Fargo-Guy working on OCD after 66 years - medication

[Fargo-Guy]

After turning 66 and dealing with OCD most of my life I am working to make it less of a factor during my retirement. Started a medication after 6 months of counseling. I will update the group on progress. I wonder how many have seen improvement with medication?

[Max40yearsOCD]

Depends on the medication or combinations of a few. Which one are you trying?

[Fargo-Guy in reply to Max40yearsOCD]

Taking Zolof or Stretaline

[Max40yearsOCD in reply to Fargo-Guy]

Thank you for telling me. Interesting combination. I have not tried both of those together. Please let me know how you feel in a few weeks.

[Fargo-Guy in reply to Max40yearsOCD]

I am just taking the one. This is the same med. as with all they have generic names.

[crazyhubbyndad]

hello! I have seen great improvement with the combination of meds I'm on. Everyone reacts differently with meds, so I hope you find the meds that work for you quickly my friend.

[Fargo-Guy in reply to crazyhubbyndad]

What meds work for you? Just starting the med option after counseling.

[Sickjules in reply to crazyhubbyndad]

Did you have side effects? I already have multiple serious health problems

[crazyhubbyndad in reply to Sickjules]

i had some nausea for the first couple weeks, no side effects now

[Hidden]

It’s going to be different for everyone, for me it took me a long time to find meds that somewhat work, but honestly my meds only play a small part for me, as most the help I get is from therapy!

[crazyhubbyndad]

i use the generic forms of luvox, abilify, and trazodone

[Max40yearsOCD in reply to crazyhubbyndad]

I know someone personally that benefited greatly from abilify. Must be something about the drug. 5 mgs took him back from a rough patch.

[good2accept]

I've been on lexapro for a long time and my life got better after i started. best wishes

[Gimi44]

Hi all. I've been very lucky with meds and very unlucky with therapy. Let me explain. My drugs is dumirox(fluvoxamina) and works wonderful for me. Side effects, yes. But very beareble. And I have never found a good OCD therapist in my city. So I tried to educate myself. I am in a point in my life when I can get by quite well but I understand this is a cronical disorder/disorder. Not working/not partner do not help but I have learnt to mindful/enjoy the moment. Be strong and be compassionate with yourself guys. We're the best!!!😁

[HHeerssen]

Yes, I have with Zoloft, it takes the edge off. Start with 100 mg (50 mg twice a day) and see if it helps. If not, increase the dosage to 200 mg a day. Your doctor will have to prescribe it.

[cathy1956]

It's good to see someone in my age group trying. I'm 62 and the OCD was triggered when I was 19 due to sexual abuse. It's been very manageable for around 42 years, but the OCD got bad again recently. I'm going to try ERP soon. The main symptoms are hand-washing, obsessional thoughts, afraid I hurt someone's feelings, rituals and scrupulosity. Here I thought I'd be enjoying myself now. I think you know what I mean.

[cathy1956]

I forgot to mention fear of objects in my house. That's what the ERP is for,

[Aleese]

Yes, even a small dose can do wonders, it did with me. When you feel like you are going under, it’s like...wow! It can give you that push to work on your OCD in therapy/ERP.

Hope the best of ‘freedom’ for you on your retirement! How exciting😊

[Hidden]

Hi, I also recently turned 66 and I am retired. I am sure that I have had OCD since I was 5 years old but there was no name for it back then. So I can relate to your situation. I have been on meds and in therapy for most of my adult life. I think it's a good thing that you are starting meds. I wish you well.

[Fargo-Guy]

What med works best for you?

[Tikirob]

Hey I think most will know my thoughts, Inthink the best meds for OCD and exposure therapy and keeping up with excercise and nutrition especially gut health.Since I take wormwood, enzymes, and some Chinese herbs for my health I feel I am able to tolerate more. I took meds and they left me very lethargic.

[Weeping_Willow]

It depends on the person, but for me medication has always had a positive effect if the right one (in my case Prozac). The problem is, what med works for one doesn't always work for another, so DON'T give up if the one they put you on doesn't seem to have an effect. It usually has to build up in your system though, and sometimes a dose may need to be raised, but work with your prescriber and if the one you are on really doesn't seem to help then try another. I tried Paxil first and it did not help at all(one way I knew that the Prozac wasn't just a placebo effect). Another doctor tried me on Zoloft and Amitriptyline after I told them that Prozac worked for me. They did nothing either.

So keep trying, don't give up and I wish you all the best as I am in my 50s and have been really bad over the past few years (bad before but not this bad) and I know how hard it is to take the hard steps.

Please keep us updated. We are here for you. You are NOT alone!