[Closed] Anxiety and medication

IANAD but...

I've been managing my anxiety via CBT, and through that I learned that medicating anxiety is basically "continuing the spiral".

Attack the issue at source, don't wallpaper over the cracks.

My wife is on it and it certainly helps her with anxiety, as well as counselling. Some side effects to bear in mind though, so read up. You must also make sure you take them every day.

I'm on Duloxetine for pain management, it's similar but there are a lot of side effects. It really numbs down my back pain, but this is outweighed by the side effects. I'm gonna keep it up for a while (they are happy pills) but do intend to come off within the year. I think you usually end up on these for around six months, but as the poster above says, you need to tackle the issue.

I have always believed and told my GP that I dont think medication is for me, however I am just about to begin therapy & CBT, so I am really unceratin about taking meds.

I take Citalopram (an SSRI like Sertraline) for Anxiety, have done for 10 years now. Much prefer life on it.

I don't really agree with the "don't medicate" lobby as if you're pre-disposed to anxiety (nature and / or nurture) you're at a disadvantage full stop and whilst CBT etc may reduce it, you'll never be as angst free as someone not disposed to anxiety. Personally I much prefer life on Citalopram and intend to stay on it for life, I found it just reset my 'norm' to much less angst, almost like a switch in my head.

You could look into L_Theanine

L-Theanine Reduces Symptoms of Anxiety

Amazon

You could look into L_Theanine

L-Theanine Reduces Symptoms of Anxiety

Thats interesting, I only drink green tea and I have done so for the last 9 years.

im on flourexetine and the wifi on sertraline.

the stuff im on makes me happy (especially with a pint!) the stuff shes on sends her to sleep. Both reduce your appetite for a bit of sexytime as well.

sertraline can make you feel queasy and sleepy (it does with my other half) so she takes it at night.

they have really helped the situation we found ourselves in though (at different times).

Suffered with acute anxiety for many years and tried many different forms of help including a year of therapy and although it helped, it never cured, I then tried several medications but made me feel very unwell in different ways

Been on Fluoxetine for about three years now, beware of the first 5 weeks, not nice, but once through that it was the "switch off" mentioned above and now have very few issues - A life changer for me

Ok. My experience.

3 huge anxiety attacks which has lead to a relationship breakdown, alcoholism and pure vacancy from 9 to 5 life  which one never realised till it’s too late  all a result of severe anxiety

Floxotine messed with my and never warmed to it TBH. Came off it ok but withdrawn symptoms  this was 2 yrs ago

fast forward to present day. Crashed again CBT too much though process involved for me  was good being in group therapy seeing how others adjust (if that’s the right word)

Anyway, prescribed sertroline. Brilliant totally levelled, will I come off them. Not a chance too many occurrences and what my life back which these do.

Draw back, libido, positive last ages. Wink wink

Dont get me wrong  there are other methods of anxiety control wether it be CBT or meditation. It’s about finding what suits you

OP, my advice would be to regard meds as a last resort. Before that, go be curious, read, read, and read some more, open yourself to possibilities and talk to people who listen and reflect back with you. One of the many approaches to quieting the chattering mind, the inner dialogue that goes the same way. It's all a choice! 😃

My best wishes.

I can't speak for sertroline but I am a big fan of citalopram, I suffer from anxiety and depression- mostly the former leading to the latter- and I basically think of it as a difficulty slider. It doesn't change who I am, it's not a happy pill, it just put me back on balance.

Of course there are other methods and CBT and mindfulness and other non-medication methods can certainly work for some people. They don't work at all for me though, cbt actively makes me worse, so I'm perfectly happy to stay on the pills indefinitely and frankly I wish I'd done it sooner, I feel like a ****ing idiot for having resisted it.

I’m on sertraline.. 100mg a day so still a fairly low dose.

Side effects wise - Initially made me very tired and strange jaw cramps. Also erm it didn’t diminish sex drive but six months on it’s still very tricky to reach a conclusion so to speak... Not that ex Mrs FFJA complained wink wink etc.

Levels me out to a level where I don’t actively think about suicide at the moment.

I'm being weaned off Citalopram after 3 years on it, no experience of sertraline.

I would say that meds buy you breathing space to try and deal with your issues, I didn't want to go on them but they certainly helped, along with three months signed off work till I was ready and able to go back

Personally I wouldn’t consider meds before CBT, my Doc and Mental Nurse feel the same.

I was really, really lucky and CBT had a very immediate effect on me, not even close to a cure but the first few sessions was enough for me to accept that the fears I had weren’t ‘real’ and I could accept them sometimes.

It took me a long time to complete mine, when I felt better I didn’t want to even think about it in case it brought back the feelings, how ****ed up is that?!!!

I needed to have a pretty bad panic attack before I was brave enough to carry on, my Mental Nurse was really patient with me and I took a little over a year to complete it.

Now at 41 I’m calmer than I have been since about the age of 8, I’ve accepted that something that happened to me back then (I can’t talk about it, but it wasn’t sexual or violent or anything like that) was probably the root cause of my anxiety and it’s been ****ing me in various ways ever since, but it’s only the only cause and not even a trigger anymore.

IMHO the only way to tackle the root cause of it is though therapy/CBT, but I don’t think there’s really a cure, you just get to accept that you’re feeling anxious and live with it. Sometimes I can even laugh at myself because of it.

Best of luck OP, it does get better and try to remember a simple phrase “this will pass”.

Also erm it didn’t diminish sex drive but six months on it’s still very tricky to reach a conclusion so to speak…

I had that, but did wear off after a few years....

I was on sertraline but it didn’t really help me. Now on fluoxetine which does. Can take a bit of trial and error to find the right one.

Funnily enough my wife was on fluoxetine and she is better on sertraline.

Things like CBT can help but I would certainly strongly consider medication as well as when you get on the right one it really does help.

I've been on it this year. It's a very useful drug.

If your GP is nudging you that way, then they certainly think you need something to help. The usual things that are said to help are Meds (usually SSRIs), talking therapy such as CBT, and improved mental resilience, often supposedly achieved through exercise, yoga and mindfulness. You might need any or all of them to get you back on an even keel. Not always mentioned is removing the source of your anxiety, or removing yourself from it. If that's possible and safe for you and those around you, consider that too, some struggles aren't worth getting ill for.

Back to the Sertraline, initially it made me tired and tetchy, and a clamping jaw with a bit of teeth grinding. Cultivating a chewing gum habit helped immensely, and the whole jaw tension thing was gone after about 10-15 days. After about 2-3 weeks it seemed to kick in properly, my anxiety was reduced quite a lot and I was better able to get on with my life. However, I felt a bit zombie like, or more specifically, like the top and bottom 10% of my emotional range had been removed. I felt more well than without it, but less like myself. No other side effects at this stage, other than the sex thing. If it wasn't for the sex thing, I'd have stayed on it, but sex is a pretty big deal to me, and it robbed me of most of the desire, from 2-3 times a week to once in two months type of drop. When I was up for it, unable to finish, or feel like I was going to get close to finish, takes most of the fun out of it. So I'm off it again, back to the CBT and mindfulness, after a brief detour to Mirtazipine (Nooooooooooooo!). Summer has helped too, and getting out on the bike, so I wouldn't be surprised if winter sees me back om some more meds.

A lot of the stuff in this thread will read quite negatively, especially when you're in an anxious state of mind. Bear in mind they do work pretty well for a lot of people, and can literally be a lifesaver. If you do go for it, you will likely need to switch dosages and possibly drug a couple of times before getting the balance right for you. Good luck.

Personally I wouldn’t consider meds before CBT, my Doc and Mental Nurse feel the same.

I was really, really lucky and CBT had a very immediate effect on me, not even close to a cure but the first few sessions was enough for me to accept that the fears I had weren’t ‘real’ and I could accept them sometimes.

It took me a long time to complete mine, when I felt better I didn’t want to even think about it in case it brought back the feelings, how * up is that?!!!

I needed to have a pretty bad panic attack before I was brave enough to carry on, my Mental Nurse was really patient with me and I took a little over a year to complete it.

Now at 41 I’m calmer than I have been since about the age of 8, I’ve accepted that something that happened to me back then (I can’t talk about it, but it wasn’t sexual or violent or anything like that) was probably the root cause of my anxiety and it’s been * me in various ways ever since, but it’s only the only cause and not even a trigger anymore.

IMHO the only way to tackle the root cause of it is though therapy/CBT, but I don’t think there’s really a cure, you just get to accept that you’re feeling anxious and live with it. Sometimes I can even laugh at myself because of it.

Best of luck OP, it does get better and try to remember a simple phrase “this will pass”.

To expand my earlier post, what PJ writes here is pretty much how CBT works.  It enabled me to work out why I was suffering from anxiety and to be taking steps to deal with on a daily basis.    What started out as a fear of flying turned into a discovery that I was/am a highly strung individually less than comfortable in my own skin feeling like the world owes me something, caused by several issues in the past.   I'd learned an unusual faux personality and set of lifes rules which a lot of people would identify as "intense", "cold", or "up my own arse" in defense of that.

I hadn't flown for 5 years more than once a year in a cloud of Benzo's, but this year I've done 6 flights unmedicated to date with 4 more planned for work.   Moreover, it was easy to really that the cycle of my anxiety was increased by the fact that every time I flew, I still got anxious so my brain was convincing itself that the Benzo's should fix me, but stressing that they weren't vis a vis ever decreasing circles.

CBT has allowed me to recognise my thought patterns, how they affect my outward personality, how introverted and self centred I'd become and how I'd effectively put a barrier up between me and everyone one else.

As PJ says, it almost a daily exercise not to revert, but to understand that I am who I am, that if people have problems with my true personality or situations that I am in that is a shared/their responsibility not just my fault, to recognise the illogical an non sensical thought patterns about flying, to recognise those same thought patterns occurring in my daily life - has been a welcome change.

A year ago I wouldn't have written that ^^ about myself, for fear that people on here would judge me as a cock, I'd look weak and be exploited in other posts ongoing.  Now I feel happy that I can express myself in a way that might just help someone else, and if people judge me negatively from what has been written in this post its not because of what I wrote, its because its their interpretation or choice to do so - I'm not going to beat myself up about that.

Its a big change, I still get anxious, I'm more comfortable with people and I'm more accepting of meeting people and opening myself up that I ever was, at least approaching what is to be considered normal levels.    There are many posts on here relating to alchohol being a crutch - although I understand some people need medication in the first instance I'd be inclined to look at CBT in the longer term.

Not really sure that helps, happy to chat to anyone about my experiences should you feel you'd want to.

First hint of symptoms being anxiety related and my GP was instantly offering SSRIs. Quick fix to get me out the door.

Though what I had I still believe was something else and that kicked off the rest. In the end I worked it out for myself. Therapy offered was "wholistic" stuff and too much about past life and generally bollocks. The stuff going through my head was bonkers and unrelated to anything in my past life. Just maybe mid-life crisis and existential angst 😀 . Around that time I was getting into MTB, found friends to ride with, places to explore. Riding and the social stuff has knocked it on the head. Not that it's gone, just more under control. It's given me space to think rationally about stuff and understand what some symptoms are. I hate not understanding things. Mysterious illnesses freak me out.

Not that the drugs don't have benefits for some. If you're in a really bad place it may help. My concern though was the long list of side effects, including suicidal feelings on some drugs!

Blame QoF for increased prescribing.

My concern though was the long list of side effects, including suicidal feelings on some drugs!

Just about every drug has some form of death as a (rare) side affect and they have to list them. Best not to read the list esp if you're prone to anxiety.

I’ve been on fluoxetine for 7 months and it’s been a life-saver. I’d not taken  antidepressants for several years, I had 12 sessions with an excellent counsellor, and also do lots of biking and generally keep healthy. But all of that suddenly wasn’t enough last autumn and I eventually agreed with my GP to try meds. I hate to think that I’m reliant on them but they’ve saved my life.

First hint of symptoms being anxiety related and my GP was instantly offering SSRIs. Quick fix to get me out the door

Conversely I went to the GP begging for meds, any meds when I finally admitted I wasn’t well.

I just wanted to turn of my brain for a bit.

One of the most unpleasant times of my life was last August, my wife and our eldest went to NYC to see her sister for 10 days, leaving me with our Daughter who had just turned 3. Our childminder was also on hols so I took the week off work. I went almost 10 days without talking to another adult, I love my daughter but she was hard work missing her mum and she’s not great to share feelings with ha ha.

I mistakenly bought some weed from a geezer on Craigslist, **** me, weed isn’t like it used to be. I wanted to listen to some reggae music, laught, eat a pack of chocolate digestives and sleep for 10 hours. Nope, instant panic attack and 8 hours staring at the ceiling hoping to come down before my daughter woke up.

Dont do that

I have been taking sertraline for 3 years now and it works really well for me.

At one stage I was up to 150mg daily, but for the last 18 months I have been taking 25mg.

I have tried fluoxetine before, but my state of mind felt forced and artificial, whereas the sertraline feels quite mild and settled.

However, just because it works well for me doesn't mean it will work well for other people.

Good luck finding something that will help you out.

I suffer from anxiety regularly, cant seem to button down the cause, but I refuse to go in for medication. I manage it by riding my bike, and if I get 20km in first thing, the feel good feeling lasts all day.

Blame QoF for increased prescribing.

Literally ZERO financial or clinical etc insentive for prescribing antidepressants.
Keeping an accurate Depression register, and prompt review after initial diagnosis is all that's required for QOF. Nil to do with how you actually manage each case (meds/CBT/Both)

DrP

OP why are you Anxious? I know its hard to speak out but you need start addressing things, I'v have a lifetime of experience. I've just finished CBT😀 Drugs were only slowing me down (years) Anxiety takes Time. You need to keep learning and never give in you can be happy. Anxiety is Normal depends only how you react to it.

bottom line is different meds / therapies/approaches/practices work well for some and badly for others ( ineffective/side effects etc).I've tried a lot over 20 yrs including using vast amounts of alcohol on top( which was the only way i ever felt good) Didn't end well ..ended up requiring  hospital Detox eventually. Meds got changed which messed my eyesight up and gave me double vision as well as various other visual problems  which still plague me today despite taking only a small amount of citalopram . Good luck and don't be afraid ..you'll probably feel weird/rough for a while then hopefully things will improve as the brain chemistry adjusts .Trial and error really and nobody knows incl the Doc how things will go but most likely you'll feel better sooner or later !

Good luck. Anxiety is rotten.

You should consider SSRIs, though as is clear from the above, there are a lot of courses for all us horses! I tried Citalopram once, lasted three days as I felt like I was holding onto an overhead mains cable the whole time. Most awful physical experience of my life, though I do wonder how I would have responded if I hadn't had too many bad pill experiences in me yoot 😀 I shouldn't have been prescribed them anyway as there's a family history of bipolar which leads to a risk of serotonin syndrome (scary).

CBT is really valuable, should be taught in schools, just for a basic understanding of causal loops.

I found meditation helped me separate the physical sensations of anxiety and the mental stories that I used to construct to explain what I must be anxious about. I still experience the physical side most days to a greater or lesser extent, but it doesn't escalate because I don't try to think of reasons I might be worried (there's always something you can worry about, but that's not necessarily why you're anxious).

Try going to your local Buddhist centre for a meditation session. Don't expect a clear and silent mind, that's not what happens, but it's nice and calming nevertheless. You'll probably come away thinking you're not as mental as you'd thought! There are a load of really good authors out there, ranging from fully Buddhist (Vessantara) to secular (Stephen Bathelor and Daniel Goleman) to entirely non-religious (Eckart Tolley), try reading some. I reckon it was the act of commiting myself to healthier thinking processes that was the crux of my improvements.

Huge amounts of physical exertion basically drain me of the potential energy for it though. A really big ride or a kickboxing/similar class can keep it at bay for a few days. I'm sure you already know this though. It's hard making an hour a day for yourself.

Oh yeah, yoga. I hate getting out of bed but I manage it most days to get a little yoga to loosen the body, focus the breath and calm the mind.