yes I have this too.

Can you also get a feeling of being sucked down to the ground? like the whole body feels heavy

[[Aj...]]

I have the sucking down feeling. Have had it for a couple of decades on and off.

 

Not sure now if it wasn’t the diazepam all along.

 

Will only know that if I survive getting off them.

[[Ma...]]

Lately i worry a lot more. I was very healthy when the doc told me to get off. I lost 45 pounds. Became anxiety ridden. Stressed. Etc. I have went from healthy to feeling very sick.

no exercise etc muscles weak.tired. foggy headed.. Ended up at the er for heart palpitations.. never ever had health issues or worries. Now i feel so tired and run down i worry a,lot.

[[Ne...]]

I was once awake for 2 straight weeks because of anxiety and panic. I am 60 years old with heart problems. I too was worried that I would just die, but I didn't.  During this horrid anxiety/insomnia phase I simply rested as much as I could, did what tasks I could, and I got through it. Your body will make you lie down and rest or sleep before it lets you die of exhaustion. If I can tolerate two weeks of high anxiety, panic and insomnia with my heart issues, then I'm pretty sure you're going to do okay. Easier said than done, I know. Your mind has this phobia that is telling you a lie. Maybe talk back to it and tell it that it is lying and to take a hike. Sometimes this helps some people.

    I truly hope that you feel better soon and can find a way to reassure yourself that you are not going to die in your sleep, which, unfortunately, is a common fear for those of us with anxiety disorders.

[[gi...]]

Does anyone else experience this?

 

After long term sleep deprivation, stress and fatigue - I often fear that I will die from exhaustion.

 

I remember those days.  I thought I was going to die from exhaustion during acute in the first 3 months of my withdrawal. I was getting 0 to 2 hours of sleep a night, I thought it would never end, but it does, the sleep slowly returns.  You will not die.