20 Minutes of Sleep and My Anxiety Level Is on Alert. Why?

[cowdodge]

Does anyone get this effect from tinnitus? Trying to figure out why after 20 minutes of sleep that when I wake up my anxiety level is on alert. I can lay back and this rush of adrenalin will slowly go away. All I can say is this really sucks. I truly believe this shorten my life and cannot figure a way to control this situation.

 

[Valentin]

20M is no way near enough to get you relaxed, personally, the first phase of my sleep needs to be 5 H bare minimum. then i can continue to the second phase, the one that gives me a relkaxed feeling all day long.

 

[SleeplessSoul]

My anxiety level is on high alert just like that after I fall asleep and then wake up a couple of hours later. The becasue of the loud t, I don't sleep the rest of the night.
My t is hard to mask and I get the adrenaline rushes too. I do progressive relaxation to no avail.
Wish I had a better idea too

 

[linearb]

My pure guess would be that what's actually happening is that you're getting a flood of stress hormones (cortisol, adrenaline) which is waking you up, and because those hormones provoke the stress response, you are waking up in an anxious state.

It is unpleasant but it is not actually going to hurt you, and the sooner you find a way to relax and calm your system down, the sooner this will resolve.

It looks like you've had tinnitus for a long time; has an event of some kind made it worse recently?

 

[RB2014]

For some reason if I am really sleepy and/or try to take a quick nap my tinnitus gets louder afterward. Not sure why.

 

[Telis]

I wake up with an internal shaking, it's the weirdest thing. It's like a generator vibrating my entire insides. I chalk it up to being in shock from T every day I try and get up and shake it off, pretty tough to shake that feeling of anxiety sometimes.

 

[Dr. Nagler]

Does anyone get this effect from tinnitus? Trying to figure out why after 20 minutes of sleep that when I wake up my anxiety level is on alert. I can lay back and this rush of adrenalin will slowly go away. All I can say is this really sucks. I truly believe this shorten my life and cannot figure a way to control this situation.

As I have come to understand it, you cannot "control this situation." It's your brain doing what it's supposed to do in the absence of adequate REM sleep.

The phenomenon you describe not going to shorten your life. And there are a number of strategies to help you manage it a bit better - but in my experience trying to control it is pretty much a prescription for failure.

Here's to quieter days ahead for all ...

stephen nagler

 

[Dr. Nagler]

For some reason if I am really sleepy and/or try to take a quick nap my tinnitus gets louder afterward. Not sure why.

From a previous post of mine regarding augmented tinnitus after napping ...

I have always felt it to be due to the role of the reticular formation in tinnitus perception. The reticular formation is a primitive structure in the brain stem. It's a "vital sign monitor." When you wake up, the RF checks to see whether or not you are alive. It looks for heartbeat, respiration, blood pressure, temperature - basic bodily signs. It does not care whether or not these signs are good or bad - just that they are present. And as far as the RF is concerned, tinnitus is part of "expected" body function in an individual suffering from severe intrusive tinnitus. So when you wake, your RF checks to see whether or not tinnitus is present. And if it doesn't immediately find the tinnitus, the RF seeks it with a vengeance - - especially in the post-nap state, when there has been inadequate REM sleep and when, therefore, the RF is on already "high alert" that something might not be quite right. Theoretically - very theoretically - this RF hyperactivity in seeking tinnitus, which in a person with severe intrusive tinnitus it equates with life, results in temporarily markedly augmented tinnitus perception.
​

Hope this helps.

 

[cowdodge]

Thanks doc as that makes sense. Unfortunately befor I got my t's I got something in my late 20's that caused me to fell tired more often. I lived with that till I was 55 and then the t's set in. So I have a double whammy. Not only lack of energy and taking short naps to help this problem out but getting the T's that go nuts after taking a short nap. Oh well still alive and kicking at 71 with t's.

 

[jimH]

@cowdodge ...What helped me to sleep better is taking 3mg of Melatonin about an hour before I want to go to sleep. A cup of caffeine free Chamomile tea in the evening is also helpful. This is just one brand available at Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Bigelow-Tea-R...p/B000GG0BOI/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top?ie=UTF8

 

[I who love music]

I've said this before. The Body-For-Life program makes it a lot easier to deal with T. A LOT. My cortisol is under control, am I'm in control. I'm stronger, well rested and happier. I exercise 6 times a week for short periods, eat GOOD food several times a day, drink lots of water and set weekly goals. It's by far a better lifestyle than I used to have. My old life was full of panic attacks, medicine, pain, worry and sadness.