[LindsayK]

Does anyone else find their insomnia triggered by this? I think mine stems from it; all my life I've had a little anxiety and OCD, nothing out of control unless there were exams in high school or something. Then I had a series of three bad car accidents overseas, and the last one was the worst. The car flipped and caught fire, while my daughter and I were inside still.

Suffice it to say, I had severe panic attacks when driving or riding with someone for a few years after that. I actually passed out cold once when a friend almost rear ended someone. Anyway, by 2006 I had worked it out mostly, and then in '07 I took this pill to stop smoking called Chantix. That was a devil pill, swear to God. I couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, couldn't function day to day, but the kicker was when I had this terribly graphic dream involving a car accident and my kids died.

Three days of no sleep later, and I've never touched another cigarette again. But ever since, I've had sleep issues and my anxiety and OCD has resurfaced and become exacerbated recently. When I can't sleep, I lay there and think of everything I should be doing or correcting or shouldn't have done that day, and when I do sleep it's laced with bad dreams and I wake up feeling more tired than when I went to bed.

Sorry for the ramble. Just wondering if anyone else has problems with this and has maybe found some sort of solution or help? My doc wants me to take something, but I really hate to take anything since that damn Chantix. lol

[Bobbie]

Wow, that's an awful lot for anyone to handle.

I've had this pattern of waking up in the middle of the night for years, but whenever my husband isn't home, I can always count on hardly sleeping at all.

Have you noticed, aside from the trauma of the accidents and the bad meds, that sleep deprivation is a much bigger issue when your husband is deployed?

[LindsayK]

'Bobbie' wrote on '01:

Wow, that's an awful lot for anyone to handle.

I've had this pattern of waking up in the middle of the night for years, but whenever my husband isn't home, I can always count on hardly sleeping at all.

Have you noticed, aside from the trauma of the accidents and the bad meds, that sleep deprivation is a much bigger issue when your husband is deployed?

Oh, yes, it increases significantly. When he's home, there's a sense of safety. I think it's stress, loneliness, and anxiety over everything that combines to create the bad sleeping patterns.

At least, that's the conclusion I've reached during my Productive Thinking hours. 😉

[astradaemon]

I have OCD, and I was in multiple car accidents. In all but two, I was rear-ended at a red light (tailgaters freak me out to this day, and I refuse to drive in big cities). One exception was a police officer who was driving recklessly (already under investigation for some other high-speed accidents), and tore into the front of my car, trying to make a right turn too fast. I was at a red light then too. In physical therapy for six months. The other exception was a roll-over. No one had been drinking or speeding, just fish-tailed on a gravel road…I was a passenger.

Anyway, the OCD leaves me feeling like I can't unwind, let alone sleep. I clean…a LOT. I'm doing laundry right now as a matter of fact…

I hate admitting this, but I take Trazedone (sp?). Usually given as an anti-depressant, but it's strong enough to knock me out for a few hours.

[LindsayK]

My OCD is very mild, though I used to be worse. I would iron my bedspread because the wrinkles bothered me. 😮 Now, I have methods I employ to control it; for example, I need to leave the cover crooked because the kids made their beds and I can't demean their effort like that. So instead of straightening it, I'll use those little stress balls until my hands are so sore I couldn't do it if I wanted to. lol, by that time I've found something else to do, so I forget it until bedtime later.

I know exactly what you mean about tailgaters. One of the accidents, a guy hit me going 30 mph because he was looking at his laptop instead of the road. It slammed us into a car of little old people in front of us, but we were the only ones to sustain significant damage. When I hear screeching tires five years on, I still have to pull off the road and calm down.

This city is bad for me, because drivers here suck. lol

[Martin Reed]

A think a lot of cases of insomnia are triggered by anxiety and stress. What gets a reaction from me is when I hear people say insomnia is ALWAYS a symptom of stress and anxiety.

I have spoken to people who consider themselves very UNstressed, and relaxed. Yet they still suffer from insomnia. I bet it would be interesting if someone started a new discussion topic asking people what they feel the trigger for their insomnia is. Would be good to see how many attribute it to stress, how many attribute it to something else (and what) and how many people just don't have a clue!!

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[primaryantagonist]

i definitely have problems with anxiety and stress. I'm pretty obsessive about checking everything's off/locked/safe etc before I go to bed, and most of the time I'm really anxious that *something* is going to happen but I don't know what.

When I wake up too early I get really paranoid as well — does the anxiety cause the insomnia or does the insomnia cause the anxiety? 😮

[LindsayK]

'primaryantagonist' wrote on '02:

i definitely have problems with anxiety and stress. I'm pretty obsessive about checking everything's off/locked/safe etc before I go to bed, and most of the time I'm really anxious that *something* is going to happen but I don't know what.

When I wake up too early I get really paranoid as well — does the anxiety cause the insomnia or does the insomnia cause the anxiety? 😮

lol, that's like the chicken and the egg.

[primaryantagonist]

it's interesting that a lot of people have insomia/anxiety related to car accidents. My mom was hit by a car while crossing the street fourteen years ago and she's had severe anxiety and sleeping problems ever since.

[sarahkay]

I've posted this somewhere else but my insomnia comes from my depression.

[Author]

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