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Taking drugs for anxiety.....


17 years ago 0 8760 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Moochela, You've gotten some great responses so far. Keeping your doctor updated on the side effects you are experiencing is important as he/she will be able to advise you what to do. I would caution you against stopping your medication abruptly as some do need to be tapered and you should be supervised accordingly. Also, you should know it takes some medication a few weeks before they take full effect. As your fellow members advise, please consult your doctor and come up with a plan that your both comfortable with. Also be sure to ask plenty of questions: what should I do if I miss a dose? what side effects can I expect? what side effects are dangerous? Hope this helps. Danielle _____________________ The PC Support Team
17 years ago 0 2101 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
I agree with Radha that you should 1 talk to our doctor and make a plan you can be comfortabl with. I also think like radha that you should give the meds a chance for at least 6 weeks, if you decided to take them, to see how your body adjusts, unless the side effects are just too bad. I am not a big fan of meds but i do tke them. I could not sleep at all after my relapse and thus couldn't not get a normal hold back on my reality and could not advance in my therapy work.So now i take Clonazepam (Rivotril, Klonopin) cut only late in the evenings to relax and so i can sleep. During the day, i take nothing, come what may so that i know it is me that has the control. Eventually i will get off the meds. But i figure taking them responsibly to help you get through therapy can be a viable option. In my case it helped a lot. But if you wanna make a go of it without the medication, it has been done before and it can work very well. It has been shown in studies, serious studies, that CBT is just as effective as medication to control and deal with anxiety. So whatever you decide has to be what you are comfortable with. And whatever you decide we will be here cheering you on :) -Diva
17 years ago 0 44 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hi Moochela, 2 years ago I went through pretty much what you seem to be going through in relation to medication. Though at that time my main problem was chronic insomnia causing heightened anxiety and depression. So for me despite giving the medications the usual 6 weeks of trial, they did not help me. I found simple relaxation daily even for a few minutes more helpful. I know that doctors usually like people to go on medication for a while and then embark on the CBT program as some people have very high levels of anxiety. If you do choose to go on medication do give it a chance for at least 6 weeks unless the side effects are too great. I am not a fan of medication because they have lots of side effects and coming off them is not easy either. But that is me, you need to talk to your doctor and work out a plan you are comfortable with. Hope this helps.
17 years ago 0 54 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
I have been on seroxat in the past and felt absolutely dreadful!!! IT was probably the worst thing I have ever done. This was 7 yrs ago. Recently I felt so fed up that I thought I would try medication again. This time I was given Citalopram but after 5 days I stopped as was feeling worse than I am without it and felt as if control and power was being taken away from me. So have decided to deal with this myself and joined this group. Am struggling a little this weekend after having a couple of pretty good weeks. What's people opinion about medication? Is it worth sticking with it? Does it just not agree with me? Do people manage this without medication?

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