# Anxiety Disorders > Panic Disorder and Agoraphobia >  >  Panic attacks upon waking from sleep

## Misssy

Past few weeks I have been having panic attacks right upon waking in the morning. Including a "flash of fear", feeling sick to my stomach, racing heart, also some disordered thinking right as I am waking up and still in bed. Anybody else have this? When I google this topic the results basically say that as an adult one has "control" over one's life and it just isn't true....so according to self help barf....one is able to make their panic attacks go away by changing their life. And it just isn't true. People in wheel chairs can't just get up and walk because somebody tells them to, somebody who is albino just can't become a non-albino because they are a grown up, somebody who is low income isn't always able to undo that just because they are an adult etc. etc. IF I could have fixed the problems causing the panic attacks I would have done so by now.

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## mightypillow

I have something similar that happens to me, except it happens as I'm about to get to sleep. My chest starts to feel very tight, and I can't breathe normally. My mind starts convincing itself that this world isn't real, and for a second I think I am dead. I don't like it. It occurs at random I'd say.

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## Antidote

I used to wake up in a panic attack at 3 am like clockwork every morning for a while when I was 19. Eventually it just stopped.

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## Otherside

Horrible google. I've had this too. I don't get it so often now, it's only if I wake up and I know there's something I'm doing that day that makes me anxious. And then the anxiety freezes me in bed and I don't get up. =/

What's horrible, is waking up at three in the morning for no reason and panicking!

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## Tinkerbell

I've noticed that will happen to me when I'm over-stressed.  I once thought maybe I was having low blood sugar because having a little something to eat helped make it pass.  I don't really know the cause but what helps me is to lay still and concentrate on breathing correctly and deeply so I don't start to hyper-ventilate, I try to have a little something to eat - usually crackers and then I get up.  In the past I've just gotten up and tried to push through it and would find myself almost passing out in the shower.  Now I try to go with it and minimize effects.  Doesn't get rid of them completely, recently it happened every morning for 5 days straight.  Then they will go away for a decent amount of time, never to know when it will happen again.  Sucks.

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## L

I often wake up in a panic, it's horrible and scary - not happened in awhile, my alarm clocke causes me panic so much sometimes I end up crying.

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## whiteman

I often wake up at three in the morning in a panic. Usually I try to go back to sleep, but it never works. Lately, if that happens, I just start my day. I think it has to do with stress and it also has something to do with what I'm dreaming about. But it ruins my day, because I feel like [BEEP] until I can sleep again.

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## Ironman

It's been happening during more stressful times for me.

Normally, a panic attack is what wakes us up to begin with.

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## takethebiscuit

> Past few weeks I have been having panic attacks right upon waking in the morning. Including a "flash of fear", feeling sick to my stomach, racing heart, also some disordered thinking right as I am waking up and still in bed. Anybody else have this? When I google this topic the results basically say that as an adult one has "control" over one's life and it just isn't true....so according to self help barf....one is able to make their panic attacks go away by changing their life. And it just isn't true. People in wheel chairs can't just get up and walk because somebody tells them to, somebody who is albino just can't become a non-albino because they are a grown up, somebody who is low income isn't always able to undo that just because they are an adult etc. etc. IF I could have fixed the problems causing the panic attacks I would have done so by now.



You're right. If you could have fixed the problems causing the panic attacks you would have so by now. My guess is you know or have some idea what's causing the panic attacks but you feel powerless to do anything about them. Could be wrong and please do correct me if I am. 

It's important to get professional help. Speak to your doctor about the panic attacks to rule out physiological causes. If they are psychologically caused, talk to your therapist. Or drop me a PM and I'll see what I can do. Because let's face it: you don't deserve to have to put up with this, do you?

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## Misssy

This morning I didn't have a full on shock when I woke up but I was having strange and scattered thoughts kind of dreamy thoughts... but I also felt distressed. I went back to sleep and then the 2nd time I woke up the exact same thing occured again. This never used to happen to me. This kind of stuff does effect my over all quaity of life, who wants to greet each new day in this fashion, yet if I were to tell a health care professional they would shrug it off....as they seem to always do.

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## Misssy

*THANK YOU EVERYBODY FOR YOUR ANSWERS!!!!!! * It appears that this is not an uncommon experience for those of us who have anxiety disorders. 

This morning I did try to just deep breathe...I'm not really sure it helped, the anxiety moment tends to go away after I get out of bed and wake up...but the anxiety itself I think is still there simmering underneath it all.

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## Chloe

after I've had a big panic i normally fall asleep because I'm that tired or because I've passed out and if i get woken ill end up panicking a bit and this can either lead to me passing out again or me getting really really scared and falling back asleep again  ::\:  hasn't happened for a little while though but i know how scary and crummy it is  ::\:

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