Hi everyone

[bioman85]

I am a 23 year old male, and have had anxiety since I can remember. When I was younger, I had very bad problems with anger and my temperament, but that has slowly transformed into really severe anxiety.
It's gotten to the point where it's extremely difficult to perform in social and work-related situations.

Anyway, for my anxiety I am on Seroquel and Klonopin. The Klonopin I take very rarely, only when absolutely necessary (2-3 times a month, usually less). However, when I am on the Klonopin, I feel so much more normal and relaxed than when off of it. I am able to finish my thoughts, start and finish tasks. My productivity at work improves drastically. If I were not on Klonopin now I would not be able to write this post.

My problem is, obviously, Klonopin every day does not work for me, and I'd rather not get started increasing my dosage every so often. I have been taking Seroquel for several months, and it does not assist me in my anxiety nearly as effectively as the Klonopin.

Sorry for the long-winded introduction, but is there anything I can do/take that has the same effectiveness as Klonopin but is not habit-forming and where I will not have to keep increasing the dosage.

Thank you for reading this.

-chris

[Evilbob333]

Hello,

Not a nice place to be in...sorry to hear about your troubles.

Can i just ask what you do for your anxiety other than medication? Whether you have any self help stuff in place? It can be of real benefit.

Could you also elaborate on how you feel your anxiety affects you?

Getting a clearer picture may well help others to give you more sound advice.

Cheers

[bioman85]

Hello,

Not a nice place to be in...sorry to hear about your troubles.

Can i just ask what you do for your anxiety other than medication? Whether you have any self help stuff in place? It can be of real benefit.

Could you also elaborate on how you feel your anxiety affects you?

Getting a clearer picture may well help others to give you more sound advice.

Cheers

Hi Evilbob,
Thanks for writing back. That's currently all I do for my anxiety, and I know it's not enough, but I really have not liked any therapist with whom I've visited. I do try breathing exercises but not regularly.

Thanks,
Chris

[Evilbob333]

It can be enough...and many people do just fine by just using their medication. However i personally think that self help and learning to manage symptoms are the key to recovery and staying recovered.
The breathing exercises are a great help and can be key in helping you relax in situations where you may get scared, helping you stay put and overcome certain fearful situations. Try building on this by looking into meditation techniques...i'm currently using a meditation CD by the Immrama Institute (google) which is great, and if nothing else helps me to drop off to sleep.
There are many great self help books to look into, i using one called Calming Words which i find quite helpful and am in the process of building my resistance to fearful thoughts and situations. Calming Words is apparantly derived from the work of Dr Claire Weekes, whom i have often heard of in an overwhelmingly positive sense but never actually read anything by. Maybe looking into her books might be a good start?
Exercise is also a good one, even if its your own home to get started with...it can 'burn' off that anxious feeling and make you feel quite positive.
I think that if you find medication helpful then its a good crutch but its also vital to take control of this anxiety...it is you mind after all, and ultimately you are in control. and i know thats hard to believe in the bad times but its absolutley true!
Also keep trying with finding a therapist, having someone to off load to can help immensely and its also nice to know there's someone supporting you along the way!
Get back in touch if you need any help at all.

[DCPsychotherapist]

Nice to have you on the board...thanks for sharing!

[Lulu]

Evilbob I'm with you all teh way on the books of Dr Claire Weekes, she's fantastic. And probably to be honest the only decent advise i've ever had in all the years i've been suffering. I'm reading "Essential Help for Your Nerves" and it's been a bit of an epihamy for me. All this time I've been trying to control the symptoms when I have a full blown panic attack, and inbetween times being scared stiff of having one which of course brings another on. What she teaches is to "walk into" your panic attack, dont try and make the symptoms go away, just accept them and dont be afraid of them, know that's as bad as it's going to get. The goal being that eventually the fear of these panics will go away, and ok it's not an overnight thing but eventually i will learn not to fear them.

This is a tough thing to do, because as anyone who has panic attacks knows they are terrifying indeed. But I'm willing to give it a try