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Mental Health  (Expert Forum)
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Different Treatments for Anxiety other than Antidepressants
Answered by
Roger Gould, M.D. - Mental Health, Wellness
Questions posted in the Mental Health forum are being answered by Dr. Roger L. Gould, author of the Mastering Stress and Depression program and affiliated with the UCLA. Department of Psychiatry. Topics covered include anger, attention deficit disorder (ADD), bipolar disorder, dementia, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), learning disabilities, memory, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), panic, personality disorders, phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), schizophrenia, stress, transitions, and work problems.
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MedHelp Member's Question

Different Treatments for Anxiety other than Antidepressants

by Ithreesons, Jun 14, 2006 12:00AM
I have been put on Wellbutrin 5 days ago after taking 1-1/2 years to slowly wean myself off Zoloft. I developed over the past 6 months inflammation of the stomach and GI issues due to personal and work related stress. The doctor thought that putting me back on an antidepressant would help the stomach and GI heal, allievating the anxiety issues. My therapist is going nuts over this and feels there are other drugs out there that break down in the kidneys, not the liver, as well as don't irritate the stomach. I was really feeling defeated after tapering myself slowly off the Zoloft to be place back on another antidepressant. My therapist suggested looking info on different types of meds that help with anxiety, are non-habit forming, and are not in the classification of antidepressants. What do you know about this and do you know of any websites that can help me with this?



Thanks Jen
Doctor's Answer

by Roger Gould, M.D., Jun 15, 2006 12:00AM
I prefer klonopin as a tried and true, and safe, anxiety drug. ASk your doctor about prescribing you a small dose to take at night before bed, and adding to it during the day only if necessary. Use that to cover yourself for a few weeks, and then stop if you are okay by lowering dose over next two weeks.
Member Comments (13)

by rosetoes, Jun 14, 2006 12:00AM
Jen:



I don't know how often you experience anxiety but depending on that, you can take xanax if you have anxiety every now and then.  Xanax does stop anxiety and panic right in its tracks.  But if you take it everyday (three times a day) for 4 - 6 weeks, your body builds up a dependence and it becomes difficult to get off of.



I have anxiety and taking xanax during this period really did help, I of course took it regularly (not knowing the addictiveness of this drug) and I had to wean myself off of them.  Now that I have been off of them since Feb 2006, I have them, but I only take them when absolutely necessary.



I took one zoloft pill (my doctor recommended it for anxiety) and I prayed that if this pill got out of my system, I would never take it again.  I didn't sleep a wink that night and lost 2 pound from the constant bathroom visits.  I was cold and nervous.  You have taken Zoloft for awhile, it just goes to show you medicine has different effects on different people.



I can't suggest any meds, I only know about xanax and they are great for relieving anxiety, but just take them as needed.



Best Wishes

by englishlad, Jun 14, 2006 12:00AM
im 25 and have recently been precribed xanax, and i have to agree with you that xanax definately stops panic and anxiety dead in its tracks. i had to visit the cartiologist yesterday which gave me overwelming anxiety and about 30 mins after i took xanax (1 mg) my body definately felt loose and i just didnt worry as much about it..i , like the previous poster only take it when needed so i wont become dependant on it...ive also been told that if you need to definately take an anti-anxiety medication everyday, "buspar" is also an option..ive been told that it is not as habbit forming...maybe this'll help...best wishes too you and everyone!!  =)

by Serge 5055, Jul 01, 2006 12:00AM
I stop taking zyprexa (5mg)24 days ago after taking it for 11 years, I'm experiencing a lot of muscular and mental tension as well as insomnia. I feel phisically restless and very obsessive thoughts goes through my mind. I'm also sweating a lot. My life at this time is quite difficult. I think that I'm also dealing with a lot of anxiety. The good news is that my appetite has decrease 50% (taking zyprexa make me gain 100 pounds). I would have never agreed on taking zyprexa 11 years ago if I knew that I was going to pay a very big price when getting off this medication. At this point I don't feel like trusting another pchiatrist or doctor to help me deal or reduce these horrible symptoms. Is there anyone out there who has gone through what I'm going through right now, and how you have dealt with this situation, and how long it took you before you started to feel better??? I would appreciate any feedback.



Thanks,



Serge 5055

by Buddyio, Jul 01, 2006 12:00AM
I'm very surprised your Doctor hasn't started you on some other typ of medicin at the same time of weanning you off the one you've been on. That's a long time to be on any typ of antidepresant.

by anya77, Jul 03, 2006 12:00AM
Hi,



going off antidepressants is very difficult. I'm going through this right now too.



I've been on prozac for one year for panic attacks and it helped a lot. I've had a very happy and fulfilled life during this year. Before - it was a nightmare with panic attacks every night, chest pains, difficulties breathing, headackes and blurry vision, numbness in all my body. I couldn't get enough sleep, was worried all the time. My work and personal relationships suffered a lot, and i was sure i'm going to die from a heart attack very soon (being 27 years old!). I also started to be afraid to visit places, to drive alone in the car and to fly by airplanes.

My life started to become miserable. And i DECIDED to change it.



I was very determined, so i started doing some reading. There is a lot of free information on the web, including this site. I read that first of all, minimizing the effect of panic attacks on your life is POSSIBLE, and that both cognitive and medical help is needed. I went on prozac and went through therapy which helped me understand the psycological reasons behind my panic attacks. I also changed my lifestyle a lot. I learned yoga, breathing and relaxation exercises, meditation, changed my eating habits, started doing more excersice. What can i say - this year was the best year of my life, i fixed my relationships, performed well at work and felt generally very happy and fulfilled.



From my experience, THE MOST HELPFUL THING in coping with my panic attacks was to start realizing that the outcome in a big way depends on me and only me. Nobody and nothing else can help me with this. (A little blunt and scary, but this is true). The way i react to a panic attack determines how i will feel next. My thoughts determine my physical symptoms the next moment. If i allow the thought of being scared or of being unhappy or worried to come tomy mind - the panic and the physical symptoms will follow.



This is why yoga and relaxation exersices help in coping with panic attacks so much. Relaxation excersice is just an exersice in controlling your thoughts. Try to relax after a stressful day at work and in a very noise place. difficult, ha? But experienced yogis can do it. They can also decrease their heart beat and the blood pressure as they wish. By controlling their thoughts they control the physical outcome. I started practicing relaxation exersices with determination to learn which thoughts should i trigger in order to relax, and not allowing any other worrying thoughts entering my brain. And it works!



Try it!



I'm going off prozac now and both my therapist and psyciatrist believe that i will be fine. They both very much approve the way i view this things, and hopefully, i will be able to control my anxiety and my panic attacks in a more natural and healthy way, without getting dependencies on drugs and without side effects that this drugs eventually have on my body.



Good luck to you too in this difficult struggle!



by agirl44, Jul 10, 2006 12:00AM
I have been on antidepressants since I was 21 years old (now I'm 44).  I was on Prozac for about 10 years (most of that time taking 1 every other day 20mg), then switched to Effexor (75 mg I think) and was on it for about 3 years.  It seemed like it was making me too wound up so I gradually reduced the dosage to just 1 (amazing) per week.  I then gave that up and began to experience once againe the horrible  feelings of the dread, the depression, the hopelessness, that sick feeling in the stomach upon waking in the morning.  I am wondering if it might be possible to go back to taking the Effexor such that I would take one every 2 days, etc.  I seem to be one that needs some help, just not the full dosage (or something like that).  Any feedback?  Please help!

by caregiver222, Jul 16, 2006 12:00AM
A little valium is often helpfulin treating anxiety. Valium has a very bad wrap since it became a scheduled trackable controlled drug. I don't think it should be. The down side is it has a long half life and you really shouldn't drive while you are on it. Valium probably has the least short term side effects of any psychiatric drug.

by caregiver222, Jul 16, 2006 12:00AM
Yopu should be aware that there is an argument that anti-inflammatories, particuliarly prednisone, can cause psychiatric symptoms. Any drug that suppresses the immune system does so. There is a reason for this. An organism with a depressed immune system is more vulnerable to injury or attack, so there is a genetic reason for "something in the body"to make one "afraid to leave the cave" when the immune system is compromised. It's sometimes called the "Lizard brain" that lies withoin all of us. Any drug that suppresses inflamation (Ibuprufin/Motrin, for example) and compromises the immune response has the potential to cause anxiety attacks and psychiatric symptoms.

by reallysad, Jul 18, 2006 12:00AM
I have been treated for anxiety and panic