Has medication helped anyone's HA?

[Freddiemercury]

Hi all, my therapist and I have started talking about me going on medication to help my anxiety, which I have very mixed feelings about. I would like it to be temporary and only an aid during this particular rough period of HA I am going through while I work on my issues in therapy. But I feel like my anxiety is so specific to health stuff I'm worried medications for general anxiety or depression won't work for me. Has anyone had any luck with medication? If so, what were the meds that helped you in particular? Obviously I am NOT asking for medical advice or for someone to tell me what meds to go on. I just know my doc likes to be very collaborative about these things, so if I could bring up some ideas to him during our meeting I think he would be open to hearing them. Also just generally curious to know if people benefitted from them. Thanks!

[mummyanxious]

The way I view medication is that it may offer a temporary mood lifter but once you come off it the health anxiety can still come back if the underlying issues surrounding it haven't been addressed. That's just my opinion though.

[Freddiemercury]

No I agree with you and that's been my fear. But my anxiety has been so debilitating lately that I think it's actually interfering with me making progress in therapy. That's why I'm wondering if it could help take the edge off while I work on my issues. I know I have serious issues with death to address, especially since losing a young cousin to cancer and two aunts being diagnosed with cancer in the last five years. But my therapy is so consumed with my acute anxiety it's hard to focus on anything else.

[livethelife]

i have had health anxiety for many years and have had times when i have been on medication and other times when i have not been on any other than an occasional as needed clonazepam. these past 5-6 years i have not taken anything that i take daily and i have managed to cope thru the crises ok by getting prompt medical attention for my worries.

what i can tell you though is that the times where i did take an anti-depressant (sometimes for a year or more at a time) if definitely did help even though i didn't think it would. i have kept a journal of all of this and i even wrote in my journal many times that i didn't think the medication was going to work - of course it takes a while to start working (in my case i have always taken paxil because that is what works for me - i tried a few others but had some side effects that i just couldn't deal with) - they can take up to a month from what i remember - but it's amazing they do work.

if i was ever in an intense anxiety/panic state again for weeks on end and it was interfering with my life/ability to work etc i would not hesitate to go on paxil again. during the times i started taking it i was so bad off that i had to take short term leaves from work - 4 to 6 weeks until the medication would start to work.

that is my experience. hope that helps :)

[mummyanxious]

Most definitely it could take the edge off while you deal with the underlying issues yes if you feel that's what you need.

[Freddiemercury]

Thank you both. Livethelife, that is very helpful!!! Thanks for all the information and sharing your experience.

[Andria24]

Yes. Not immediately but several weeks down the line the meds have started to redress the imbalance. This helps me to think straight, which of course alleviates the symptoms. That said I am not relying on meds alone.

I try and stay on top of intrusive thoughts, and I try and maintain a reasonable semblance of routine. I am also down for a dual therapy approach, which I look forward to, as I believe it is the therapy that will help me to recover back to full mental wellness.

[Freddiemercury]

Thanks andria!

[polly81]

I've managed to become 'normal' after a year on Prozac so there is hope.....I'm tapering off prozac for the last 3 months and all going swimmingly so far. I'd recommend trying prozac but different drugs work for different people. But prozac is known for been easy to taper off. Hope you find something

[skippy66]

Ah, the medication dilemma!

Here's the problem with Health Anxiety and medication (or at least this was my problem).

Several visits to the doc and they can't find anything wrong. But at the same time they're wary of telling you you've got HA because WHAT IF the stomach pains you're complaining of IS something nasty - they'd be liable if they didn't get you checked out. So, they tentatively suggested (to me) that I try some anti-depressants, not that I'm depressed, but to simply see if they help things as apparently they can improve your physical symptoms.

So I paid the £6-7 for the prescription, on 3 separate occasions. but as soon as I got home and read the leaflet, guess what I did?


FREAKED OUT!!!!!!!!!!!

Side effects can increase palpitations - NO THANK YOU. They can cause coma and fits - NO THANK YOU. They can cause suicidal thoughts - NO THANK YOU.


I believe that anyone with true health anxiety would be far too scared to take anti-depressants - I certainly was. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise for me as I managed to cure myself without them. Then a few months later I spoke to a friend who claimed that anti-depressants had 'ruined his life'. I'm SO GLAD I didn't go down that road as I hear that once you're on them it's very difficult to get off.

Don't get me wrong I've resorted to diazepam in the past. That didn't help much either though. The way to beat this is to face your fears with courage, on your own.

[Andria24]

Skippy my secret is not to read stuff that I know won't help my mindset lol!

I know I'm going to find something I won't like and knowing what I do about myself ... *meh* :D

[Raphaels]

I agree with you Skippy 66. It's so easy for GPs to fob us off on meds, but I'm a HA. I always read the leaflets. There is no way I'm raking anything in case it makes me worse. I have a fear of heart attack so why would I put a pill in my mouth that might just give a a heart problem
I do take diazepam if I'm desperate. And believe I've got to be desperate. I have to somehow dace my fears. Not sure how yet. As my stomach is bad which makes me fear a hear problem. But I'm going to persevere until I cannot take anymore. Try, try and try again. Life is for living and I'm going to try.

[Freddiemercury]

I don't think that reading the side effects or not determines whether you truly have HA. All of us are different in what we do and what we are afraid of. I'm more of a reactive type. Something happens to me and I freak out and blow it way out of proportion. I'm not much of a searcher the way some people are. I don't really look for things because I know it will just scare me and cause the symptoms. I know side effects with some meds are exceedingly rare and that many people have them because they read the pamphlet lol. Again I'm not implying meds will fix me or my anxiety, I still want and need to get to the bottom of my issue and work through it but I can't do it while I'm anxious like this and I just can't suffer anymore each day with crippling anxiety.

[matrix123]

In my case they did really help. Escitalopram in the long run, but Xanax as well. Without the meds I would not have recovered...

[Ellewoods]

I have taken Citalopram about 3 times for 1-3 months each and it seemed to help. The problem is the last time I tried to go back on it I was already "immune" to it. Instead I went on Escitalopram and the lowest possible dosage did help me get out of a rut for 7 months but the minute something bad happened (not health related thank gd) it just stopped working. Since then it has been suggested that I go on some medication by my husband but I really would rather not. IMO it is just a band-aid and you will be back at square one when you go off or they may simply stop working at the very time you need it to!

I'm afraid I don't have the answers but I have been looking into supplements and diet changes and I do plan to try therapy in a month or 2.

[kittencake]

I believe that anyone with true health anxiety would be far too scared to take anti-depressants - I certainly was. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise for me as I managed to cure myself without them. Then a few months later I spoke to a friend who claimed that anti-depressants had 'ruined his life'. I'm SO GLAD I didn't go down that road as I hear that once you're on them it's very difficult to get off.


Skippy, I share your fear of side effects and can't manage to take medication myself. Your talking of 'true' health anxiety is ridiculous, and unfair, though. The anxiety manifests for all of us in different ways, and that's totally understandable. We ALL have 'true health anxiety', that's why we're here.

My personal opinion on medication for any sort of anxiety is that it can do absolute wonders for some people, and in some situations - if you feel you are stuck in a rut it can give you that boost you need to work your way out of it. Of course it's not something that should be taken lightly though, because it can be addictive, and because if you rely on it you may end up right back at square one when you come off it. I think it should be used in combination with therapy or CBT, as a tool to help you along.

[Eyji1]

I take medication and have Health Anxiety. It's helped.

Just know that medications are not a cure for your anxieties. You need to diligently work on yourself all the time to overcome your fears. Otherwise the medication will only act as a bumper and when you stop all the problems may come back bigger then before.

[KeeKee]

For me yes they have. I was put on Citalopram shortly after experiencing my first panic attack (had been on Fluoxetine for almost 5 years). Things did not improve and I felt very strange as if I was becoming emotionless. In August I was switched to Paroxetine and it has made me feel so much better. The best I've been in a long time.
I have had a setback and have had sickness too often for my liking recently nd my health anxiety is slowly getting worse, but I think it's because I am actually sick and it is ruining my life.
Obviously everybody is different but for me they have definitely worked in both anxiety and depression.

[Tanner40]

Everyone is different but citalopram, combined with CBT has helped me immensely in the past. I'm also one of those people that have to read all of the side effects, which in turn scares me silly. Then I have to force myself to take the medication and do it with fearful feelings. I always found that it helped me to tell someone that I was beginning the medication and to tell them of my fears.