Hi Betsy,

quote:

I have bad reactions to anti-depressants the doctors love to push instead of prescribing the anti-anxiety medication like Xanax that helps balance the chemicals in our brains.

Could you elaborate on that? My doctor prescribed Celexa (I asked for something) and I told him I had depression and he knows I have some anxiety, but I never told him about the obsessive scary thoughts. I am alittle confused b/c I have never tried xanax...maybe that is what I need.
I am terrified to take anything, but at this time in my life I cannot commit to the program as I would like to and wondered if the meds could help me get thru until I can focus more clearly on the course work.
Thanks Chantal!

Chantal-
I don't know if this helps or not, but I have been taking Celexa for 2 years now. (I think 2 years--I've lost track of time) It is a very helpful medication with less side effects than other meds. I've talked to many others and every one I talk to seems to do good on it. I have recently completed the program and have reduced from 20 mg. to 10 mg. I am hitting some rough patches but I have realized that I was getting to the point where I'd rather pop a pill than deal with my self. So I am trying to stick with program as much as I can. I too did not think I had enough time to do the program, and I didn't dive into it as much as I probably should have or could have. But I trudged along and really got a lot out of it. Remember you can go back to it as often as you want--I don't think anybody ever masters it. Anyway, I did try Xanax and I didn't like it at all. All it did was knock me out and when I woke up I was still nervous. I needed continual control which I got from anti-depressants. Of course, I think it is different for everybody. Thought this might help. Hope it does. Stick with the meds for a couple of weeks for it to really start kicking in. It does help with the scary thoughts but mine never went totally away so beware, you may still have to deal with them a little.
Yellow Rose

hi there my name is cindy, i have been on paxil and zoloft and i didnt care for the way they made me feel.thankfully i have a doctor whom cares and knows from personal expierence just how awful panic and anxiety attacks can be, he put me on 20mg of prozac and ive never felt better, i feel like my old self ive never had any bad side effects to it,i hope that you find the right medication to help you feel better..good luck!

Like most of us here....I investigated the drug and talked to the pharmacist about it before I ever took the first pill.

A little history: About 15 years ago I moved into a home behind the Head Head-Shrinker @ MAyo Clinic. His wife told me that panic attacks were treatable and a chemical imbalance. Of course, I got excited and went to see her husband at Mayo Clinic.

He put me the anti-depressant, tofernil (immiprimine), and wouldn't hear of putting me on Xanax and I had to listen about how addictive it was and how it didn't really work....blah blah blah. Of course, I had to go off the antidepressant within the week as my blood pressure kept going lower and lower until I vouldn't hold my head up as I walked (kinda like what you see in the movies in a psych ward).

Move forward five years (after I struggled more and more). My girlfriend was seeing the same doctor and guess what? he was giving her Xanax. I went to see another shrink and he put me on Xanax and said it had been approved by the FDA for panic attacks. He also told me it comes in doses from .25mg---4mg tablets up to four times a day. That means my little dose of .25mg four times a day wasn't much at all.

After the first dose of Xanax I knew it was the right chemical for me. I immediately felt a (good physical) let down. I laughed because all the fears I had been carrying around for twn years were gone in a moment.

Then, there's the "I don't wanna be depedant on drugs that goes with people with panic and depression, so instead of using it for a year or two I almost immediately went into, "how long will I need to be on this?" routine. Which is ironic that the doctors talk about how addictive it is yet so many of us don't want to be on any dryg.

PS: Xanax had about a 3-4 hour half life which means that withing 3-4 hours half of it has been metabolized in your body and that is why you initially take it 4 times a day.

I look at Xanax as a tool that works by helping one get out into the world of life and have some good experiences while we start a new lifestyle program and then work on going off of it.

Can you tell how strongly I feel about this issue?

------------------
Don't take anything personally.
Always be impecable with your word.
Don't assume anything.
Always do your best!

[This message has been edited by EastCobbGABetsyH (edited 01-22-2002).]

But how does it help with the chemical imbalance? I thought only anti-depressants did that. My doctor told me it's a sedative, it blocks the adrenalin response...but can make depression worse, b/c it "depresses" the system with it's sedative qualities.
I don't know what to take, I look things up on websites and it just confuses me. I guess I will have to try it and see what happens.
Thank you for your kind response. I am still struggling for what works for me...glad you found your answers. On a more positive note, I just found a counsellor that specializes in anxiety...HUGE! I am so relieved, I had a counselor for 2 years, and never did feel better, and was paying $90 and hour to drudge anything and everything up from my childhood, and to make me confused. I talked to this guy for 30 minutes and feel like I got further than I have all year. He specializes in scary thoughts, and I am sure I could have said something totally outrageous and he would have diffused it. My other councelor would have been looking for some hidden memory.
Thanks again,
Chantal

Maybe I can help- I may have some helpful insight. Xanax IS a sedative and it does not alter the seratonin in your brain. I, too, have xanax as well as paxil. I have only taken the xanax twice in my life because I was strongly warned against taking it when I was feeling depressed, and was told to only take it for extreme anxity and panic attacks, or when I felt one coming on. It worked wonders for the panic attacks as an instant fix, but after a few hours I was back to feeling anxious. Anti-depressants (mostly SSRIs) have been proven to help your rain reabosrd seratonin, which is believed to affect anxiety, depression, and panic attacks. I am now on paxil (10 mg a day since mid-december- before that 20 mg a day for a month), and I feel great on a regular, daily basis. I respect that many people do not like anti-depressants, but I think that they are the only medication that alters your brain chemistry in a way that more permanently helps anxiety and panic. I have not had a panic attack in months, and though my anxiety sometimes comes back, especially when I am pre-menstrual, xanax a few times a month is not going to hurt me to get over the "hump" once in a while. I hope that helps. Talk toyour doctor more about the different types of meds, but I don't think that many will suggest xanax as a long term remedy, but certainly as a short term solution and on an occassional basis. Good lucK!

I think of Xanax as an aid to help people who are panicky most of the time. If one uses the drug as directed, usually 4 times a day since our bodies metabolize it in about 4 hours, i.e., "3-4 half life." Anyway, I see it as a tool to use to get out and live. The more good experiences you have whether medicated or not helps to keep one out there. After severals months of restaurants, shopping and driving and good experiences it is easier to change your lifestyle and then go off of it.

For me my primary symptom was panic....and then of course since I was house boud and afraid I got depressed.

My doctor told me the same thing....I have a chemical imbalance with some receptors in the brain and the electrical system needs a little boost from Xanax.

I guess it's really the same opinion for a different need.

Xanax also helped me when I would obsess....I would slip one under my tongue and in five minutes I would be on to another thought.

I really do beleive that depression and anxiety are opposites of the same coin. For some reason, the same lifestyle changes (exercise, cutting back on sugar and caffeine, getting more sleep, etc.) can help us out of both.

I know for me that the exercise and other lifestyle changes keep me from burning off the good stuff in my brain so I don't need any drugs anymore.

Now, I must admit that I went to the dentist for the first time in 5-7 years last week for a crown and I took a .25mg of Xanax and what a difference. I accept that it helped and I didn't need to prove to anyone that I needed to take it to help me through it.

I bet that this time next year I won't need it even for the dentist.

------------------
Don't take anything personally.
Always be impecable with your word.
Don't assume anything.
Always do your best!

[This message has been edited by EastCobbGABetsyH (edited 01-23-2002).]