Question for every one one here

[tricia56]

hi fristly i have sufferd with anxiety now for a few yrs now and it was bad for quite awhile as at the time i didnt know what i had and i couldnt cope with the way i was feeling and thought i was dieing or going mad but leaning about anxiety and useing coping skills i have got a bit better and do get really bad days and have let my self go abit in my appearance etc and have just finished a couse of cbt which helped a little . But my question is do every one one on here take antidepressants for thier anxiety if so does it help them and it what way Or does alot of u not take them .As the reason im asking is because people i know and they see me keep telling me i need to take pills to make me feel better because of the way ive let myself go abit and because i fidgit alot when anxiouse and because when they see me and ask how i am i tell them if im anxiouse which most days i am because i have GAD and it does make u anxiouse for no reason somedays as u all know what GAD is .i DONT WANT TO PILLS because the way i think is that taking pills does not cure the anxiety it just helps u cope better and yes i am scared to take meds because of the side effects aswell so why do they keep telling me i need take meds as it is making me think that i do need meds as i must be as bad as i look for them to say it me all time .so id be grateful for any comments every one has on here. ps by the way the poeple that tell me i need meds are on meds them selfs but for other reasons ie post trurmatic stress and depression

[katexxxx]

hi and welcome on here!
i have suffered anxiety for about 3 years now and have been takin citalopran 20mg for 3 years.
firstly my main issue was i constantly felt disconected from the world and not myself (depersonalisation) and this was the main reason i took the pills,as well as panick attacks.
The first day you take the pills you will have a panick attack and get hot/flustered, but this is only because you are not used to the pills,but trust me that only lasted me 1 or 2 days then it completely goes away.
Ive been on them for 3 years now and they do help lower the disconnected feeling,and the palpitations,but they dont get rid of the anxiety completely,i stil have panick attcks every now and then.

i think you should try them they do help a bit reduce the symptoms,and you get no side effects,the only one i get is it makes me sleep alot lol
if you wanna chat send a message

[chrissy-311]

hi fristly i have sufferd with anxiety now for a few yrs now and it was bad for quite awhile as at the time i didnt know what i had and i couldnt cope with the way i was feeling and thought i was dieing or going mad but leaning about anxiety and useing coping skills i have got a bit better and do get really bad days and have let my self go abit in my appearance etc and have just finished a couse of cbt which helped a little . But my question is do every one one on here take antidepressants for thier anxiety if so does it help them and it what way Or does alot of u not take them .As the reason im asking is because people i know and they see me keep telling me i need to take pills to make me feel better because of the way ive let myself go abit and because i fidgit alot when anxiouse and because when they see me and ask how i am i tell them if im anxiouse which most days i am because i have GAD and it does make u anxiouse for no reason somedays as u all know what GAD is .i DONT WANT TO PILLS because the way i think is that taking pills does not cure the anxiety it just helps u cope better and yes i am scared to take meds because of the side effects aswell so why do they keep telling me i need take meds as it is making me think that i do need meds as i must be as bad as i look for them to say it me all time .so id be grateful for any comments every one has on here. ps by the way the poeple that tell me i need meds are on meds them selfs but for other reasons ie post trurmatic stress and depression
They are ok short term, help you regain control of yourself.

[Zee]

I dont take any pills, but thats a personal choice.
Some people are helped by them, its just not for me.

[James23]

i have anxiety issues, and like you i have awful days and then some that id consider good days. i cant take any antidepressants because of the side effects, i would never take another ever they make me so ill. i have been going to cbt which doesnt help me. i think for some people pills work great which is why there so in favour of them, im just trying to find ways i can cope with this, because everyone is different id say just go with what makes you feel ok and focus on that. :)

[munkeyinblack]

I need to take antids for the depression because if i don't i can't even get out of bed. People say that takling meds masks the problem and doesnt fix it. But for me meds make me feel better enough to tackle what was making me feel that way.
I think its the same for my anxiety now. Im on proplanolol and it helps me loads and calms me alot. I have diazepam for when i get out of control which doesnt happen often now due to the other meds.

Its a personal choice but if its a choice between staying ill forever or giving yourself a chance to live life again but being on medication maybey its an option ?

[blueangel]

I've done both - dealt with anxiety/depression with medication and without, at various times.

What I would say about my current bout of anxiety though (which had gone on for 3 years), is that unfortunately I don't think I helped my recovery by resisting going on medication for so long.

I stuck it out until December last year (it had been ongoing since October 2007) and eventually went back on citalopram after starting CBT. By this time I really wasn't coping at all and would have ended up going off sick from work as I couldn't string two thoughts together.

My opinion is that medication has its place in treating anxiety and depression - it's the individual's call whether or not they do it, but sometimes you have to accept that you need a hand getting yourself stable enough to function, then you can get yourself through other therapies that will put you back together again.

[honeyp1e]

Hi & welcome to nmp :)

I have suffered anxiety/ panic attacks for many years now on & off and have been on citalopram for many years and stopped them last year as I was feeling great they really helped me but I made the mistake of just stopping them (cold turkey) and never weaned off them so I suffered with drawals (never advise any1 to do this) anyway am now on day 8 of bein bk on my citalopram and am already feeling an improvement in some ways but also having some small side effects which is normal from starting anti-depressants (trembling / dry mouth / some nausea) but it will soon pass and I no I will be bk to my old self again, without anti-depressants I wouldn't even get out my door I sit there all depressed and just hate life and that's not me so the help of the meds will get my life back...

[Wasake wauspe]

Hi there,
Welcome. I agree with James23 in that you should do what feels right for you. I was meds for a long time, but i eventually decided to come of them and thats what I did but slowly, very slowly. I had stopped once before and that was not good and made me feel as though i couldnt cope without them which wasnt the case, i just shouldnt of gone cold turkey thats all. Thay did help me for a while but i got to a point where i thought they had done as much as they could but def go with how YOU feel. gd luck

[Bill]

I was watching the News the other day and they were saying that the amount of people being prescribed ad's has increased alot. They went on to talk about the reasons such as people losing their jobs and those who are left in work having more stress to cope with on top of the fear of losing their jobs too, and yet those who have lost their jobs who are made ill through excess worry will be reviewed to see if they're actually still capable of doing the jobs that were taken away from them, and if not, someone will have to pay more to fund the doctors, ad's and benefits they'll need to survive so it left me wondering where the savings will be. It's a funny old world isn't it.

Anyway, I notice that you are quite happy not taking ad's but it's others who are telling you that you must. Well, to help you decide I'd ask myself a few questions such as can you get up in the mornings, wash, dress, go to work (possibly) or do the necessary chores needed in the home with just feeling anxious. Then ask yourself, is your mood ok and do you feel happy despite feeling anxious. Then finally ask yourself does your anxiety prevent you from doing what you want.

If after you've asked yourself those questions and you feel just too depressed and/or too anxious to find any enjoyment in life then yes, ad's may well give you that lift you need. If you're happy as you are though and you cope absolutely fine, it's Your life to do with as you please no matter what others say.

One little thing...anxiety is caused by worry and meds can help to lift our moods at times when we feel very depressed because of our worries that nag us. However, it's very easy to grow to depend on our meds because we can then add to our worries by worrying about going back to cope without them so that when we do stop them and our anxiety returns, we're left thinking it's because we've stopped the meds when it's quite possible that we feel more anxious because we're aware of trying to cope without the security they can offer. Doesn't always happen but something to be aware of.

You can also see of course that if we lose our jobs, are stressed out at work or are simply faced with too many worries about survival, just how many worries we'll have and therefore become very anxious and end up needing meds to help us cope. What I'm saying is, if we all had happy lives with good jobs, we'd feel less stress and wouldn't need meds but of course there are also those of us like myself who are natural worriers and then it can come down to whether we can find enjoyment in life without meds or not but then it's a personal choice.

Personally, other than the odd blip, I've not taken any for 10 years or more because they're not the answer to my problems but I certainly wouldn't be telling others that they should or shouldn't. It all depends on how ill a person feels and whether they feel they need them or not, and also then if they do take them, whether they wish to take them short or long term to help them cope with their daily worries and stresses.:hugs:

[Chem]

[QUOTE=Bill;819301]I notice that you are quite happy not taking ad's but it's others who are telling you that you must. Well, to help you decide I'd ask myself a few questions such as can you get up in the mornings, wash, dress, go to work (possibly) or do the necessary chores needed in the home with just feeling anxious. Then ask yourself, is your mood ok and do you feel happy despite feeling anxious. Then finally ask yourself does your anxiety prevent you from doing what you want.

If after you've asked yourself those questions and you feel just too depressed and/or too anxious to find any enjoyment in life then yes, ad's may well give you that lift you need. If you're happy as you are though and you cope absolutely fine, it's Your life to do with as you please no matter what others say.

The questions Bill is suggesting you ask yourself are valid. However, your anxiety might not be caused by stress, or stress alone. There might be physiological factors involved.

The only person who can recommend whether you should take meds or not is your doctor. It might ease the confusion you appear to be feeling about taking them if you went and discussed it with your GP.

[JT69]

Hi,

Medication can help but you do need to find other ways to help you as well. I think sometimes some people are so bad that medication has to be the answer to get you into a better place to then seek other forms of help....but this is my personal oppinion. Everyone is different and their needs differ to as do the side effects as some people suffer with them and others dont.

It is something that you should discuss with your GP and then decide what you feel is best for you...by all means its good to share experiences but do remember we are all different.

Hope you feel better soon.

JO.xx

[heavenly]

I am on ADs, I didn't want to take them at first, I was scared but I could hardly function. I had to get some sort of clarity to help me initially. So I take the meds but along with counselling and vitamins. The counselling is helping me sort out why I feel the way I do, and it is helping me so much. So some people don't need extra help with ADs but some people do, as long as you are getting some sort of counselling/therapy, because if you don't get to the bottom of why you are feeling like you are, then no amount of pills will help.