Mari... and Abbie perhaps too...

Have you ever presented the sleep "issue" as a phobia to a therapist before? It would be good to include your mother's information about your not sleeping as an infant.

there is certainly a possibility this is related to a very early trauma.

have you ever tried Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy? It is used to to treat PTSD, and general issues stemming from early trauma.

LINKS:

Wikipedia:
Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing

EMDR Institute home page:
http://www.emdr.com/

EMDR Institute EMDR description:
http://www.emdr.com/briefdes.htm

~ waves ~

That is my concern too. De developed diabetes from it. That was when she had the bite that infected and turned into a flesh eating virus. The doctor knew she had a high blood sugar reading and said he was not concerned. By the time she was admited for the infection her sugar was over 500.

She was on insulin a month after they stopped it, I guess the infection kept the reading high too.

If on this med, I think a weekly blood sugar should be done and watch for symptoms.
I would tell the doctor she always had a drink in her hand and two nearby, no matter where we went. She would also hit every water fountain.
Feel better
Di
I gave up on the sleep phobic, three of us here have a plan for one to be awake while the other sleeps, that at least gives me 5 hrs in a row sleep;

wowowowo how scarey that must have been.
bizi

I'd just like to make an observation. The fact that the Internist is making this drug suggestion is problematic for me.

This means that the drug salespeople are doing what the SSRI sales people did... convincing non-psychiatric specialists to use these drugs for other purposes. This Seroquel for "sleep" has appeared on the PN board too.

That is like using Haldol for sleep. The atypical antipsychotics are the SAME ...they can cause tardive, and we now know they kill elderly people with strokes, and cause diabetes. Risperdal causes pituitary tumors in young people! Not safe IMO for sleep.

So consider the sales push on your doctor. Chances are the internist has no clue!

Dear Waves,
I have only very recently started using the word "phobic."
It took me this long to identify the problem and be able to speak about it in a way that someone could help me.

Current tdoc has worked with me via hypnosis.
Last summer we got to a block.
This past summer we only did crisis management -- no hypnosis.

M.

Scary!


M.

The patent for Seroquel immediate release expires in Sept '11.

So expect ads for it on TV, in magazines, and a push to doctors to use it for minor things like "sleep". When a family doctor or internist suggests this drug, you should ask--- would you give me Haldol for sleep? Same thing! Recent studies show NO benefit for using atypicals instead of the older drugs. I believe they should be reserved for serious issues only.

The Seroquel extended release's appearance is the harbinger of the patent expiration of the immediate release.

Hi,

After lots and lots of blood work that was mostly fine, the internist suggested that I go back to my hospital cardiologist. I said, "No." He was only slightly less horrible than the truly horrible hospital neuro.

So she said her husband is a cardiologist and asked if I would mind going for a stress test and forwhatever else he comes up with. I don't know why she thinks I would mind -- unless that word choice is a pattern in her talk.


I've been compliant except for the the Seroquel that she mentioned again today. She says that I should go to the pdoc and ask for Seroquel. I told her that the sleep problem was a psychological and not a medical problem. She didn't hear. I tried one or three more sentences and gave up.


M.

Hi Mari It's Ok to talk about Phobias. I have them. I find that people hardly ever talk about them even when they have them.

Heights bother me,bridges,elevators,a large group of people,swallowing a big pill,driving through a tunnel,speaking to a crowd of people,police cars driving behind my car,relationships,eating food at a table around a crowd of people,etc,etc etc. I also have fear before trying to sleep sometimes. I use to have phobias of being confined in a dentist chair,and a barbars chair. I use to have phobias of siting in a church full of people. When my fear goes up,my head sometimes shakes,and I get a cold feeling coming around me. You feel fragmented. That's why I call myself Brokenfriend. I'll be walking down a hallway,and suddenly I'll feal shattered emotionally. I can't explain it,who can.

What fear does is it torments a person mentally,and causes the person to be uncomfortable. Biochemicals are released in the brain.

True healthy fear is good,and keeps us safe. Thats why we look before we cross the street,and are careful if we are near the ledge of a building. That's why we don't want to play with a Lion,or snake.

Being tormented,or bothered by irrational fear,me being the worse,is unhealthy fear. A panic attack is when several of these fears are heightened,and you can't get it out of your mind. I've been bothered with these things sinse I was a teenager. I've noticed that 97% of people don't understand this kind of mental health issue.

I'm sorry if you struggle with any phobias. BF

Dear Friend,
These phobias you mention can be debilitating.

It can be ok sometimes to talk about them, but people don't understand. Even if they have their own phobias they don't want to acknowledge the truth of someone else's.

I think I don't really have phobias except for sleep, but I have anxieties. I find that if I am in any enclosed place too long, I need to leave: grocery store, meeting at work, . . . I really can't imagine having to fly -- not with the waiting and the lining up and the more waiting and the worrying about rules.. . . .

I hope that you are mostly ok right now.
How is your night?
M.