Anxiety refers to a complex combination of negative emotions that includes fear, apprehension and worry, and is often accompanied by physical sensations such as palpitations, nause...
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Here is my story: I am 27 years old now and have suffered now since I was 22 I would say. At that time I was applying for law school while graduating from college. Stressful time for sure. Not to mention I grew up in a fairly dysfunctional family. Suffice to say that summer i started to get extremely dizzy, lightheaded, sweaty feet and hands, heart would pound, and i would get disoriented. I went to every doctor imaginable, and had a million tests conducted. Even the ER 3 times. Bottom line is my physical health has been absolutely fine. Docotrs all thought i was making this up or really did not want to give me time of the day after a while. Nobody would believe the crazy symptoms that I was getting and they were getting worse and debilitating. Doctors eventually wante dme to try SSRI's. I tried Paxil for 3 days, and had horrible headaches. Trazadone gave me cottonmouth, Zoloft made me tired and otherwise had no affect. I refused to try Cymbalta bc it had bad withdrawal affects from my research, and Celexa felt like somone drove a hammer through my skull, just painful. All the while I took Xanax at very small dosages. The xanax was affective but every 3 hrs or so I needed it or the symptoms would re-emerge . Eventually I wanted off of the xanax b/c I felt liek a Crack addict on it. Popping pills every few hours. Withdrawal was fairly horrible, but I did it slowly overtime. I then went to a cardiolgist who gave me Lexapro and Toprol. I took half of the smallest dosage of each for about 3 years and after a few months I felt like a new person. A bit of weight gain, increased appetite, but my old life returned.
Fast forward to three days ago. We were having extreme humidity and heat here in NY. I also went to a wedding recently where I met some old college frat guys i was friends with. They just felt like making me the butt of every joke, and I couldn't believe how at 25-28 they were still so immature. I have also stressed recently about the stock market, and some family issues. I dont know if any of this triggered it but on Tuesday ALL of the symptoms returned. I went back to the same doctor. He gave me a clean bill of halth once again, and told me to increase the toprol and lexapro. I am now taking a full pill of each and am 2 days into it. I asked him for a short acting med like Klonapin or Ativan and he refused and told me he wont poly medicate me. I don't want to be on the xanax-crack again. Do these symptoms sound like what you guys have? Its jsut completely debilitating. I feel it most when I am bored, and unoccupied. It gets very hard to breath, and my thoughts just race. My other problem is i cannot get the thoughts of anxiety and the possibility of suffering all over again after 2-3 good years! The thoughts just run rmapant in my mind and I cant control them. Can anyone relate? Do you think I should give the lex/toprol increased dosages time to work, or go to another doctor who is more willing to give me a shorter acting drug? Like I said above, they did help me at lower dosages for a long time and felt like a new person again. Posted on 07/19/08, 12:07 pm |
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Hi Brett,
I suspect you are a ruminator. If you are you will take events that happen to you in life a put them in that analytical brain of yours and go around and around. You may analyze it from every point and usually it comes out negative/awful. I did it for years myself. Do some reading about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and see if you have some distorted thinking patterns that are feeding into your stress symptoms. I too have had a few go arounds with the various drugs you mentioned. Lex/Top is what I was on, now it is just Toprol 25mg/Klonopin .05mg. Some doctors are reluctant to prescribe. I know I will have to face withdrawal eventually. Then perhaps I will use it for the rest of my life if I can't find the right non benzoid med to help with anxiety/insomnia. I was on Lexapro for 1 month..made me want to eat like a pig and made me tired. I am thinking of weaning down to 12.5mg toprol xl...is that what you take? Don't equate what is happening with a catastrophic interpretation. 
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Of course! I've suffered since I was 20 I'm now 26. I have been on and off zoloft since then. Just recently went back on last night, only to have restlessness, anxiety (unfortunate side effects)no appetite and no sleep. I was also prescribed xanax, .25, until the zoloft kicks in, but of course being an anxiety sufferer I am afraid to take it. I am extremely anxious and panicky all the time and can't wait to feel like myself again.
I would stay on the current dosage and find someone to give you something fast acting, even if it is xanax (I need to follow my own advice). Once you get control of your symptoms you can gradually taper off the fast acting and slowly lower the lex/toprol dosage...Hang in there, a lot of people here are with you:)
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Hey i feel you, I to had a good run for a long while but then earlier this year I had the anxiety and panic hit really hard if I were you I would give the increased meds some time like say 3 weeks or so, also seek some therapy and start some kind of relaxation like breathing excercises, meditation, or a fast paced excercise programs Good Luck and Hang in There
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Maybe you guys were the same way but I have always questions whether this is anxiety or something else. However i know it acts up more when i think about it, more when i am in stressful situations and more when i am not occupied. If it was a brain tumor would that really happen?
Do you guys have the same types of symptoms? The sweats, hot flashes, disorienetation, lightheadedness, palpetations, no ability to concentrate, and wild appetite swing? Making it worse that nobody believes you?
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Anxiety sufferers are very creative and can make up all sorts of scary things for our symptoms. It's unlikely that you have a tumor. I think you need to see a psychiarist, and do Cognitive Behavioural therapy along w/ meds...
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Thanks for the advice. I have been to a few psychiatrists, and I really do not think I have found a good one yet. That is why I have my caridiologist giving me my anxiety drugs.
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Brett, you said:
Do you guys have the same types of symptoms? The sweats, hot flashes, disorienetation, lightheadedness, palpetations, no ability to concentrate, and wild appetite swing? Making it worse that nobody believes you? I say it could be the meds this time around giving you these symptoms. I got hot flashes and appetite swings, ligthheadedness from either the lexapro at 10mg and or the toprol 25mg. Toprol and Lexapro have lots of side effects and since you boosted the dosage they may be more pronounced.
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Winterbridge,
I am taking the increased dosage b/c of the symptoms, not the other way around. So far and thank God, no new or worsening side effects. I have tolerated both of these meds extremely well, especially considering how poorly I tolerated everything else. These SSRi's are such trial and error. One person's fillet mignon is another person's arsenic.
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I guess I spoke to soon. Since 6:00PM I have had a major shortness of breath issue. I think this is the underlying anxiety and not side affects. I can't imagine that this was just start 8 hours after the dosage. I am just wokring on controlling my breathing. I really am doing whatever I can to control the breathing. I have a prescitption or Ativan and I am just so reluctant to fill it. I hate benzos despite how well they work, they are like crack!
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I have had my anxiety on and off for over 23 years now. The last seven years have been also plagued with episodes of depression. Now for almost a year my depression has been extremely severe and the last four months the anxiety has been severe.
I have had all the symptoms you describe because of my anxiety not my meds. You are probably experiencing anxiety attacks ontop of the chronic anxiety, hence the shortness of breath and other symptoms. In my case, I believe my anxiety became severe (all day everyday anxiety that I shake, can't concentrate, feel sick and dizzy ect.) because my pdoc took me off my last SSRI (Zoloft) to start lithium for my bipolar diagnosis. I am now back on effexor and was starting to have the odd day of good, but now the last 2 weeks it's been severe again. It took several weeks to notice any kind of change. The SSRI medications are the best long term solution for anxiety, but they can take a long time to work. On Tuesday my dosage will be increased again and then in six weeks another increase. The medication you are on can take up to 8 weeks to feel the complete full effects and sometimes even longer. I think with the increase dose you will start to find some better days, but you may need further increases. My pdoc increased me the first time at 4 weeks, but now says we have to wait the six weeks. It is torture!! Life events can bring on the anxiety even though you don't think it is. That is why mine has always come and gone and I've never had it this severe until recently, but I've been on SSRI medications for the last seven years for my anxiety, depression, OCD and now PTSD. I have started DBT and you may want to look into some type of therapy to help you learn how to manage your anxiety (and thought process) along with your medication. Good luck!
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