To think this anxiety will never go away.

[Shinyshiny2]

I have debilitating anxiety over sleep. I fear not sleeping and not coping which then becomes a viscious circle. Sleep hygiene is no use as the more effort I put into sleep the worse it becomes. I know that I need to not worry and I will sleep but that is easier said than done. I’m on day 26 of fluoxetine which has worked previously when I’ve had the particular severe anxiety over sleep. I’m so scared that the fluoxetine won’t work this time and I will spend the rest of life worrying about sleep and feeling so sad. I worry about sleep even after I’ve slept well. I had to leave work due to a panic attack after not sleeping last night which has just fed the fear of if I don’t sleep I can’t cope - I’m extremely stressed about sleep tonight and wish I could just believe that I don’t need to sleep just rest. This is ruining my life and I just want to feel normal.

Sorry you are going through this, I went through a terrible period of insomnia in February this year what I thought was going to kill me. GP prescribed zopiclone which worked wonders but only short term solution. I was quickly back in the cycle of anxiety about the following night as you describe. I listened to lots of sleep podcasts and adopted my own form of “sleep restriction therapy”. It was tough but seemed to do the trick in terms of restarting sleep pressure/cycle. I still have the odd night now but I can deal with it as I know I will sleep again. It’s horrible being sleep deprived and a form of torture but I promise you it will get better it’s just figuring out how to break the cycle.

Maybe have a read on sleep restriction therapy? Have you been to the GP to rule out any possible thyroid issues? I know cliche but magnesium glynicate helps me sleep deeper. I tried melatonin but it didn’t do much for me.

I know that I’m a great sleeper, it’s more the worry about not sleeping! I know that I just need to accept and not worry but my thoughts are too strong.

Surprisingly going low carb really helped my anxiety. I used to have debilitating panic attacks and was on SSRIs. I was able to come off them and haven’t had anxiety like that since.

Now if I eat too many carbs it comes screaming back. It’s a simple, cheap and safe thing to at least try. Have a look at the research - https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11182043/

Did you think your thoughts were too strong and you were stuck @Whatisgoingoff2024 ? I spend the whole day in a state of high anxiety and feel like I’m grieving the past version of me that was so happy. I just want to feel better.

That sounds horrible. I hope you'll feel better after the fluoxetine starts working. ❤️

Thank you, I’ve already been on the fluoxetine nearly four weeks. I’m terrified it’s not working.

It is your anxiety that creates the fear-based thought of anxiety never going away. Have you tried talking therapy? It sounds like you need support to challenge your unhelpful thoughts.