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Alternatives to being medicated
I recently had to go to my doc and admit I can in no way shape or form handle life anymore. I have horrible anxiety that makes me feel like a crazy person. Sometimes I just start laughing because I'm so stressed out, and then I'll burst into tears and just cry for hours. I hate taking pills and am all for natural methods, so I asked for something I could just take when I got too worked up, and not something I'd have to take regularly. Apparently the "occasional" stuff is the dangerous addiction forming ones though. So she prescribed me Effexor.
It has to build up in your system for 6 weeks before you can begin to tell if it's working, and they want me on it for a minimum of 6 months. I have a huge issue with being medicated for this long, but I'm really at my wit's end. I don't know what else I can do. I eat well, I exercise regularly, I get massages at least twice a week, I use oils and aromatherapy, and I've even had chakra realignments. I have the pills but I don't want to take them yet. I wanted to give natural methods a last ditch effort before I give up and start the pills, for some reason having the drugs if I need them makes me feel less hopeless. Can anyone recommend natural methods that would keep me from needing the drugs? I'm at my wit's end here.
Re: Alternatives to being medicated
I haven't heard of this as a remedy for anxiety. What does it do?
I haven't heard of this as a remedy for anxiety. What does it do?
I am all for natural methods, but if you truly feel like you are at your wits' end, there is no shame in taking medication. Things like depression and anxiety are no joke, and if you are talking about Effexor improving your quality of life that much, then certainly you should go ahead and do that. Just because you go on it for a while doesn't mean that you will always be on it. I took an antidepressant during a very stressful time in my life and was weaned off it without a problem.
I hope the fish oil works for you, if that is the route you want to go. But I also wanted to urge you to take care of your needs, even if it means taking medication. Your peace of mind and enjoyment for life is certainly worth it!
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I don't know if this will help, but two different friends of mine, with two different anxiety-type issues were aided significantly by magnesium supplements.
You'd have to poke around to see if it's something that makes sense for you.
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Thanks for the advice everyone. I think I'm going to try some of the things suggested this week. I know it's not a lot of time, but I don't have a lot of sanity left. If I see huge vast improvements I might try to keep it up, but otherwise I will probably start taking my medication next weekend. I'll keep up the natural supplementing in hopes that it will make me able to go off the meds sooner. I'm not too optimistic but figured it was worth a shot if something kept me from needing the medication.
In addition to fish oils, something that you might look into is 5-HTP. It is a precursor to serotonin, and may help a little.
In all honesty- I can totally understand what you are going through. At this time last year I lost my job and I was going through a LOT of panic attacks and anxiety. I actually lost feeling in my arms and legs while driving over a major bridge in the area, and I thought that I was going to crash and die. It was terrible. For a while I felt like I was going through post traumatic stres disorder....I was in shock that my body was reacting the way it was. I was SOOOO against taking meds. I eventually went to a really great doctor who gave me something for the short term- just to get my CNS under control- and so I could sleep a little. I only took it at bedtime (I was even hesitant to do that...so I would take only half). The thing is- I am trained in the area of drugs- so I know about this stuff...and I was concerned about postential additiction. Add in the panic- not good. So, I started on a SSRI, at a very low dose. One year later, I am very glad I took the docs advise. My life is much better for it. At some point, the benefit outweighs the risk, and it sounds like you may have hit that point.
Think about it...if you had some sort of a bad infection- you would take an antibiotic, right? You are not well right now, and you just need to take care of yourself. You will get better, but don't let yourself suffer. Treat yourself right, take the meds, and find a good doc that you can do therapy with. It will help you manage the anxiety, and then maybe you can slowly get off the meds
You will be ok- it just may take a little time.
I have horrible anxiety. to the point that I was scared to leave my house or even my bedroom 3 years ago. I tried therapy and many other treatments but in the end I gave in to taking medication. Like you I hate being on medication. It was the best decision I have ever made! Do I still struggle with anxiety and panic attacks, yes, but very rarely. I live a very normal life and can do all the things I loved so much that my anxiety prevented. I have learned my triggers and instead of avoiding them altogether I have found ways to modify what I am doing just the slightest so I am comfortable and those around me have no idea. Of course my husband and family are a huge support.
I am currently being weaned off my meds which really scares me but they would like me off them prior to delivery so that my little guy doesn't have to go through withdrawl when he is born. But the weanng off is going much better than I anticipated and a month into it I still have not had a major panic attack.
Ditto. It's just like any other medical condition, sometimes you NEED the drugs. My grandfather committed suicide when I was in high school, and I really wish he had gotten help. My mom also suffered from anxiety and waited sooo long, she is a completely different person now, no mood swings or rages. When I went through my divorce I ended up going on them and I feel so much better. It doesn't negate the need for natural methods and therapy, but it helps provide hope. Since it runs in my family I'm pretty sure I'll need them the rest of my life, but it's fine by me since without them I actually have a life.
Don't take the Rx with the natural supplements without consulting your doctor or pharmacist. They can interact, depending on the meds and the supplements.
I would take the medication and look into CBT therapy at the same time.
My naturopath doctor has me using Kavinace. It's an amino acid supplement that works to increase GABA production which helps relax and calm some people. I used to take Valium to help with anxiety attacks that I would get occasionally. But, I tend to use this now rather than that unless things are really bad.
Do you have any naturopath doctors that you could see in your area? This site has a pretty good listing of them: http://www.naturopathic.org/
I know you don't like the idea of being medicated. I don't either and I'm a pharmacist. However, taking a bunch of additional supplements is not natural either and most are not FDA approved.
I would look into behavioral therapy as an alternative. If you decide to give the med a try, you can always try weaning off the med in the future. Anti-anxiety meds are very effective. I hope you find something that works for you!
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I went to my doctor for moderate depression and anxiety in September. I started 10mg of Lexapro and went to therapy for a number of weeks.
I understand where you're coming from not wanting to be medicated. I went off hormonal BCP several years ago in part because I didn't want a daily medication, and in part to help with depression (which it did, to some extent). I try to avoid medication even for a cold, our bodies know what they're doing, right?
My desire to avoid medication also came from the disease itself. My depression and anxiety are highly interrelated and I'm not sure if you're having symptoms of depression as well, but I didn't want to admit that I had a problem that I couldn't fix myself. I sat and stared at that first pill for 10 minutes before I swallowed it, and that was after I had admitted to my husband that I was sick, after I had made the appt with my doctor, after I had gone in and told her I was sick, and after I filled the Rx (each of which was a monumental struggle and achievement for me at the time).
I had these symptoms for a decade. My diet had improved, I had exercised, I was into yoga for awhile, tried Vitamin B, good times, bad times, there's not much you don't try or happen upon in 10 years. There are lots of natural and lifestyle methods that can help, and I believe they are key to maintenance. But when you're in the hole, you have a biochemical imbalance that needs to be rectified, just like someone with diabetes or heart disease, and at some point it needs to be biochemically corrected.
Without introducing blame on the patient ('cause that's a minefield with depression & anxiety), I think the analogy to something like diabetes is a good one. Can you improve your condition and eventually avoid insulin with lifestyle changes? Absolutely. Would you refuse insulin and risk going into a coma when your condition is too severe? Never.
Cognitive behavioral therapy, lifestyle factors, supplements, these will all help me maintain my mental health. But I needed a biochemical correction first. Even if I'm on meds for the rest of my life, it's the best decision I have ever made.
FWIW, the initial 2-4 weeks on meds were not great fun, but the first day was the worst and the side effects got better from then on. My condition improved pretty dramatically about 2.5 weeks in. I don't notice any side effects at all anymore, except that I will start to go into withdrawal if I miss my pill by ~4hrs or so. Those symptoms have also gotten better over time.
Therapy was most effective on my anxiety symptoms, but I was able to use CBT techniques more effectively once the meds started to kick in. I had pretty bad anxiety at night, when I was not awake enough to rationalize myself out of it, so the meds minimized those symptoms, which helped me sleep, which had a positive effect on everything. My therapist was shocked at the difference when I came in the first time after the meds had really taken effect. We both agreed that this dramatic change confirmed that I had a medical issue that required medical intervention.
Good luck!! I'm rooting for you.
Well I'm coming late to this, but I'll add my rwo cents anyway...
Sometimes you need actual drugs. Natural health and medicine is great, but won't solve everything.
I struggle with anxiety, and I understand how you feel. I'm a huge control freak, and to not be able to control it drives me crazy. I've always been very stable emotionally, and really, I still am. My anxiety manifests only physically, and I'm never thinking about anything that should make me anxious! I think its just a lot of underlying stress fermenting and coming up, but there's nothing I can do about it, the anxiety or the causes. I actually ended up in the emergency room on beta blockers from my anxiety. Its definitely not to be ignored!
I used Celexa for a while, which is like the drug you are talking about, and it really helped. I only stayed on it about 4 months, but it did me a lot of good. I had valium while that set in, and then ativan (similar to valium, but doesn't make me as loopy) as an 'extra' for when the Celexa wasn't enough. I still have the ativan but haven't taken any in months. I think just knowing I have it helps, because my anxiety attacks make me unable to breathe, then I panic, which only makes it worse.
Best sound ever: baby's heartbeat! (Heard @ 10w1d)
I agree that meditation can be amazing -- along with whatever drugs/meds you need. I was pretty skeptical, but it has given me tools to deal with my debilitating panic attacks. I also sleep better!
Good for you for searching out the help you need. In whatever form!