Horrible thoughts in the night

[Tala106]

Hi well I am new to this site but thought I would ask the question, I suffer with night terrors I had a very bad dream Monday night, I woke up and started with the panic attacks I then start thinking horrible thoughts I then panic because I am thinking these things then I am back to being anxious all the time and the cycle starts again. Any advice please

[lisabunny44]

Hi tala106 Your not alone i used to have the same,i would wake up shaking and my whole body would be covered in sweat and i would feel really dizzy and out of breath making me have an anxiety attack.... My advice is not to panic and dont fight it because this only makes it far worse you need to learn breathing excercise so when you do wake up in a panic take a deep breath in and a slow breath out letting all the bad thoughts out once you have learned this you will start to feel better.... Lisa x

[Hidden]

Hi.Tala. A very great welcome to the site. All good understanding people here so you will come to no harm. What you describe are typical symptom of nervous illness and you should try and not be too over concerned about them. We have all had them and have learned from them. Now I am not minimising how you feel. Believe me, I know only too well! You are so right about the 'cycle' and that is the root of the problem. You wake up startled and then from fear engendered in the dream, you panic. FEAR then comes into the picture. It has to for anxiety to occur. So the good old FEAR-ANXIETY-FEAR cycle begins. Dreams can be frightening and horrible and I am not going to say 'but they are only dreams' because to me they are trying to tell us something. Can you write them down when they occur and look at them in the cold light of day. You will find they do not seem as horrible then. Horrible thoughts are thoughts however hard to bear, and thoughts never killed anyone. It is our REACTION to the thoughts that causes the problem. Try and take deep breaths and relax as much as possible when you wake up like this. Difficult I know, but it can be done. It may calm you just a little so you can stop the onset of more panic.You will get others on here and you should listen They all know because they are very aware of your trouble. Blessings and good luck. jonathan..

[Tala106]

Thank you so much could I just ask is it normal to think really scary things though like "god I am going to snap and do something like kill myself or someone else" this really scares me which makes the panic worse !!!! But in the night it seems so much worse x

[Hidden in reply to Tala106]

Of course it is. Everything is 'normal' in nervous illness because the symptoms are NORMAL in the circumstances. Your circumstances are ones of fear, so any reaction will stem from fear. When you learn to allow yourself to fear without trying to fight and struggle with it then the adrenaline (which stokes the fear) will die down and you will get a little peace. Only a little at first, but you can build on that little bit. It is what Dr. Weekes calls 'glimpsing' and it is the start of recovery. Not pie in the sky. I have done it and so have many others and you will too. Take heart. Best wishes. jonathan.