Hi,Everyone!

I am a 48 yr old perimenopausal woman that has been going through TONS of changes the last 4 yrs or so...including anxiety/panic disorder.

The last few months I have noticed a big difference in my sleeping habits. It started off with me not being able to sleep much at night. I would doze for an hour or so starting around midnight then I would wake up with a feeling of shaking inside, my heart pounding and that intense knot of fear in the pit of my stomach. I'd fall back to sleep around 3 and sleep for at least 5 hours. The past few weeks, though, all those symptoms have intensified to the max. I am now sitting up all night until around 6 in the morning until I'm so exhausted I'm not paying attention to the anxiety feelings. I sleep until 9 or so then I feel horrible the rest of the day. If I lie down during the day it's the same thing and I'm noticing that "fear" feeling a little even through the day when NOT lying down. I'm especially noticing that I get that feeling of intense anxiety in the pit of my stomach when I lie on my right side but not so much on my left. I haven't noticed that until the last few days. I've also noticed that I have been having digestive issues all night...lots of gas is one of the symptoms. All I know is I am extremely fatigued and can anyone help me? My doctor doesn't seem to care...gave me the option for sleeping pills which I declined. The only meds I take is Nadolol 40mg for hbp and a 2mg valium when the anxiety gets to be too much. Could all this be due to perimenopause? What about digestive issues? Could that cause intense anxiety? What do I do if I can't get help from my own doctor? I'm about ready to give up.

Thank you.

Lacey