Medicine - is it a band-aid?

[jessr421]

Hi Everyone,
I'm confused about medicine, a lot of people have been saying (including my doctor)
to just take the medicine for a bit and maybe that will be what I need to get by and then I can live a normal life.

My doctor said the good news is, that my anxiety isn't a life long thing for me (i'm not sure how she can determine that in an hour conversation....but...),
she says that until I can learn how to deal with anxiey on my own. I should take the meds.... (i'm meeting with a cognitive therapist in a month). Why are they so easy to give you meds before trying to do it a natural way???? Couldnt she have just said, your appoinment with the cognitive therapist is not for a month, try to deal with it naturally for a month if you need meds take then...but if not, dont and soon enough you'll learn the skills to deal!... NO, she told me that anytime i feel anxious that i should be taking them..... now i'm an anxioius person , i feel anxious all the time! ha... i can't deal with the nonsense anxeity, its when i have an attack that causes me trouble!....

But I don't understand it, because people like us are very intune with everything that has to do with us, our body, our mind....everything around us!
Since this is mental, how on earth can I take meds fora 2 months... have no panic attacks....., and then convince my mind that when i'm off the meds, that my panic attacks will be gone forever & that i don't need meds, when it was the meds that got me better in the 1st place?????

Has anyone struggled with this?

I just don't understand how anyone goes off the medication and doesnt have panic attacks......
because you never truly learned how to deal with them...(unless you were doing things throughout that time)
but if not - it was the medicine was what was dealing with the anxiety not you.....(??????)

I dont mean to offend anyone taking medicine, but I just don't understand it!
Please opinions would be greatly appreciated!

I'm 28 years old, I plan to have a baby in a year or so... the doctor prescrived me Ativan (causes birth defects)
So, obvoulsy, i can't be on meds when i'm pregnant... I don't want to start taking the medication, rely on it...
get pregnant, unexpectiely or planned and have to go off it .. and be thrown into the world of anxiety attacks & pregnant to boot! (like thats not stressful...ha)

Thanks for any thoughts you can give!!

[Bridgie]

Hi Jess!

I TOTALLY depend on my meds. I don't take antidepression drugs, but I take a benzo called Clonazipam. I only take it once in a while when I'm feeling totally anxious. I'm not hooked on it or anything. BUT, I am living in fear that my doctor might stop prescribing them for me. I just can't see dealing with this anxiety without them, and that makes me even more anxious. I maybe take one once a week.

I don't know why your doctor thinks you'll be able to deal with your anxiety on your own after taking the meds for a while and then going off them. Not sure what that thinking is. Although I know that when I take the benzo it helps me to do things I wouldn't be able to do normally. And the more exposure you have to uncertain situations and you feel comfortable, the more confidence you build.

But I am guessing that once you have that baby, your mind will be taken off that anxiety and will be focused on the baby and you will do much better! Sometimes when we have other worries outside of our own inner fears, that helps.

Good Luck!

[mirandao]

Hello, I've taken lorazepam (Ativan) before and I've been taking clonazepam (Klonopin) for over a year now. I very much understand your concerns. I myself am afraid I've become dependent, I take it every day. Both are benzodiapines, which are addictive. I didn't take my medication for a week and I felt no withdrawal symptoms however. I too feel the same worry you have. When I started taking the benzos, my anxiety was reduced significantly and I felt really alive for the first time in years. At the same time, it was clear that I couldn't be on them forever, I do not want to be on a benzodiazapine for years.

Basically, my philosophy on all medications comes down to the idea that my anxiety, depression (etc) are all quality of life issues, and that it's best to do what I can about it, even take the medications for the time being if it helps me. My advice would be to try the Ativan and see if it helps, let your doctor know that you plan to become pregnant. Maybe they can choose a drug that is non-tetragenic (damaging to the fetus) or you may choose not to use medication and work through therapy alone, there's really nothing wrong that. There certainly isn't any easy one step solution, and I don't believe that drugs are superior in all cases.

I wish you well.

-J

[conceptcanibal]

Hello all,
Well after 8 months I have decided I want to try medication. I was prescribed Cymbalta ( an SSNRI) by a psychiatrist yesterday, apparently because it would have less side effects than the other drugs generally used (SSRI's). But before I could commit and agree to taking an anti depressant, I had to commit to going back to therapy again, because medication will become a crutch instead of a stepping stool to getting better.
I think that this is a pretty reasonable thought... If you are thinking about getting on or off medication, you really have to ask yourself why? Have you tried all the natural remedies first? Do you have a family history where drugs did not help?
For those involved in this conversation that are thinking about stopping medication, go to therapy. Start learning coping mechanisms so that you will know how to deal with the freak outs involved when losing a crutch like medication.
For me, medication can easily become something to rely on. That's why the therapy is so vital, i don't plan on staying on medication for more than the amount of time I have spent indoors (so 8 months). Any thing longer than that and the problem is not being fixed in my opinion.
I believe in all of the people on this website! We have eachother to gain support from! WE can totally do this!

[RabidBadger]

Hi

Here's an analogy that I like to use when explaining the combined benefits of medication and cognitive therapy...

Imagine if you were recovering from a broken leg and your doctor told you that you needed to see a physio to start exercising it properly again. The problem is, when you see the physio it is too painful to exercise your leg so you go back to the doctor and he prescribes pain killers. These allow you to start exercising your leg and get it back to full strength with the physio. It is not the pain killers that get your leg back to full strength, it is the physio but the pain killers did help with the physical pain and allow you to perform the exercises. There's no way you would say "I'm not taking pain killers because they just mask the problem" so I don't really understand why people have this view of anxiety medication.

You can't categorise anxiety as either a pathological problem or a mental problem because it is a combination of the two. The chemical make up of your body and your brain affect how neurons react and therefore affect your thoughts and moods. A much more graphic illustration of this is when you have a few beers and feel less stressed - or the next morning when you have a hangover and you can't function properly.

I can't understand if your doctor was prescribing anti-depressants for only a month because they probably wouldn't take effect in that short a period. I think it's more likely that he was suggesting anti-depressants as an ongoing treatment to compliment the cognitive therapy.

9 months ago I was spending about 23 hours a day lying in bed scared of everything (even going to the toilet was terrifying). I was convinced that I was dying and I had aches and pains all over. I started taking a new drug called escitalopram and about 5 weeks later I felt like I was getting some motivation back. I started going out for short walks and staying out longer and longer. I was having far fewer panic attacks and so I wasn't spending all day terrified that I was going to have a panic attack. Eventually it was my own determination to get out and retrain my mind that made me better but the medication helped to kick-start that process.

I would guess that the doctor's prognosis about anxiety not being a life-long problem is based on the fact that it very rarely is.

Hope this helps you to understand.

Best wishes

Chris

[squirt]

Hi

Here's an analogy that I like to use when explaining the combined benefits of medication and cognitive therapy...

Imagine if you were recovering from a broken leg and your doctor told you that you needed to see a physio to start exercising it properly again. The problem is, when you see the physio it is too painful to exercise your leg so you go back to the doctor and he prescribes pain killers. These allow you to start exercising your leg and get it back to full strength with the physio. It is not the pain killers that get your leg back to full strength, it is the physio but the pain killers did help with the physical pain and allow you to perform the exercises. There's no way you would say "I'm not taking pain killers because they just mask the problem" so I don't really understand why people have this view of anxiety medication.

Eventually it was my own determination to get out and retrain my mind that made me better but the medication helped to kick-start that process.

Chris

Chris I really like your analogy but especially like the last part of your note that I just put in bold. I'm not against drug therapy but a lot people get on it without cbt and that is a problem in my opinion. To use a variation of your analogy.
If you hurt your leg skiing and were prescribed pain killers and skipped your physical therapy because you felt pretty good just on the pain killers and eventually healed and stopped taking the pain medication without strengthening your leg, you are very likely to injure your leg again on a future skiing trip.
That's the problem with drug therapy in my opinion, too many people are doing it alone and expect it to cure the problem. Used properly with cbt, as you suggest, I think it is great :D

[squirt]

Hello all,
Well after 8 months I have decided I want to try medication. I was prescribed Cymbalta ( an SSNRI) by a psychiatrist yesterday, apparently because it would have less side effects than the other drugs generally used (SSRI's). But before I could commit and agree to taking an anti depressant, I had to commit to going back to therapy again, because medication will become a crutch instead of a stepping stool to getting better.
I think that this is a pretty reasonable thought... If you are thinking about getting on or off medication, you really have to ask yourself why? Have you tried all the natural remedies first? Do you have a family history where drugs did not help?
For those involved in this conversation that are thinking about stopping medication, go to therapy. Start learning coping mechanisms so that you will know how to deal with the freak outs involved when losing a crutch like medication.
For me, medication can easily become something to rely on. That's why the therapy is so vital, i don't plan on staying on medication for more than the amount of time I have spent indoors (so 8 months). Any thing longer than that and the problem is not being fixed in my opinion.
I believe in all of the people on this website! We have eachother to gain support from! WE can totally do this!

How are you doing concept? I hope the combo therapy is working for you ;)

[Robbed]

Well, the reason why your doctor told you that you need to take meds all the time (as opposed to 'when needed') is that this is the way that SSRIs work. Unlike benzos, they take several weeks before they have any effect. And once they DO have an effect, they must ALWAYS be taken. As for prescribing meds right away, this is unfortunately they way the health care system works. Just keep one thing in mind. And that is that you are under no obligation to take medication. Don't let ANYONE bully you into it. If you want to try CBT first without meds, then you are perfectly free to do so. This is something that you should REALLY think about if your anxiety is not so severe as to be debilitating. If you can still basically do most things, they you probably don't even need meds. I would only recommend that you think about meds right away if things are REALLY, REALLY bad. But even if your anxiety is not too serious during the day, you might also want to take something like Lorazepam at night if your anxiety is causing you to not sleep. Insomnia can make even relatively mild anxiety MUCH worse.

[squirt]

Well, the reason why your doctor told you that you need to take meds all the time (as opposed to 'when needed') is that this is the way that SSRIs work. Unlike benzos, they take several weeks before they have any effect. And once they DO have an effect, they must ALWAYS be taken. As for prescribing meds right away, this is unfortunately they way the health care system works. Just keep one thing in mind. And that is that you are under no obligation to take medication. Don't let ANYONE bully you into it. If you want to try CBT first without meds, then you are perfectly free to do so. This is something that you should REALLY think about if your anxiety is not so severe as to be debilitating. If you can still basically do most things, they you probably don't even need meds. I would only recommend that you think about meds right away if things are REALLY, REALLY bad. But even if your anxiety is not too serious during the day, you might also want to take something like Lorazepam at night if your anxiety is causing you to not sleep. Insomnia can make even relatively mild anxiety MUCH worse.

Lots of good points Robbed. Meds can be helpful and very useful when used properly. My beef is that most want to put you on meds and forget about you. The tea form thought countering exercise from cbt is what has given me the most and longest lasting relief. I never would have been able to get off meds without them.

[Frazzle]

Hi Everyone,
I'm confused about medicine, a lot of people have been saying (including my doctor)
to just take the medicine for a bit and maybe that will be what I need to get by and then I can live a normal life.

My doctor said the good news is, that my anxiety isn't a life long thing for me (i'm not sure how she can determine that in an hour conversation....but...),
she says that until I can learn how to deal with anxiey on my own. I should take the meds.... (i'm meeting with a cognitive therapist in a month). Why are they so easy to give you meds before trying to do it a natural way???? Couldnt she have just said, your appoinment with the cognitive therapist is not for a month, try to deal with it naturally for a month if you need meds take then...but if not, dont and soon enough you'll learn the skills to deal!... NO, she told me that anytime i feel anxious that i should be taking them..... now i'm an anxioius person , i feel anxious all the time! ha... i can't deal with the nonsense anxeity, its when i have an attack that causes me trouble!....

But I don't understand it, because people like us are very intune with everything that has to do with us, our body, our mind....everything around us!
Since this is mental, how on earth can I take meds fora 2 months... have no panic attacks....., and then convince my mind that when i'm off the meds, that my panic attacks will be gone forever & that i don't need meds, when it was the meds that got me better in the 1st place?????

Has anyone struggled with this?

I just don't understand how anyone goes off the medication and doesnt have panic attacks......
because you never truly learned how to deal with them...(unless you were doing things throughout that time)
but if not - it was the medicine was what was dealing with the anxiety not you.....(??????)

I dont mean to offend anyone taking medicine, but I just don't understand it!
Please opinions would be greatly appreciated!

I'm 28 years old, I plan to have a baby in a year or so... the doctor prescrived me Ativan (causes birth defects)
So, obvoulsy, i can't be on meds when i'm pregnant... I don't want to start taking the medication, rely on it...
get pregnant, unexpectiely or planned and have to go off it .. and be thrown into the world of anxiety attacks & pregnant to boot! (like thats not stressful...ha)

Thanks for any thoughts you can give!!

Please know that i am not a doctor or therapist but i feel that i need to tell you that what i have been told form my therapist and couselor is that medcation takes at least 2 months to take effect. Maybe 3. so in reality what i think they are trying to acomplish is to get you on medication and to have it take effect while you are in theripy sort of like a double wammy and then while you are on medication i think that i would take at least 3 months to ween off of (it is very dangerous to go cold turkey!) So i think that realistically you are looking at taking 6 months of meds unless you have immedate tramatsing side effects from it. you might want to have a serious chat with your Dr on how long the medication takes to have a effect and if it's hard to get off of. That said, medication and theripy are the most effective way of geting past your problems. And PLEASE, PLEASE don't try to think that having a baby will help you get better because if it doesn't then it will be hard on two of you instead of just you.

also medicine can i a startlingly helpful effect but what's really crappy about it is feeling awsome for about a month and then deciding that you don't need the meds anymore so you stop taking them and then your back to square one or worse. I strongly urge you to talk to your doctor about how long medication has to take effect. You are a capable rational adult and i know i've just given you a lot of information but you have the ability to make a good choice. please, talk to you doctor.

[Beachgirl]

First off I'm not agoraphobic. But I had horrible anxiety attacks and health and social anxiety and meds helped some but were never the answer for me.
I finished a cbt group last summer and it was the best. If you do the exercises like the TEA it will retrain your brain to eliminate anxiety. I'm loving it and it was worth all the struggles I had with it at first.

[sameBoat]

I am totally convinced that meds are a band aid.

It is cruel of the doctors to give anxiety suffers meds.

i had a Valium on my first major panic attack and then fell asleep.

after that i went to a cognitive therapist and never needed meds after that. i am not fully cured but your mind is better than any med. you mind gives you the anxiety and your mind can take it away.

meds only reduce the symptoms they don't teach you how to control anxiety. life is too long to rely on meds forever because meds have side effects eventually like any drug.

i suggest you see a cognitive therapist. they are awesome and it works!

your anxiety is NOT your enemy and is not trying to attack you. It is trying to help you but it is a little off the target and a hypochondriac. Embrace it and teach it how to not get worked up about things that are not real.

[Beachgirl]

Cool post sameboat :mrgreen: It sounds like we think alike. I finished a cbt group this past summer and life's a beach now for me. The book we used in my group by Sam Obitz has an exercise called a TEA that is awesome and if you are disciplined you can do them on your own and you will start to feel better. I'm not perfect but I feel like I am in control of my anxiety instead of it being in control of me now :tongue:

[ron111]

Robbed,

I know you aren't a doctor, but you seem to know anxiety well from your post. You said that you may not need meds if you can do most things with it. I am pretty productive at work I think even with anxiety. It's usually not too bad there. I have learned to control it somewhat. I have anxious most of the time depending on the day. However, yesterday and the day before I had pretty much no anxiety. I guess I'm just trying to guage how bad my anxiety is. I usually rate it by my heart rate because it all revolves around the heart with me. I have a slow resting heart rate because I run a lot. Resting is prob 50, I've measured it lower. But my heart rate doesnt usually get over 60 at work, so I assume I'm doing alright. However, I do get a mild headache by the end of the day. Probably due to my somewhat constant anxious state. I should prob start those CBT books. Does anybody know of a place I can access them?

[Beachgirl]

This thread should be a sticky imo :shock:

[suziewong]

I suffered from panic attacks which caused me to lose control of my bodily functions, which in turn made me agoraphobic and the only way I can cope is to stay on my meds. I have tried going off them but it starts all over again, so I stay on them. It's been 8 years but I feel "normal".

[Dixxie]

Hi Everyone,
I'm confused about medicine, a lot of people have been saying (including my doctor)
to just take the medicine for a bit and maybe that will be what I need to get by and then I can live a normal life.

My doctor said the good news is, that my anxiety isn't a life long thing for me (i'm not sure how she can determine that in an hour conversation....but...),
she says that until I can learn how to deal with anxiey on my own. I should take the meds.... (i'm meeting with a cognitive therapist in a month). Why are they so easy to give you meds before trying to do it a natural way???? Couldnt she have just said, your appoinment with the cognitive therapist is not for a month, try to deal with it naturally for a month if you need meds take then...but if not, dont and soon enough you'll learn the skills to deal!... NO, she told me that anytime i feel anxious that i should be taking them..... now i'm an anxioius person , i feel anxious all the time! ha... i can't deal with the nonsense anxeity, its when i have an attack that causes me trouble!....

But I don't understand it, because people like us are very intune with everything that has to do with us, our body, our mind....everything around us!
Since this is mental, how on earth can I take meds fora 2 months... have no panic attacks....., and then convince my mind that when i'm off the meds, that my panic attacks will be gone forever & that i don't need meds, when it was the meds that got me better in the 1st place?????

Has anyone struggled with this?

I just don't understand how anyone goes off the medication and doesnt have panic attacks......
because you never truly learned how to deal with them...(unless you were doing things throughout that time)
but if not - it was the medicine was what was dealing with the anxiety not you.....(??????)

I dont mean to offend anyone taking medicine, but I just don't understand it!
Please opinions would be greatly appreciated!

I'm 28 years old, I plan to have a baby in a year or so... the doctor prescrived me Ativan (causes birth defects)
So, obvoulsy, i can't be on meds when i'm pregnant... I don't want to start taking the medication, rely on it...
get pregnant, unexpectiely or planned and have to go off it .. and be thrown into the world of anxiety attacks & pregnant to boot! (like thats not stressful...ha)

Thanks for any thoughts you can give!!

It's band-aid for some people, like you and I (bec. i agree with what you are saying) but my sister for example....is on Citalopram for quite some time and is doing great. My sis and I unfortunately went through some bad times growing up with an alcoholic father. We should have been going to teenage group therapy.

I carry Ativan all the time in my purse and now I just have the .5 dose not the 1.0 dose. (otherwise I almost fall asleep.) But man, it really works if you need it!!!! (Like going to the dentist.) My advice: don't get pregnant until you sort this out a bit, at least until you join a group and get emotional support. :)

What you said about doctors only prescribing medicine....not the therapy....I don't know. Mine has never mentioned any therapy. Maybe they want us to ask because otherwise they may be insulting us????? I don't know. Why not ask your doctor and I'll ask mine next time.

I want to go to my first meeting tonite....It's been written up in 2 of our newspapers this past week and also on our radio. There are ALOT OF PEOPLE SUFFERING IN SILENCE. I think it's a world wide epidemic. Our society is falling apart for many reasons. We need to get back to basics, laugh more, sleep more, eat right.... and many other things.

Hope I've helped a little bit.

[Beachgirl]

Dixxie, I thought you made a lot of good points in your note :D

[trackstar]

This is really good info. I just finished a cbt group and it only took 16-weeks to get me feeling better than i have ever felt before. meds always made me feel not all there and now I feel alive again. We used the tea forms and have been encouraged to stick with them now that the group is over. Try and avoid meds if you can.

[squirt]

Beachgirl great idea about making this thread a sticky. How do they decide on which ones become sticky threads?

[Beachgirl]

Thanks for agreeing with my idea squirt, but I have no idea how to go about making this thread a sticky? I was hoping by suggesting it here someone would like the idea and add it to the sticky list? Anyone else know more about the process?

[Beachgirl]

Good for you trackstar :D
Keep working on your TEA forms and they will help you even more :o

[squirt]

Thanks for agreeing with my idea squirt, but I have no idea how to go about making this thread a sticky? I was hoping by suggesting it here someone would like the idea and add it to the sticky list? Anyone else know more about the process?
YW Beachgirl but sorry my agreeing was not helpful in your efforts :cry: Let me know if you figure out the proper process in achieving that and i will be glad to help :)

[Beachgirl]

Will do? Maybe Robbed knows and can give us advice if he see's this.

[trackstar]

At risk of sounding dumb.... What is a sticky?

[Robbed]

Will do? Maybe Robbed knows and can give us advice if he see's this.

It looks like I can delete a topic, move a topic, lock a topic, or split a topic. But not make it a sticky. I don't know if maybe this is something that only the administrator can do.

[punkgod94]

Hi Jess, I just saw your post now. Here's my take on medicine and whether or not it's a band-aid. I'm going to tackle your main points/questions/concerns that you brought up, so sorry if this seems a little jumbled at points.

Sometimes taking medicine for a bit IS what you need to get by and live a normal life. Some people need medication for their entire lives, others need it only as a crutch to get them through very horrible times (deaths for example). Sometimes people are prescribed medications such as anti-depressants because there is a chemical imbalance in the brain. By taking the medication for a certain length of time, sometimes your brain will be "jumpstarted" into being able to produce the proper amounts of neurotransmitters on its own again...WITHOUT the use of medication. But you can live a "normal life" again with, or without medication. Like your doctor said, anxiety is NOT always a life long thing. It can cripple some people for their entire life, but it can also be gone within weeks, months, or years. I've found the best approach to dealing with anxiety is an initial combination of medication and therapy as well. But I find it important to eventually get yourself off of medication because it can lead to dependence, and even can cause depression if you feel as though it isn't working...nothing's worked....feeling like you'll need to rely on a pill for the rest of your life to be happy. Therapy and behavior modifications are your best bet to help you "cure" your anxiety. But medication is a god-send for some people who actually DO need to remain on it for their entire lives (people with schizophrenia, as well as a number of other mental and non-mental related disorders)

I agree with your doctor - take the medicine for now until your anxiety becomes MORE manageable. If you're anxious enough that you had to visit your doctor before seeing your therapist next month then I'd at least give the medication a chance to balance you out enough so that you can think a little more clearly and think of ways you can properly help yourself overcome anxiety in the future without the medication (changing lifestyle, diet, exercise, outlook on life, coping with things better, etc.) I'm far from a doctor, but I have to tell you that these message boards are GREAT!!! People here understand what you're going through because we all suffer from the same essential problem - some have it worse, some not as worse. But we can all help each other recover by sharing our experiences and what has worked (or not worked).

The reason doctors are "so easy to give you meds before trying to do it a natural way" is because doctors are trained in medicine. That is their job. They don't know natural ways. If you go to them with a problem, they will give you the medical treatment for it. It's not their fault, and they're not trying to be narrow-minded. That's just their job - medicine. Your doctor COULD have said "can't you just deal with your problems naturally until you see your therapist in a month"...but if you could handle those problems, you probably wouldn't have gone to see your doctor in the meantime. Not to mention that rude behavior like that most likely means you won't have very many clients haha. Also the fact that if the doctor DID say something to that effect and their patient hurt or killed themself, they could be held liable. Your doctor is just trying to help you. Like I said, some people genuinely need the medication for life, some find ways to cope that require weeks, months or years, and they may STILL need medication. Or they may never need medication again. Your doctors trying to give you a bridge to tie you over until the therapist can help you look at ways to "naturally" overcome this. If you're anxious all the time then medication to help you for awhile is probably a good idea. I don't know what kind of medication you're prescribed, but when you have an attack, take a benzodiazepene if you're prescribed it (Xanax, Valium, Ativan, Klonopin are the most common...there are generics for these as well). Even if you don't feel it having an immediate effect, having it in your blood system by taking it every day (or 2-3 times a day as prescribed) will keep your overall anxiety levels down and help prevent you from having a panic "outbreak".

You're absolutely correct...people like us are VERY in tune with everything that has to do with us, our bodys, minds, and surroundings. But the anxiety can be crippling as well and prevent us from dealing with these things that we're in tune with. Most people who have anxious fears, realize that the fears are completely irrational, but they're unable to cope with them nonetheless.

It is possible that you take medication for two months and then you're mind may no longer need them. That is for you and your cognitive therapist to discuss however...be sure to keep your doctor in the loop as well. I try to stay away from words like "gone forever" because that implies that you can predict the future, and NOBODY knows for sure what will happen in the future since we can't control it. You may have a major life shattering experience in the future that puts you back to having an unmanageable anxiety problem again. It's for this reason that I like to keep a few benzodiazepenes on hand just in case something major happens and my anxiety becomes unmanageable again! That way I'll have something to hold me over until I can see a doctor if it's the weekend or they're unavailable for a couple days. Any more than a couple days and I'd tell the receptionist it's an emergency visit, and hopefully they'll find a way to squeeze an appointment in for you. Other times they may recommend you go to the emergency room, but it's worth a shot.

Again, medication isn't always bad. It MAY in fact be the thing that makes you better in the first place, but by continuing cognitive therapy you are taking matters into your own hands, ensuring that you don't "relapse" so to speak. You learn coping skills, and sometimes you can realize that your fears ARE irrational and you can deal with regular stress better than you could before. Remember, stress is 100% normal to experience. DISTRESS is not normal. It's when our body's don't respond properly to natural stressors and this is when medication can be very helpful.

I've struggled with medication for several years, and I've been on lots of different kinds, so I won't get get too detailed here since this post is already enormous, but you're not alone, and others HAVE struggled with your questioning of medication.

Feel free to email me (since I rarely check my "private messages") and I can share some more personal experiences with you, if you wish. I think medication is GREAT....but it's a double edged sword. It CAN do you more harm than good. It can also save your life. It all depends on a lot of personal factors, what medications you're on, and a whole slew of other variables.

It is none of my business, but I must suggest to you that before you consider having a baby, try to get your anxiety under FULL control with your doctors and therapists first. You don't want to end up having a baby and being so stressed out that you can't handle life anymore, and you don't want to accidentally fall into post-partum depression. Depression and anxiety are two mental disorders that OFTEN times occur at the same time in a person. Sometimes one starts first and the other follows, sometimes they both start at the same time, etc. When you are truly ready to get pregnant and your anxiety is under control, talk with your doctors again (by this time you hopefully won't need medication for your anxiety anymore, and that won't be an issue for you). However, let me offer you some advice. You can NOT predict the future at ALL. So do not worry about it. You also can't change the past, so do not let your mind obsess over it. By staying in the present you can better prepare for the unknown future...not control it, but prepare for it. By talking openly and HONESTLY (very important, but overlooked) with your doctor who prescribes you medicine, you can make sure that you do not become reliant on your medication. If you doubt your doctor is giving you the level of care that you NEED, then I highly urge you to switch to a different doctor that suits your needs. I'm 24 and have had 3 family doctors, and slightly over half a dozen social workers, counselors, therapists, , psychologists, and psychiatrists. Sometimes it takes some time and digging, but it's worth the time to find the right people for you!!

Also, you mentioned worries about becoming unexpectedly pregnant. I don't know your religion beliefs, but my best advice is either to abstain or to use SEVERAL forms of birth control to help prevent any accidents. If you're on the pill, make sure you use it properly...take it on time, the same time, every day, etc. But there is NOTHING stopping you from still using condoms in addition. And if you don't want to use condoms, then you can use spemicidal lubricant in addition to the pill. You probably won't need it, but you can use it as part of foreplay and still have the peace of mind knowing that it is ultimately going to help prevent you from getting pregnant.

Sorry for the long post...I think I actually just wrote a mini-book, but like I said, feel free to email me with any quetions you may have or anything that I said that may need to e cleared up.

[email protected]

[Beachgirl]

thx for getting back to us about how to make this a sticky... Maybe the admins will see it and give it sticky status :unsure:
I hope you are well :mrgreen:

[helpmarcproject]

Rx medicine is a mask of the real problem. It is not going to allow you to get to the root of what is causing your anxiety and how to deal with. So, you will have to be on medicine for the rest of your life, or face the anxiety head on. Some medicine like SSRI's are not meant to be a long term fix. I go into great detail on this on my blog. Please visit it! Click on the link provided in the signature block.

[trackstar]

Rx medicine is a mask of the real problem. It is not going to allow you to get to the root of what is causing your anxiety and how to deal with. So, you will have to be on medicine for the rest of your life, or face the anxiety head on. Some medicine like SSRI's are not meant to be a long term fix.
Great post! I was stuck in the medicine conundrum before finding relief in my cbt group. It's great stuff and is changing my life. Now I am just spending a few minutes in the morning countering my thoughts in a TEA form and using them whenever I start to feel anxious and I eel way better than I ever did on meds.

ps. to anyone? I still want to knw what a sticky is? thx

[trackstar]

I got a PM telling me what a sticky was so no need to answer that. thx.

[trackstar]

David,
Anti-depressants are way more useful than ones like xanax and not addictive as far I have heard. I still think CBT is the best treatment if you are willing to put in the work.

[Giz]

I was once upon a time firmly convinced that I needed my medication. I swallowed the line about the chemical imbalance in my brain hook line and sinker(even though when I studied anatomy & physiology my teacher could not explain how they worked). Despite the fact that the first set of Anti depressants I was put on removed any inhibitions I had about suicide & nearly cost me my life(citalopram), and the second one (venlafaxine) made me manic, resulting in me taking some seriously stupid risks, I kept taking them in good faith - I mean, my psychiatrist prescribed them, and hes a doctor for goodness sake - he should know what he's doing..
I relied on the meds as I was told that I would need them to get into the "right place to begin therapy" - although my therapist spends more time on maternity leave than in work, so the waiting list was long, and shes not always there..

Anyway - back to the drugs.. They didnt work.

Aside from the initial reactions (suicidal and then manic) they did nothing - except distort my perceptions of reality and dumb me down. By the time I quit Effexor I could only feel anger and sadness.

But I did quit. And I looked for the root cause of my problem - and now - Im not sick anymore.

See, it turns out that stuff about seratonin levels and norepinephrine levels and such like is all just a theory. Theres no scientific proof for any of it. Try asking your doctor if they can give you a specific test to prove that you really need the drugs.. They cant - because there isnt one.

A few things that you may want to check out - because there is no reason you should just take my word for it.
First of all, go to you tube, and search for "Phillip Day" there are two videos of particular interest, "Suppressed Health Science" and "Psychiatry".
Phillip Day is the figurehead of the "Campaign for Truth in Medicine" and if you watch the videos you will see why this movement is needed. If you go to the website he mentions in the video and search "psychiatry" you will see all the evidence you need to see that the drugs don't just "not work", they are starting to cause more harm than good..

For a band aid, its a band aid that brings along with it a list of devastating and sometimes fatal side effects. Imagine a band aid that burns your skin right down to the layer of fat underneath, causes and infection that leads you into needing further medications, and may not clear for several years. Would you use that brand of band aid?

There are several nutritional and also environmental factors that can lead to anxiety (and other mental health problems). If these underlying causes are not addressed then they can progress - while being masked by the "band aid", to become worse problems, you would think a doctor would recognise this, but when you see how a mental illness is diagnosed (or even, how it comes into being) then you develop a certain cynicism about the whole affair.
For example - a shocking amount of people who are on anti depressants for years, get diagnosed as having type II diabetes - which means more drugs. When you bear in mind a blood sugar imbalance is found in most people with mental health problems then you would assume that this nutritional factor would be considered and addressed before prescribing drugs that have many serious side effects and are addictive (and yes - they are addictive, the doctors can call it "discontinuation syndrome" if they like, but I know my cold turkey felt exactly how heroin withdrawal was depicted in the film trainspotting)
Deficiencies of certain minerals and vitamins can present as mental health issues - supplementing these nutrients corrects the problems. Essential Fatty acid imbalances can cause all sorts of problems.. But NONE of this will ever be considered in the doctors surgery - to the detriment of your health.

Thats the problem with much of modern medicine. Treating symptoms while ignoring the cause. Attack the cause then the symptoms naturally disappear! It's so simple, isn't it?
Sadly this is not the way medicine works - and it is NOT the doctors fault. It is the fault of those who seek to push the drugs on an unsuspecting public who were only putting their trust in those they were assured knew better. As far as "clinical trials prove....." you may want to take a look at the article in the British Medical Journal by Dave Sackett & Andy Oxman, "Harlot Plc, an amalgamation of the worlds 2 oldest professions". This satire was written to explain what goes into falsifying results to get a drug put through FDA approval and gain favour with doctors. This goes a long way to explain why many drugs deemed "safe" by the FDA are later removed from sale (having caused considerable harm in the meantime - see the "Merck, Vioxx" scandal)

Before you ever put a drug in your mouth - think. Is it absolutely necessary? Drugs are toxins. They are poisonous to your body. They are made by people who want you to have to take them to boost their profit margins. There are, of course, exceptions to this rule (although I seriously doubt psychiatric medication would be one). Your doctor writes the prescription because its the only help that they can offer you anymore - its all they get trained up on (In the US a doctors nutritional training over their entire time spent in college? Approx 2.5 hours-when you bear in mind how important a role diet & nutrition play in your health and well being, this miniscule amount of time spent on such a vital subject is appalling - but if you then realise that it is the pharmaceutical industry who fund medical schools - you may start to understand why this is)

The pharmaceutical industry only make money if they can convince you that you need their drugs. And they make a LOT of money. They invent disorders to boost sales, they reduce the threshold for "high blood pressure" and "high cholesterol" just so that many hundreds of thousands of people will suddenly need statins and beta blockers at the stroke of a pen. They spend millions on advertising, wining and dining your doctors and for all the money they spend on "research" the last thing they cured was polio..

You need to ask yourself - are their motivations in your best interest? Do you really need the band aid when your blood will clot and form a scab in good time - if you just clean the wound out so that it doesnt get infected?

Something needs to be done about the way we as a race approach our health, our health care system does nothing to care for our health - it only seeks to manage our illnesses, and put a lot of money into the pharmaceutical companies pockets.

(I'm sorry about the rant, but as you can see it is a subject that cuts deep to the bone with me)

[Beachgirl]

I'm sure if CBT were a drug rather than an proven highly effective treatment and had the backing of the pharm industry everyone would be singing its praises and doing tea forms instead of popping pills. But the Pharm industry looks at CBT as a nuisance because it takes away potential pill poppers for them that they can get stuck in the meds for symptoms treatment conundrum :cry:

[trackstar]

Good point beachgirl. Maybe we need to make a drug called CBT lol!

[trackstar]

Hey couldn't CBT be marketed by the major universities that train the CBT psyche docs to compete with the pharm industry? They have a great story to tell that people would probably buy into. Just an idea and I wonder why they are not doing this?

[tmays]

Great posts everyone. I feel so much better off meds now that I learned CBT and started doing the TEA forms everyday. Meds work great as a band-aid but if you want to get better you need to change the way you think and react to things and that's what CBT teaches you how to do.

[Robbed]

Hey couldn't CBT be marketed by the major universities that train the CBT psyche docs to compete with the pharm industry? They have a great story to tell that people would probably buy into. Just an idea and I wonder why they are not doing this?

The 'problem' (if you want to call it that) with CBT is that it cannot be patented and sold. CBT is more or less in the public domain. And you don't even need to see a professional to get the benefits of it, as books and even free websites are widely available. So while individual therapists may be able to make money by offering CBT, it's not like a large company can make billions from it.

[trackstar]

Hey couldn't CBT be marketed by the major universities that train the CBT psyche docs to compete with the pharm industry? They have a great story to tell that people would probably buy into. Just an idea and I wonder why they are not doing this?

The 'problem' (if you want to call it that) with CBT is that it cannot be patented and sold. CBT is more or less in the public domain. And you don't even need to see a professional to get the benefits of it, as books and even free websites are widely available. So while individual therapists may be able to make money by offering CBT, it's not like a large company can make billions from it.

Yeah I guess you are right :( But it would be nice if the psychiatric association or some mental health org could get the message out so there were more alternative messages out there to compete with the pharm industry.

[Robbed]

But it would be nice if the psychiatric association or some mental health org could get the message out so there were more alternative messages out there to compete with the pharm industry.

Why would they? Psychiatry, in case you didn't know, is ALL ABOUT the treatment of mental health problems with medications. Contrary to popular belief, psychiatrists seldom (if ever) do therapy. It's not their job. After all, they are medical doctors. And telling people to do therapy rather than (and not in addition to) taking medications would basically amount to talking themselves out of a job.

[trackstar]

But it would be nice if the psychiatric association or some mental health org could get the message out so there were more alternative messages out there to compete with the pharm industry.

Why would they? Psychiatry, in case you didn't know, is ALL ABOUT the treatment of mental health problems with medications. Contrary to popular belief, psychiatrists seldom (if ever) do therapy. It's not their job. After all, they are medical doctors. And telling people to do therapy rather than (and not in addition to) taking medications would basically amount to talking themselves out of a job.

My bad, you are right. Now I feel dumb but I meant well. Maybe one of the psychology associations that are not MD's could do this.

[tmays]

I knew where you were trying to go trackstar and i agree with you but I don't think there is anyone with the money to get that message out.

[wolfspirt1]

hi there

i found medication useful to a certain degree is easing slightly the anxiety

whil i went to various therapists to look for a healing solution

[Beachgirl]

hi there

i found medication useful to a certain degree is easing slightly the anxiety

whil i went to various therapists to look for a healing solution

Good for you Wolfspirit. I don't think all meds are bad but the way they are sold as the only alternative. I'm glad you are feeling better :D

[tmays]

hi there

i found medication useful to a certain degree is easing slightly the anxiety

whil i went to various therapists to look for a healing solution

I think you are taking the right approach wolfspirit1. I do believe meds can be useful if used properly and with a therapy that teaches you coping skills like CBT. I hope you are having success.

[trackstar]

I knew where you were trying to go trackstar and i agree with you but I don't think there is anyone with the money to get that message out.

Thanks. I still think the more we do to fight the pharm industry the better even if we don't have the money to fight them.

[Beachgirl]

I knew where you were trying to go trackstar and i agree with you but I don't think there is anyone with the money to get that message out.

Thanks. I still think the more we do to fight the pharm industry the better even if we don't have the money to fight them.

So true. Like so many good things in life CBT gets lost in all the marketing being done by the meds.

[tmays]

I knew where you were trying to go trackstar and i agree with you but I don't think there is anyone with the money to get that message out.

Thanks. I still think the more we do to fight the pharm industry the better even if we don't have the money to fight them.

So true. Like so many good things in life CBT gets lost in all the marketing being done by the meds.
You guys are preaching to the choir as they say. Keep up the good work and don't let the pharm industry control the message for their profit and peoples losses.

[Beachgirl]

At least we are putting the opposing view out there... As they say if this post helps just one person it will have been worth it :)

[tmays]

At least we are putting the opposing view out there... As they say if this post helps just one person it will have been worth it :)
I couldn't agree more. We gotta keep fighting the good fight :D

[Beachgirl]

No question and I am sure we are helping a lot of people or at the very least getting them to think about their options :mrgreen:

[tmays]

No question and I am sure we are helping a lot of people or at the very least getting them to think about their options :mrgreen:

I hope so... But always feel like I need to do more to help others because I wuld not be where I am today without a lot of good advice from people that found help before me with coping skills from CBT.

[fastpara]

I totally agree with you squirt, I actually had a total change myself by just changing up my routine a little. Medicine can be a good place to start as long as you always try to find the root of the problem.

[squirt]

I totally agree with you squirt, I actually had a total change myself by just changing up my routine a little. Medicine can be a good place to start as long as you always try to find the root of the problem.

Glad you found my advice useful and are feeling better :mrgreen:
Take care and keep in touch!

[Beachgirl]

No question and I am sure we are helping a lot of people or at the very least getting them to think about their options :mrgreen:

I hope so... But always feel like I need to do more to help others because I wuld not be where I am today without a lot of good advice from people that found help before me with coping skills from CBT.

It's good to want to do more and be appreciative. I feel the same way.

[tmays]

No question and I am sure we are helping a lot of people or at the very least getting them to think about their options :mrgreen:

I hope so... But always feel like I need to do more to help others because I wuld not be where I am today without a lot of good advice from people that found help before me with coping skills from CBT.

It's good to want to do more and be appreciative. I feel the same way.

Thx beachgirl :D

[trackstar]

Way to go guys and girls. It may not seem like much but the more you post about the options out there that the pharm industry does not want people to know about the more people that will be helped. Great job!

[squirt]

Way to go guys and girls. It may not seem like much but the more you post about the options out there that the pharm industry does not want people to know about the more people that will be helped. Great job!

Very true. good point!

[tmays]

Thanks and you are right Trackstar. Let's keep people informed that there are non-med alternatives that often work better and with no side effects :mrgreen:

[Beachgirl]

Thanks and you are right Trackstar. Let's keep people informed that there are non-med alternatives that often work better and with no side effects :mrgreen:

So true and more people need to know this so keep spreading the word :D

[tmays]

Thanks and each post me make letting people know the benefits of CBT etc are hopefully helping a few people each time we make them :D

[Beachgirl]

TMays,
I agree but when you say, but I hope you meant to say we an not me :tongue:

[trackstar]

Thanks and you are right Trackstar. Let's keep people informed that there are non-med alternatives that often work better and with no side effects :mrgreen:

Yep and glad to see I'm not the only one doing what I can to spread the word about alternatives to meds, that work better and don't break your bank!

[tmays]

TMays,
I agree but when you say, but I hope you meant to say we an not me :tongue:

LOL, thanks for pointing out how dumb my post sounded now :oops:
Yes of course I meant we... I'm not that much of an egomaniac lol

[Beachgirl]

TMays,
I agree but when you say, but I hope you meant to say we an not me :tongue:

LOL, thanks for pointing out how dumb my post sounded now :oops:
Yes of course I meant we... I'm not that much of an egomaniac lol

I was just feeling punchy that day and figured you did but had to give you a bad time about it :tongue:
I hope all is well!

[tmays]

LOL I feel ya beach :lol: How are things with you? Ready for the added stress of the holidays?

[squirt]

Thanks and you are right Trackstar. Let's keep people informed that there are non-med alternatives that often work better and with no side effects :mrgreen:

I totally agree. I was stuck in the med conundrum before I learned how to use the TEA forms and have not taking any med since then :)