Am I doing this wrong?

[taureanwar]

I am speaking with a psych weekly. She has numerous times mentioned various forms of medication to either help me sleep or to deal with the attacks in general. I have chose - like quitting cigarettes - to do this cold turkey. I am having less complete body attacks now, they are concentrated in my head and have now started to affect my vision. Irritability is increasing almost on a daily basis and I am so scared to go to sleep at night, causing a recurring cycle every day.
Should I give the meds a chance and see where it leads me?
Any thoughts?

[tigerlark]

I can understand why you wouldn't want to go the route of medication, but I can tell you that medication is a very useful tool for keeping the panic and anxiety at bay as you work through your problems. When you get through all your therapy, you can come off the medication. Side effects are scary, but I am on an SSRI and it has really helped me to cope while I deal with my stuff. Don't feel like you have to do it with no help!

[Baggs]

I have been on Duloxetine for a year and it is helping me tremendously. I still get lows but they are manageable. You should consider meds. All the best.

Baggs

[cgrove]

Meds don't seem like they fit your character.

Here is a quick trick to try. The next time a panic attack starts to come on don't think "Oh noooooooooo." Talk to it and tell it to step up and do its worst. Example: Come on you sorry ******* bring it on, you ain't nothing, that's all you've got? Encourage it. Embrace the suck.

Fighting it doesn't work so go at it from a different direction.

Let me know how it goes. I've got more if it works for you.

Chris

[taureanwar]

I guess what really matters is whether or not I want to deal with the side effects and comparing it to the quality of life I can expect without taking them. The anxiety and panic comes and goes and I can deal with it when it does as cgrove states; I believe that my biggest problem is managing the anxiety in relation to how it affects my body and mind in so many different ways and is constantly changing depending on my mental mood and state.

[Daisy Sue]

i think meds have a massively important place in helping people, like a crutch, get over the worst times, particularly if they don't want to be on them long-term, so yeah, definitely worth considering... but i just wanted to say that i conquered panic attacks without meds many years ago, with the help of CBT, and in turn accepting that my symptoms were anxiety, and repeating certain phrases in my head like "i'm not going to die/faint", "i've had it before, it will go away"... that kind of thing.. also relaxation helps a lot.

it's up to you, both cold turkey and medication routes are good, in different ways. good luck :)