Insomnia Support Group
Insomnia is a symptom, rather than a disease, and is characterized by inadequate quantity or quality of sleep. People with insomnia complain of difficulty falling or staying asleep, which results in significant impairment of daytime functioning. Insomnia is categorized as transient (shorter than one week), short-term (one to three weeks) or chronic (longer than three...
I'm new to this forum and well I'm 18,male for the past 3 weeks I have gotten a major sleep problem ever since I got a sore throat and chest infection when I had my sleep problems at first I would lay down and just before I drift off I would be forced up because i would feel something like an adrenaline rush and i would jerk awake or i would gulp involuntarily and wake up,my sleep was 3-4 hours sometimes 12 hours a night but really fragmented sleep-eventually i got better-no phlegm or sore throat but my sleep problem persisted now i have never been diagnosed for anxiety but I have had at least three panic attacks in the last 5 years where the chief onset is fear of death-1st time i thought i had h1n1 and I went pale and I thought i was going to die anyways let me digress i absolutely fear death i have been worrying if i have fatal familial insomnia or CreutzfeldtJakob disease ad i have been reading symptoms but even though a prion disease is rare i have bad luck so idk but for the last 3 weeks i have been getting problems to sleep sometimes i would fall asleep watching tv(not for long though i wake up because of the tv's noise) then when i lie down i get trouble falling asleep it may take 10 minutes sometimes 3 hours or i may not even sleep for an entire night but when i fall asleep my average sleep is 4 hours without waking up then my sleep is broken up till morning.Now after a week of this i checked my doc and he said i may be looking too much into it and he prescribed amitryptyline 25 mg for my sleep and anxiety however my sleep hasn't changed except i fall asleep faster but i sleep for 4 hours then 1 hour,1 hour so on till morning first day of amitryptaline i got 12 hours fragmented sleep and i was drowsy for most of the day however today i realized i had myoclonus or involuntary muscle twitches in my stomach and eye for short periods of time which is a sign of neuro problem so now i still get sleep probems though i have been on amitryptyline for 3 days now and i don't know if it is insomnia or what since i have never had a sleep problem ever in fact i used to sleep with speakers booming right in my ears and i'm on holidays from college so i shouldn't be stressed but i don't know why my insomnia hasn't subsided and i don't know if I may have some sporadic neuro problem I am really worried what should i do-bide my time or get a genetic test done my father died of leukemia when was 1 year old and he was german but i don't know anything about him or his family or any of their family illnesses ad there is no way for me to contact them.Does it sound like a run of the mill insomnia or am i looking to much into it
First regarding FFI, no doubt you are OK to just let it go. Safely. Statistically, you have a much better chance of winning the powerball lottery (which is near zilch) and having this.
From your description, it sure appears like excessive anxiety and/or stress are disrupting your sleep. You will be helped by learning some simple and reassuring facts about sleep. Such as this:
You can't not sleep. Your physiologic requirement for sleep is in fact stronger than your insomnia.
If you practice good sleep hygiene (regular wake time every morning, relaxing cool down before bed, no caffeine after mid-day, etc.), get good exercise every day, stay busy with work or school, have an active and positive social life, and learn to tone down the worry about sleep, you'll be fine.
If at any time you feel overwhelmed by any of this, you definitely are doing the right thing by seeing a doctor or mental health professional. Just be sure to treat the true root causes and not just the symptom.
If it's excessive anxiety, you can learn to identify the recurring negative thought patterns that cause it, and let them go. Safely.
Good luck to you, keep us posted if you have more questions.
I'm printing that out. Seriously.
Just hit me reading that how powerless I feel against insomnia. Like it's something that has ME instead of the other way around.
THANK YOU!