Waking up in the night

Hello all,

I keep waking up in the night feeling faint, sick and dizzy. My heart racing and I feel like I am going to pass out. Because I wake up to the feeling it catches me by surprise so makes it very hard to control and can feel really scary and lonely.

I have suffered GAD for a very long time and at stressful times in my life it surfaces again; each time it is in a new and more scary way! I am sad because I have started a new job I love but is pressured and just bought a housee. Both of these changes don't feel right and have me looking for other jobs and feeling confused about my future priorities. I would also like a family one day but I am worried my anxiety will destroy my pregnancy and become uncontrollable.

Has anyone else struggled sleeping at night/ waking up with anxiety?

Has anyone had a family while suffering from anxiety?

Thank you,

It is nice not to feel so alone!

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7 Replies

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  • Yeah love I'm laying here terrified to fall asleep incase that happens, I find that feeling so unbearable that I avoid sleep for as long as possible.

    You're not alone ❤️

    Stay strong.

  • Hello

    So many of us with anxiety do not cope with change very well and you have made to really big changes , one getting a new job ( which most find a new job stressful ) and secondly moving to a new house , so I am not surprised you maybe waking up feeling so anxious and you anxiety sounds like it is racing into the future making you doubt what that might hold !

    Would have been better maybe if you had made one change at a time but I know life does not always work that way , but give the job a chance before you feel the need to start looking at others , could you speak to the manager maybe and tell them how you are feeling you may find they will be very helpful and reassuring :-)

    You could always go to the Doctors and explain how you feel they may just give you something to help you sleep at night while you adjust to these new changes that have taken place and well done even if you are struggling a little for making them , so many with GAD would not have been able to do that so give yourself some praise :-)

    Have you got a supportive partner or friends you can talk to , if so don't be afraid to tell them how you feel , they may not understand how this feels but having their suppoty can go a long way

    I hope I can reassure you when I say I have 3 children that are all well balanced successful adults now , I had anxiety all the time I was pregnant and they all came in the world safely and I also had anxiety while I was bringing them up , but somehow when you are a Mum you push that to one side and for some ir can even distract them away from their anxiety as you have this little life that is so dependant on you and I would really have regreted if anxiety had stopped me been a Mum and the pleasure they have brought me and the pride in how they have all turned out , they have got me through so many bad times in the past because just looking at them I knew I had to keep carrying on :-)

    So no I do not think when the time is right that anxiety will get in the way of you having a family so please try and realize your anxiety is not so good at the moment and it will try and add more negatives to keep hold of you but see it as this " Anxiety " but not reality

    I hope you see the Doctor or speak to someone to help you sleep through the night because lack of sleep also feeds and makes our anxiety worse and let us know how you get on :-)

    Take Care x

  • Thank you. Your words really helped :)

    Sometimes the best cure if knowing that you are not alone! X

  • It really is and knowing people are willing to listen , not judge and know just how you are feeling is such a relief , there is always someone on here that can give you that :-) x

  • You're having night terrors, and I have them too. They come in cycles when I'm particularly stressed. I was on meds for anxiety when I got pregnant with my first and I stopped because it wasn't healthy for the baby. I found I didn't really need the meds like I did. My dr said that wasn't unusual because pregnancy-producing endorphins make you feel better anyway. She was right. I don't think I had a night terror at all throughout both of my pregnancies.

    I try to hide my anxiety from my little ones, but sometimes it's hard.

    You're not alone. 🙂

  • hi Maryhig, I wake up in the middle of the night also with panic...can not get back to sleep so I just lay there after panic subsides , usually 3 or 4 hours till its time to get up.This makes me feel like a zombie all day,I have tried everything to sleep thru the night(can fall asleep ok, then BANG after about 4-5 hours awake).

    I have had anxiety off/on all my life, (53 years) and the insomnia is a new one to me.

  • I went through waking up in a panic at night on and off for years and years. The doctors at the time all those years ago never got to the bottom of what my problem was. I was put on anxiety meds for a while and then came off them. Years later my blood pressure was high and from around that time until now we are talking over 20 yrs endless blood pressure pill changes has not until now resolved the blood pressure problem. It looks like my problem from day one with the waking up in a panic during the night was SLEEP APNOEA as I had the test and since dec 1 have the machine with mask to wear at night so I don't stop breathing during the night and wake u in a panic which in turn put my blood pressure up. This sleep problem may not be the cause of your anxiety and panic but it is a simple thing to have the overnight sleep test and at least rule that out. I was always told I was a dreadful snorer which I did not want to hear as a female but then that sleep problem does not discriminate between male a female.

    When I would wake after an attack (and stop breathing unknown to me at the time) because I didn't know what caused me to wake with a sudden start I would be shaking like a leaf and having a major panic attack. Don't leave it all the years I did get checked and rule that out or in now. By the way you mentioned having a family I have two grown up sons now both of whom have over the years seen me having panic attacks but I have survived you too will have a family I am sure and be very happy but try to get to the root of your nighttime problems now and don't let it drag on. No matter what is causing it there is help out there for you.

    Good luck and take care.

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