In need of advice...

[MRAnxious123]

Hello, I need some advice. I was diagnosed with GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder) January of 2019. I had my first anxiety attack on a flight coming home from vacation. I struggled for about 4 months then my doctor prescribed me medication. I was on the medication for about a year and since I felt better I though I could come off the medication. I spoke to my doctor and we came up with a plan to get me off meds. I was doing really good for about 2 1/2 months and all of a sudden my symptoms have returned. Have any of you used medication and then left and came back again?

[Rafiki11]

That makes a lot of sense. You may be under more stress now for some reasons. Life often waxes and wanes.

[Spooky99]

Yes!! The same thing happened to me! I chose to stay on my meds. I’m told it’s. Chemical embalance. Ive been on them for30 years. Just like a diabetic needs there insulin. I use to hate meds. But now I thank God for them!!! It may be a whole different story for you. Good luck and hugs!!!

[Otaku12]

Years ago I was on Lexapro but I didn't feel like it was helping all that much and it made me feel emotionally numb, so I stopped taking it. Afterwards I wasn't thrilled with taking more meds so for about 10 years I didn't take any even though I had anxiety, depression, and OCD. Last summer I was really depressed (who wasn't with all that 2020 threw at us) so I decided to give meds a try again. First I tried Prozac but wasn't feeling all that great on it. Now I'm on Zoloft and feeling pretty good. As much as I hate the thought of taking meds the rest of my life, or at least for many years, I realize that my levels of serotonin (which is what SSRI's target) must be imbalanced, which isn't something that I can really fix by other means. I'm in therapy but that can only go so far. I eat healthy, exercise, get at least 7 hours of sleep, don't smoke, don't drink, and I don't even do caffeine. Still, my body has a chemical imbalance and just needs some assistance from meds, which I'm slowly coming to just accept. Unfortunately, meds don't permanently correct chemical imbalances so we kind of just have to keep taking them. Talk with your doctor about what you're experiencing and see what they think.

[MRAnxious123 in reply to Otaku12]

Thank you very much. This was really helpful. I guess I just need to stop looking at it like its a bad thing and do what I must for my mental health.

[Otaku12 in reply to MRAnxious123]

And it doesn't necessarily mean you will be on meds forever because our bodies do change over time. Also, as we learn better coping techniques for our anxiety and eliminate stressors in our lives, our anxiety should hopefully decrease. I don't know if you are into taking supplements, but Ashwagandha, Tulsi (also called Holy Basil), Kanna, and St. John's Wort have shown some signs of helping people with anxiety and/or depression. I personally haven't tried any of these except for Kanna, but that is in small amounts because it's in one of my teas, but my parents have used the other ones and have seen some mild improvements in their mental health (however, neither are clinically diagnosed with anxiety or depression).

[MRAnxious123 in reply to Otaku12]

That's true. I had originally started taking natural supplements to try to help and I think they are good but maybe for someone who is not actually experiencing full on symptoms of anxiety or depression. Like you, I am currently in therapy, I do meditation every night, I eat healthy and work out but lately none of this is helping which is why I have considered going back to meds.

[Otaku12 in reply to MRAnxious123]

That's where I was at over the summer. I had reached my limit of suffering and nothing I was doing was working so I caved and gave meds a try again. I'm glad I did because the Zoloft has really helped my depression. The anxiety is still a work in progress, but my social anxiety has definitely decreased. Starting meds has also made my therapy more helpful since I'm not a sobbing mess anymore, I can actually have a decent conversation with my therapist.

[MRAnxious123 in reply to Otaku12]

Good for you. For me it's mainly anxiety - I think I have always been an anxious person but never realized that it could turn into this. Of course, now with the tools I have learned through therapy I am more in-tune with what's going on and it does not get too bad. I guess I am just tired of having this in between feeling of being sort of ok and full on anxiety, it's exhausting.