1st post

[Panamera]

Hi I had my attack on the 29th Dec just gone. I am having a terrible time trying to get to sleep and when I do finally sleep, I wake up drenched in a cold sweat! It’s pretty horrible! Can anyone help?

[Copsem]

Like you I am awake ! I have learnt not to panic or stress about not being asleep at the “right time “ if I am awake I try to stay calm with a good book and trust it will get better in the future.

[MichaelJH Heart Star]

Hello and welcome to the forum! Cardiac events are a shock to the system. When you wake up in a cold sweat are you worrying about your heart and the future. Have you been referred to rehab. This can often help and the group I attended could arrange one-to-one counseling for those who needed it. If you are not going to rehab and it continues speak to your GP who should be able to arrange something.

[Lynn100663]

Hi I was like you and when I went to gp for a review I mentioned it. He thinks its anxiety and has given me anti depressants which help with the sleeping and the pains in my chest I feel a lot better I have been on them for a month. I had my heart attack and one stent in August 2018. The cardiac rehab team are very good to talk to and there is a cardiac counselling service in my area it might be worth asking when u see your cardiac nurse or gp.

[dunestar]

I've not had a heart attack so I'm not in exactly the same position as you but I think that many people with heart conditions struggle with the psychological impact of their diagnosis. I know I've had many sleepless nights and then I'm exhausted next day. Some days/nights I'm perfectly fine so I've ruled out side effects of the meds.

I've come round to the conclusion that anxiety is probably a major factor. Anxiety can have some strong impacts on the functioning of your whole system which affect your heart and then you can get into some pretty negative feedback loops .

I guess we each have to find a way to help ourselves to keep anxiety at bay and some may find that medication is the best route. I'm trying breathing exercises and I've bought a couple of books on mindfulness to see how that goes. I'm also going to take up tai chi.

One simple thing also is to drink plenty of water throughout the day. I wish you well.

[Qualipop]

I agree with all the comments about anxiety but I would also check for side effects of tablets

[CharlesL]

Things will get better over time, and you will forget about your HA. Forgive me if this sounds simplistic.

Take care

C

[Panamera]

Hi everyone thank you very much to everyone who responded. It’s nice knowing I’ve got people that I can speak too that genuinely understand and can identify!! 🤗