Sleep problem: Vivid dreams & waking up exhausted

What meditation do you use?

You may be on to something! I can't believe that simply lying on your left side would help but I swear I just woke up from a very vivid dream, some of which I could control and sure enough I was on my left side. I think I usually fall asleep on my left side. 

No, to lay on the left after having a bad dream or a nightmare is what we know and tries. We all do it since ages.

You try it.

This is so true. Thank you you so much. Tip; it is all in relation to your life. If you are struggling with something or alot of time unsure of what you are doing is right or not. It just might be a reason that your mind is telling you that you are looking it the wrong way. Once you put everything on paper, it is easier for conscious mind to build a picture and solve the problem. Once your write it, relate that dream with your life, emotionally. Look in what situation in real life you find yourself similar to dream. In many times as you can see some people don't give up for their dreams, even when all other people are teling them to quit. But they keep believing and in the end they become rich. Believe in your dreams and you will become unstoppable.

What meditation to use?

I would say that every person has to have their own meditation. Simply because everybody has their own view of life. To fix the problem you just have to look at the problem with different perspective What ever makes you happy and to beleive in yourself. Once you find a problem, it is time to take action and work on solution.

It is never easy to work on problems with yourself, especially if you have to do it alone. But remember that if you take few weeks or a month to fix the problem, what is that in relation to the life ahead of you. Imagine what will you be able to achive.

Hi,

Please provide us with the actual scientific literature to back up what you're saying.

Or is this all just here say 😏

Regards

I've just come across this article, there is a lot of information out there from what appear to be reliable scientific resources. Its something to do with the way your stomach and organs are laid out.

I'm going to give it a go tonight and see how I get on.

I agree, people should not be able to come on here and just say whatever they want to say. The people running this site need to make a rule that says, all claims need to have reliable resources included.

12-13 hours is your answer. You are over sleeping.

Also, just as a side note, if you have any stomach problems, try taking some antacids before bed. Lastly, drink water before sleep. It thins our your blood and makes it easier to pump, so night time anxiety doesn't make your sleep cycle take so long that you feel like you have to sleep longer than 8 hours.

Sorry but I must chime in here.

With all due respect I think that if the only solution to this condition was to not oversleep we would have all figured this out by now. Granted, oversleeping a lot of the time makes it worse, usually because that extra sleep is in the morning where there is more REM activity. But sleeping 'normal' hours are not the solution to this problem. I'll sleep 7/8/9 hours and still feel extremely unrested.

On your second point, I would not recommend antacids for anything. Your gastric acid contains valuable digestive enzymes that help break down food, help the immune system and fight bad bacteria. It is certainly not something you want to diminish. Taking antacids or acid blocking medication may give you more problematic symptoms in the long term.

zeroX14,

I've been experiencing the same thing for almost three years now. 

I've always had vivid dreams. But in the last three years, they've done a better job of relating to reality. I wake up exhausted every morning with memories of at least two to four dreams from the night before. I feel as if I didn't get any sleep because I am never "awake" nor "asleep"-- I just 'live two lives'. I never actually feel like I've slept whenever I wake up in the morning because I wake up and I feel like my brain has been working the entire time I've been "asleep." 

Some people insist certain medications can cause weird dreams...

I was put on Zoloft (sertraline) when I was 18 (but have experienced vivid dreams and nightmares since age 15-16). Three years ago, I told my doc it wasn't working anymore. I thought my tiredness could be just a symptom of my depression. They chalked it up to "chronic fatigue" and switched me to Wellbutrin because they said it would help with wakefulness. It helped for a while. Then it started not to... I now take 300mg bupropion daily and my "chronic fatigue" has been much worse lately.

I even developed a significant alcohol problem (which I can only now admit after 5 months of outpatient rehab), and I won't say all, but part of the reason I drank so much was because if I blacked out, or even just got drunk enough, I wouldn't dream. And that was paradise to me. I may have felt like sh*t the next morning... but at least I felt awake.

My doc told me to find a psychiatrist because she basically said, "I can't help you; there's nothing wrong with your bloodwork, no physiological symptoms, so it must be psychological." I've been looking for a psychiatrist, but have had no luck finding one yet...

But when I do go, I was almost considering asking for an Adderall script (to help me stay awake long enough to get my work done, instead of doing four hours of work and needing a nap or something). Is this something you've tried in the past? Or are you still on the low dose of Xanax? Is it still working well for you? 

I'd love to hear about your progress. 

Thanks, 

girl-charley

hi charley, how are u getting on since you posted, any improvement or changes?  i'm experiencing the same problems of seemingly too much dream sleep and waking up tired, and needing to sleep in the day again as i cant seem to stay awake through the entire day.

 i dont necessarily have bad dreams, but just, too much dreams (sometimes bad, but not every night).  i take sertraline (ssri antidepressant med, been taking that for several months.  i've always been on and off antidepressants so i just dont know if they are the cause of the increased dreaming, or perhaps using ssri meds for so many years has caused a now ongoing sleep issue.. who knows i guess!)

 im going to talk to my doctor about all of this in a few days, although im not sure he is going th be very helpful in this area, but if i find out anything useful or get any kind of med which works, i will post back here about progress etc.  perhaps you could also post of any progress etc you make.

best wishes from sparrow

Wow.. girl-charley... you have literally explained my situation. It makes me want to cry ... to just know someone else understands. Thank you soo much for sharing for story. I feel its the hardest thing in the world to explain to people, they just don't understand how it really feels so wake up like you Really haven't slept.. infact often more tired than when you went to bed because of your dreams... i do the same with alcohol. I have Never met anyone who experiences the same. How do cope now?

Hi sparrow.. how are you doing now?

Sparrow,

Thanks for the update. And thanks for asking. As it so happens, I do have a few developments to share. 

I have an (initial) appointment with a psychiatrist on the 01/25/17 (FINALLY!) and plan on discussing all of this with him/her then...

But since I last posted, there's something else interesting that I realized in relation to my medications:

Often times, another reason I just want to sleep all day is because I feel overwhelmed with all that I have to get done during the day (normal tasks: work, phone calls, a visit to the post office, a trip to the grocery store), and if the slightest thing goes wrong (e.g. I don't wake up when I originally planned to) I can't get back on track for the life of me. I usually end up "giving up" on nearly every plan I had for the day because "it's not going according to plan," and since I feel tired anyway, I decide to take a nap (because I think it will make me feel better, but as we all know, it never does), cutting out an even larger chunk of my day.

Five-six years ago, I started taking Sertraline for a combination of anxiety and depression. Over the past few months, I've been thinking it was just the fatigue getting worse. But now, I'm thinking it may have a lot to do with my anxiety. 

This is only because I've recently come across a few articles that describe people who are "living with high anxiety." The articles describe me, but I would never have worded my 'struggle' as dramatically as these articles did because I guess I didn't really realize that how I operate day-to-day isn't how everyone else operates. 

To explain a little more, I'm a list person-- always have been-- but lately, I think I feel so out of control with my sleep issues that I'm attempting to exert control over other areas of my life (ridiculous, insignificant things) to make me feel better. I make lists and schedules, planning my days out by the hour, sometimes five days ahead of time. I won't let my boyfriend put groceries away because he puts things on the wrong shelves-- same with laundry, dishes, etc. It just HAS to be a certain way, and if it isn't, I can't stop thinking about it until it's "fixed." I'm constantly doing bill math in my head (again, weeks ahead of time, trying to predict what my paychecks will be) to see how the month will go and on what day I can go grocery shopping or buy this or that. It's... exhausting. 

After reading some of these articles, I had an idea: I searched Zoloft (Sertraline) and looked up what it is designed to treat as opposed to Wellbutrin (what I'm currently on). Zoloft is used for anxiety, OCD, PTSD, depression, and some other related conditions. Wellbutrin is not used to treat anxiety. 

So, I think what happened was, since I switched to Wellbutrin, I had coped with the anxiety (in addition to the constant dreaming/fatigue problem) by abusing alcohol. Now that I'm 'sober,' the anxiety is beginning to resurface because I'm no longer on actual anti-anxiety meds. And I didn't realize this until just a few days ago. 

But now, I don't know which path to take. Do I attack the anxiety and try something like Xanax, or attack the fatigue with an amphetamine or other stimulant? 

I want to say here that I am NOT keen on taking either of these medications considering their potentials for abuse and dependency. They're just thoughts if NOTHING ELSE seems to work.

In the past week or so, I quit smoking tobacco (still ingest nicotine via vapor), started working out (just home videos 30 min/day, muscle toning, not too much cardio yet..), and started trying to drink a gallon of water a day. 

I wanted to do all this because the first thing any relatively intelligent person would ask is, "are you treating your body right?" 

Now, I don't necessarily have the energy to become a full-on gym rat (though I would love to lol), but these are improvements nonetheless. If I DO treat my body right, though, and the problems persist, I may want to try some sort of medication. 

Also want to give acupuncture a shot. Getting a little tired of just throwing pills at whatever problems I have.

Anyway, looking forward to hearing about your progress. 

Tip: if anxiety is not something you struggle with regularly, ask your doctor about switching to Wellburtrin as an antidepressant-- 1) they switched me over in the first place because I needed to try something different and because the doc thought it might help increase wakefulness. In the beginning, it DID help. I saw significant improvement with my fatigue problem (not necesarilly the dreaming part, but the staying-awake-all-day part). Like I said, it's only recently been getting bad again. 

I HAVE ZERO FORMAL EDUCATION concerning medicine or biology (other than intro college courses lol), but just sharing for the sake of suggestion. 

Best regards, 

Charley

Hey laura4814, 

I'm glad my post provided you with some comfort-- no matter how minimal! You're right, though; it is one of the hardest things to try to explain to someone for a few reasons:

1) Everyone in the world thinks THEY have "crazy dreams." Yes, other people absolutely have dreams that either make zero sense or that present similar-to-real-life situations. People dream every night they sleep. However, most people don't remember the majority of their dreams. I feel like normal people remember a dream every once in a while, or maybe even a few times a week... but not several times per night. 

Alcohol was my go-to because instead of just transferring from one world to a more logical world (what waking up feels like), all I would remember is black! It was a relief to think back and realize the last thing I remembered was walking to someone's car, or whatever. But that's no way to live life. It's so incredibly dangerous. But to think I thought (at the time) that it was 'better' than the alternative is just mind-blowing to me now!

2) If I try to explain it to someone I'm not close to (someone who doesn't know the true nature of my personality) I'm always afraid I'll come off as lazy, when in fact, I am the farthest thing from lazy. 

I graduated from college with a 3.6 with two majors and minor in five years, all the while working anywhere from 35-60 hours per week year-round. That's another reason the whole situation is so bothersome-- if I had always been a person who had little to no drive, I would probably just think I was depressed due to my constant desire to sleep. But it's not depression (my medical records say "dream anxiety" lol).  

3) People don't realize just to what extent it affects my/your life. An example: 

I have psoriasis. I found an organization that pays people with psoriasis to take surveys for medical research. The other day, I got a call (I screened it because I don't answer numbers I don't know, especially out of state ones, but I listened to the voicemail right away) and it was a lady saying to call her back-- that if I could spare an hour of my time to complete a phone interview (during which I had to have access to a computer simultaneously), I would receive $125. I felt so disoriented and just couldnt keep my eyes open... I resolved to rest for "just 5 more minutes." 

I woke up three hours later. By then, I had to go to work  and I didn't have time to call! Like really, excuse me, but wtf?! For the life of me, I could not pull myself out of bed for probably the easiest $125 I would have ever made in my life. That's just absolutely ridiculous. 

So, I know how hard it is to explain to people, so I feel for you, really. In my response to Sparrow's post above, I mentioned I have an appointment with a psychiatrist within the next couple weeks. I'm excited. I'll be sure to post any new developments once I have my appointment.

Keep us posted on your progress as well!

Best of luck,

Charley

Hi girl-charley,

I have been reading you previous posts and that is exactly me (including a dual major and similar GPA, what are the freaking odds).. 

As I was reading through your posts, it was just like someone who knew me all my life writing about me.. 

I have had this dreaming situation all my life, since i was a child, as far as i can remember..

A few things i wanted to add for those who think medications might be inducing this.. 

I [31Y.O.M] was never on any prescription meds, and dont smoke (OK, two cigarettes or a random hookah a year should not count) or abuse alcohol (at least not  since i left college, and i have cut down on drinking in general over the last three years) and while I am at it, there were absolutely no recreational drugs involved either.

I am not a fitness freak either.. but i do have episodes of fitness cycles that dont really follow any pattern .. i.e. i d workout regularly for three months and probably take a break for a year, or two.. you get the idea..

i do remember having good quality sleep when i excercised regularly for more than a month.

It sounds like i might have the answer to my problem (it has at least worked for me in the past) but lately, I am barely left with any energy, and more importantly enthusiasm (I guess thats a sign of old age creeping in) to go burn a couple of thousand calories after spending a demanding 10 hour workday followed by a night of poor quality sleep.. and you can see how quickly this has a snowball effect and becomes a chronic condition.. to the point that even on the weekends, when you dont really have to work, you are oversleeping to compensate for the sleeplessness during the work week.. 

There were several fridays when i would literally crash as soon as i reach home .. only to wake up a few hours after and be haunted by this bad quality sleep thereafter.. heck i am responding to your post right after i took a nap in which i lived through a couple of days of lucid dreaming in just 40 minutes, waking up terribly exhausted, just before searching for the causes on the internet and stumbling on your post..

Thank you for sharing your experiences.. its just amazing how many other people here have the very same complicated issue.. 

hi laura and charley

charley:  i asked my doc for wellbutrin in the past, but i live in the UK and they dont give it out here unfortunately  (or if they do its not so easy to get like the ssri meds)

i dont suppose any of u have tried a med called modafinil?  that med looks interesting, i'd love to try it haha     check out some reviews for it...   doubt they would give it to me here in the uk though... the nhs doctors are more concerned about themselves rather than the patients, so will just dish out ssri's because they are 'safe'....  (and we can just 'put up with' the side effects and walk around half asleep all day in a daze.   great!)

modafinil treats daytime fatigue/tiredness.. also treats depression (right away, without having to wait months like with ssri meds)

and because it is not an ssri, might mean sleep is improved again and without the vivid dreams etc

I just looked it up on wikipedia.  I guess it could be addictive and could cause psychiatric reactions.  However, if you slept for 8 hours, don't have sleep apnea, and you're still dragging your feet all day, then that sounds like something to look in to with a psychiatrist. 

BigCoffeeMug. I was thinking the same thing as I'm reading your reply. College-double major, no drinking or drug issues, litterally everything down to the weird work-out schedule. I know I feel better when I work-out but I can't muster the energy to get to the gym or get outside enough for it to count. I'm on a health and wellness program at work that monitors blood work and weight and such and I'm perfectly healthy. I just dream litterally all night long and I feel as though I have not had a mental break. Maybe it's time to get back to the gym...

Wow crazy, exact same for me! Finally people that understand it

I am 60 years old. I have been a vivid dreamer all of my life. That barely describes the depth, variety, incredible motion picture like bizarre quality of my dreams. It is like travel to another dimension. I have had 2 lives, one dream and one awake and can recall years of dreams as memories that I have lived. I woke this morning with difficulty.

I had little sleep the night before due to my choice, and a glass of wine last night which may be why I am groggy. So I Google searched lucid dreaming and ended up on this blog. All I can say is that over the course of my life I have had those meds for depression, sleep apnea, and diabetes. But none of this is the reason for my dreaming as

this pre-existed all of the above. It is just the way you are made. Go with it. However, that said...bipolar disorder and sleep apnea are the 2 things you need to check into if you are having difficulry in your awake life. I am gladdened to hear that there are other vivid dreamers out there! BE WELL.

I dream of incredible places, scenarios, buildings, places I have been in real life but take on a new quality and story, all in color and motion picture like in plot and continuity. I have had recurring dreams maybe with theme, or with place. Very rarely a nightmare. I dream of everything from sex occasionally to shopping for antiques to work to

just plain old scifi.... a beautiful cabin interior with a hanging pot/pan holder in the kitchen that doubled as a solar energy device as the world froze outside! I had at least 5 different ones that may have been rolled together one into another. A beautiful beach with a beached mamamal getting medical

attention and a wedding ceramony taking place at the edge of the surf at twilight, starting from me looking out a window to see what was at the exact opposite of the earth, which was a beautiful coastline and suddenly I was there looking into a huge cave changed before my eyes into a tunnel with a giant in it. All lush and green... and on

and on. Much more detailed and flowing. And sometime in the future I will remember this out of the blue and in a split second I will know it to be a dream memory versus a real life memory.

My vivid dreams are very detailed too.  In ancient times, we might have been diviners, oracles, prophets, and shamans.  Babies sleep long hours and dream a lot, because it's their brain's way of learning and retaining new knowledge.  Does that mean we are still learning or that our observations and thoughts trickle into our dreams and we absorb more knowledge than others who have normal sleep?  I'd like to think that we're all super smart, because of our dreams!!!

Girl-charley, I am in my 50's n have been going through this since I was 12.  I have been to every doctor and through numerous medications and nothing has helped.  Every psychologist has thought I was crazy.  It's comforting to hear that other people have experienced this maybe i'm not crazy.

Olanzapine 10 mg is the solution for dreams and waking up exausted.

Olanzapine working very good and providing natural sleep.

I have used resperidine for a month and stopped cold turkey without tapering off.

Reason i had no knowledge of tapering.

From then onwards my mind going into dream condition but not sleep condition.

After suffering 6 months i found the solution in olanzapine 10 mg.

Hi sparrow

How are you now

Olanzapine 10 mg is the solution for dreams and waking up exausted.

Olanzapine working very good and providing natural sleep.

I have used resperidine for a month and stopped cold turkey without tapering off.

Reason i had no knowledge of tapering.

From then onwards my mind going into dream condition but not sleep condition.

After suffering 6 months i found the solution in olanzapine 10 mg.

Hi, gc,

had vivid dreams my whole life; I'm always feeling tired through the day, giving up on pleasurable activities just to be able to rest, yet terrified of the moment I fall asleep and my "other life" begins. Been on Zoloft for a long time, but the dream issue predates it.

At some point the intensity of the dreams and the frequence of the nightmares escalated to a point where I was getting suicidal.

Long story short, I fell upon this thing on internet - the binaural waves. You can download many tracks for free on youtube or get others from paid apps or sites. I tried especially to use delta waves, since they are associated with "dreamless sleep".

I'm not cured of dreaming, but I managed to get rid of nightmares. Can't comment on the scientific base, but it doesn't seem to be harmful. Read about and maybe give it a chance.

F

I've been reading your posts and I'm so happy to see others here who suffer the same thing.

I dreamt so much last night at one point, I thought it's got to have been like 5 or 6 hours, but it had been 2 or even less. I dream a lot and always have and am always surprised how little people around me tend to dream. It's definitely affecting my quality of sleep too because I can sleep for 7 hours or so and then, especially in the last 4 months, I am awake maybe an hour before I have to go back to bed. I can nap fine in the day, 3 to 5 hours and not wake up or dream much, but as soon as I sleep in my bed at night, I'm waking anything from 3 times on a good night, to nearly every hour on other nights, all in the meantime having over 75% of my sleep probably dreams.

I can have half hour naps, and immediately be in a dream as soon as I've drifted off, and I can have many in one night and be able to recall all of them.

I've not resorted to alcohol because even at times when I drink, I still wake a lot and alcohol just isn't my thing, and would it sound wrong if I said I was scared to not dream at all? I have depression and anxiety stemming from a fear of death, or what is after death and I don't think if like to not dream at all, but to dream a bit less and wake up refreshed would be nice. Nobody seems to take me seriously though with my sleep, and are always adamant I just need to get better sleep hygiene routines and stuff and not sleep in the day, but I can't get through the day without a nap, and the odd days I do, the sleep deprivation makes me irritable and exceptionally emotional so it's not worth trying, and even then my sleep at night is horrendous.

Sorry if my post doesn't seem to have much point to it, I'm sort of just venting and getting this out of my system and just been so nice to find others in this thread with similar experiences, if not exactly the same in some cases.

I hope you're doing okay lately.

Hi girl-charley. I'm new to this forum. I'm a vivid dreamer who does not get restful sleep. I'm also on Sertraline as well as Wellbutrin. It's possible that the Sertraline is contributing to the sleep issue although it didn't cause it. I've always had vivid dreams, but I didn't used to wake up tired. I got restful sleep. Now I don't. It feels like the dreams go on all night even though I'm sure they don't. I can dream an entire play or movie (not one that I've seen before. It's entirely new and of my own making.)

It's also possible that I have sleep apnea, though. I'll consult with a sleep specialist about getting tested.

Mainly, I wanted to let you know that it's possible to take both Sertraline and Wellbutrin together if you still need something of anxiety. For me, I started taking Sertraline, but found that we needed to keep increasing the dosage in order to get the same benefits. At some point, my psychiatrist added in Wellbutrin which he said could "bump up" the effect of the Sertraline and that seemed to be the answer. I've been on a steady dose of both for many years. The problem with tapering off and stopping completely to see if my sleep quality improves is that once you've gone off some of these meds, they're no longer effective if you decide to go back on them. So it's a tough decision.

I was diagnosed with OCD and GAD last year and throughout my life, I've experienced this anxiety getting worse. It's good to read this thread because this vivid dream thing is a fairly new problem. I haven't felt like I've slept well at night for months.

I do, however get some amazing restful naps from time to time and my limbs are tingly when I do. Also, my naps can be hours long.

I'm so scared of taking meds. Is xanex the answer to everyone's problem? I'm hesitant to go to a psychiatrist but I may if this is my only way out.

Any help/advice is greatly appreciated.

Hey sparrow-,

So, my doc DID end up putting me on modafinil....

It seems to help maybe 40% of the time. But to be honest, I haven't been able to try it out all that much because turns out (I just figured this out recently, after having been on the prescription for 4-5 months) that I've been sleepwalking and taking the modafinil in my sleep!

It's infuriating. I'll pick up the prescription, I'll have it for a week, then one day, I go to open the bottle and take one, and there's 5 pills left in the bottle (and I have another 2-3 weeks til I can refill it). Finally, my boyfriend said he's seen me take them in the middle of the night, and when he tells me 'you did it again last night,' I have no memory of doing it.

My theory is that I am SO WORRIED about staying awake that this anxiety is leaking into my sleeping state, causing me to kind of panic to a degree and take it in my sleep (which only causes me to sleep longer because that's how stimulants work-- just keeps your brain on the same path it's already on, whether that's awake or asleep), leaving me with nothing to help me during the day. It's insanity.

Anyway, just thought I'd share about my experience with the modafinil!

Hope you're doing well.

I have been experiencing pretty much the same thing for years now.I Will actually start dreaming before I am really asleep and lately this stage can last up to four hours.. sometimes a few beers is the only way to maybe get 2-3 hours dream free sleep ...I am exhausted

I have been suffering for a year with vivid dreams and no decent sleep after stopping Fentanyl which I was taking for a spinal cord injury. I made a suggestion to my doctor regarding your post on Olanzapine. First time I have been able to sleep for more than a couple of hours at a stretch. Cannot tell you how much I appreciate your suggestion. God Bless.

 

Dear smokey rain

I appreciate you got some relief.If you ever want to stop olanzapine,you need to taper it slowly by small reduction monthly.see surviving antidepressants forum for olanzapine tapering.Also you can read there,how people are suffering by stopping olanzapine suddenly without taper.please take care.

I wish I could say it’s a relief reading your post and all the replies; however, I am actually disheartened to see there are others who suffer from this problem and that none have found relief...

Same story as most - I’ve been vivid dreaming since I was a baby... and there’s the first problem - I can and do remember VIVIDLY and near perfectly dreams I’ve had since I can remember being alive. My first dream memory is of Mr. Rogers and the Land of Make Believe, and how I was being chased by the lion puppet. This was not a nightmare, it just was what was happening. That is the case for almost all my dreams - not nightmares, just “events.” I can dream any period of time in the course of one dream cycle, from a few minutes to one time where I actually dreamed the entire saga of a war between two nations that lasted a hundred years. This is not an exaggeration. Most dreams last a day or a few days, though. I can remember almost every aspect of what I dream - the location of everything I see, things beyond what I’m seeing (I can draw layouts of entire buildings), the color of everything, the texture of everything... worst of all, the smell of things and the taste of things... if I have a sandwich I can tell you its ingredients as well as whether the lettuce was fresh or there was too much mayo or if the sesame seeds got stuck in my teeth... and I’m so exhausted. I am afraid to sleep because I’m afraid of how much I’ll have to live through when I sleep. I can tell the difference between dream memories and real memories, but I still have to parse through both of them to remember anything I need to remember in waking life.

I just want to know why this is happening - if I can’t lessen their frequency or the intensity of my memory, at least being able to ascribe them to some actual medical explanation I think can make this ordeal a little better. And I don’t mean someone telling me they are “subconscious desires” or anxiety - please anyone stop trying to explain them away with that phooey.

Medically, I’ve been diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder. I’ve tried most medications on the market - Celexa, Zoloft, Effexor, Risperdol, Buspar, Wellbutrin, Lexapro... I’ve also been prescribed other meds to “help” me with my depression symptoms (the dreaming has been considered among them), including Ativan, Ambien, Seroquil, Attarax, Vistaril, one for night terrors I forget the name of... none helped. I’ve done many drugs, but none long term (but my vivid dreams predate any of these things). I too turned to alcohol eventually - and loved “remembering just black,” as someone put it. But alcoholism followed and I’m now in recovery for several years... I’ve tried accupunture, exercise, herbal supplements, no noise, white noise, peaceful sounds, tv on... regulated sleep, short sleep periods, napping, not napping... nothing has helped. I am so exhausted by all of this I’ve developed what they’re considering now idiopathic hypersomnia - I can’t stop sleeping when I do fall asleep, and I’m almost always sleepy. Not physically tired. Just SLEEPY. Like I haven’t slept in ages. Which of course makes the whole experience even worse!!!

I’ve had sleep studies done - I’ve been ruled out for narcolepsy and apnea and apparently maintain a fairly regular deep sleep cycle. I’ve had an MRI, and nope - no tumors or swelling or other such irregularities either.

I’ve been out on Modafanil and Methylphenidate as the latest course - I saw someone had asked about that. It helps about 25% with the sleepiness... enough at least that I can stay awake for maybe 4-5 hours feeling normal. But then it’s back to sleep...

I don’t know I’m posting. I guess I’m hoping maybe someone among you has gone through all the above and there’s a “next thing” that I can try... otherwise, I guess if you haven’t tried all the above, I hope you’ve found your “next thing” from my attempts and I truly hope one of them works for you!

I wanted to add - I’ve also been given Clonezepam and Xanax... no good. Still vivid dreaming. And I advise those taking benzos be very careful. They are physically addicting substances and will kill you through withdrawal if you’ve been taking them for an extended period of time and then stop suddenly. The same goes for alcohol. These are deadly substances if stopped without medical supervision and it is probably best to avoid starting to use them regularly to begin with!

Hello. I have the same problema. I have medication for anxiety and undiagnosed mental health issues. I also have dream apnea and insomnia so everything together. My apnea is under control but my nights are spent dreaming away continually. Doctor dont understand it or underestimate.

Recently i Heard about a medicine, prazosine. It is used for postraumatic stress and nightmares. I am thinking to try it since i have  no solution whasoever

same problem

Prazosin is the medication I forgot the name of in my original post - I was told that it is used for blood pressure control, however, among its off-label uses is to prevent night terrors. My doctor thought that it might help with my condition, even though I do not have night terrors and they do not consider what I have to be night terrors.

It definately gave me more “black” sleep (sleep where I dreamed of just dark nothing, like when I was drinking), but ultimately I still dreamed. I think it basically made the time I experienced in my dreams shorter - so, days rather than months, hours rather than days. It’s definately worth a trying, and has been the closest thing I’ve encountered to the right direction for help by way of medication. I warn that I would be reeeeally light-headed for at least 8 hours when taking it; I fell quite a few times and almost severely injured myself when going to the bathroom in the middle of the night while on it. I actually have to urinate often throughout the night (someone else mentioned this in another post) so I eventually stopped taking the Prazosin as the dangers outweighed the nominal benefit.

So you impr improved but it is dangerous.....now bak to horrible dreamy world

Hi Charley,

I've been reading your posts with interest. Sorry I'm so late to the game, but I'm curious about your doctor referring you to a psychiatrist specifically. i know you did want to try new medications for these issues, and forgive me if i missed this information, but are you also seeing a therapist? I would assume so based on your recovery journey.

How are you doing now? So many of your symptoms sound OCD-related!