night terrors

[Ferndav]

does anyone suffer from night terrors and have any tips?

I am getting next to no sleep due to night terrors from my time in icu, I fall asleep and then dream I’m being put back into a coma and then wide awake, due to not being able to remember my first 2/3 weeks in hospital my brain tries it’s hardest to remember my hospital time, it’s like it’s trying to put the pieces together, my family have told me everything and so have my icu dr and nurses but my mind still goes into overdrive of a night.

I struggle cause I know this is completely normal from the trauma I have been through but just wanted to see if there was any advice from anyone who suffer from the same or have suffered similar experiences

[Sepsur]

I had terrible insomnia after ICU for about 6 months - then it became more spasmodic - interestingly many of the sleep aids you get from the pharmacist have a synthetic version of the sleep hormone melatonin, which your body produces naturally at nighttime to control how and when you sleep.

However, the synthetic versions of melatonin - which should only be taken for short periods if you're struggling with sleep problems - can cause "unpleasant side effects" including nightmares, night sweats, and weight gain. Who knew?

If you have any persistent problem after ICU - you are always better to seek medical advice 😊

Memory - many of the sedatives used on us cause retrograde amnesia- so you will probably never remember this lost time - did you receive an ICU diary. Maybe you can request your notes?

[Ferndav in reply to Sepsur]

yes I got my diary and I have a big comfort in reading it regular (a hard read) but I feel at ease reading it but just still always struggle to sleep from the night terrors and nothing seems to help even asking my partner the question I wonder about at night just never ease me

Thanks for the reply

[Sepsur in reply to Ferndav]

we do a relaxation session on zoom every month - it gives you the tools to relax and therefore sleep - works every time for me 😊

cc-sn.org/relaxation-class

[FamilyHistorian in reply to Sepsur]

I had a course of CBT which helped me a lot. I have found that talking about it with people that understand helps enormously

[CLM68]

As soon as the night terrors hit me, I looked for other things that my brain could focus on. My partner bought me a kindle which proved to work for me. I would start to read and that would help, often falling asleep while reading but the kindle switched itself off if I hadn't moved forward a page....a very handy feature if you are asleep! If it was really bad, then I would watch a film on my laptop .

Have you noticed any triggers for this yet? I know I spotted certain noises and smells seemed to be a trigger for me, as did going to bed too late. When I came out of my coma, I was then put on melatonin in hospital but I genuinely don't know if it helped me or not. I had specific ICU counselling which did help me.

[Back_to_reality]

You're still not too long after coming out of ICU. The worst of mine faded out around six months after my stint in ICU. In the first few weeks after coming out I was afraid to fall asleep. I felt I was going to go back into the coma if I did, or I would die. Some nights I was fine and would sleep. Others I would get a flashback and would sit bolt upright, knowing that there was no chance of sleep after that. In those weeks I generally sat in front of the TV - fortunately it was during the Tokyo Olympics so at least there was something to watch in the early hours. I fell asleep through exhaustion on those nights.

It did get better. As I've mentioned before my tactic was to try and confront some of the visions and flashbacks I was getting. I was awake anyway so I had nothing else to do. It wasn't easy, but every now and again I would realise that something terrifying that I had witnessed was actually something benign. After that, that particular flashback would cease.

I do still get them, but it's rare. They don't bother me as much so I feel less need to try to explain them. I do also get bad nights, usually where I wake up in the early hours and can't get back to sleep. I don't know whether it's related, or just stress. It's not flashbacks any more, just too much happening in my head. There's a lot going on in my life at the moment.

[S-A-E]

I spent 4 weeks in icu, with two and a half of those weeks in a coma. My first recollection of life out of he coma was filled with: I thought I was in a hospital boat sailing from south Portugal through to south of France and back again. Each time I dreamt I woke up as we were docking, and my son, who was also asleep in my dreams and not injured, kept asking where I was going. I told him we were docking in port and to hurry up as my wife was there to collect us off the ferry and drive us home. My son said that I wasn’t going anywhere and that I was there for a few more weeks yet.

In other dreams, I dreamt that on my ward in hospital there were male nurses that did the night shift - one was nice and the other, who resembled Neville off Harry Potter films was particularly horrid and a bully. I dreamt I got out of bed one night to go to the bathroom, and Neville asked where I thought I was going. When I told him he relied that i wasn’t allowed out of bed and forcefully shoved me back into bed.

Another dream involving the two male night staff - I asked the ward sister, who was very lovely, if she was married or had a steady boyfriend? When she said she hadn’t either, I told her she should go out with the nice male night nurse as he was nice but the other one was horrid.

My wife tells me that when I FaceTime called her, I repeatedly spoke in regional accents ranging from Welsh to Scottish and even French.

We all find it highly amusing now, but it all felt very real at the time.

[Lifeafterthat]

I also have this problem and I was put into a coma back in 2020, it’s an absolutely awful experience to keep having to relive in dreams and I’m so sorry you have to deal with this too♥️ if you’d ever like to chat please let me know

[FBUK]

just to confirm what others have said. Talking is very helpful especially structured conversations within CBT sessions. Also time, I was in a coma for a month in 2020 and it was a gradual recovery. So be kind to yourself and take the time you need.