[LittleMilly]

It's been 2 weeks since I've had a good nights sleep.. by good nights sleep I mean 5-6 hours.. mostly its about 2. I'm terrified of going to bed or going to the toilet in the middle of the night because I'm scared that someone is just going to jump out of no where and hurt me.. murder me.. or something of the likes. I get anxious even opening the toilet door.. incase there's someone or something waiting to hurt me. I can't sleep and its really taking it's toll on me. Normally I just wait it out til I am so tired I just can't keep my eyes open and I fall asleep.. but that doesn't usually happen til about 6am if I'm lucky.

[Perna]

Entangled, when did this start? Did something in your life change, someone go away, etc.?

I use to have similar problems to yours when my husband would go on a business trip. Prior to being married, I lived in an apartment all by myself for 13 years! I wasn't afraid then.

I would stay up until I was sure the robbers, murderers, rapists, etc. had gone home to bed themselves :-) Leaving the light on in my room and reading late didn't help much (I can't sleep with a light on) but I finally figured out what to do; my husband always came to bed later than I did so I staged the living room as if he were there still reading or watching TV (left lights on in there) and that was much more comforting, felt more "natural" to me. See what has changed since you've had your problems and see if you can make it more like it use to be?

Can you get a night light for the bathroom/hall? Having a night light in the bathroom helps me too, I don't need the full, real light. My husband's going away weekend after next, the first time I think he will have been away without me in the five years we've lived here in this house. I like this house better than the old one though; it's a townhouse instead of a rambler so there's fewer ways to get in :-)

[LittleMilly]

Perna,

Nothing in my house has changed. Nothing I watch on TV at night.. nothing. I get further and further paranoid. Can't even leave my room when the house is empty. Can't sleep with or without the light on. Between my room and the bathroom, I have my parents and my younger sister, all who which sleep with the bedroom doors open.. so no lights in the corridor.. just the bathroom light on.

I just don't know what to do..

milly

[ilovecustard]

I understand how you feel. I just know I could never live alone because i get so frightened. If i'm not with my boyfriend I have to sleep with my mum or sister. Are you sleeping alone? Maybe it would make you feel better to sleep in the same room or bed as a family member? Do you keep a weapon under your bed? I think that would help, something like a kitchen knife or a bat. You will never need to use it but it would give you confidence that you can protect yourself.

Also before you go to bed watch upbeat programmes or listen to music. Whatever you do don't watch any horror films. Also consider taking sleeping pills - whether herbal or not.

Hope this helps!

[Perna]

I use to have the problem when I lived at home and I'd wake at night; it was only when my father would get up and go to the bathroom that I could feel safe enough to turn over and go back to sleep (because someone else was "up"). My room was on a half level higher than my parents though and the guest room was across the hall so I was "alone" up there.

Can you tell your parents or anything, see if you can get some help like one of them sitting with you in your room, reading to you or talking, etc. before bed, see if that helps?

I think I would try, during the day, to make the house more "mine"? Spend more time in various places and really look at your room, maybe crawl under the bed or into the closet, etc., places that scare you at night. Clean them and make them "new" places?

[LittleMilly]

I like that idea Perna, of making the old places that could possibly scare them.. mine... I think I will actually have to try that.
And with my parents.. um.. we don't talk much

[Perna]

Another thing I'd do is think about some of my online friends when I was doing something totally unrelated to being online; I had had a discussion about grapes (a friend use to take too many Tylenol and I told her to OD on grapes instead :-) so when I would go to the store and be in the fruit department, I'd think about her and all our various conversations, etc. You might want to carry on a conversation with "me" when you have to get up and go to the bathroom, ask me to get your back if the monster comes out of the closet, etc.; make it really really silly (monsters or evil wizards, etc. instead of mere burglars or even murderers), if you are afraid of clowns or something that sort of embarrasses you (I get nervous around those huge theme animals like Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, etc. at Disney World), make it much bigger and imagine it crammed into your closet and how pissed it would be having to wait there until it can attack you

Or, you could just invent a pet boxing kangaroo to keep in your room, give him a name, etc. and have him be your night guard?