Night time panic attacks or something else? Anyone help me?

[woahthere]

Sorry to post this here, I have posted in health as well, but I am impatient and anxious and AIBU gets more traffic. So here it is...
When i go to bed at night i have terrible trouble sleeping..even if im really tired because my heart races, judders, stops, thumps etc for hours. Its truly terrifying. Small noises or creaks in the house make me jump a mile and set my heart off thundering away again. At night time I feel so unsafe. Come morning time it seems a completely unreasonable way to have been feeling and I get really annoyed that Ive not slept. I also get the shakes from the neck up and a load of pressure in my head. This has come and gone since the birth of my child 4 years ago. At first my doctor thought I might have thyroid problems because of these symptoms and because I had goitre, but the blood tests he did came back fine. So then he did heart monitor overnight, but again that came back fine. Im too frightened to go back to the doctor again, Ive been a lot already because of pelvic pain that the gynaecologist is telling me is endometriosis, and I feel if I go again hes just going to say Im an anxious patient. Last night I was freaking out because I have a large lipoma in my calf and it was agony, AND my heart was banging hard and fast for about 2 hours, then its like it cuts out with a big thump, and then starts back in a wobbly kind of way. Im wondering if this is night time panic attacks. If it is, can I do anything about them. I try to convince myself its not harmful and palpitations are not in themselves dangerous, but sometimes when my heart is racing for hours I think it cant be normal and at what point is it going to do some damage to me.
For information, I am a bit overweight but quite fit, I run 2 - 4 miles 3 times a week, do zumba, abs sessions and yoga. I dont smoke but drink about 2 bottles of wine a week. Ive cut out sweeteners and only have tea through the day. If anyone reads this and it sounds familiar and they did something about it, please advise me...I want my life back!

I'm sorry to hear you're going through it at the mo woah but I think you need to go back to your GP. It's not your fault that the symptoms are continuing even though tests to date are drawing a blank. A GP's job is to be a bit of a sherlock, to try any and everything until they get to the bottom of what's going on. I imagine that not feeling conclusively supported (because you are too afraid to access it?) will be contributing to your symptoms. Good luck, I hope this is sorted for you soon.

From what I know, the impression that your heart is actually stopping is a false impression, and you've had your heart monitored, so try and remember that your heart is most likely OK!

You say you do yoga; have you tried doing relaxation or breathing exercises when you feel anxious?

It does sound like panic attacks but it could be related to your change of diet/drinking. I don't think 2 bottles of wine a week is a lot, but it might be enough to be affecting your metabolism or digestion, which then might speed your heart rate up at night - or even make you a little paranoid.
The caffeine in the tea might not be helping too, particularly if you drink more than 3 cups of it a day.

I have had thyroid problems in the past and ended up having surgery for them; a side-effect was panic attacks post-surgery for about 6 weeks. I would be asleep, the alarm would go off and I would be heart thumping, feeling dizzy, uncontrollable shaking, feeling totally out of control, find it hard to breathe and feel as though I needed to run miles away as fast as possible.
Thankfully this did resolve itself in a relatively short space of time, and I got prescribed diazepam by my GP to take when I felt it particularly badly.
I swotted up on relaxation techniques, cut the caffeine, cut the alcohol, reduced my sugar intake (no sweetner replacements, just cold turkey approach), tried to do something relaxing before bedtime and got rid of the alarm clock as I discovered that the alarm on my phone was more subtle, and less panic-inducing.

I think you do need to go back to your GP to discuss this and see if they think you need a referral for some coaching in relaxation or something similar.

Is there any chance that you can take any short naps in the day to replace some of the lost sleep? Do you have the same problem if you try to sleep then?

i try a few things. i try pinching my nose and blowing, its a trick i read about to make your heart reset itself...but its not working lately. i try tensing parts of my body and then releasing it so i can feel myself properly relaxed. the thing is, i dont feel stressed or anxious when i go to bed or during the day, its as soon as i lie down and start to go to sleep that my heart starts and I start shaking from the neck up.. I try breathing yoga style as well. it does all help, but it still takes hours for it to work. Sometimes I feel my pulse when my heart is going and even that skips..

i do have more than 3 cups a day . When i say i cut out sweetener, i mean that i stopped having diet drinks or muller lights or anything like that because they are all full of sweeteners and i thought they might be responsibloe for palpitations. seems not though as they are back! and back with a vengeance!

I don't have any good advice I'm afraid but I just wanted to let you know you're not alone, the first few lines of your post could have been written by me. Its like i've suddenly become terrified of the dark and can't sleep because of thumping heart, jumping at every noise etc and then feel totally irrational when daylight comes. Really don't know what the cure is but i sometimes find going to sleep with the light on and/or radio on helps a bit. Totally empathise how frustrating it is, makes me feel like a big baby!

Sounds like health anxiety to me.

One thing that helped me when I used to get panic attacks was reading that they are perfectly normal, healthy reaction to fear. The adrenaline rush and all the physical symptoms it causes (tight chest, heart palpatations, tight throat, dizziness, spaced out feeling) are all signs your boday is actually working the way it should. The problem is soley in the mind when it comes to anxiety.

Its a vicious circle, you become afraid of having a panic attack, which in turn brings them on. My gran said to me: when you get a panic attack, try to make it worse, you will find they never get as bad as you think...ie, no matter how bad, you dont die! Reducing my fear of having them and understanding them better helped me feel a lot more calm about them which reduced the amount I actually got.

I was given various medicines to help with my panic attacks. They started after the death of my brother, I think with him being the first dead person I had ever seen and being so young, it set off a fear of death in me which meant the slightest health problem and I was convinced it was serious. I had cipralex, a form of citalopram which made everything much worse. Then they tried propanalol (beta blocker) which made my heart beat too slow. Medication didnt help with me, finding out what my trigger was for the panic attacks and dealing with it, coupled with as I have had already said, understanding more about panic attacks, and time was what helped in the end.

A good breathing exercise I found helped me. Alternative breathing. Close one nostril with your thumb, leave the other open. Exhale through your nose, then swap nostrils, close the other side, open the other and inhale. Keep doing that and it wont be long till you are feeling sleepy.

Another one I learned was to tense up my muscles and release. Lying on your back, starting from the feet, tense up and stretch out your muscles for ten seconds or so, then totally relax. Ankles, calves, knees, thighs, bottom, hands, arms, back, shoulders and neck. As tight as you can, then relax. It helps relieve the tension from feeling panicky.

I would also suggest that when you are lying in bed and feel like you cant sleep and are getting anxious, get up. Dont lie there and keep trying. Get up and distract yourself for fifteen minutes or so. Sip on a glass of water, read a short story in a magazine...then try again. I found the more I tried to sleep and couldnt, the more stressed I got. I still have this now, but its insomnia not anxiety anymore.

Cammomile tea helps too, its a very mild natural sedative, so a cup half an hour or so before bed can wind you down a bit.

I do agree with the other posters though, I would go back to the GP and explain whats going on so they can make sure there is no medical cause for your panic attacks/anxiety and if it is psychological, they can refer you for some help with dealing with it. You have my sympathy, I wouldnt wish panic attacks on my worst enemy.

Don't be concerned that your GP with think you're an "anxious patient" - anxiety is something that alot of people suffer from and need help with, that is what they're there for. Go back and see them and talk to them about how you're feeling.

I've had the sort of symptoms you describe on and off for a years, albeit mildly. I think in my case it's just caused by stress and anxiety and for me it definitely became self fulfilling - the more i worried about it, the worse it got. On a practical level, I would cut out caffeine and alcohol completely for a while - this seemed to help me, especially the caffeine. If I have any now, I feel really jittery and shaky, can't be good for you!

Talk to your GP.

Definately sounds like panic attacks. Alcohol always affects me, particularly red wine, and I have also discovered that more than two cups of tea a day seems to trigger a fast heartbeat or skipped beats too.

I suffered really badly with palpitations/racing heart for years and I was prescribed propranolol, to take just when I am having an attack, and they really do work.

Another thing that I have read about which also makes a lot of sense is how trapped wind can have an effect on your heartbeat. If you google the vagus nerve, and palpitations, you can find a lot of medical research and information. The nerve is the biggest in our body, and travels right up through our groin to our neck, and if we have trapped wind it can put pressure on the nerve which results in palpitations and skipped beats. A lot of people find that shortly after an attack, they will do quite a lot of farting or burping! :)

As someone who has suffered for over 20 years now, and learned not to panic when I have an attack.. this forum has been my godsend.

panic attack forum

There are some fab posts on there that make me realise I am not about to drop dead of a heart attack, and when I am having a bad episode I usually have a read on there and it definately helps calm me down. I would really recommend it for anyone who has panic attacks or anxiety attacks.

Id go back to your GP or another one and keep pushing. Write it all down and explain the impact on your life. Can't be right!

I would say its health anxiety. Its an incredibly debilitating condition which until you have first hand knowledge, from yourself of a loved one is hard to fully understand.

I used to go to bed feeling scared and wake up feeling frightened. Every little thing eg a mole I had not noticed before, a headache, an upset stomach was something really serious which was going to kill me. I would focus on a particular area of my body and obsess about for example a pain in my ovary and it would consume me and get worst and worst. I was forever asking my dh for reassurance that it was nothing.

I was referred for CBT and I found it to be really really helpful and managed to put the condition behind me.

I had suffered a number of bereavements one after another and also been involved in a very traumatic incident but I do think having children can be a trigger. We become so much more aware of our health and worry about getting ill and the impact that this will have on our children.

Go back to your GP and keep going back until you are fully satisfied.

I second everything other posters have said about anxiety. Just to reassure you that night-time, just before you go to sleep is a really common time to get these symptoms. Its because you aren't doing anything active so your mind has more time to focus on the anxiety. Please do go back and see your GP. A short course of propranolol really helped me and theres a book called mind over mood that gives some good techniques to help you deal with the attacks and stop them. You'll probably find that the attacks will just disappear, mine did and Ive not had one for quite a few years now. I really sympathise with you, they are just so so awful but it will get better.

I'm so sorry you're having this problem. It does sound like panic attacks to me but, of course, none of us can diagnose via the internet. I've had them severely for 10 years and was initially tested for over-active thyroid and heart problems. It's really to rule out any serious cause of illness so don't feel that by going back you're being an anxious patient- it's just that now the GP will be better equipped to treat what is actually wrong and not worry about more sinister causes.

I would certainly recommend getting some treatment as soon as possible as the longer you have them the more likely they are to become habitual/established if that makes any sense. I developed agoraphobia because I never got the right treatment.

In contrast to some other posters, I actually found medication to be the only thing that worked so don't rule it out automatically. Different things suit different people. You may be lucky to have access to CBT in your area and if so that works well for lots of people (under NICE guidelines, it's the first treatment recommended but in reality many places don't have access). I did try CBT privately but didn't find it helpful but it is always worth a try. With medication, you're most likely to be prescribed SSRIs. They can give you diazepam but only for a very short time. Beta blockers can help but they won't give them if you have asthma. Relaxation etc can help too if the attacks are not yet established.

All in all, they're really scary but really very common. They don't actually harm you physically even though you probably feel like you're dying or passing out. Good luck whatever course of action you go with and do get back to the GP.

Many thanks all, will have a look at that forum and attempt to get a doctors appointment, nightmare as I work 8 - 6 every day. Funny you should say that about trapped wind, squeakytoy, because i have had a bad flare up of ibs lately. Not looking forward to tonight, so tired but just hope i can sleep. All of my back and shoulders and ribs seem to be getting lots of horrid stabby pains as well. Im a wreck! My endometriosis has meant that Ive been having an almost constant period for 3 months now... ug...i must have been REALLY horrible in a previous life!

Night terrors?

sometimes fabbychic. it often is happening before ive fallen asleep but sometimes i have night terrors once i have fallen asleep. i sometimes sleep in a weird state of consciousness which creates this feeling of being awake all night but being unable to move, and you dream that you are fighting to move and screaming to move, all in your own bed but you cant, I used to be visited by an evil skeleton woman that would pin me down (not literally of course) and i would feel like i was trying to move all night. Its very scary, but of course not real. Apparently its to do with being between states of consciousness.

I had symptoms like this and it turned out it was gallstones! It went undiagnosed for months - ironically whilst waiting in the surgery to see the GP I read a magazine article about a woman who was told she was suffering from panic attacks and it was actually gallstones. I didnt make the connection either. You mention stabbing pains in your shoulders,ribs and back too. Its just a suggestion but ask for a liver function test. Could be completely wrong of course! Hope you get it sorted.

Your last post perfectly describes "nocturnal paralysis" (google)