How Long Have YOU been awake?

Hey guys I'm totally new here on this site, and I am super excited to have found you. I've got a pretty nice suze truckload of "issues" going on, but right now my big problem is I CANNOT SLEEP! I've been up since Thursday morning, minus a few nods where I fall asleep then get like a "shock" and wake up worse than before. When I stop everything, lay down, and try to go to sleep my mind kicks in with things that scare me worse than death itself. So now I just dont stop. How ridiculous is that? I'm actually scared guys, for my sanity, for my life, for my FAMILY! Sorry to be such a downer, I usually try to have a positive attitude..well actually in the bad times I just fake it because I'm soo desperately afraid of someone not liking me or not thinking I'm "cool". Maybe I've already lost it! Nah I just need some sleep. Thanks everybody, and HELP!!

Im sorry you are in so much distress and over the sleep which i know ccan make sleep that much harder. Are you seeing a doctor? With the anxiety keeping you from sleep... a short time possible help, when you are getting ready for bed, find something soothing to do, that can take over your mind and distract you but doesnt wind you up. Really good relaxing cds work for me. Play them and sing your heart out (id say lay in bed while doing this) when youre too tired to sing outloud, close your eyes and mouth the words. Your body wants sleep, its calming your mind that could help. If i dont feel like singing, i close my eyes and force myself to think about something im looking forward to and i plan it out with my eyes closed and eventually fall asleep
Right now you really need sleep, trying something could help you right now but consider talking to your doctor about it. This technique helps often but not always, especially when im doing it every single night. But it does help temporarily

Worst I've been awake was 3 days, with no sleep at all.

Sometimes when I'm sick with a fever something happens in my brain so when I get closer to falling asleep, it is like I need to wake up and sometimes I even flail around.

Before that, for a while, I woke up at falling asleep, like a jolt, and I was wide awake again. It was like instinctively I feared sleep. I don't know if the fear was real or if it was just an explanation for not being able to pass the moment of falling asleep. It's kind of like a myoclonic jerk, but of the mind, like somehow the falling asleep is really hard. Not because I'm not sleepy, because I was, but because my sleep switch wasn't working.

I was more lucky, because I could finally fall asleep after several frustrating and scary tries. But after I finally fell asleep, I was fine.

I'm not sure what caused it in the case when I was actually physically well, because I wasn't more stressed than usual. I tried to toughen it out, like telling myself it was fine falling asleep. But then when I was going to sleep, I still sort of woke up, because when I was that close to sleep I had no idea where I was or anything, so I could no longer tell myself It was OK going to sleep. But after repeating it many times, telling myself it is fine to sleep, I finally could.

These days I have sleep meds and I'm very spoiled like that.

I don't think anyone would believe me if I posted my record for number of days without sleep. Sorry you are having this problem. I can't offer any tips because nothing I tried worked. I didn't try sleep meds. I recall having some very disturbing thoughts, scary thoughts. This was mainly due to an overactive imagination obsessing over possible worst-case scenarios.
This happened during a period of extreme (seriously extreme) anxiety. I'd guess that you're going to get relief when the underlying issues are under control but in the meantime I hope you're seeing a doctor because medication may be needed in the interim. Reading this may not seem very reassuring but... I'm still here. Never got carted away to the loony bin (sorry if that sounds pejoratives sensitive readers) and never went postal. You can get through this.

I can't sleep either.Only snatching bits & pieces of dozing. Its been 3 nights since i tried sleeping in my bed. Too scared to go in there because i keep seeing things. Been on the sofa for 3 nights. I am strung out & feel so unwell. My heart goes out to everyone who struggles with sleep. So easy to lose the plot. Thats where i am ATM. xxx

Problems with sleep can certainly make you feel like you are losing your mind, and if you have mental problems, lack of sleep worsens them.

I use Lunesta and Trazodone to sleep but even if I take my max dose, I often cannot fall asleep. And when I wake up, my eyes feel sore as if I was laying with them open for those several hours.

Sometimes I sleep too much though.

Supposedly there are ways to get back to sleep but the only thing that has worked for me is to binge on carb loaded sweets.