TMS in the middle of the night...

[Hopeful83]

Also, part two:
I find it easier to fight through a migraine I get early in the day and not let it get to the point that it's unbearable. Once I go to bed though, it's like I lose all control while I'm sleeping and wake up in the middle of the night with a piercing headache that I can no longer fight through and then I'm left taking my medication
It's like my TMS sneaks up on me when my defenses are down! Such a dirty trick!
Any advice?

 

[Laughalot]

Are you thinking about anything in particular when it happens? TMS symptoms are related to emotional response - so there may be something in your life that you are having an emotional reaction toward that you aren't looking at consciously.

 

[Hopeful83]

As much exploring and journaling as I do during the day, I can't control my thoughts or explore them while I'm sleeping!

 

[Laughalot]

Ya, I get that Hopeful. This sounds pretty frustrating!

So when you wake up in the middle of the night, do you have a hard time getting back to sleep? Is there something in particular that tends to be on your mind? (Other than not being able to go back to sleep) Do you have any symptoms other than the fact that you're awake? I tend to have a very audible heart (at least to me). It sounds like a drum beat, and it really frightened me when I first started having it.

On nights when I absolutely can't get to bed, I find that what bothers me most is that I've got a big day ahead of me and without sleep it's going to be a total slog. Then I get frustrated and angry with myself for not being able to go to sleep. One thing that's helped me in the past has been to lie in bed and think, "Ok, in five minutes, I am going to be asleep." And whenever my mind starts going on and on about how I'm not asleep yet, I remind myself, "OK, true, I'm awake right now, but in five minutes I'm going to be be asleep." If I find myself thinking about anything that's related to me not sleeping, what I have to do the next day, or what I'm worried about, I go back to that refrain. It's worked well for me.

 

[Ellen]

I found that as I was able to control my migraines during waking hours, I eventually stopped having them while sleeping too. I think the unconscious brain is more active during sleep as it goes unchecked by the conscious brain. But I think every time your conscious brain can rein in the unconscious, the unconscious becomes less unruly-if that makes any sense.

Just keep doing what you're doing that is working during the day, and eventually you will be totally migraine free. That is how it happened for me. Don't worry about having to take medication once in a while. It will get better if you keep at it.

 

[JanAtheCPA]

I have had success with doing a brief visualization when I go to bed. For example, I had a night guard for teeth-clenching (very common, along with grinding). It wasn't fitting well after several crowns, and I didn't want to pay for a new one, so every night when I went to bed I did a little meditation in which I visualized not clenching my teeth, keeping them apart, waking up with my teeth apart - various different scenarios. Along with some deep breathing. It's a form of mindfulness, in fact - clearing my brain of all the chatter, and focusing on my one goal. Just a few minutes, no big deal. And it worked! Two years later, I still wake up with my teeth apart, and my dentist sees no signs of new clenching.

Change the conversation, change your brain. Ellen already said it in a slightly different context - about your conscious brain reining in the unconscious. It's amazingly powerful and all you have to do is believe.