how to cope with crippling anxiety

[streetsweeper]

things cant get worse

 

[MrMoss]

where did you get this information from? I'm no expert of medications by any means, but I'd like to see a source for that info. I don't know about antidepressants specifically, but I know that after talking to my doc, psychiatrist , and psychologist I was told with absolute certainty that even all my (illegal) drug use wouldn't have permantly changed my brain.

That's why they call them Quacks ... Taking any medication, illegal drug, bad diet etc etc could theoretically damage/rewire your brain even in moderation. A case by case basis I guess but I think your Docs are talking complete wank
They don't know conclusively that's for sure. SSRI's have been barely studies and new versions come out regular with little to no large scale testing. We are Lab Rats just take your pills and be grateful Studies will be complete by 2016

 

[streetsweeper]

So what then? Not for the average person who is a bit unsettled but someone who is really overwhelmed and on the edge? Someone alone?

 

[swilow]

So what then? Not for the average person who is a bit unsettled but someone who is really overwhelmed and on the edge? Someone alone?

Are you referring to yourself here streetsweeper? I assume you mean, what alternative solution for anxiety is there if SSRI's and what not can't be an option. Well, for starters I don't think its amphetamines, but thats a personal choice.

I really advocate trying to face the fear. One thing I realised about my anxiety and panic 'disorder' is that every symptom is bought about by thoughts that I actively introduce into my mind. My fear has felt like an external thing, possesing me, but in truth I was the one inducing this state in myself, by telling ymself that various situations (usually social) were cause for fear/terror. Upon examination its hard to see a just reason for freaking out in such a way. So I've attempted to embrace fearful sitautions, and really deeply examine the fear and whether its called for, and whther it will be of use. It never really is, unless you were turly ina life threatening situation.

Anxiety only disturbs as much as its allowed- the problem is, is that anxiety is a fucking merciless torturer that WILL use duress.... However, as anxiety only exists inside the sufferer, it is theirs, and theirs to do what they will with. In effect- anxiety and depression are external concepts with no visible, external manifestations unless it is given rein. It is, in a sense, nothing at all.

 

[clamjuice]

^^ Well said. Thats why i hate how docs just throw meds at people, as if it solves everything. makes me angry

 

[absent minded]

thanks for hijacking my thread , streetsweeper. make your own thread dont derail the train

 

[absent minded]

And finally, I tried for over 5 months without medication doing everything right, I exercised like mad, quit drugs completely and cut down on drinking a lot, went to a psychologist once and week and did everything she said. but I couldn't get rid of the anxiety. I've been on mirtazapine for over a month now and I feel like I'm finally on the other side of all this. I haven't put on weight yet, and for me, it's really helped.
Good luck!

tango i could relate to your post more than anyone else's.. my appointment is today in a couple hours and im just sitting here thinkin about what to talk about and what to say, but anyways... i've been doing everything humanly possible to help my anxiety, i dont drink a drop of caffeine, i eat healthy, i exercise almost daily, i try to get enough sleep, and i;ve been taking this buspar (what a worthless drug ) . I'm going to reccomend mirtazapine because i can relate to pretty much everything you said in your post.. sometimes you can only do so much and a chemical inbalance is a chemical inbalance.

 

[PaxTX]

My GF seems to have pretty severe anxiety disorder, maybe panic disorder too. It's difficult for her as she just came to realize thar this is not how her life should be, she's lived like this for years and told no one but me about it.

To her credit, she is going to see someone to get an eval after my urging, but does'nt want meds or therapy so I am not sure what will change.

 

[absent minded]

just as a quick update- i gotta be out the door in a few minutes- i've been to my psych twice now and we're trying remeron and raising the doses, and i'm not getting any effect from it at all. i also am perscribed lorazapam 1mg 3-4 times a day, and this helps somewhat. anyways- igoptta go

 

[MrMoss]

I found this to be so true it's funny ...

Now it’s the future, and despite their having no anxiolytic effects at all, the "Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors" (SSRIs) have now displaced the very effective benzodiazepines in the treatment of anxiety. They have the great advantage, from the physician's point of view, of not being controlled substances, and patients never ask for higher doses since the drugs really just make them more nervous. It's kind of a conditioned punishment thing. If you complain of anxiety, your anxiety will be made worse. Hence, you don't complain.

http://www.etfrc.com/benzos1.htm
Quote begins just after the Xanax Box on the page.

 

[absent minded]

yeah.. remeron is still doing nothing for the anxiety.. the benzos help though. kind of. im gonna try paxil next.. will keep u guys up to date

 

[SilverFeniks]

I've never bothered to read any threads like these, as anxiety has never been much of an issue for me. I couldn't believe people had "panic attacks," as I had no idea what that would be like. My problem was always depression, caused just by my own personality, self-defeatism, and drug use.

But lately, I've seemed to kick the depression .. been incredibly happy, upbeat, energetic .. and all of a sudden, out of nowhere, I start having the same symptoms the OP described - and even had my first actual panic attack Friday

Seems unreal to me. Everything's going well, I feel like a star, and yet this new persona also causes me to feel incredibly anxious [i guess thats the word], like i'm constantly on the verge of losing control completely - not of the events in my life, but just plain losing control ... my brain wants to rip itself out of my skin, as if my body is rejecting my mind, or the other way around.

While running, I suddenly found myself unable to breathe, with my breath catching in my throat .. yet I kept going. Thought nothing of it.
Later, just thinking, I suddenly imagined myself in a situation [@ a shrinks, my first visit tomorrow ...] and panicing. Still in my head.

But then Friday, @ work, super busy [good for me, lets me focus rather than be alone with my thoughts], I seriously lost it .. my body revolted. I just flat out freaked out .. wanted to run out of the building, keep running into the street, through a field, until the feeling left me ... but I was stuck there. Kept breathing super deep, tryin to calm down, no luck ...

A few minutes later, I was fine. TV crew came on; I might even be on cable, yet I kept my cool. Can't figure out why I freaked out for no reason, tho I am a bit worried it could happen again. Don't much like this permanent sketched-out feeling I now have [despite having quit cannabis, drinking and coffee all in a couple weeks].

Not lookin for advice or hijackin here, just sharing a similar set of feelings

I wouldn't dare touch Paxil tho .. 8 years ago I was placed on Paxil for 'depression,' [I acted out a lot, just as a picked-on, meek teen] ... and the only time I've ever felt like I did this past week was the week I ran out of Paxil suddenly. Exact same feelings. Paxil didn't help me one bit with anything. after that W/D experience, I made a concerted effort to lie and be taken off it [success]. Ever since, I've hated all that med garbage!

 

[*Venus*]

I have intense anxiet that prevents me from many social situations. What helps me *tremendously* is cutting out alcohol and drugs greatly from my life.

 

[streetsweeper]

thanks for hijacking my thread , streetsweeper. make your own thread dont derail the train

Its my party, its my pink dress, I am a princess and you can all go away all this cake is MINE!

I am sorry I lost the focus on YOU, you made several posts stating you were in limbo, you had a plan and, oh look, now ur on a benzo, that will end well I'm, sure
. Good luck

 

[unzenjen]

no, i'm not a pharm. rep for klonopin

If you want to avoid reading about me, me, me, then feel free to skip to the bottom.

The hellish part of a panic state, for me, is that when I'm not actively in one, I can rationally understand that my body's producing too much adrenaline or that something else is unbalanced, and that even though it feels like I'm going to pass out and my body is going to forget how to breathe, this will really not happen. In a panic state, however, all rationality flies right out the window and I lose all control. The only thing I can focus on is that my body will forget how to breathe, I'm going to die because I can't breathe, and then, of course, the hyperventilation comes. Over the course of almost ten years, I've been prescribed (and have given a fair try to) Prozac, Paxil, Serzone, Remeron, Trazadone, Zoloft, Lexapro and two more whose names aren't coming to mind right now. Some of them did nothing, some of them made me antsy as hell. Valium made things worse for me--it actually made me hyper and anxious. Xanax wasn't worth a damn--I had panic attacks while taking Xanax on a regular basis. Lorazepam helped, but I had to take the maximum daily dosage on a daily basis just to keep even, and my doc told me that it affects the memory. Klonopin has been a god-send for me; I can take one at night and it almost always carries through till the next night. If I do feel a panic state coming on, I take a half or a quarter of one, and symptoms usually subside quickly enough. The idea of using benzos to get some sort of high has never made any sense to me; I've never abused them, and the only effect I've ever felt from those that worked was a general state of (I'd like to phrase this better, but the words have left me) not being constantly worked up over absolutely nothing and everything. Others have mentioned benzo withdrawal, so I'll leave that alone except to say that even after a taper, stopping the Klonopin completely caused me to have the same symptoms I was taking it for to begin with. One of its benefits/drawbacks is that it has a fairly long halflife. I've weighed the benifits and the drawbacks to benzo use, and while I know that I can't die from a panic attack, I also know it's not too terribly great for me to have a heart rate of over 150 for any length of time on a regular basis, and the social ramifications are humiliating. I, too, have done everything I've been told; I completely cut caffeine and alcohol from my diet, tried meditation and tai chi, tried "walking it off", tried listening to soothing CDs, tried acupuncture, tried getting more sleep... And it just didn't work.

It bothers me a little when people talk about "triggers" and trying to work through the "issues" that bring about panic attacks; sure, I've got issues, plenty of them, and not one which I can think of has been anywhere close to on my mind while being in a panic state. With me, there's no rhyme or reason. They've occurred in so many varied situations: sitting comfortably at home and watching one of my favorite shows; reading a good book; sitting in my therapist's office while trying to explain how things look just wrong and too bright and too there to me before a panic attack; shopping for caffeine-free diet Coke at my favorite market; and while on a leisurely road trip through rural areas which I love. There are no triggers that I can figure out; I've spent a great deal of time on my own and with therapists trying to figure out any kind of link or reason, and I finally gave up. If I could, I certainly would examine what these triggers are and why they're so troublesome and what I could do to not let them bother me...

I'm sorry, I've gone on a bit more than I wanted to (and I'm sure more than you wanted me to), but I feel for you--really I do. Bottom line is this: I've tried therapy, a lot of antidepressants and more than a few benzos, and Klonopin has worked beautifully for me. If you can keep this in your head the next time one comes on, it should help: breathe as slowly and deeply as you can through your nose and exhale through pursed lips. This can be difficult to do, even with a nurse holding onto you and walking you through it breath-by-breath (hell, you might forget it all together--I certainly have on occasion), but it does seem to keep the numbness and tingling (which I believe is associated with hyperventilation) at a minimum. If you have friends, co-workers or relatives who know your situation, you might ask them (when you're in a regular state of mind) to remind you to do this if you feel one coming on and they're with you.

I'm shutting up now; I hope something I've said was helpful.

~Jen

 

[Rehabed]

Dont trust anyone here. You will start feeling better. Your words have power, declare abundance over your life NOW! Jehova promises to come down from heaven at the instant you call to his name and console you.

 

[DarkCode]

You should look into L-Tryptophan or 5-HTP supplementation with L-DOPA or L-Tyrosine. It will help to promote more dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, relaxation from the Tryptophan increasing serotonin levels, ontop of the epinephrine hormone increases in your blood stream to stimulate your adrenic system which can cause bronchial dilation (reason why ephedrine used to be used to treat asthma because of epinephrines ability to dilate the bronchial tubes). You'll find that you'll be tired, but with a good diet high in fiber and electrolytes with a balance of sugars/carbohydrates (sugars are carbohydrates, just so you know), and taking in more protein. Also, taking Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and Zinc will help replace the vitamins and minerals that you lose during stress / anxiety.

I'm a big proponent of supplements over pharmaceutical or therapy, you don't want to rush into benzodiazepines, you got an external stimulus causing your anxiety, and it can be overcome. Yoga sounds rediculous, one's "chi", come on. Go hug another tree and tell me how your branch buddies doing when I cut it down to make the toilet paper I whipe my ass with.

 

[clamjuice]

DarkCode meditation can be very helpful. it lets you block outside stimuli and just focus on yourself. i think you should keep your feelings on yoga and meditation to yourself before you even give it a chance.

AS for supplements go, i do agree with you. but i think b vitamins play a crucial role as well. i find when iam low on them iam much more anxious. the problem is that b vitamins need to be taken with a high fatty food. olive oil is great. butter to. just make sure you have the fat with them else they wont absorb nearly as well.

 

[Ximot]

i think you should keep your feelings on yoga and meditation to yourself before you even give it a chance.

totally what i think.

 

[DarkCode]

DarkCode meditation can be very helpful. it lets you block outside stimuli and just focus on yourself. i think you should keep your feelings on yoga and meditation to yourself before you even give it a chance.

AS for supplements go, i do agree with you. but i think b vitamins play a crucial role as well. i find when iam low on them iam much more anxious. the problem is that b vitamins need to be taken with a high fatty food. olive oil is great. butter to. just make sure you have the fat with them else they wont absorb nearly as well.

Reminds me of the fact, that ingesting a teaspoon to tablespoon of olive oil before bed helps one's dreamstate become more stimulated and leads to improved motivation, concentration, and overall uplifting mood the next day. I don't believe there is any scientific research behind this, but just looking into it, the high concentration of lipids and fats are metabolized slowly, and during sleep, the energy more delayed in its release into our body, helps with combinations of melatonin acting as an anti-oxidant and immunostimulator with calcium can make for more cleansed system.

Anyways, just another idea. I'd recommend melatonin and B100 multi-complex vitamins, because each vitamin B acts in a different way, but the increase in metabolism brought on with vitamin supplements is essential to sustained and level energy through the day and keeping up through an increased REM sleep cycle with higher melatonin levels.