Mental Health would like to switch from mirtazipine

keeping

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little background; i suffer from anxiety, panic attacks and insomnia. i've been prescribed mirtazipine for about a year, and it has been effective at treating the insomnia and panic attacks, but only by emotionally crippling me. i just don't feel anymore. i'd like to switch to another anti-anxiety drug (excluding benzos, i have a history) but i'm not sure what. i would try and discuss this with my local GPs (i'm from the UK) but frankly they are rubbish when it comes to mental health.

are there any anxiety-specific medications i could try? i don't feel like i need an anti-depressant, as my lowered moods are co-morbid to my elevated anxiety (which is something my GPs cannot get through their heads).

thanks all
 
diazepam is a typical anxiolytic used to treat anxiety and sleep disorders i hate mirtazipine as well so i know where you're coming from
 
The medication you mentioned above is known as Remeron which is an anti depressant. So I believe Diazepam or Valium does not relate to that, although it´s a great medication for anxiety.
 
thanks but i specifically stated i didn't want benzodiazepines, which gps don't prescribe for more than 2 weeks in the UK anyway.
 
missed that um i don't know i mean there is buspirone but i've had conversations with many doctors who agree with me that is is useless
 
Well you could try Gabapentin or Pregabalin both of which are pretty much the same drug only the Lyrica does not have the same issues with bioavailability as Gabapentin does. I also found it worked better then Gabapentin as well Some people find it good for anxiety but others don't. I stopped taking both as it didn't help my nerve pain and fucked with my mood. Tiagabine (trade name Gabitril) is another anti-convulsant used off label for anxiety. It's a gaba reuptake inhibitor so it elevates the level of Gaba in your brain. Another drug you could try would be Baclofen which is marketed as a muscle relaxant and acts as a Gaba-B agonist. I know some people who find that it works wonders for anxiety so it would be worth a shot in my opinion.

You could try a Tricyclic anti-depressant such as Amitriptyline, Trimipramine or Doxepin which are used off label for anxiety. Also as a last resort you could try one of the MAOI's that are used for anxiety such as Parnate and Nardil.
 
You have to work on your anxiety issues by confronting yourself with the situation that cause your anxiety. I know, this is easy talk, but doing it is hard work.

Medication... well, ever tried Zoloft? this is also one of the god damn SSRI antidepressants. It tends to minimize social anxiety at least a bit. also worth a try would be Baclofen, it is an old muscle-relaxant medication, but more and more it is used to help alcoholics getting of the booz. Baclofen makes you feel relaxed, more calm and comfortable and it is not addictive like benzos.
 
^ Actually Baclofen can be physically addictive and can cause benzo-Barb type withdrawals if stopped too abruptly. But from what i have read it seems easy to taper off compared to say benzos.
 
Paranoid android, thanks very much for such a comprehensive list (Preg, Gaba, Amitriptyline, Trimipramine, Doxepin MAOI's), I'll be discussing all of them with my GP. Hopefully I can find one that works.

And moneyboy, Zoloft (flouxetine in the UK) sent me loopy. But I do appreciate the concern and recognize that I need to make some life changes. Just need a med that can help me on the path back to normality.

Merry xmas all
 
zoloft is sertraline, not fluoxetine, just for the record

ssri's may not be indicated because you say you don't have depression, but they're very good for anxiety
 
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