worrying and anxiety medication?

Post Reply New Topic

I am doing well in my job and I have my driving test coming soon.

This board has helped me beyond belief.

Now having said all the above high anxiety levels seem to be par for the course for people on the spectrum.

I am mulling over the idea of going to my doctor and asking to be prescribed anti anxiety medication.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

You have to be careful with anti-anxiety meds, as they can be addictive. Some people also take anti-depressants for anxiety; less addictive. I was on Ativan, an anti-anxiety med, for about 2 years. I didn't get addicted, but it didn't work either. But for some people they are life savers. It's different for everyone, really.

theres lots of non benzo diazepene based anti anxiety medications, propranalol is worth trying out,its a beta blocker which stops the anxiety by lowering heart rate.

one of the reasons am on halperidol; an anti pyschotic is for its longer acting anti acute anxiety properties and the challenging behavior it causes,its very good however they dont just prescribe anti pyschotics for anxiety.
am also on diazepam;as PRN and part of regular meds every day but it doesnt work any more on self as have developed tolerance to it,have been on it for many,many years though,have been on lorazepam to,was a bit better than diazepam and found temazepam to work the best for self, but woud recommend steering clear of benzo diazepenes as tolerance does build very quickly so woud need to increase to get the same effect and will end up addicted,they woudnt up mine any more they just added on more halperidol.

I was on them and they worked but they didn't take away all the anxiety, it just helped me cope better in situations and get less frustrated and less anxious. Also they would wear off during the day so they didn't last me all day. I probably should be on it again and it might make my life easier and things won't be so hard to do but I can't afford any pills and I don't have a drug prescription plan. My health insurance does not cover it and I was denied the drug plan saying we make too much. But I do fine without.

I would take a Xanax before a driving test hands down.
I mean like no question about it.

I have when needed Xanax. I only take it if I'm having a really severe panic attack or for special situations.
A driving test would be one of those special situations.
For me personally Xanax doesn't make me feel good or loopy, it just keeps me from being nervous or panicking.
I always pop one before getting on an airplane.

Thanks for all the replies and EzraS your correct about the driving test it is on my mind right now.

As regards KingdomOfRats a detailed answer as usual Propranalol might be the one I ask my doctor about.

I have had very good success with diazapam. I do not use it daily, only on an as needed basis when anxiety or mood swings are wreaking havoc for me. Contrary to what I have heard about it being so addictive, this has not been my experience at all. (I had nicotine addiction at one point in life, so I do have something to compare it to.) I just heard a report on NPR that benozo addiction is most likely if the person also uses an opiod like codine, and I do not use those. So maybe that is why I have not developed addiction to it. Tollerance does build up if used too frequently, but it seems to go away if I take a break. Like now I am using 2.5 mg. dose after having been taking 10 mg,. and 2.5 now does the trick just fine.

Valium is the ONLY psychiatric med on the World Health Organization list of 30 essential drugs. It has been around for 50 plus years so this is part of why I consider it safer than newer drugs. But, as someone else said, each person is different, and what works for me may not be the best for you.

no problem shark attack,have been on it and the sister has been on it [she is an aspie who had a lot of anxiety when she was at university]
with mine-it didnt work,but for her it did.

propanalol isnt suitable for people who already have a blood pressure that is quite low as it will just get lower but for people with normal blood pressure-or higher even,its a good choice to try.

the problem with the anti depressents that also help anxiety is if are already on one, will not be able to take two SSRIs/TCAs/MAOIs/ SNRIs as they clash with each other and can cause seratonin overdose which is life threatening from what have read before.

For anxiety I am on Klonipin, a benzo, and for me it does work to calm my nerves, generally. I only take 1-2 mg a day.

But, being on a benzo can be problematic; It is highly-addictive.

I never abuse this medication as one might for a "high". It does not really work like that it seems.

But, one time about a year ago I ran out of the Klonipin. A few days went by without it and I started feeling so physically sick. I was having serious withdrawals from it. Some people, I have read, liken kicking a benzo to be like withdrawaling from Heroin.

So, certain medications can be helpful for specific individuals but please be careful.

It took me about 4-5 years to pluck up the courage to get me on meds, because of all the stuff I hear on the internet about people on meds was really off-putting. But I have finally took a deep breath and decided to go to the doctor once and for all and get me on meds before any more hesitation.

Going on meds was the last thing I wanted to do, but I had tried everything in the book, like voluntary work, meditation, counselling, gentle exercise, healthy foods, plenty of sleep, doing things I enjoy, CBT books, meeting friends, and keeping up my part-time job, and yes these might have made me feel better temporarily, but it still didn't change the way I think. Things still kept getting to me and I had frequent outbursts. And my depression had got so overpowering that I was getting rather out of control with it (like having major crying fits, wanting to commit suicide, and feeling so downhearted I didn't know where to put myself). So I went to the doctor and went on the meds.

And believe it or not, the meds actually worked straight away. After about a day or two of taking them, I suddenly found myself feeling calmer and much less depressed. I have been on them now for three weeks and I have not felt depressed once, and this is the longest I have ever gone in a long time without being depressed. I have even been testing myself this week to see if they really are working, by going on Facebook and seeing what all my friends and cousins are doing (they all have boy/girlfriends, which was the main thing that triggered off depression for me). But it just didn't bother me this time. I still felt jealous and lonely, but then it just went over my head and my mind got distracted on to something else. Now that did make me feel like a whole new person. Also I can't seem to cry either, and I always cried at anything little thing. I even watched films that made me cry, and this time I still felt sad but the tears didn't come. That concludes that these meds are working.

They are not working with the anxiety (well, not yet anyway), but at least it has reduced my depression a LOT. I've even been able to fill out an online test on a depression website and ended up with positive results. It is great. Also, this is the first time (since I was a young child) that my mind has actually been clear of thoughts. I can go to work and do my job without all these thoughts chattering away in my mind stirring up fearful, anxious and miserable thoughts. The only thing is I've got to think a little harder when making a decision, but that's OK. ANYTHING'S better than being depressed.

It hasn't really given me any side effects either. Well, on my first week of taking them, I did lose my appetite for the whole week, but that only lasted a week and it came back again. I lost a few pounds out of it though! (Even though I'm slim anyway). But otherwise I feel fine, in fact great, and the doctor said to see her in a few weeks so she can up the dose, but I don't think my dose needs to be upped.

be very careful about using benzos and driving, they can impair you in ways you are not expecting and if you have an accident while impared by them then you will get charged with a dui

I would caution you about going to your doctor to ask specifically to be put on meds. That should be a decision that you and your doctor make together. And keep in mind that there are a lot of things that you can try before going on meds, or to supplement meds. So basically try not view meds as a quick fix or a first resort.

Anxiety meds prescribed correctly can really really help a person deal with anxiety. I speak from experience. My anxiety is so severe that I cannot function (eat, sleep, interact with others, learn, etc,) with out it being effectively treated with a combination of meds and other strategies and counseling/therapy. I am on a combination of few different meds, including one that I can take to prevent, lessen, or end panic attacks as needed.

I cannot stress how important it is that your doctor understand and have experience treating anxiety and that they really know what they are doing when it comes to prescribing medications. I was very sick for a month ( missed school for at least 2/3 of that time, and for a while I had no memories of that month) and my psychiatrist that I was seeing at the time could not figure out what was wrong. Long story short, my anxiety meds were interacting with each other, making me very sick. I now have a different doctor who is actually a psychopharmacologist so she actually specializes in medications that treat psychological disorders. One last thing is that many anxiety meds can make you tired as a side affect.

Well this was a public holiday here so it was a long weekend and I feel really good.

I am back to work in a few hours I will see how I feel this week before I consider even going near my doctor.

The funny thing is I like my job.

Oh yes I had a long drive today and I am feeling more confident.

It's wonderful being on these meds. I feel like I'm a whole new person. I know this sounds funny coming from a grown-up, but I am more well-behaved on them too! I don't mean I always acted naughty or childish before. I just mean I can go out with my family without the mood swings and aloofness. Since I've gone on the meds, I have been out with my family a few times and have felt much more relaxed. I still get agitated with the same things that agitated me before, but I get over things quicker, rather than spending the rest of my day out stressing about one thing. It is so great to be like this. It's making me feel more normal, and I'm sure they are helping with my social skills a little too, because my mum hasn't told me to ''stop doing [name annoying social faux pas here]'' since I gone on them, and she's also told me herself that I have been much easier to live with. I felt that way too, and hopefully me and my family will be a lot happier when doing things together.

When I said about helping with the social skills, I don't think the meds have helped with the shyness, because, after all, shyness is part of my personality. I wasn't expecting them to help with the shyness anyway, but I think they are making me feel more relaxed at social events, where as before I would spend social events feeling worried about being too shy, and feeling depressed about being the shyest person there. When I recently went to a social event (being on the meds), I didn't care that I was shy, which made me feel happier.

It's really strange that the meds started working within the first two days of taking them, and I am only on the lowest dose possible . I know it isn't mind over matter, because my depression was too powerful to even be able to control it with the mind, and I just know it's these meds that really are stopping those thoughts and making me a happier person. I sometimes feel depression coming on, but something just suddenly stops it and I forget what I was feeling down about, and then I think of it again and the thought suddenly shuts up, making me just not care about those little things I used to get into such a state about.

Sorry I keep going on about myself but I am really pleased that I have gone on these meds and that they are really making a positive difference to my outlook on life. It's really nice to have a Joe90 on WP who is actually happy!