Nightmares

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FelineFae -> Nightmares (5/26/2011 6:43:13 AM)
i have PTSD, ( Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ) and GAD ( Generalized Anxiety Disorder ). i do not go to any therapy, because no amount of "talking" will undo what has happened to me. i do take meds to keep the nightmares at bay and to help me sleep, but the meds only help for so long, then the nightmares return. So i go off that med and when i can't deal with the sleep-trouble any longer, i go to another med. Does anyone have a similar situation? Does anyone know a "cure" for nightmares?

NuevaVida -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 6:51:03 AM)
I had horrible, gruesome, recurring nightmares since childhood. Therapy did help (talking doesn't "undo" the things; it just helped me process and come to terms with them so they no longer haunted me). Another major help was where I placed my thoughts as I went to bed. I began telling myself I would have a peaceful sleep, with no nightmares, and no uninvited negativity, and that I'd wake up in the morning feeling rested and refreshed and full of energy. In other words, I'd wish myself a good night's sleep. During the day I'd redirect my thoughts if they turned negative, and focus on the goodness that was possible, rather than the bad. It keeps my mind in a healthy place. I still have an occasional bad dream, but now it's more like once or twice a year.

LadyConstanze -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 7:27:19 AM)
It's not a scientific method but it helped me, maybe it will work for you, I used to keep a pen and paper next to the bed and when I woke up from a nightmare wrote it down, I had the feeling that by writing it down, I got it "out of my system"...

dreamerdreaming -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 7:29:06 AM)
There's at least one medication I can think of offhand, that is known to have a side-effect of stopping nightmares. But its a side-effect, so not everyone will have that result.

DesFIP -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 7:29:15 AM)
Therapy won't undo things but it will help you to no longer be a victim of your past. I also have GAD. I will not watch anything disturbing on tv at any time. If he's watching SVU, I leave the room. I don't go to horror movies, he goes with one or more of the teens. I also do sudoku at bedtime. It empties the mind and allows me to go to sleep with nothing more than random numbers swimming around in my brain.

LaTigresse -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 7:32:26 AM)
If it were ME........I would explore other avenues instead of medication. Therapy, hypnosis, meditation, yoga, ANYTHING that would be a fix rather than a temporary bandaide.

DesFIP -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 7:37:52 AM)
Therapy can also be a temporary thing. But temporary doesn't mean a band-aid. It just means it's incurable and you need to keep doing it to have good results. Insulin is taken multiple times a day, and that's as temporary as you get. Doesn't mean it's a band-aid. And brain chemistry disorders are no different than body chemistry disorders. They just affect a different part of the body.

Marc2b -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 7:59:58 AM)
LadyConstanze said: quote: It's not a scientific method but it helped me, maybe it will work for you, I used to keep a pen and paper next to the bed and when I woke up from a nightmare wrote it down, I had the feeling that by writing it down, I got it "out of my system"... I second this. Write down as much detail as you can and then go back later and look it over. I am of the belief that often (not always, but often) our dreams are our subconscious telling our conscious mind things it doesn't want to hear... so everything is disguised in symbols. You need to interpret the symbols. You'd be surprised at the insights you can garner from this. The strange thing is... sometimes it is so blantantly obvious, you wonder why you didn't see it before. Another thing you can do is to train youself to recognize that a nightmare is not reality so that you can wake up or maybe even take control of the dream (lucid dreaming). Easier said than done, I'll admit. Since a very traumatic experience when I was six (when a so called camp counseler lured me into the woods, threw me over a fallen tree, and anally raped me) I've been prone to the same kind of anxiety dream: being swept away by a great flood of water. Although I can go months or even years now without these dreams, when they do crop up I have learned to recognize the impossibility of the situation (what the hell would I be doing in a canyon during a torrential downpour?) and upon realizing that I know that I am dreaming and wake up. Note: Harking back to the second paragraph... my traumatic experience obviously did not involve a flood but I recognize what the dream means - a feeling of utter powerlessness and helplessness and upon waking I am able to remind myself that I am not powerless and helpless anymore.

dreamerdreaming -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 8:18:42 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: FelineFae i have PTSD, ( Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ) and GAD ( Generalized Anxiety Disorder ). i do not go to any therapy, because no amount of "talking" will undo what has happened to me. i do take meds to keep the nightmares at bay and to help me sleep, but the meds only help for so long, then the nightmares return. So i go off that med and when i can't deal with the sleep-trouble any longer, i go to another med. Does anyone have a similar situation? Does anyone know a "cure" for nightmares? Therapy isn't just about talking. Its about forming a bond of trust with a professional, whose job is to help you heal, problem-solve, etc. So its about getting help with making changes in your life- forming plans, and following through on them.... Learning to think and act differently- that sort of thing. Changes in your thought patterns, feelings and behavior. In short: its about action. There are effective treatments for PTSD. Of course you can't "undo" your past. But you don't have to let it haunt you so. If you do, then your perpetrator wins. You can change your present, and your future. YOU are the controller of your thoughts, feelings and actions. "Change your thoughts, and you change your world." Feel free to message me on the other side, OP. There are some simple treatments for PTSD that can be very effective. steps down from lecture podium

angelikaJ -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 8:48:56 AM)
Topamax has the side effect of stopping nightmares. I take it for migraine prevention and it does lessen nightmares. One caveat: it can cause weight loss in some people. I also think that some types of therapy which have been proven to work for PTSD might be worth looking into. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is one; EMDR is another.

FelineFae -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 8:54:49 AM)
Do you know if you can take topamax with percacet ?

HeatherMcLeather -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 1:02:47 PM)
nm

HannahLynHeather -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 1:05:31 PM)
quote: Does anyone know a "cure" for nightmares? vodka hannah lynn

Aileen1968 -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 4:32:15 PM)
I find that looking at calming things before bedtime helps... [image]local://upfiles/531505/FABC49352BC84303A29CABD6ABF501EF.jpg[/image]

Rule -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 4:58:32 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Marc2b anxiety dream: being swept away by a great flood of water. ... (what the hell would I be doing in a canyon during a torrential downpour?) ... I recognize what the dream means - a feeling of utter powerlessness and helplessness and upon waking I am able to remind myself that I am not powerless and helpless anymore. I get the association that you make, but myself I do not think that it has anything to do with your trauma. I rather suspect that the flood represents the huge power of your dominant side. If you ever were to be swept away by that flood, there would only be the flood: naked dominance.

Rule -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 5:02:12 PM)
NV, LC and Marc gave good counsel. I recommend that you try NV's way first: program yourself, permit yourself to dream nice dreams. Do not refer in any way to negativity in your programming; just want nice dreams. Also, if you wish, you may consult me on the meaning of your dreams.

FelineFae -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 7:56:57 PM)
Through the love and support of those close to me, i have come a long way. The nightmares are just a nagging thing that screw up my sleep. The long term goal is to get past them all together, the short term goal is just to get the sleep i need. i try not to think about it, as best i can. Otherwise i might obsess on the matter which would be very self defeating towards the goals.

igor2003 -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 8:24:50 PM)
This may or may not work, but what about looking into learning lucid dreaming where you learn to control your own dreams? I read one article in which a gentleman kept having nightmares consisting of being chased by a gorilla with red hair. He learned to control his dreams and the next time he had the nightmare he was able to turn to the gorilla and ask it, "Why are you chasing me?" The gorilla turned into his red-haired mother-in-law and he no longer had the nightmares. Perhaps something like that might work for you.

juliaoceania -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 9:20:58 PM)
quote: Does anyone have a similar situation? Does anyone know a "cure" for nightmares? I have been diagnosed with PTSD, having the sensation of waking up with my heart racing, in a panic, etc etc etc... What did I do about it, I made peace with the cause of it. Some of the causes still trouble me, and I can still get upset enough to cry about it when I think about it, but for the most part I dealt with it. I was a good decade older than you before I was able to... and the injuries that caused my pain were over 2 decades old by the time I made peace with myself. My suggestion, don't waste decades of your life running from what is inside of you... it won't get easier, and you will only regret wasting your life on those demons. Obviously your subconscious is trying to deal with it, or you wouldn't be having the night terrors

hausboy -> RE: Nightmares (5/26/2011 9:37:57 PM)
Hi FelineFae Sorry to hear you're having troubles. I was diagnosed with GAD and PTSD a number of years ago. I opted not to do medication--something that my current therapist didn't agree with--but I go for regular talk therapy, and did group therapy for several years. Like so many others here, my trauma was something that occurred during early childhood, and it surprised me once I started to "dig" a little, just how much it colored my life experiences. Through the careful guidance of a trained professional, I've been working extremely hard on the anxiety and no longer have anything close to what I used to experience. The therapist said that had I gone the medication route, I would have gotten to the same place....only faster. I'm okay with this. The PTSD --well, it never completely goes away for me. Today I know exactly what the triggers are.....how to avoid them....and what to do when they happen. I used to suffer from chronic nightmares, and that has also significantly reduced. Once I realized how many of my anxieties were directly linked to my event, it helped me recognize and overcome them. I can't say that I've completely addressed the "big hurt"-- but I've learned to work around some of the challenges. Certain times of the year are harder for me, but now I can at least prepare for those tough weeks. Good luck--and I hope that you can find some good licensed professionals that you can trust to guide you through the healing process.

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