Can depression absolutely ruin quality of sleep and ease of falling/staying asleep until it is corrected?

Question

Normally I sleep really deep, and you can't wake me. Usually I'm out cold until I want to wake up.
Recently I went through a bout of anxiety and jerking awake due to panic attacks at sleep. I was given ativan and took that or ambien for a few days to sleep. The first few days I slept ok, but still had constant health anxiety, and worry during the day. Over the next week or so I was still able to sleep, some days even without the sleep aid. Regardless, When I sleep it's very light and I have been waking up every few hours. If I do anything, get up to go to the bathroom, talk to someone, etc. I can't fall asleep again. It's like that feeling of dozing off right before falling asleep has disappeared. I will just lay there and not sleep, no panic, no jerking awake, some anxiety, and just cant fall back asleep.

I can't seem to get any more than 7 hours of very light sleep any more, some nights only 5.

i was given lexapro, havent started it yet. I'm worried my deep sleep wont return.

Can depression/anxiety/panic that comes on quickly like this screw up the chemical balance in the brain to the point that it ruins the quality of sleep this badly?

Should lexapro help balance things out again?

Nope took two 6.25mg ambien CR this time. Had anxiety that kept getting worse and worse till i realized an hour later I was "dreaming" about pictures and oblong shapes of what I can only describe as fake yahoo answers questions and answers floating through my head. Every time i selected one I'd get an answer like, take this to sleep, take that to sleep, etc.... wierd stuff.. I was never really asleep though, that i could tell. Had that taste in my mouth like i had been sleeping when i got up though. Dont think I'll be taking CR again.

Is something wrong with me that a narcotic (Ambien) wont even knock me out 10 hours after getting 5hrs of crappy sleep.

Answer 1

Yes it can. When you are depressed your brain serotonin changes, and that can affect your behavior. Start taking lexapro. That's my advice to you. Hope it helps and good luck.

Answer 2

I have been recently diagonosed with severe depression. Before, I couldn't sleep at all either. I used to sleep so nice at night and wake up the next morning ready to get goin'. Then the depression set in. I was up every hour, i couldn't stay asleep once I had fallen asleep, I slept so lightly I could hear a pin drop. Finally, my moods were so roller coaster like and I couldn't function anymore. I went on depressionhurts.com and did the survey and brought it into my doc. She had me fill out a questionaire about how my life is from my point of view and how I think about myself. I scored very high, which in this case, is not good. She put me on Zoloft 50mg every night before bed and since I have been on it, I sleep so soundly and all the way through the night. I sleep at least 8 hours if not more. So, yes, depression can really ruin the quality of sleep and the ease of falling asleep. When your brain can't shut off, it messes with your normal clock and throws your whole system out of wack. Depression is a big deal. Maybe trying a new medication will change that. My sister has gone through 5 different Depression medications and has now found one that works for her and it's Zoloft as well. It has a lot of side effects, as they all do, but don't just settle on one medication. Talk to your doc and see what else can be done to help you out.

Answer 3

I agree about the valerian, though the best valerian sort of (well actually does) smell of old and dirty socks that have been worn in a marathon and left on for the next few days. The more pungent the odor the better it works, or so I've been told.

There is also tryptophan it is a chemical cousin (precursor) to melatonin. Both can be purchased over the counter. Both help induce natural sleep.

Another trick to sleep is that the body normally cools down while falling into sleep, you can trick your body into setting the sleep clock by taking a long hot shower about 1/2 or so before you actually go to sleep. As your body cools from the shower it will think you are going to sleep. Course, I've tried this and it too seems to work for me.

Some anti depressants (and I am not a doc so I don't know which) I've heard can have the same effect as they are trying to change in your bod. Depressed? Take one and some day down the road the drug will cause you to be depressed. Of course I could be wrong. As i said I am not doctor.

Answer 4

Depression definitely does affect a person's sleep and narcotics are definitely not a good answer. I have some questions about before you began taking the meds.

1) Were you drinking caffeine? Many people will drink some type of caffeine in the late afternoon then it will cause you to wake up in the middle of the night. Eliminating it all to together or limiting it to morning hours will help a lot.

2) Were you drinking alcohol before bed. Alcohol will give you a nice sleepy feeling, but when that wears off it can cause you to wake up in the middle of the night. Alcohol also interferes with your REM (dreaming) period of sleep so you will feel less rested.

3) Have you gotten any exercise recently? A brisk 30 minute walk will dramatically help both your sleep and your depression.

4) Is there something going on in your life that is causing you to feel "stressed out." Now would be a great time to get some counseling to work on coping skills around stress.

Panic attacks are caused by shallow breathing. I know that sounds crazy, but you can actually cause yourself to have one by simply breathly fast and shallow. Try this, next time you are feeling panicky, put your hand over your belly button and breathe into your stomache so that you can feel your hand move. Breathe in to the count of 4, hold the breath for a count of 4 then slowing release it to the count of 4. Do this 3-5 times and you will feel your body relax and the panic will dissipate. It works--bank on it.

Your good sleep will return. This is a temporary state of affairs. I have been through it myself and have helped many clients through it and I know this to be true. You will feel better! :)

Answer 5

i havent slept well in years,, up most nights and then may sleep 2-3 hours here and there and then back at itl; i suffer from depression, ptsd, panic and anxiety, and DID.. not to mention other "health" problems as well.. and after years of great quality psych care i have come to understand that untill i can seriously deal with all of my issues than i may not be able to properly sleep.. or even reach that deep sleep that you refered to.. i have taken ambien, 120 mg valium and 3 bars of xanex a day for quiet a while, and thats just to name a few of my many meds all in which include my induce sleepliness.. not.. however.. meds are not the answer, just a temorary bandaid that sometimes doesnt work.. but can be helpfull while you work on the actual cause of the problem/s untill you work on the depression, anxiety , etc itself, no amout of meds will "fix" anything.. just help to get you thru.. and then theres the whole other thing with trying to find the right combination of whats right for you , which unfortunately can mean somehting working here and there and then haveing to move on to something new.. and sometimes then recycling back thru all of the meds againlll i hope you can get back to a regular sleep cycle and i hope your depression will soon lift.. or atleast be manageable so your not so miserably.. i know first hand how hard it is to live with those panic attacks, depression etc, and just want you to know your definitly not alone

Answer 6

Depression normally makes you sleep alot and have body aches and can also make you have anxiety and be restless. I am Maniac Depressive which means you can be happy as all get out one second and then 2 seconds later turn around and be crying or mad at the world. I take Xanax for my anxiety and panic attacks and then I take ambien cr at night but I am on 24 mg. I think you might need to see if you can get xanax and stay on your ambien cr and ask your doctor to raise it a little and just tell them it helps me go to sleep but it doesn't help me stay asleep. There is also another sleeping pill that is good and it is Lunesta but I have a liver disease and I couldn't take it. Ambien isn't metabolized through the liver as much as Lunesta is. I haven't had any luck with Lexapro or Celexa helping at all. I wish you luck because it is hard to get balanced again that is for sure. I will keep you in my prayers.

Answer 7

As along as you are anxious or worried about something, your sleep will be disturbed. Waking up every hour or two hours is a sign of anxiety. The meds can help, a little bit, maybe, but the real answer is to eliminate the reason for the worry. Try to do that. Usually, the more a worrisome problem persists, it will go away by itself. This is if the worrier is otherwise emotionally healthy. If the problem does not go away, some form of counseling or psychotherapy may help. Sleep medication is just a band aid for the real problem.

Answer 8

I suffer extremely with long term insominia....hence the 2:00 am answer. I totally believe that depression, worry, anxiety all can keep you from falling and styaing asleep. I now take 2 mg of Ativan,(Lorizapan-Generic) and 6.25 mg of ambian....every night, I'm 47 years old, and probably will take it the rest of my life, and this all started when my mom passed away 8 years ago, we had to decide to turn off the life support for her, and my dad couldn't do it. So he ask me too. I'm the only daughter, and therefore from that moment on -everything that my mom used to be to our family became my job, I still fill her shoes with my brothers, my dad, my children, and her other grandchildren from my brothers family, even down to her brothers and sisters, I have a lot to do on a daily basis....and at some point I didn't get to grieve, still haven't I miss her so much, and if she were here, she would put a stop to the stress my family puts on me.I do all the Holidays,vacation plans, cooking, babysitting, loaning money, being a rock to about 36 people.....and I'm really tired, but when I go to go to sleep the worry the anxiety, and the stress all comes over me, only at night, I'm rocking and rolling during the day, but to relax - just not gonna happen, so I fiqure I will take the medicine, and hope its ok to be on for long periods, but I do know that God knows, and he will take care of me, as I take care of them, and moms fine, way better off than we are, but God is here with me, and with his help and a few pills I rest......its good rest, I think if you have a bad reaction to something like ambien, or ativan, that maybe its not for you, I tried Lunesta once, and it worked, it just left an auful taste in my mouth for a few days, so I quit, and if I run out of the meds I will fill in with Excedrin PM works great. So yes, depression plays a major part in our sleep patterns, like the comercial says, who does depression hurt, how does deoression hurt-everyone....and it does, the same old bable I'm sure you've heard, try to get to the root of your anxiety, depression, stress, sometimes its just life..........don't worry about not getting your deep sleep isn't a problem you will, and until take the ativan, ambian everynight, I mean everynight 30 minutes before bed time, and pray before you fal asleep, if your not asleep within 30 minutes GET UP, and do some reading, and try again, if you lay there the anxiety worsens quickly....hope this helps but sleeep is importnat for pur health, so you have to get sleep however you can and if thats by prescribtions so be it, better than not at all much much wishes for a good nigths sleep...becky d

Answer 9

Being in the medical career field....The Ambien you took was a low dose, slow release, intended for the first half to release quickly in the system to put you to sleep then release slowly to keep you asleep. Lexapro, is a good SSRI, in other words antidepressent, I take it and it has worked wonders. I have no problems sleeping. Worrying about sleeping is proven to keep you awake. The herbal supplents the others have been talking about are good as well, just keep in mind that you will build a tolerence and may have to increase the dosage. Of course everyone will have a solution to your problem, but try not to worry about sleep. A hot shower then take your meds, a good book and things should get back to normal for you.

Answer 10

Ok...lots of questions...I will give my advice on them in the order they were asked, ok...keep it short...lol
First, depression can DEFINITELY have an effect on your sleep....when someone is depressed, the chemical balance in your brain becomes "unbalanced" and this has a dramatic effect on sleep..

Lexapro?...as an anxiety/panic attack sufferer myself...I was on this for a couple of months....kept me up....everyone responds differently, though...

I think you should get a second opinion on your problem....it seems that if you have a serious anxiety problem and these medications you mentioned ARE prescribed for these symptoms, but they also can cause the same symptoms as well....If you are open to non-conventional medications, there is an herb called Valerian Root....it is really good at helping out with insomnia, anxiety....has great properties...I take it everyday...

Good luck....

Answer 11

Yes, depress can have an effect on sleep patterns. I know this from personal experience. I do go through bouts of depression from time to time, and during those times, I usually never sleep, or never reach what you would call "deep-sleep". Dreams even turn disturbing, which make me want to sleep even less. However the depression passes and with it the insomnia. I always look forward to the next night's sleep when I realize that everything is ok...