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Insomnia since last year, fed up!

Posted , 4 users are following.

Liam36009
Liam36009

Hi guys I have had insomnia since October which started out of the blue. It started off with me taking hours to fall asleep and other nights I would be awake all night. I haven't had a completely sleepless night for a while but months down the line I wake up at least twice a night after vivid dreams, not nightmares but just random very detailed dreams then I wake up. The last times I slept through the night was a couple of nights in February!

Why do I keep waking up in the night after dreaming? Before my sleep problems I rarely remembered dreams I just had solid sleep and it never took me long to fall asleep.

How do I sleep soundly again? Just fed up feeling tired.

Thanks.

0 likes, 4 replies

4 Replies

  • michael27311
    michael27311 Liam36009

    Posted

    I understand exactly what you're going through. Like you, I started getting insomnia in the fall, and it progressively got worse and worse until I ended up in the hospital. I have exactly the same thing happening, I have vivid dreams and I wake up after every one, usually it a heightened state of alertness - full of adrenaline, heart pounding. Before this started, I might remember one vague dream per week, now I remember three or more per night. 

    I've been on and off Zopiclone and Seroquel. Both are fairly effective, but leave me feeling in a constant haze and lightheaded. If I don't take these, I go right back to getting maybe an hour or two sleep per night at best. Obviously, mine and my doctors objective is to solve the issue without drugs. My doctor seems to think it's just anxiety, but I can go to bed feeling fine and tired, and still have trouble sleeping. It's like something just switched in my brain.

    Anyway, you're not alone. I hope we both find some answers to why this is happening and find a healthy long term solution.

    • Liam36009
      Liam36009 michael27311

      Posted

      Hi Michael, it does seem like we have similar symptoms, I have also tried Zopiclone & Zolpidem but not Seroquel. The Zopiclone & Zolpidem don't keep me asleep all night, I get between 3 and 5 hours uninterrupted sleep on them before the dreaming starts and I wake up again, they are very effective at putting me asleep though just not staying asleep. I have tried pretty much everything (herbs, foods, pharmaceutical drugs) but nothing keeps me asleep all night.

      I think our brains at night are just very active for some reason, like you say it's as if something has flicked a switch, not sure what as I have led a reasonably healthy lifestyle. It just feels like because of the intense dreaming there's an REM disorder of some sort and if there was some drug to stop the frequency of dreaming I probably would sleep through the night. Preferably I would like to have no drugs but without good sleep life is not easy, it's damn hard and people who have never suffered chronic insomnia don't know how lucky they are.

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