success ☼ MrAnxious: 3 months off Effexor XR (6 years on)

[strawberry17]

Hi Mr Anxious

I read your post (((hugs))). I meant to reply last night, but I'd just been at work all day after a rotten night . I caught up on sleep last night though and here I am revisiting your thread.

I can relate to point number 2 definitely, sometimes feel like I don't which way is up and what "normal" is with regards to anxiety, I look at other people and how they're functioning and wonder about it, I wonder if they wake up in the morning with anxiety like me, and they probably don't, or if they have feelngs of dread about things, and they probably don't, and I didn't always feel like that either until recently, it comes and goes but it does go, and then you look back and wonder what it was all about.

How are you feeling today?

strawberry

[Narcissus]

Mr. A, I recognize the hellish psychological states you're describing well. They are indeed manifestations of withdrawal.

 

We are of course not 'normal', but we can't help but act as if we were. This is what's so awful about withdrawl; it presses itself upon us as if its psychological symptoms were 'real'. Not buying into this is extremely difficult, as I'm sure you know.

 

We just have to trust that it will end, as I'm sure it will.

[MrAnxious]

 

Alright a few questions

 

1. Does anyone feel like their body is like a giant heart beat at times, like your just sitting there and all of a sudden ur body starts beatings all over and eventually goes down but stays awhile even like 3 to 4 hours, I've been getting this alot in the past few months it's lessened a bit but still is happening. Is this my nervous system being damaged and trying to repair or is it lots of cortisol soaring through my body...im confused.

 

2. Why do I keep dwelling hard on the past ? It's like I am focused on things that were years ago that I am not proud of but that's the past right, is this because of the withdrawl. Does anyone get the feeling like they don't know what is normal anymore because of the heightened state of anxiety and sleeplessness ? This is how I am feeling. It could be a huge wave, but also because I am on Buspar, have lorazepam for emergency's and i don't take them often(1) a week...and now sleeping pill. I know these are still meds but honestly with everything going on I need to be sleeping for the next 3 weeks it's vital.

 

I almost feel like I am going backwards again but that's the devil of withdrawl im thinking as alot of it is still physical and the anxiety is still so intense.

 

3. When I am struggling cognitively still and finding it hard to have a flowing conversation i get very hard on myself, does this stuff last for a long time, it's almost like a dull buzz in my head and i just don't care to have a convo but also my mind doesn't seem all there at times. It's so disapointing at times.

 

I need some support as so much is going on, I am 7 months now off a Anti-depressant that I was on for over 5 years.

 

 

 

Thank you for taking time to read, starting to panic a bit. I'm trying so hard to stay with it.

 

I have experienced everything you describe at some time or another in my withdrawal. I know it's hard to remember, because the anxiety just keeps making us forget, but this is just the process, and you're going to get through it, one step in front of another. Just keep hanging in there. You're not broken, you will get through this and you will feel better. You will survive.

 

Thank you very much Rhi, I hope you are coming along well in your w/d, i'd really love to talk to you everyday or whenever on a personal level as continued support with this, you should write me a private msg on here and we can gather each others info if that's okay. Thanks again for your reply.

[MrAnxious]

Hi Mr Anxious

I read your post (((hugs))). I meant to reply last night, but I'd just been at work all day after a rotten night . I caught up on sleep last night though and here I am revisiting your thread.

I can relate to point number 2 definitely, sometimes feel like I don't which way is up and what "normal" is with regards to anxiety, I look at other people and how they're functioning and wonder about it, I wonder if they wake up in the morning with anxiety like me, and they probably don't, or if they have feelngs of dread about things, and they probably don't, and I didn't always feel like that either until recently, it comes and goes but it does go, and then you look back and wonder what it was all about.

How are you feeling today?

strawberry

 

Strawberry You are amazing and always have such calming advice, I really appreciate all your replys and support, without you im not sure where i'd be. This is definitely the most scariest thing i have ever went through in my life and it helps big time having a guide like yourself in my life of w/d. Right now I am in a terrible wave and now on sleeping pills, doc made a appointment with a sleep clinic which I have to go too, apparently I could have sleep apnea, but i personally think its just from the withdrawal, my nervous system is shattered it's quite unbelievable. I am also not sure if i can truly recover because I have taken Buspar to kinda mask the symptoms of the w/d, i still have to eventually come off that too, but one thing at a time right , right now i have that cortisol shooting through my body as i sit here and type, i am not relaxed but i am fine with it as the sleeping pill is kicking in, this weekend i have off so im gonna try to not take it.

 

Thanks again for your amazingness and I hope you are doing well in your trek,

 

 

(((hugs))))

[MrAnxious]

Mr. A, I recognize the hellish psychological states you're describing well. They are indeed manifestations of withdrawal.

 

We are of course not 'normal', but we can't help but act as if we were. This is what's so awful about withdrawl; it presses itself upon us as if its psychological symptoms were 'real'. Not buying into this is extremely difficult, as I'm sure you know.

 

We just have to trust that it will end, as I'm sure it will.

 

 

Thanks for your response, and its so hard to recognize what the hell is going on because its like huge waves and small windows, this has been so intense , i can't believe i am trying to finish up my school i have 4 weeks left of placement, if i can just hold on. Then atleast I know i have accomplished something during this traumatic experience.

 

I hope you are coming along okay in your w/d and stay in touch

 

When feeling normal is forgotten, an anxious life for now is all i know.

[strawberry17]

Drive by ((hug)) before I go to work, will write something properly this evening.

[flower]

Mr A.So sorry you are having a hard time. I watch and hope for a better day for you. I too have experienced the same symptoms. You are not alone..Keep moving. flower..

[flower]

Mr A.So sorry you are having a hard time. I watch and hope for a better day for you. I too have experienced the same symptoms. You are not alone..Keep moving.

Sorry about duplicating ..

[strawberry17]

I'm doing a lot better lately thanks for asking, how was your day today? what happens after the next 4 weeks of school, do you get a long summer break?

[MrAnxious]

Thanks Flower and Strawberry, I actually have the weekend off now. It's just a feeling of like extreme exhaustion, like that buzz behind the eyes ,giving the zombie appearance. I know my sleeping is not well in this wave. Interesting that I checked the FDA report on Effexor Studies for the drug and Athensia is reported at 16.9% for people on over 200mg reported, that's like chronic fatigue, im really looking deeper into this and finding so much more out.

 

I know i am so fatigue, but i don't really have other options right now especially with school placement, but to go go go which is making it very hard cause it's a high pressure placement helping people.

 

 

Well take it min by min, thanks for checking in guys. Im gonna try to get rest without sleeping pill tonight and see how it goes

 

Keep in touch, this is one hell of a ride, i really hope this goes away eventually cause its torture! Just want that window to comeback, usually it was 1 week wave, 1 week window, its been 3 week wave now and no window yet.

[Barbarannamated]

Mr. A,

 

I relate to all of things you describe, especially the dredging up of memories. I dont think we realize how these drugs mask and distort our memories and feelings attached to them. It's hard to discern what's real or accurate. There are a few threads about this. Here is one I found:

 

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1995-memories-from-pre-drugged-years-surfacing/page__fromsearch__1

 

I hope you feel better soon.

[Petunia]

Hi Mr A.

Sorry to read that you are struggling with another wave. I relate to all 3 of your points, mostly the one about being tormented with memories from the past, often things come up complete with their associated emotions as if I had gone back in time. Its overwhelming and exhausting.

 

I too am going through a bad wave at the moment, after 3 days of anhedonia, apathy and depression, a surge of intense anxiety hit this morning, so I'm finding it difficult to concentrate on typing, getting my thoughts out etc.

 

But I wanted to offer my support and I hope you feel better after your weekend off. You will get through it. You are getting through it

[MrAnxious]

Mr A.So sorry you are having a hard time. I watch and hope for a better day for you. I too have experienced the same symptoms. You are not alone..Keep moving. flower..

 

 

Hey Flower, Thanks for the reply and I really hope for better days too. Never in my wildest dream did I think it would be this hard to get off a drug that i never really knew nothing about.

 

I really hope to start feeling good soon because it's so hard to function feeling like this and in the prime of my life.

 

How have you been doing ? u should private me and we can chat it up ! see ya

[MrAnxious]

Hi Mr A.

Sorry to read that you are struggling with another wave. I relate to all 3 of your points, mostly the one about being tormented with memories from the past, often things come up complete with their associated emotions as if I had gone back in time. Its overwhelming and exhausting.

 

I too am going through a bad wave at the moment, after 3 days of anhedonia, apathy and depression, a surge of intense anxiety hit this morning, so I'm finding it difficult to concentrate on typing, getting my thoughts out etc.

 

But I wanted to offer my support and I hope you feel better after your weekend off. You will get through it. You are getting through it

 

 

Thank you Petu, you are truly amazing replying to my post when you have all this going on and more. I really hope that you start feeling better also, these waves are pretty intense, but when we do see glimmers of clearness it makes it all that much better.

 

I think in a way we have to not think about these waves and just do our best to recover but doing all the small things and eventually I hope this all clears up. These drugs really do a number on the people that have withdrawal problems like us.

 

I notice that the best way but not alwaysp ossible is to be in a stress free environment with a lot of support.

 

 

((hugs)) and prayers for the both of us

 

 

Take care for now Check in when you please, hope this is a thing of the past like a leaf blowing in the breeze

[MrAnxious]

Update: Insomnia without sleeping pills - Big time...broken sleep- I miss feeling well rested

 

Anxiety: Anxious thoughts coursing through my body

 

Cognition: Alot better since the start of this withdrawal, the fog is lifting slowly

 

Addiction: Picked up smoking again

 

Headaches: Minimal, Does brain buzzing count

 

Stress: Brought on by lack of sleep

 

Energy : NONE, extreme fatigue, muscle stiffness(big time)feel 80, lack of motivation to do tasks that require energy

 

 

-----My wave that I am in or having or almost through was definitely brought on by my school placement , the stress of what is ,what if, and all those heightened neuro emotions.

 

 

I really like to think that by this time next year, 99% of all these symptoms will be gone and I can tell my story of recovery, right now I am 50% of where I want to be, it's a start right.

 

In the end , I would like to write a book on this. When I make it through alive

 

 

I can't thank everybody in here enough for the amazing and knowledgable support I have got. It has saved my life and given me the will to push on.

 

 

THANK YOU,

[MrAnxious]

My insomnia is Unreal, the last 2 nights I have not taken my sleeping pills as I don't want to create that dependance/addictions cause it's Zclopin. It's been about 3-4 weeks of broken sleep where I am not getting into my rem. Melatonin or Magnesium does not work. I can't take baths so epsom salt won't work. It's like my brain is frayed so much that I sleep for 10mins and wake up ,roll around and sleep for 5mins and wake up, happens all night. I am exhausted and Anxious because of it, anybody know any other tricks ? like what do i do it's getting worse, i need my sleep with placement....SUGGESTIONS ??! any good tricks

[Petunia]

Hi Mr. A.

I'm sorry you are going through this, I went through the same thing early in 2012 when my wd was at its worst. I didn't know what was going on back then and was trying all kinds of things, which was probably making the situation worse, but I know how frustrating and stressful it is to not be able to sleep more than a few minutes before your brain wakes you up again

 

I wish I had a solution for you.

 

Some things which helped slightly for me was to have various distracting videos and audios on my laptop in bed, with headphones I could sleep in. You can get sleeping headphones, but I have the sports kind that hook over your ears and stay in place.

 

Sometimes, just listening to something would distract me enough from my anxious thoughts so that I could fall asleep, but then sometimes I would wake up again. For me, the important thing was finding something which was 'interesting' enough to distract me, but not stimulating or anxiety provoking. On some nights, I kind of gave up on sleeping, and would just listen to something like an audio book or coast to coast AM radio shows on youtube. Often, stopping my own struggle and resigning myself to not sleeping calmed me down enough that eventually I did manage to get a little bit of sleep.

 

Recently I found a youtube channel with sleep hypnosis audio and I love it, even though these days I don't generally have problems with sleep. Some of these are 8 hours long, so you can listen to them all night. I have downloaded some that are shorter and listen via windows media player and just let them loop all night. If I do happen to wake up, there is this gentle, soothing, hypnotic voice which I tune into for a few moments and I'm right back to sleep. Here is the link if you are interested:

 

http://www.youtube.com/user/jodywhiteley

 

Your sleep will get back to normal eventually, but that doesn't help you now. Humans can actually survive on very little sleep for short periods of time, even if you manage to get 10 minutes of sleep several times through the night, it will be enough to get you through the next day, even though you will probably feel awful. As long as you are getting some sleep, you will be ok.

 

Hopefully some other members will have some better tips or suggestions.

 

Petu.

[strawberry17]

I don't know what to suggest, except you only have 4 weeks left of this term is that right? so hang onto that thought, maybe you will have to use the Klon (not every night) to get you through the last 4 weeks.

[MrAnxious]

Hi Mr. A.

I'm sorry you are going through this, I went through the same thing early in 2012 when my wd was at its worst. I didn't know what was going on back then and was trying all kinds of things, which was probably making the situation worse, but I know how frustrating and stressful it is to not be able to sleep more than a few minutes before your brain wakes you up again

 

I wish I had a solution for you.

 

Some things which helped slightly for me was to have various distracting videos and audios on my laptop in bed, with headphones I could sleep in. You can get sleeping headphones, but I have the sports kind that hook over your ears and stay in place.

 

Sometimes, just listening to something would distract me enough from my anxious thoughts so that I could fall asleep, but then sometimes I would wake up again. For me, the important thing was finding something which was 'interesting' enough to distract me, but not stimulating or anxiety provoking. On some nights, I kind of gave up on sleeping, and would just listen to something like an audio book or coast to coast AM radio shows on youtube. Often, stopping my own struggle and resigning myself to not sleeping calmed me down enough that eventually I did manage to get a little bit of sleep.

 

Recently I found a youtube channel with sleep hypnosis audio and I love it, even though these days I don't generally have problems with sleep. Some of these are 8 hours long, so you can listen to them all night. I have downloaded some that are shorter and listen via windows media player and just let them loop all night. If I do happen to wake up, there is this gentle, soothing, hypnotic voice which I tune into for a few moments and I'm right back to sleep. Here is the link if you are interested:

 

http://www.youtube.com/user/jodywhiteley

 

Your sleep will get back to normal eventually, but that doesn't help you now. Humans can actually survive on very little sleep for short periods of time, even if you manage to get 10 minutes of sleep several times through the night, it will be enough to get you through the next day, even though you will probably feel awful. As long as you are getting some sleep, you will be ok.

 

Hopefully some other members will have some better tips or suggestions.

 

Petu.

 

This is Great Petu ! Thank you very much, gonna listen to this tonight and hopefully it helps, if not I have to wait this out and just hope that it get's better. I appreciate all your care and support and I really hope you are doing better, everytime you reply to me I want you to tell me how you are doing and if there is anything I can do to help,

 

 

Thanks a million, Something has to give.

[MrAnxious]

I don't know what to suggest, except you only have 4 weeks left of this term is that right? so hang onto that thought, maybe you will have to use the Klon (not every night) to get you through the last 4 weeks.

 

Yes Only 4 weeks left and then I am done my placement, I really don't have much Lorazepam left and I am really hold back from taking it. I took a .5mg of it today and it helped but I want to be drug free , is it okay to take them now and again. I look at them like effexor so im hesistant to take them.

 

Yah it's a very stressful time even without the withdrawal.

 

 

Thanks for the help Strawberry

[strawberry17]

I have used Tamezapam in a crisis and over the Christmas period it was more times than I would like to admit, I think if you think you can be ultra disciplined about it and NOT use it every day/night, maybe very sparingly over the next 4 weeks to get you through. It might be a good thing you don't have much left it could force you to be sparing with it. Try to resist getting another script for it.

[MrAnxious]

I have used Tamezapam in a crisis and over the Christmas period it was more times than I would like to admit, I think if you think you can be ultra disciplined about it and NOT use it every day/night, maybe very sparingly over the next 4 weeks to get you through. It might be a good thing you don't have much left it could force you to be sparing with it. Try to resist getting another script for it.

 

 

Unfortunately I will have to get another script for it, because I still have 3-4 weeks of my placement left and if I am not sleeping well I am good to nobody and I will be all wierd withdrawally. I am wondering if their is a lighter sleeping pill that won't knock me so hard but won't leave me extremely groggy. This is such a tough spot for me , cause I really can't afford to sleep for 2-3 hours of broken sleep. Insomnia is the worst part right now. Gonna book my sleep clinic appointment tonight and see if something else is up. I could be lacking oxygen, could be sleep apnea most likely it's withdraw. Its just horrible, seems like a super long wave.

[MrAnxious]

Insomnia is my biggest factor right now and schooling. It's like I am screwed if I do and screwed if I don't....This situation really needs to be rectified. My brain just won't go to sleep and stay asleep, I keep waking up and then waking up and rolling around and then being up at 4am when i don't have to be up til 450am, it's terrible.

[Petunia]

I'm sorry nothing seems to be helping you get some sleep, it sounds like you're having a rough time of it. Maybe take a small dose of sleeping pills to get you through your placement, just enough so you can get some sleep, but not enough to make you groggy the next day.

 

Then withdraw from the sleeping pills when your placement is over.

 

If you wake up too early and can't get back to sleep, maybe you could get up anyway, do some light exercise like crunches and press-ups or go for a 20 minute walk.

 

I hope your wave eases us soon.

 

I had a couple of days where I was feeling more relaxed, the akathesia quieted down, but it came back today, I can't help thinking its got something to do with increased solar activity. Whenever I have bad days, it seems to coincide with increased solar flare activity. I wonder if anyone else notices a correlation.

 

I hope you get your sleep sorted out soon Mr. A

[basildev]

Hi Mr. A,

 

I'm thinking of you and hope you get some sleep too.

 

There's nothing worse than lying in bed when you can't sleep - it's a long and lonely ride through the night.

 

I totally get that feeling of not being able to afford only getting 2-3 hours of sleep. I guess you need to do what you need to do to function.

 

It's a tough decision to make and I feel for you.

 

I hope you feel better very soon.

[MrAnxious]

I'm sorry nothing seems to be helping you get some sleep, it sounds like you're having a rough time of it. Maybe take a small dose of sleeping pills to get you through your placement, just enough so you can get some sleep, but not enough to make you groggy the next day.

 

Then withdraw from the sleeping pills when your placement is over.

 

If you wake up too early and can't get back to sleep, maybe you could get up anyway, do some light exercise like crunches and press-ups or go for a 20 minute walk.

 

I hope your wave eases us soon.

 

I had a couple of days where I was feeling more relaxed, the akathesia quieted down, but it came back today, I can't help thinking its got something to do with increased solar activity. Whenever I have bad days, it seems to coincide with increased solar flare activity. I wonder if anyone else notices a correlation.

 

I hope you get your sleep sorted out soon Mr. A

 

Thanks, Well I didn't take anything for sleep and slept for a few hours but had the worst nightmares and woke up in a panic and out of breath. I did book a appt with a sleep clinic to see if sleep apnea is playing a key in my anxiety/insomnia. Hopefully something comes to play with that. Yes I got a refill on the sleeping pills and on my ativan but why is it that I go off one drug to be on (sleeping pill), (ativan), (Buspar). How do I expect to get through all this withdrawal when now I have to come off 3 other things too. It's all a crapshoot. So upset atm.

 

Could you please tell me more about this solar correlation stuff, sounds interesting. I hope you feel better

[MrAnxious]

Hi Mr. A,

 

I'm thinking of you and hope you get some sleep too.

 

There's nothing worse than lying in bed when you can't sleep - it's a long and lonely ride through the night.

 

I totally get that feeling of not being able to afford only getting 2-3 hours of sleep. I guess you need to do what you need to do to function.

 

It's a tough decision to make and I feel for you.

 

I hope you feel better very soon.

 

 

Thank you, it's been so rough with the lack of sleep and trying to balance this all. 2-3 hours would not be enough for me to function and in withdrawal we need more than that to recover so what does one do. It all seems like a crapshoot, like they need a pill for withdrawal. talk to you later my friend, thanks for the reply. I hope you get more sleep as well.

[MrAnxious]

How much more of this do I have to endure. Like I decided not to take a sleeping pill last night. I got maybe 2-3 hours of sleep and then the rest was broken, had nightmares, shortness of breath and panic upon waking. I did book a sleep clinic appointment as my doctor suggested, maybe it's from the withdrawal and has turned into sleep apnea who knows. This has been one hell of a ride.

 

I am very frustrated how I can walk down to the store and get a proline ticket and somebody comes up and starts talking to me and my body goes into a full blow panic...like what the hell. I really thought that I was turning a corner and then this happens. Also how did I trade in Effexor for 1. Sleeping pills 2. Buspar 3. Ativan - It seems to be the only way to cope when I have all these stressful situations with school etc. Like I am living at home and have a support but seems like I have more support on here.

 

I am so confused even with how I am feeling ,if I am in a wave or window. Like it's almost like my windows have gone to minimal and it's more waves of panic/anxiety. I need to know how to lower these chortisol levels , is there anything naturally that I can take.

 

Altogether I have 2 weeks left of this one stressful placement and then 2 weeks in another. Will be so glad when it's all said and done, and then I have to find a job...Ahhh How do people do this ??

 

Also I seem to be taking more Ativan lately then I was before this placement.

[alex]

Hi Mr. A; ALL you are refering to is typical w/d.

A few months ago, I couldn`t talk to anyone w/o getting a panic attack.Now that is GONE.

Yes, you can take something natural to reduce your cortisol levels especially at night: SERIPHOS.

I take it, and it seems to work. It gives support to your adrenals

Start with 100mgs 3-4hrs before going to sleep.

 

Hang On, it gets better.

[Jemima]

 

Also I seem to be taking more Ativan lately then I was before this placement.

 

How long have you been taking Ativan, how much, and how often? If you've taken enough to become addicted but don't take it on a regular basis, you may be having inter-dose withdrawal, which has much the same symptoms as antidepressant withdrawal. This would definitely compound your problems, as does the stress.

[MrAnxious]

 

 

Also I seem to be taking more Ativan lately then I was before this placement.

 

How long have you been taking Ativan, how much, and how often? If you've taken enough to become addicted but don't take it on a regular basis, you may be having inter-dose withdrawal, which has much the same symptoms as antidepressant withdrawal. This would definitely compound your problems, as does the stress.

 

 

I only take (1) .5 mg Ativan and have only taken it say 3 pills a week on average. So I think it's my a tolerance maybe. I just need my cortisol levels to go down cause they were never like this. I don't take enough ativan , just lately i have taken like a extra .5 on top of say 1mg. So 1.5mg in a day. just once though today !

[MrAnxious]

Hi Mr. A; ALL you are refering to is typical w/d.

A few months ago, I couldn`t talk to anyone w/o getting a panic attack.Now that is GONE.

Yes, you can take something natural to reduce your cortisol levels especially at night: SERIPHOS.

I take it, and it seems to work. It gives support to your adrenals

Start with 100mgs 3-4hrs before going to sleep.

 

Hang On, it gets better.

 

 

Alex can you inbox me please i'd love to chat more about this, very interested !

[alex]

Mr. A.,look for this link on PHOSPATIDYLSERINE

http://survivinganti...rx-and-natural/

[Meimeiquest]

Mr. A,

 

Last summer when I found out I had sleep apnea (it has helped me SO much to treat that, I went off a benzo and of course had major insomnia. What finally helped me was to limit my sleep. For example, if I was only sleeping 3 hours, I made myself stay up until 3 hrs. Before I had to get up, then extended it a bit the next night. My pdoc said it's called avoidance therapy. But I was on many other meds, so that probably made it easier for me. And while I was in a very uneducated tapering of an antipsychotic, I restarted the benzo...so I'll get to do it again. Pulling for you!

[basildev]

It all seems like a crapshoot, like they need a pill for withdrawal. talk to you later my friend, thanks for the reply. I hope you get more sleep as well.

Aaaah....a PILL for withdrawal - if only!

 

I'm sorry to say that I tried Seriphos (I've tried EVERYTHING) and it had the opposite effect - I woke up every hour on the hour and still had early morning waking.

 

I'm glad you've booked a sleep test just to put your mind at rest. But it sounds like plain old garden variety withdrawal to me.

 

At the moment I'm putting into practise some of the steps from a book called 'sound sleep, sound mind' (see link below):

 

http://sleeptreatment.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1750

 

Mr. A, I'm not a big fan of sleep tips or insomnia books as they all seem to harp on about the same thing (sleep hygiene schmeep hygiene!! GRRRR.)

 

When you're in withdrawal none of this advice seems to make any difference. BUT one thing I'm working on after reading this book is my tendency to 'lose sleep over losing sleep'. One of my biggest downfalls is time monitoring(watching the clock) and I'm trying to wean myself off that.

 

You might not be in the right frame of mind to read this book at the moment but if you are, I highly recommend it. The author is a sleep specialist , and while few sleep specialists are familiar with withdrawal, he does make some very interesting points that I was not aware of before I read the book.

 

If you can get even one useful tip from the book (I got several), then it will be worth it.

 

The way I see it, you may not be able to do much about the physical effects of withdrawal, but you can always work on your mind and the way you react to your situation. In my opinion, that's the REAL battle (for me at least).

[strawberry17]

I know what you mean about books about insomnia and sleep hygiene grrrr. I would say though, I never ever look at a clock or the time in the middle of the night when I can't sleep it just ramps up my anxiety further and makes it even less likely that I'll nod off.