I posted about this in the anxiety forum as well but want to repeat it here.

When I was younger I had huge problems sleeping alone. I slept in my parents bed until I was approx 10. If I didn't often I wouldn't sleep at all the entire night. I was too scared. Anything small could have set me off (scary movie or TV show or nightmare in the past fortnight). Anything that set my fear off would affect me for ages. It was partly the dark, partly the fear that something was in the room, or in the house. I couldn't even close my eyes most of the time. I would have to have my bed in the corner of the room so I could see the whole room. I would have to have the TV on so I couldn't hear any potential quiet scary noises likes creaks in the wood at night. I had to have the door open so I could get to mum & dad if I needed (if I managed to stay in my bed that is, my parents tried everything to stop me from sleeping in their bed, sometimes they just gave up because they needed sleep). As soon as I was with them I was dead to the world. If they told me no I would cry until they let me, it could be all night long.

This happened intermittently, though less frequently until I was 18! As I got older I began to fear more paranormal things. Like I would lay in bed doing all the same things I did when I was young minus crying loudly until my mum came to get me, I couldn't close my eyes because I was scared that a presence was in the room. Like a state of hyperarousal. I would just watch TV all night & try to watch funny things, if a "scary" ad came on I would have to change it immediatly. I was too scared to get up to go to the toilet until I heard someone else wake up.

It all got better when I moved in with my bf. Sometimes now when he's in bed & I'm alone I get the same feelings.

This odd, sort of edgy, spaced out feeling is becoming stronger & more persistent recently which is what prompted me to post about it in the first place. I feel scared alone. Is this paranoia or severe anxiety?