night terrors?

Question

i am 13 and have experienced night terrors ever since i was in 2nd grade. Over the past year they have become more extreme. I have a reacuring one where I am about to die. I can never remember why but it feels like my tonuge gets a weird taste in my mouth. Everything seems to be going way too fast and the whole time I am thinking "why am I doing this". I am half awake and I am aware of my surroundings but have no control over my body. Last night I remember thinking I was going to die, and I actualy got out of my bed, walked out into my living room and started pacing around the room scared out of my mind, feeling like I was going to die. The next thing I remember was me sitting on our couch at 4:15 am wondering what just happened. This has happened before where I also went into our living room pacing around yeling for people to save me because I had a feeling that everything in the room as going to come at me. Will i grow out of having these dreams? I have had about 10 of
these dreams

my parent know about it. They have always known abnout them. My younger sister who is 7 experiences them too but not as extreme.

Answer 1

can i just say, first off, that night terrors are not necessarily a sign of mental illness. mentally ill people may suffer from night terrors but people who suffer from night terrors are generally not mentally ill.


i am in my thirties and have suffered night terrors and sleep walking since chilhood. like you, i found them intensifying around my early teens.

the fear induced by these is pure, unadulterated; it leaves you confused, on edge, vulnerable. i am usually in bed, just drifting off to sleep when i'm awake and alert and there is something sinister going on.... it starts as a vague uneasiness, i'm not sure, but feeling bad about something...

then it's maybe a shape, hunkered in the corner, or threatening whispers from outside the bedroom door and i am panicking, sitting up, screaming my head off. it scares the 5hit out of your partner.....

sometimes, you can't scream or do anything and your body is paralysed....

anyway, i suffered intermittently all through my teens and early twenties, more so if i was under exam or family or relationship pressures....

then into my twenties they tailed off. not completely, i still get the occasional one. you do tend to learn mechanisms for coping, but every once in a while you get one that is as scary as ever.

there is lots of information available on the net. if i get time, i'll search some stuff out for you and give you some links.

you are not alone with this, many people - men and women suffer with this - as do their families. it is wise to find ways to be able to laugh about it if you can.

good luck

Answer 2

Do you only have these kinds of experiences at night, related to sleeping and dreaming? You may have a sleep disorder or possibly a type of epilepsy. You seem to be describing night terrors, sleep paralysis, sleep walking, and possibly epileptic seizure.

Can you speak with your folks or your doctor/pediatrician about it? You might get help by being examined by a sleep disorders specialist or a neurologist. The doc will give you a physical exam, just like when you usually go to the doctor, and then he or she will put things on (not in but on) your head to measure your brain waves and will probably videotape you and measure your brain waves while you're sleeping for a night or two. Then the doc will have some advice about what to do.

Yes, you might grow out of it but it would be better to get some health care about it.

Sleep paralysis, which you are in part describing, occurs because the chemicals and electrical nerve reactions in the brain aren't happening in the right order so that part of you is awake and the other part is still asleep. Feelings of panic and paranoia are commonly felt during these episodes. Stress, having certain types of food before bedtime, oversleeping, trouble breathing while sleeping, and other factors can trigger episodes of sleep paralysis.

I experienced sleep paralysis, sometimes very frequently from the time I was 14 until was in my 30s. It occurs rarely for me now than I'm nearly 50. It's not fun to live with for sure. I'm hoping you can resolve this.

Answer 3

I had night terrors when I was younger as well. After seeing several doctors including a psychologist, it turned out to be allergies. I was allergic to a variety of things in my home in addition to some foods. I was having major allergic reactions that manafested themselves in night terrors.

1 - See an allergist

2 - Next time you have an episode, turn on the light and look at your body (or have a parent do it) and see if you have any redness, hives or other signs of an allergic reaction. The absense of a rash does not rule out allergies but the presence of a rash means you're allergic to something!

3 - Keep a list of the things you eat all day, every day until you experience another night terror. On the night that you have a terror episode, take a look at your list. If there is something unique on the list that day, stop eating it.

It sounds strange but it worked for me! I had allergy shots and take allergy medicine and I haven't had a terror episode in years!

The fact that your little sister has them too is even more reason to believe that these are allergy related.

Good luck!

Answer 4

I have experienced night terrors - I know it's a horrible thing. You wake up and your heart feels like it's pushing out of your chest. As I have aged - I'm in my early 30's now; I rarely experience them anymore. Maybe once a year or so. They seem to be a medical mystery, other than a little speculation about a disturbance of certain brain waves... If they are so overwhelming that you fear for your safety, speak to a psychologist. Otherwise, you will most likely grow out of them.

Answer 5

You should really talk to your parents and see a therapist. Something is causing these extreme feelings that you need to figure out. The doctor may be able to perscribe something, and at the worst they can help you learn to cope. Don't try to handle this alone, it could only help to get some support. Good luck.

Answer 6

Do you still have your tonsils? Enlarged tonsils can cause sleep apnea (where you quit breathing during sleep for longer than 20 seconds). Sleep apnea can induce night terrors. My sons quit having them once their tonsils came out.

Here's one link that might have some more info:
http://parents.berkeley.edu/advice/sleep/terrors.html#stanford

Good luck! I hope you get this resolved soon.

Answer 7

Tell your parents. Then go see a doctor.

Answer 8

Cool..................