Intense morning panic attacks

[pam2738]

I am having intense morning panic attacks that wake me at about 5 am & prevent me going back to sleep. I am currently on 20 mg of Lexapro in the am & .5 mg of Klonipin that I take at bedtime which is anywhere from 11:30 to 12:30. I really don't want to increase either medication but I need help. I know that my worrying about this just feeds into the thing but I can't stop. Any ideas?

PN

[ADD]

Pam the best advice I can give you Is to try and stop thinking about it, I know it's easier said than done bust you must put a lot of effort into this instead of feeding your anxiety..

Try your best to embrace it don't fight it, it's trying to help you not harm you but like I always say that's the nature of Anxiety it doesn't know any other way to help you. Treat it as a friend and not as an enemy and God willing it will slow down.

[pam2738]

Thank you, ADD, & you are right, of course. But as you know when one is lying there at 5 am, wanting desperately to sleep & feeling only the terror & panic, it's so hard to make the brain THINK over those feelings. A friend just wrote to me that when this happens, to turn on the light & write something, ANYTHING, even if it's just copying names from a phonebook!

But I also like you advice about how to treat it & I will try it.

Thank you again.

PN

[Enduronman]

Hey Pam,

Here's what I find to be somewhat intriguing about the "precision or precise" time of these panic attacks. I can't say that I have ever heard of nor seen of anyone type that I have a panic attack that begins at 0500 and keeps me from going back to sleep? Lexapro is known to be a fairly well tolerated anti-dep/anti-anxiety medication also. Hmmm...The ONLY thing that I can potentially see here is the klonopin. This (benzo) in particular is really the only one I have ever heard and or studied about as the highest potential for (paradoxical effects) which means in some people (I do not know %'s) it can actually cause the exact opposite of its intended effect. Basically, it can heighten and or increase anxiety because it is a very long action (benzo).. It can help you to relax and sleep and then as the drugs effect become more prolonged and more pronounced it can cause you to suddenly wake up and yell HELLO EVERYBODY!! ...I'm not a huge fan of klonopin at all as I have seen nor read of many success stories of this medication. In fact, my daughter was taking them for awhile and they caused her to forget some very critical and crucial information, that nearly caused her some great legal difficulties with a potential fraud of a financial institution..that she didnt even remember doing but she was on camera doing it!...Alot of Dr's prescribe this because they are under the impression that it is less addictive then the others available in that same class yet that claim is quite false. Benzo is a benzo and all hit the same receptor in the brain, regardless of name or chemical structure. The only advantage is theyre llloooooonnnnggggggg acting which means you dont have to take a xanax every 3 hours..none the less...still the same but xanax has NEVER shown in any study to produce a (paradoxical effect)..only Klonopin has..

Hope that helps to get you started on the right track! Knowledge is POWER friend!

Enduronman...

[pam2738]

Well, I can say that it is in the vicinity of 5 - 6 am. My daughter thinks I should simply get up & start my day then!

So given what you have said about paradoxical effects, what is a sufferer to do? I have read that these effects are more severe & more likely to occur in the shorter acting benzos. Also if I take Klonipin at around 11 or so, isn't it wearing off by 5 & thus leaving me vulnerable to panic?

[aforce]

klonopin half life is 20 hrs ....i think .5 mg dosage is very little for you ....discuss with your doctor .....benzo's are harder to wean ...try some psychotherapy (relaxation breathing and observing yure attack)....btw hows your complete day ....also early morning produce anxiety release harmone cortisol ...if your whole day is fine ...try to face panic attacks ...one day it will disppear ...

[pam2738]

Today was a bad day. I feel so shaky & tired. No energy for anything at all. Trying to think of things other than how I feel but it is so hard. My mouth has been dry all day despite lots of water & my head hurts. I think I've spent most of the time on the sofa. Even took half a .5 Klonipin in the afternoon. I want this to GO AWAY! I think I'm depressed too & I gather that goes right along with anxiety. I think of things I need to do, & my self tells me "I can't." That's not good.