afraid to sleep

Your post is exactly how I felt a few months ago.  I didn't sleep for about 2 weeks.  I was exhausted, but terrified to fall asleep for fear that something terrible would happen to me.  It's a vicious cycle which really stinks... the more you don't sleep, the worse anxiety can become.  Sleep deprivation is a B***H! 

I did a combination of things.  First was going back on Effexor which had helped me tremendously in the past.  It has been VERY helpful again.  Second, I started counseling which included alternative forms of therapy like tapping and imagery.  I also read a great book called The Panic Attack Workbook which was quite helpful. 

During the night when I would dose off for a few minutes and wake up in a terrible panic, I would go online to an anxiety chat room.  I cannot tell you how helpful that was!!!  I would do the tapping (tons of info online if you google it).  I also pulled out some relaxation tapes and often was able to get a little bit of sleep with my headphones on.

Best of luck to you!  I hope you get some well-deserved sleep very soon!

           hello,

 I had this same fear when going to bed..that I wouldn't wake up. It was so irrational. But then again thats anxiety. But my therapist told me a really simple technique that helped me. She told me simple to stay up and not go to bed. She pointed out that I was using sleep as a measuring stick for my well being and by removing that barrier it would put less pressure on going to sleep and sure enough it worked.