[Catchingthesun]

I felt great yesterday, nice and even. I ran my errands and even worked out. I went to sleep without Ativan and Ambien but I had terrible nightmares all night that had me crying out and waking me up all night. I still got up at 7:00 and made breakfast for everyone and did a very light workout. Now I’m filled with anxiety (took my Ativan), racing thoughts, weepy and tired. Am I in for a doozy today?

[cashart10]

How was your day?

[bpcyclist]

I hope you had at least an okay day, Catchingthesun. Nightmares are just awful. Sleep is important to everyone but I have always thought that, if you have a major mental illness, sleep is just beyond crucial. For me, it may be the only part of the day when I am not freaking and miserable and not wanting to exist. If I don't get that, well, there's no telling how bad it could get. All of which is to say that I finally had to stop my Ambien. It definitely affected my dream life, I sleep walked and sleep cooked. And to be honest, I just don't think it's that great of a sleep med--at least for me it isn't. There are other drugs that have worked much better for me in the past (trazodone, remeron, seroquel are a few). I see there are quite a few people here on PC on seroquel. I was on it for awhile, but stopped it. For me, the diabetes risk just wasn't worth it (I realize that not everyone feels this way). But this is all stuff you can talk to your pdoc about, if you choose to explore alternatives to Ambien. You also mentioned racing thoughts and I have found that in me, bad sleep really exacerbates racing thoughts big-time. So, that might get better with some good sleep.

Sleep is complicated in people like us. I would urge you to talk to your pdoc about what is going on and see what sorts of options he/she comes up with. I am sure you can come up with a solid plan together. Keep us posted. Good luck!!

[Catchingthesun]

I had days with terrible sleep. Restless sleep, waking up all night and maybe sleeping but waking up feeling like I hadn’t slept at all. All day though unable to take a nap because I was just so “overtaken” by something. I wouldn’t call it manic or depression just unable to concentrate or get anything done but also unable to really rest and relax. Am I manic, am I depressed or am I in a mixed episode? I have no idea but when I am in these episodes I don’t have a lot of insight unfortunately. Seeing my pdoc today.

[bpcyclist]

Good timing on seeing the pdoc. Hopefully, he/she will, with your input, come up with a game plan to improve this untenable situation. Hope you have a good visit and keep us posted!

[Catchingthesun]

Thanks. Saw my pdoc and we came up with a sleep game plan. We already adjusted my meds a week ago to get ahead of the mixed episodes. I see her again on Friday for another follow up. It’s just day by day at this point. As I told her I have no idea what is really going on at this point. I see a new therapist tomorrow too.

[cashart10]

I’m glad you’re seeing your pdoc so frequently. Hopefully you can nip this in the bud quickly. Also, good luck with your new therapist. I hope she is a good fit for you and you are feeling better and your sleep is normalized soon!

[bpcyclist]

Progress--that's great. One foot in front of the other... One day at a time...

[downandlonely]

Hope the med adjustment helps you sleep.