Night Terrors

[melon]

Okay...so I was sleeping next to one of my friends, and, about an hour into us sleeping, he got up very abruptly, had this very loud and repetitive blood-curdling scream. Considering I was half awake myself, I'm freaking out, and attempting to calm him down, whereas he wonders what the hell he is doing and goes back to sleep. Luckily, I did know what this was, considering I had one years ago, but, instead of screaming like him, I was gasping for air with the weirdest sound imaginable. For me, it just happened suddenly; there was no dream involved, and, perhaps, it was the same for him as well.

But I must admit. I'm still freaked out, and remembering the sound he made still gives me chills down my spine. Rationally, I know that this was probably an isolated incident like my own several years ago.

Has anyone else dealt with these before? I must admit that this is one of the few things that really can scare me...

Melon

 

[cell]

i used to freeze up at night, half awake. i couldn't move for shit. i tried to make sounds but that didn't work. it hasn't happened to me in a long time. hope it stays that way. probably not the same thing, but its scary as hell to me.

 

[BAW]

They are scary Melon...my 12 year old niece has them every, single night

We are very close and she loves to spend the night at my house but I have to be honest, I avoid having her stay over if I can..she scares the shit out of me every time it happens, even though I'm only half asleep because I'm expecting it. I can't let her sleep in another room because she also crawls around while she's screaming so I keep her right next to my bed and lock my door.

She was sexually abused between the ages of 5 and 7 and has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and also has ADHD. Her doctor says that night terrors are common in PTSD.

I have never in my life heard these kinds of screams. She sounds absolutely terrified. It breaks my heart because I can only imagine the horrible things she went through to cause that kind of terror. Its pretty much the same every time it happens...she bolts straight up, throws her blankets off and starts screaming...most of the time its "no, no, no" but sometimes I can't tell what she's yelling. She has also jumped up and tried to open the door and a few times I've found her crawling down the hall. And she never remembers any of it in the morning.

I love her dearly but its SO stressful to have her overnight. I wish there was something that could be done but her doctors say she'll grow out of it...I hope they're right.

 

[melon]

That reminds me of something. I used to lay down on the floor, stomach flat. When I would try and get up, I had trouble opening my eyes, and I had this kind of "electric flash" going on in my eyes. Luckily, I could get up anyway and it would subside. Luckily, that has ended, but I haven't a clue what it is.

Melon

 

[oliveu2cm]

Melon,

I'm not sure if what happened to you is the same thing that happened to me- but there is a name for this. It's called sleep paralysis.

This past summer it happened to me so badly I couldn't take it anymore and posted on Interference. Sure enough, I wasn't the only one who had this. I felt so relieved! Here is that thread .


Since then I've been able to thwart these dreams from happening. However, (lol) now what's happening is that I dream i'm having a sleep paralysis dream. It's really f'ed up. I think b/c they scare me, I have a nightmare about having one.

Not fun stuff.

 

[melon]

I must admit that, for myself, a lot of my sleep disruptions have evaporated since I've been taking 5-HTP (5-hydroxytryptophan) to boost my serotonin. I was recommended it by my doctor after being generally responsive to SSRIs, but being very sensitive to their side effects. Admittedly, before, now that I look back, I had very restless and stress-filled sleep to the point that I would wake up tired after sleeping for ten or more hours.

The problem with my friend is that he's been on Wellbutrin, which boosts your dopamine and, simultaneously, can lower your serotonin drastically after enough time. He tends to have a lot of muscle twitches and spasms as well, and I cannot help but wonder if this is his problem. I really don't know, though, but, even before this episode, I was concerned for his health...

It is nice to know, though, that there are people who understand.

Melon

 

[The_Sweetest_Thing]

This is incredibly scary.

As a child, I had a few dream where I would wake up and be too afraid to move. However, I've never heard anything like what you guys are describing.

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

luckily i've never had this happen to me or anyone i know. the closest i've come to knowing someone like that is my best friend's brother is a major sleepwalker. they had to get an alarm for the house so it beeps whenever the front door is opened because he'd go outside and wander around the neighbourhood.

anyway, it appears you may have pinpointed what could be the cause of your friend's night terrors, melon. i hope you did so his medicine can be changed or something so he'll get better, or if it's not the cause, the doctor will know some solutions or something. good luck.

 

[joyfulgirl]

I had severe sleep paralysis as a kid--occasional sleep-walking and lots of OBE's (I was a very stressed-out kid). But what you're describing, melon, sounds like some kind of post-traumatic stress disorder, as BAW said. A friend of mine's father screamed like that during sleep after WWII and until his death. If it is PTSD, your friend may not even consciously know what the underlying trauma is.

 

[Laura M]

One morning I woke up couldnt breathe half choked and fell asleep then my mum came in and i started waving my arms round like a prat and squealing

 

[melon]

Well, with night terrors, it is commonly *misdiagnosed* as PTSD. For him, I'm guessing it is possibly the medication he's taking, and I think I'm going to talk to him about it.

Melon

 

[BAW]

Well, with night terrors, it is commonly *misdiagnosed* as PTSD. For him, I'm guessing it is possibly the medication he's taking, and I think I'm going to talk to him about it.

Melon

Really? I'd like to know more about that. My sister has never been comfortable with the PTSD diagnosis or the ADHD medication my niece has been taking. We've both wondered if the ADHD drugs have been making the night terrors worse.

The poor kid is already on her third different ADHD drug in 2 years...they just can't get the dosage right. She has no appetite and has to be forced to eat most of the time. For a few hours after she takes her pill, she's so lethargic, she'll sit in one spot and zone out for an hour if you let her.

My sister is totally against her taking the drugs but her grades and behavior have improved so much, she's afraid to take her off. She's a stressed out kid as it is and I wonder if the stimulants are just adding to that.

 

[meegannie]

The problem with my friend is that he's been on Wellbutrin, which boosts your dopamine and, simultaneously, can lower your serotonin drastically after enough time.

I'm on that and Celexa. I haven't had any sleep-related side effects from either, though.

 

[ABEL]

I don't think I've had any night terrors that I recall...but I do remember a while back something weird happening a few times...I don't know if it was a recurring dream or these night terrors after all, or what it was, but I remember a few times having the feeling like I was trying to wake up but couldn't, it was really strange...I remember feeling almost like I was fighting my way out of my sleep for some reason, but I don't recall having any bad dreams or anything, just that feeling of not being able to wake up...it's like I was awake but my body wasn't, if that makes sense...I wasn't on any medications or anything at the time...for a while it kept happening, I never told anyone about it, it just went away on it's own

 

[melon]

ABEL, that is sleep paralysis, specifically common sleep paralysis (CSP). There is a rarer form called hallucinatory sleep paralysis (HSP), where one can feel like "spirits" are on top of them during this paralysis.

http://www.nightterrors.org/paralysis.html

Melon

 

[ABEL]

thanks for the info melon....you sound like a sleep doctor


hmmm...I just read some of the info on the web page you gave...it said it happened when you woke up...to my knowledge I was still asleep, unable to wake up...I guess that's still kinda the same thing

 

[Zoomerang96]

that is horrible.

does it honestly appear as if theyre possessed?