Thanks for your reply, however I do have the program, which is really nothing new to me. I have been suffering with anxiety and depresssion on and off, more off than on for about 20 years. Thatis anxiety I recognize. Looking back on my unhappy childhood, I believe depression has always been a part of my chemical make-up. My Dad, My Mom, and my brother have all had serious bouts with mental illness. I am a nurse, very good at it I might add, but have managed to move out of the stigma my family had. I have been using coping skills offered by the program as well as my deep faith in God to get me through. I agree that the one who ultimately has to fix this problem is ourselves, but I don't agree with your negative outlook with the medical community. My doctor is very hesitant to give me anything. But when something is nagging at you, and a medication can "assist" you during periods of intense stress, I believe that they can be of great value. I was only asking for people's experiences with different meds because I want to do as much research as possible before starting something new. This is partly because of the nurse in me. I work in a very busy ICU and see worst case scenarios possible. that makes me a bit paranoid to take meds because of possible adverse affects. The other part of my apprehension is due to my anxious nature. Once again, thanks for your input, and I am sorry that you feel so negatively towards medical people. By the way, I have been talking to a couple of the pharmacists at work. If you really want to know about a med, don't rely on your doctor, talk to the pharmacist. They have the advantage of knowing the actions of the drug. Docs tend to give what the drug reps are selling for the month and the moment. Thanks Annette

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quote:

Originally posted by annette:
Thanks for your reply, however I do have the program, which is really nothing new to me. I have been suffering with anxiety and depresssion on and off, more off than on for about 20 years. Thatis anxiety I recognize. Looking back on my unhappy childhood, I believe depression has always been a part of my chemical make-up. My Dad, My Mom, and my brother have all had serious bouts with mental illness. I am a nurse, very good at it I might add, but have managed to move out of the stigma my family had. I have been using coping skills offered by the program as well as my deep faith in God to get me through. I agree that the one who ultimately has to fix this problem is ourselves, but I don't agree with your negative outlook with the medical community. My doctor is very hesitant to give me anything. But when something is nagging at you, and a medication can "assist" you during periods of intense stress, I believe that they can be of great value. I was only asking for people's experiences with different meds because I want to do as much research as possible before starting something new. This is partly because of the nurse in me. I work in a very busy ICU and see worst case scenarios possible. that makes me a bit paranoid to take meds because of possible adverse affects. The other part of my apprehension is due to my anxious nature. Once again, thanks for your input, and I am sorry that you feel so negatively towards medical people. By the way, I have been talking to a couple of the pharmacists at work. If you really want to know about a med, don't rely on your doctor, talk to the pharmacist. They have the advantage of knowing the actions of the drug. Docs tend to give what the drug reps are selling for the month and the moment. Thanks Annette

Hi Annette,

I wasn't presenting any "outlook" about this, I merely shared the truth about the mistreatment I�ve personally experienced at the hands of lazy therapists, licensed drug-pushers and cheap insurers in the medical community. If there were any experiences other than mistreatment to share, believe me I�d love to share them. The truth is I don�t need to present any �outlook� to anyone about this, because it�s self-evident that if the medical community were competent in this, then we wouldn�t need to buy into a separate program like the Midwest Center.

By the way, why did you start a new thread here instead of posting your reply under the original topic?



[This message has been edited by Dolphin (edited 10-21-2001).]

I apoligize for my hasty reply. I started a new thread because I really didn't expect you to look under the same topic you had replied to, no insult intended. It's just that so many times, people come the the hospital or other places, and when they get there they refuse to accept treatment offered to them. I whole heartedly agree with you about the misunderstanding of these issues. I am going through it right now. I hate the idea of taking medication for this if it can be done another way, but I have never had an anxiety symptom last this long before. I have had episodes of something, but it always let up. I am fortunate to have fairly good insurance to help with my problem. But the problem with counselors we become involved with is due to our fault of not finding someone with Godly counsel who utilizes God's Word along with mental health skills. Even then, if the person you are dealing with has never had this condition, they don't have a clue as to what it feels like. It's kind of like giving advice on raising kids when you don't have any. Books can't teach them what pure panic that lasts about 10 minutes really feels like. I am enjoying this program, some of it I disagree with, due mostly to my christian beliefs, but I know that there is a high incidence of relapse with this disorder. That is why the skills are so important, so that when and if they return, you will not be so frightened. In fact, it had been so long since I had gotten a true panic attack, that I really had a hard time recognizing it for what it was. It was very scary, not quite as bad as when it happened 20 years ago, but I didn't run to the Er, because like you I have had terrible experiences in the ER with insensitive doctors and nurses. And you can bet that I am a patient advocate when it comes to these issues with people who present with them in my ICU. I have lived with mental illness in my enviroment all of my life. My father was very ill, my mom was clinically depressed, and my brother tried suicide several times. I don't believe that medical community is so lazy as they are uneducated by this and how to handle it. If you have anxiety, you are supposed to recognize it and snap out of it. By the way, the load that most health professionals have is enough to blow off some of the less life threatening problems they see. Recently, I took care of a young woman who had attempted suicide 5 times in a month. She was always alone, and was found by a neighbor or friend. When she got there , one of the other nurses was very critical of her behavior. I said to her that obviously she had never had this is her family or experienced depression or anxiety herself or she wouldn't be putting this girl down, who was on life support. I told the patient that God loved her and that there was a reason she was here. I prayed for her. But that is because I understand, I've had depression. I've never wanted to die. Quite the opposite, I want to live life to the fullest. And I've come to the conclusion that only through Jesus Christ can I do that. I pray that you have that in you too. But back to the original question I posted, I have never been asked by my doctor to go on a med. I plan to ask, but I wanted to do as much research as possible. I like to hear other's experiences with things like this before I make a decision. You see, I believe the doctor works for me, and I will make the ultimate decision what I will and will not take. I also believe that God gives these pharmacy companies the knowledge to develop these meds for people who need it. When they are misused as you've described, it is a sin. Blessings Annette

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Hi Annette,

I have a friend who's been a Registered Nurse for over twenty years, and I know how nurses and their Unions often are the consumer's first and sometimes only line of defense against mistreatment in the medical community. My friend has often shared with me about the stress of being the only nurse on the floor for umpteen patients, and the much too frequent incidence of getting dumped on by doctors and superiors. It�s my understanding that an ICU may have some built in safeguards that allow for better working conditions, but I also know it has it�s own unique pressures for employees. In fact, the main reason I�d never even consider a medical profession for myself is because the only way I�d survive the working conditions is most likely by being drugged.

I understand all the forces at play that make it seem �impossible� to change our profession, relationship, living conditions, etc. when �inconveniently� prompted by anxiety-panic-depression. Back when it seemed inconvenient for me, I finally caved-in to getting drugs from a �doctor� on the advice of a �therapist� employed by an �HMO.� Like you, I believed I was paying them to work for me and thought I was ultimately making the best decisions. But, I now understand this is a much more unique relationship by the simple fact that patients, by their very condition, are not usually in their healthiest state to make decisions: Hence all the successful lawsuits pertaining to their �care�. In addition, it would be a lie to say I was truly capable of making the most SOBER decisions while drugged. So, now in a healthier state, I am aware of how it is I was able to entrust my care to nothing more than a licensed drug-pusher on the advice of a lazy-therapist employed by a cheap insurer that now more than ever is allowed to define the ethics of the medical community in our modern society.

My experiences taught me it�s self-defeating for me to use drugs to enable me to stay in something that�s not working. Even though I started out highly motivated to work at changing things, it was ultimately self-defeating because of the natural tendency to lose motivation to change once the drugs made things comfortable. What happened to me, like most others, is that when the drugs stopped, all of a sudden I found myself in the same place, only ten years later, just as totally unprepared to make any inconvenient changes. That�s why I highly recommend writing down on paper a kind of contracted understanding of goals, etc. with all those involved with the patient�s �care� especially when these drugs are used. If anyone refuses to do this with a patient, well that�s a HUGE warning sign to consider paying close attention to. I�m sorry to report that even taking the extraordinary precaution of putting together a contracted understanding to follow mostly fails. It fails because a drugged patient seems like a content patient and the contract gets tossed or forgotten.

Dr Fisher, M.D. of The Midwest Center in lesson eleven writes: �You can�t drink alcohol, smoke, eat sugar, guzzle caffeine and expect to feel like God meant you to feel.� Not having the bias of a doctor, I�d also include all of the other �prescription� drugs pushed on those experiencing the divine blessings of anxiety-panic-depression.

In closing, let me say it�s my intention to share experiences I wish someone had shared with me in the beginning. I understand that all I may do is share those experiences, and then let go. It�s up to others what they choose to make of them.