Specific triggers for Night Terrors

[aweelassy]

Well I was severly abused as a child and through adulthood.  I now have PTSD, social anxiety, mood disorder, body dysmorphic disorder, OCD, multple brain injuries resulting in epilepsy, depression and severe stress all the time and I also get breathing issues when I sleep I will have mild jerking motion in my heart like a seizure then I feel a shiver go through my body and after eventually finding sleep I wake by a gasp for air.   This is now night 3 with no sleep due to night terrors

[v1r1d1an]

I've suffered from night terrors for about 30 years, since I can first remember. I've realised I can actually bring on a night terror at will now, with absolutely any kind of meditation, or mental exercise before falling asleep. I usually take about an hour to fall asleep, and have tried many different exercises to relax and fall asleep. I have used a lot of reliable ones, like placing all my thoughts into a box and then locking it closed. Or visualising a safe space that I go to relax. They all work well and can put me to sleep in minutes, but all result in a night terror 90% of the time. Has anyone else noticed anything like this?

Also, irregularities in sleep times is a definite trigger for me. Going to bed early or late doesn't make a difference as long as it's regular, but if I go to bed early when I've been going to bed late most of the time it usually triggers one. And vice versa.

[Greta T.]

I have had night terrors off and on for 20 years. They seem to occur during times of extreme stress. Not always, but usually. Before I got married I was having them every night. After
I got married, I had several a month and then they tapered down to several times a year. Then I went almost 5 years without having one at all. Then I lost my job and they've started back.
Mine usually involve screaming and waking up down the hall, on too of my husband, or in the bathroom.
If I remember anything, it's usually a dark figure standing over me or hiding under my bed.
I haven't noticed any monthly timing related to menstrual cycle. But I'm sure everyone has different triggers.
I'm new to this site and think it's wonderful to have support
from people who understand.
I've never seen a doctor specifically for the night terrors, but I have been diagnosed with anxiety disorder as well as OCD.

[Fubar135]

I have had night terrors off and on for 20 years. They seem to occur during times of extreme stress. Not always, but usually. Before I got married I was having them every night. After
I got married, I had several a month and then they tapered down to several times a year. Then I went almost 5 years without having one at all. Then I lost my job and they've started back.
Mine usually involve screaming and waking up down the hall, on too of my husband, or in the bathroom.
If I remember anything, it's usually a dark figure standing over me or hiding under my bed.
I haven't noticed any monthly timing related to menstrual cycle. But I'm sure everyone has different triggers.
I'm new to this site and think it's wonderful to have support
from people who understand.
I've never seen a doctor specifically for the night terrors, but I have been diagnosed with anxiety disorder as well as OCD.

I find your post really interesting. I've been suffering from night terrors a lot more over the past few months than usual and every single night terror I've had has been with a dark figure leaning over me, coming towards me, etc.. I've been reading that my pregnancy could be factoring a lot into the night terrors and that it could have something to do with the hormone changes, especially in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters.