can’t function

[reinventingmyself36]

Hi all,

I have found that I’m having tremendous trouble managing my life and I dwell on past mistakes and freeze up in trying to fix mistakes of today. I’m just a ball of anxiety and my mental and emotional functioning is going down. I can’t seem to manage my life at all. I’m on so many meds that aren’t working. I’m on Klonopin, was on Ativan, and recently put on lexapro and hydroxine for depression and anxiety. Nothing is helping. Do any of you who struggle with severe debilitating panic attacks each day and anxiety take any meds that are stronger than the ones I mentioned. I can’t live like this anymore. Thank you

[Dolphin14]

Hi

I'm sorry you are suffering with panic attacks. I've had my share and I know first hand how unpleasant and scary they can be.

Have you been in the lexapro and hydroxyzine long enough? It can take awhile to work.

🐬

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to Dolphin14]

Hi there! Thank you for reaching out to me. I tried hydroxine for like a week doesn’t really help and I just started lexapro on 10mg a week ago. I guess it will take time.

Psychiatrist said it might b because of high does of latuda I take at night so hopefully lowering it will decrease anxiety.

How do u overcome it?

[Dolphin14 in reply to reinventingmyself36]

Adjusting meds can take a long time, I had many med changes along the way. It took quite some time to get the right ones for me.

Meds, therapy, meditation, exercise.... those are the most important things for me.

The biggest part of my success is never giving up. I made recovery a full time job.

You can do this

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to Dolphin14]

Thank you for your words of encouragement and support

[Dolphin14 in reply to reinventingmyself36]

[mizzou7016]

I take prozac...it seems to help....but that being said....are they really mistakes....If you are doing the best that you can at the time to deal with the "mistake"...is it a failure?? I fight my anxiety every day I have to work....because my work is a partial cause of my anxiety..i struggle with the did I do enough today.....did i protect everyone that i work with...did i make a difference.....I've said it a lot lately....the only time we truly "fail" is when we quit trying

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to mizzou7016]

Thank you! I guess anxiety doesn’t go away. Work is a big cause of my anxiety too. Hope anxiety lessens for u

[mizzou7016 in reply to reinventingmyself36]

Unfortunately for me...my work anxiety will always be there.....working in a prison is always a struggle because there are so many things that i want to control that i have absolutely no control over...and every day is dependent on the actions of someone else. main goal is to make sure that i and everyone i work with goes home at the end of the day

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to mizzou7016]

Omg I can’t imagine the stress, worry, fear, and anxiety of working in a prison. You are so brave

[mizzou7016 in reply to reinventingmyself36]

It definitely has it's moments. I've been at it for 26 years now....overall anxiety is good because I usually don't put myself in positions to have to worry about it...but the job is unpredictable....so the unknowns are treacherous....not that i would normally use wikipedia as a reference...but go there and search for michael j. devlin. he is at the facility that i work at

[Cooking_nut]

Lexapro has been a game changer for me. Crossing my fingers that it works for you. I used to have very bad panic attacks and I honestly couldn’t figure out why I was having one — but now they are very few and far between. Ativan made me tired, I find Xanax works better for me. I don’t need a lot… it just takes the edge off.

I also think for women, hormones play a big part in anxiety and panic attacks. That is just my personal opinion.

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to Cooking_nut]

Thanks for sharing. How long did it take for lexapro to work for you? Yes hormones play a huge part. I think it’s my work and lack of support from friends that additionally adds to anxiety. I hope lexapro works too!

[Cooking_nut in reply to reinventingmyself36]

I would give it a few weeks to a month. I have taken it since probably around 2004. It is one of the few drugs where I don’t think the effects have worn off.

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to Cooking_nut]

Thank you! I will be patient

[jleechis1]

Those are very good drugs, especially klonopin. Talk to your doc about getting on Seroquel as an adjunct for your anti-depressant. He should put you on the minimum dosage. It worked great for me. You will get better.

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to jleechis1]

Hi there! Thank you. I’ve been on a low dose of seroquel for sleep for a long time now. It helps only with sleep. Thanks for support and glad it worked for u

[designguy]

I found that even with meds that are working I still need therapy and practicing good self-care and diet. Are you doing any therapy?

The other thing I did was a psychopharmacological test that used my dna to determine which meds were best suited for me genetically. Mine was from Genesight and paid for by my insurance. It showed that none of the half-dozen meds I had tried previously worked for me and I started on one that was (Pristiq) and it has helped. The test can help take a lot of the trial and error out of the process.

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to designguy]

I got the Genesight sight and will do it soon and send it out. Can’t wait. Hopefully will get on right meds. I have been in therapy off and on for years and it helps now. I have trouble with self care. Thank you for sharing! I feel hopeful now. Be well and glad your doing better

[designguy in reply to reinventingmyself36]

I hope you find it helpful for you, it was for me.

[designguy]

I want to add that you might check out the DARE Anxiety book and youtube videos for how to best deal with panic attacks, it has helped me. Also the website/youtubes of Paige Pradko has a lot of good information. There is a lot of good info on youtube for free.

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to designguy]

For some reason I get bored with those videos lol. I need more patience in listening to them. Thank u

[designguy in reply to reinventingmyself36]

Sometimes I have the same problem and fast forward through them. I think the trick is to figure out what type(s) of therapy might be the most beneficial at the time to narrow it down.

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to designguy]

Thank you

[Pitbull-In-Cage]

Hey there,

Sorry to hear about your condition. I can understand how devastating these panic attacks can be. I’ve been on Klonopin a long time back and I’ve recently been on Ativan for a while. But during the course of time I’ve observed that Benzodiazepines are not a long term solution because they work initially and later we have to keep on increasing the dosage to achieve the desired effect. But the real issue arises when we start to wean off these and trust me it is the worst trauma one can undergo because the withdrawal are so severe. I tried to quit Ativan cold turkey but I wasn’t able to because the withdrawal was so terrible. So, I’m slowly tapering it down now and I’m on a path to recovery. It’s ironic that the drugs meant to cure anxiety & depression can give you anxiety 20 times stronger than before if you think of discontinuing them. So, I strongly believe that the severe panic attacks you’re having might be because of long term usage of Benzodiazepines. Hence, I suggest that you consult with your health care provider and sought an alternative than taking the benzos because benzos are not meant for long term use and they are not safe. Benzos can give you rebound anxiety and depression much stronger than what you had initially. I’m currently on Clomipramine. It helps with my insomnia and severe panic attacks. Also, it has less side effects than Benzodiazepines. So, you should consult with your health care provider to know if Clomipramine can be a substitute for benzos for you. But don’t ever try quitting Klonopin of your own because like I said the withdrawal and insomnia is so terrible that it can lead to serious health issues. If you want to quit Klonopin than consult with your health care provider and refer to Ashton manual. But the key is not to lose hope and always think that there is light at the end of the tunnel. I’m also taking melatonin now for better sleep because previously I’ve been on Ambien and it gave me hallucinations and nausea. Lastly, there are two natural herbs i.e. Bacopa Monnieri & Ginseng that you can consider taking because they help in long run and doesn’t have any adverse effects. But please consult with your doctor if these will not interfere with your medication and then only you can consider using them. I pray to god that you get better soon. May god bless you!

[reinventingmyself36 in reply to Pitbull-In-Cage]

thank you for sharing your story. I’m sorry you went thru this too. I will consult with my psychiatrist and agree with that benzos have such an impact. I pray you’re doing well. Thank you for your support and advice