So what happens now?

[Louisey]

About two months ago I went on medication (sertraline, 50mg a day) for the first time ever. I have been diagnosed panic disorder which can get very bad sometimes - the most recent time leading to the recommendation for SSRIs. Looking over my anxiety history, I also suspect I'm somewhat OCD as well.

I have always been very against the idea of medication for day-to-day anxiety, believing we all go through bad times and just have to be strong etc. So I am pretty amazed at what a difference medication has made to me.

Basically I feel like I've got my life back. I still worry and stress, yes, but not to the point where I become totally obsessed and can't think of anything else. So many things that led to panic attacks do not even bother me anymore. I am actually becoming interested in my hobbies and passions again. I am feeling healthier and less inclined to comfort eating and swilling alcohol.

So in a nutshell - I don't want to come off this medication in the near future. And I'm really starting to believe that anxiety is more of a physical problem than I believed - to do with serotonin levels in our brains.

I know I'm lucky that sertraline is working so well for me and also that my panic disorder is not too disabling. Now I'm just confused about what to do next. I would like to see a counsellor again and especially find out more about OCD, but thing is I'm really not suffering from it at all at the moment. Part of me still hates the thought of being on medication, the other part of me wants to stay on it forever.

Does anyone have any ideas or similar confusion??

L x

[static]

Hi Louisy,

I would recommend taking steps to deal with the problem through some sort of therapy. About 5 years ago i started having panic attacks and was a right mess until i was dragged to the doctors by a friend. I was prescribed Venlafaxine which like you gave me my life back. I started to feel normal and had led a happy life until recently when it's all kicked off again.

I came off the meds in Jan this year thinking it was all dealt with and in the past, however this was not the case and in hindsight i wish i had gone down the therapy route as mabye i would be better equiped to deal with this relapse, hey it might never have happened.

I guess what i'm trying to say is that the meds are like a sticky plaster covering up the wound, it may heal a bit but may leave a scar. Mabye therapy can get rid of the scar?

Good luck with it all!

D

----Time exists just on your wrists so don't panic ----

[honeybee3939]

Hi,

Lovely to hear you are doing so well,

I would go for the therapy even though you dont feel like you need it at the moment, i have been doing well lately but havent turned down any opportunity to learn new ways of dealing with Anxiety/Panic, i have had relapses in the past when coming off medication but now i feel as if i will be able to cope better with what i have learnt if i ever relapse again.

Love

Andrea
xxx

[Insomniac]

Oh yes, I certainly have similar thoughts. I started on Seroxat a few months ago and have mostly been feeling much better. The dose has been gradually increased, though like you said even when I get anxious I find I can manage it quite well.

I am on a waiting list for counselling and wondered whether it would still benefit me. A part of me must confess that facing up to the things which really bother me scares me. But I also don't want to waste my time and theirs. I have stayed on the list though because like others have said here, learning ways of coping and helping to get rid of the affliction rather than treating the symptoms seems a good idea!

I have suffered with depression for years now and have learnt a lot about serotonin levels in the brain and can forgive myself for being ill, rather than being a failure at coping with life. I did not want to take meds for anxiety, but things were so bad I was barely surviving. Now life is much better and gives me a more positive outlook and the open mind to receive information about getting better and use it!

Wow! What a long reply..... :) Your original message really touched me as it could have been me writing about my life. I suppose the meds are like the crutch or plaster cast and the counselling is the physiotherapy and exercises to give us strength so we won't need the meds any more.

Hope this helps Louisey. [8D]

Lisa.

[Paddington]

I will probably sound silly here,but why if a medication is working would anyone come off it??My ruddy dr has never offered me anything or even talked about gad with me,just gives me valium to take when i have a panic attack!!If it were me i would think .yeah! this makes me well, it puts my levels back to normal[bit like hrt,and that is acceptable!!]enjoy your new lease of fear free life hun,i would!!Have the therapy by all means but i feel that dragging up the past[bin there done it!]can do more harm than good.We cant change it can we?Best toaccept it and move on ,sounds as tho you are now able todo just that!Good luck,,enjoy it!Love mary rose.xxxxxxxxxxx

we are all in the same boat and can guide each other ashore

[Louisey]

Lisa, Andrea, Mary Rose and D - thanks for your in-depth and thoughtful replies. I have always had such a negative image about 'having to be on medication' that it's been quite a shock to find it working so well. I've decided I'll go and see a therapist and discuss things further.

Mary Rose, I know what you mean by questioning to ever go off it all - afterall, if it's a physical problem, why stop the drugs that fix it? Certainly that's what's been on my mind. But then I've had long periods where I've been happy and anxiety-free, so I know I don't always need drugs.

I guess therapy is important to understand what's happening to us, as well as teaching us to cope. Not to mention there may be times in later life where I may have to go off pills, say if I were pregnant, taking other medication or starting to react differently to side effects. Better to be equipped for that in advance! At least I know that if I relapse badly in the future - and let's face it, i probably will - there is medication out there that can help me.

I do wonder now, though, why there is so much negative hype about antidpressants when they can rescue some of us from a life of miserable fear and anxiety!

L xx