Susie I'm sorry to hear that. I know exactly what you mean. I did break out of a window once with my bare hands and climbed outside and it was a tiny high-up basement window to boot.
The escape theme is interesting. I was trying to write a memoir about my night terrors and my writing group thinks it's about a desire to escape my surroundings/upbringing.
It's interesting that there are three of us thus far who experience them. I wonder if there's a correlation to alcohol. I didn't drink when I first started having them (they started at age 12 and I didn't drink anything until I was about 18) so I think it's more of an anxiety issue which I suppose is common with alcoholism. They are more likely to happen after I drink, but not drinking doesn't seem to stop them.
Thanks Speedy for the helpful advice. I will try the routine first. I know what you mean about wanting to try other things before turning to meds.