Question:
Does anyone out there have this trouble? About every other night I
wake up yelling and shaking all over. This usually happens about 30 minutes
after I lay down. I can't remember dreaming anything. I feel like my heart is
stopping and I wake myself up hollering and trembling all over. I usually can
settle back down ok and go back to sleep with no trouble.
Also, the other night I was already awake (I was awake about 2AM from nursing
my 6 month old) and right when I started to drift off my heartrate instantly
doubled and I could feel it pounding so hard my whole body moved with each
pound.
I really thought I was having a heart attack. It kept slowing back down to
normal and then it would take off again. Finally I got to sleep and it was
fine in the morning. Can anyone relate to this or have any advise?
Answer:
I know when I have a panic attack it always starts with the pounding heart. The more I notice it the harder it pounds. The
of course for me the full blown episode then begins. My advise would be to talk
to your Dr. about it and see if maybe he can shed some light for you.
This sounds more like Night Terrors. It's quite
common and I think treatment would be different
from that for panic disorder. I've heard it said
that hypoglycemia can cause it I think. That may
be urban folklore
I call it WAKE UP SCREAMING. This happened for years to me and I figured it was
just part of panic/anxiety. Then I was diagnosed with diabetes and I learned
that I'd get the wake-up panic attacks when my blood sugar was LOW
(hypoglycemia) and also when it was too high (hyperglycemia). The better I
control my blood sugar, the less I experience this problem. High and low blood
sugar do cause panic attacks and a lot of people with panic disorders may be
diabetic and don't know it.
However, my sister, who is not diabetic, also has the WAKE UP SCREAMING problem
- so it is a part of panic/anxiety disorders as far as I know.
Yep, I can relate. I don't have them every other night, but, have had my share.
The panic attacks that wake me up at night are always very intense, and like
you, my heart pounds very hard. When I wake up with one I immediately run for
the door and go outside. Luckily, these kind of pa's do not last very long. What
I find strange about them......the intensity, duration, symptoms etc.. are always
exactly the same, whereas in my "normal" :) pa's, these vary.
I don't remember seeing posts from you in the past. Are you being treated for
your panic attacks?
Don't have much advise for ya, can relate though
