Nightmares, and exhaustion

[Jwyatt]

I suffer from nightmares that I do not remember, but leave me exhausted and sore in the morning. I scream and curse and kick and punch, yet, i have no recollection. My fiamce is extremely comcerned, because they are getting worse and so is my waking memory. I do not remember things I have said or done, and i cohld have said or done it just hours before. I think this is a symptom of the exhaustion, but i just want to know if this is normal for complex ptsd.

Oh and I remembered the other day that i had an ambulance ride. I remember how it felt, the not knowing where i am, riding backwards and looking up. Heres the creepy part. I dont know why i was in the ambulance. I do not know what was wrong with me.

[Murrday]

Definitely, exhaustion reduces memory retention. However, the memory loss is usually temporary, not permanent. May be a good idea to talk with someone who specializes in sleep challenges, and get some feedback on how to relieve this pattern.

I can speak to the ambulance ride memory, based on my own experience. First, we are typically very sick or injured when in ambulance. This means that the body is in emergency mode with the blood supply focused on the organs in the trunk of the body, and the extremities getting less blood supply. This can include the brain. Less blood to brain equals also less oxygen, and that can have an impact on memory. I went in with severe anemia, had to have blood transfusion, and I struggled terribly to remember during that time. I remember now how worried I was then, and also how relieved when the transfusion worked, and I began to recover, and my ability to remember returned again too.

So yes, temporary memory loss as a side effect of trauma can happen as part of PTSD.

Having partial memories is also not unusual with PTSD. For myself, I notice that when I struggle to remember, that struggle can actually block me. When I relax and meditate, I can sometimes allow more details to float to the surface. Not always, however, relaxing and meditating tends to get me more useful recollections than struggling does.

There are times when yes, PTSD does feel overwhelming. At the same time, there are things we can do to relieve those feelings. Self nurturance helps. Allow yourself to have little things that comfort you, be it a warm cup of cocoa, a soothing bath or shower, a soft blanket, favorite music - whatever helps you relax.

Hoping this may help, Murrday

[Jwyatt in reply to Murrday]

Thank you so much for that. I thought i had really gone round the bend. I have therapy today so i will discuss with her. I need to do something about this sleep/non sleep thing. A sleep specialist? Do you mean like a sleep study?

[Murrday in reply to Jwyatt]

You're welcome! Talk with your therapist about the nightmare concerns. She may know a sleep specialist to suggest for your area.

A sleep specialist is someone trained in treating issues that disrupt sleep. It does not always require a study. There might be stress reducing exercises that they could suggest that are beneficial to sleeping. I do not know a lot about that myself, just that it is an available option.

[Jwyatt in reply to Murrday]

Thank you