Why Cant I Go to Sleep?
Question by Josh Gras: Why cant I go to sleep?
Ever since the earthquake here on the eastcoast I havent been able to sleep well like I would fall asleep for 10 minutes then I would wake up scared out of my mind thinking there was another earthquake. Why is this happening to me?
Im 16 and live an average lifestyle
Best answer:
Answer by barry
You may have PTSD. There is a quiz for the presence of P.T.S.D., via http://psychcentral.com Some of the symptoms include “flashbacks”, hypervigilance, sleep disorders, especially nightmares, and just staring blankly. If indicated: view the http://1-800-therapist.com/ & http://www.metanoia.org/choose/ websites, and Google:”therapists; EMDR; (your location)” or use the phone book, and/or various associations for psychiatrists and psychologists, to find the nearest one using EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy). In EMDR, a therapist will ask you to revisit a traumatic event and remember the feelings, negative thoughts, or memories associated with it. While you are doing this, the therapist may hold up two fingers about eighteen inches from your face and move them from side to side. You may be asked to track the movement of the therapist’s fingers with your eyes. As you concentrate on the traumatic event during therapy, you are trying to bring its memory to life. The mental imagery you are able to conjure up during the therapy session is then processed, aided by your eye movements, facilitating the processing of painful memories, enabling some of the powerful emotional states involved to be discharged to some degree, and helping to achieve resolution and a state involving less painful emotions. EMDR has 8 stages. Professional EMDR is always much preferable. It can be completely cured.
Sometimes, a beta blocker, such as propranolol, or atenolol is administered prior to being asked to recount the traumatic event, reducing the emotional charge associated with it, as it is re-recorded in your memory (which has been shown to be plastic, at least to some extent, with many people). I suggest trying something milder, such as valerian, (some people get “valerian hangovers”) or “Tension Tamer”, or chamomile herbal tea (no milk, or cream!) from supermarket tea, vitamin, or health food aisles, at least at first, to see if sufficient, otherwise (SHORT TERM ONLY, as a risk minimisation strategy – potentially ADDICTIVE) a benzodiazapene, like Xanax. Check out medications first at: www.drugs.com and www.rxlist.com/ If unable to afford it, or to locate one nearby, contact the county/local mental health agency: any therapy on offer may prove helpful, particularly if combined with appropriate medication. Contact your county/local mental health agency, and find out what help they can offer. (U.S.A.) Try phoning 211, or 411, and Google: “clinics; mhmr; (your city); (your state)” Give the EFT a good tryout, to see if it helps you. Use the searchbar at www.mercola.com “EFT” & “EFT therapists” and/or see the 13 free videos at www.tapping.com & http://www.emofree.com/freevideos.aspx for PTSD.
There is a version for use in public places, (if anyone asks, you can claim to have a headache, as employ the acupressure massage/tapping on your temples, but you would then be restricted to subvocalising: saying it to yourself in your mind: “Even though I suffer from PTSD, I deeply and completely accept myself.” Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is also recommended, and has been used successfully, with PTSD. Some people, however, may benefit more from psychotherapy, or counselling, at least until they are some way along the path to wellness, and feeling psychologically robust enough for the harsher CBT. A free E course in it, which can help reduce the time spent in therapy sessions, is at: http://moodgym.anu.edu.au/welcome Use a relaxation method daily, like http://www.drcoxconsulting.com/managing-stress.html or http://altmedicine.about.com/cs/mindbody/a/Meditation.htm or http://www.wikihow.com/Meditate or Tai Chi, Qi Gong, or yoga. 85% of people are suggestible, to some degree, so you could either preferably seek professional hypnotherapy, or more alternatives along such lines are at http://your-mental-health.weebly.com/q.html about PTSD, where this came from.
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