I've had night terrors for ten years

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I’ve tried nightmare meds without success. I am seeing someone soon about a sleep study. Any advice welcome

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Over three decades worth. I’ve just had to get used to them. :frowning:

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Same here man.
15151515

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training myself to lucid dream helped a ton. When the terrors start now, I have some measure of control over the form they take. I stop them from being scary, and make them silly instead.

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I tried lucid dreaming as a teen I think, and I recall waking to see my four bedposts as revolving monkeys!

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I don’t have perfect control when lucid dreaming. It’s more like playing pretend as a kid. I can’t shoot actual freeze rays at the monsters, but I can shout “freeze ray!” and if they keep coming after me I tell them they’re cheating and then fly away. I can always fly in my dreams, so that works out.

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@Nomad

Have you tried Phenelzine or Prazosin?

Are the night terrors related? If so, it might be PTSD. Therapy might help.

You do want to limit caffeine.

A sleep study is a good idea.

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Me too. The ability developed in my mid-twenties and I always thought it was because I played a lot of Second Life at the time. Your character can fly.

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Ninja, you wouldn’t believe the times I was dreaming, became aware, lucid dreamt myself up a hot girl to kiss, then accidentally worried about seeing a monster as I went in for the kiss, only for her to turn into a Lovecraftian monster as I did… then I would be forced to wake myself up. My dreams suck lol.

I honestly don’t know how one “trains” themselves for that, I only manage it in about 10% of my dreams.

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I had nightmares a lot, too, but my therapist who’s a really good trauma therapist, like the best in a ten hour radius, was able to fix it.

All it took was EDMR flash therapy, and bam, I haven’t had one in a year. It also helped of other night terrors, too

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Now that I’m getting the psychiatric care I need (I’m in an intensive program with 24/7 access to coaching, individual and group therapy) I have far fewer night terrors. I’m learning to cope with emotions and life situations. It helps a lot

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I’m so glad. :heart:

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My dreams have improved somewhat in the past few months. I still have bad dreams fairly frequently, though. I have had them for a long time. I honestly dont know what has reduced their frequency recently, so I have no idea what advice to offer.

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I suffered with childhood night terrors for years.
I no longer have night terrors but still have nightmares

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Whats the difference between them?

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Nightmares are dreams. Night terrors for me are when I’m half awake and there’s a presence stalking in the dark or other terrifying phenomena

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Nightmares happen during REM sleep, Night terrors happen during non REM sleep

People usually remember nightmares
not so with night terrors

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I had nightmares when I was at the mental hospital… when I was suffering my but off so I put 2 and 2 together… it was my mind reacting to my suffering. I think it was my subconscious mind reacting to my suffering.

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