This anxiety is never going away

[Shinyshiny2]

I get massive sleep anxiety which rears its head every few years. I worry I won’t sleep which in turn stops me sleeping then it’s a viscious circle! I know that I need to just not worry but that’s easier said then done. Every time this has happened previously I’ve been signed off of work with bad anxiety and taken fluoxetine and it’s gradually got better. I’m in a state again on day 12 of fluoxetine and really really don’t want to be signed off work but I’m so anxious that I won’t sleep tonight then won’t cope tomorrow (I’m a teacher). I feel so hopeless and trapped by this anxiety I’m so scared it’s here to stay this time and nothing will work!

would I eventually sleep? My anxiety says I’ll be awake for days on end my thoughts are too strong and I’ll become delirious.

Anxiety sucks. I suffer badly with it along bipolar and am also teaching. My psychiatrist prescribed promethazine to be taken daily at night. So if I wake I can take one and it helps me drop back off. It's actually an antihistamine but has a sedative effect.

Give the fluoxetine a chance to work, i had the same when my son was a baby, it's awful

Am I likely to be awake for days? If I knew my body would overrule the anxiety eventually I wouldn’t worry!

I think you need to try a new medication, Fluoxetine obviously isn't working and isn't a short term medical solution anyway so no idea why you've been put on it in short bursts like this. It can also cause sleep disturbance so if your anxiety is entirely sleep related it's a bizarre medication to choose.

I also struggle with sleep when my anxiety is at its worst and as such SSRIs have been completely off the table for me. I take a combination of Mirtazapine which is sedative so it kind of knocks you out even if you're feeling anxious and Propranolol which eases the anxiety symptoms and allows you to relax. I think you ought to have a discussion with your doctor about trying some other options, leaning heavily on the sleep disturbance being the biggest issue you're facing.

I’m only on day 13 of fluoxetine. It durably cause sleep disturbance, my anxiety disturbs sleep. The fluoxetine is for the anxiety. It’s worked before I’m hoping it kicks in soon. I stopped taking it as thought I was better

Did you follow my suggestion to get up, showered, family ready… go for a long walk (it’s a stunning day!) and make today and really full day?

What do you think is going to happen if you don’t sleep? What do you tell yourself? Your reactions on this thread suggest that you haven’t really developed any strategies to even try to combat the anxiety.

For example, if I can’t get to sleep, instead of whipping myself up into a frenzy, I ask myself: what’s the WORST that could happen? I could stay awake all night. So? I’ll be tired tomorrow. So? If I’m so tired that I don’t think I’ll be safe to drive, I’ll call in sick. So? I’ll have a sick day. So? They’ll put cover in place for my lessons and the pupils will still get taught because I’m not the only teacher in the whole wide world. Will anyone actually die? No.

I also reflect on the past. For instance, this week, I’ve been panicking about whether I’ll get my reports written in time. Then I ask myself: over the past thirty odd years, was there a time when you didn’t get them written in time? No. So what are the odds of that changing now?

So in your case, what’s the longest number of days you’ve gone without sleep when this has happened before? That gives you an indication of what might happen now.

There's a track on the Calm app that Jerome Flynn talks you through this and it works to get me back to sleep 99% of the time. It's all about not fighting it but inviting your body to relax into the moment. Sure there's similar on other sites but I've found it brilliant. It's called softly back to sleep and I like the version with music. https://www.calm.com/app/program/xpRTIoivHc

ive only been awake one whole night before I’ve taken a sleeping tablet. I can cope with one sleepless night but I worry it would be never ending and I’d never sleep naturally due to anxiety

And that's the problem, your worry over never sleeping is what's causing the lack of sleep, so you're stuck in a loop.

You poor thing, I’ve been exactly where you are. Almost could have written it myself, would get more and more anxious the later it got and closer to bedtime. By the time I got into bed I was a right state- and every time I’d almost drop off I’d jerk myself awake with anxiety.

remember it well and it was utter torture, at one point I thought I was going to die from lack of sleep or go mad. And then I’d sit worrying about that

the good news is I did recover but needed some heavy meds to get me there and am now on an ssri for life

Sorry op I didn’t mean to not come back - re reading a book all night have you ever tried this? It’s almost impossible to keep your eyes open after a while, and I think the book would be a distraction too - when the thoughts come push them away - whatever narrative you want, ‘of course you will sleep at some point’ or great I’m going to get loads done and not think about sleep’, or n at least I get to enjoy my comfy bed, I hope I don’t fall asleep’ anything to cut through the intrusive thoughts.

You poor thing and I'm so sorry you're going through this. Please be reassured that physically, sleep is a biological function and is inevitable for your body. When your body is exhausted it will rest naturally. Dr Claire Weekes's book is really good on this. It doesn't matter how many sleepless nights you might have, eventually your body literally will sleep despite anything because it is a physical need.

In my opinion the issue here isn't the sleep, it's the anxiety and you are stuck in a loop of neurosis. I would recommend therapy to try and find out how it started because that might give you an understanding of why you feel the way you do, and understanding breaks the fear. I don't think meds are necessary because they are not treating the problem.

How did you sleep?

How old are you OP? I barely slept until I went in HRT. Game changing for me.