Aa
ativan gives anxiety
I detoxed off of oxy's in November, I was clean for 3 months, but chronic pain left me helpless on the couch and depressed. I started taking 1 15mg of oxy a day and now am up to 2. I wont go past the two. But I couldnt sleep all these months and the dr put me on a small dose of ATIVAN. 1/2 of a 1 mg is all. I take it at night and I do sleep. Well now Im geting severe anxiety during the day which only started 5 days ago. I was doing great until then. I did get a cortizone shot in my costochondritis ( for rib pain), 2 days before that and couldnt sleep for 2 nights, but was able to get sleep thereafter. Why am I getting these anxiety attacks? The only other time I got anxiety is when I was detoxing, other than that, I dont have anxiety problems, until now. What is causing it? Can it actually be the ativan? One of my dr's said it could be it's happening cause in the mornings, my body is now craving more ativan. I dont want to take more, I really want off those things now. Can someone give me some insight on this?
thankyou for your advice. I am off the ativan for a five days now, and I still have anxiety. its over a week since the cortizone shot. Ive had cortizone shots before in the past 3 months and this didnt happen, until last Thursday. I think what nurse said may be right. My body wasnt off the meds long enough for a full recovery, so after 3 months going back on, even tho I only take 2 15 mg's a day and sometimes it was only 1 & 1/2 a day my body is remembering and wants more now.The only times I got anxiety is when I was on the meds for 6 years, twice and the meds didnt work anymore and now this time. When Im off, I get absolulty no axiety, once they are out of my system. I thought the pain was so bad, I'd try a few a day, but I guess it is the wrong mistake thinking that. My pain is bad, but anxiety is worse. When I take a half, I get releif of the anxiety for about an hour, then it hits me with a vengeance until the next pill. If I dont take any pills, the anxiety is all the time, but a much lesser degree than the other way. GOSH, what have I redone to myself! Im so dang tired of all this pain and anxiety. :(
Your anxiety could be caused by a number of things. The Ativan COULD be the culprit, but depending on how long you've been on it, it is not very likely . If you have been on it over 6 months, then it would be a slightly stronger possibility.
The most likely cause is the steroid shot you received. Any steroid based medication has a VERY common side effect of anxiety. The timing is perfect too.
Another possibility (and probably the least likely) is a delayed withdrawal symptom of the Oxy withdrawal. There is a syndrome called PAWS (post acute withdrawal syndrome) which is a similar set of symptoms as the original w/d that present much later. PAWS causes more emotional symptoms than phsyical ones, including anxiety and depression. It may be possible that the reintroduction of the Oxy into your system has triggered an anxiety response, especially because some people have a sort of "memory" when it comes to opiate tolerance, meaning, even though you haven't taken it for a while, your body may feel like it needs more. Just a possibility to throw out there.
Again, I think the most likely explanation is the steroid shot you received. That's my guess. Figuring out a cause for anxiety isn't always easy. My advice to you is to give it some time, at least another week or so, and keep taking your medications as you were, don't increase, decrease, or stop any of the meds.
If after some time goes by, you still are having anxiety, then I would recommend addressing it with your doctor. He/she may need to reevaluate your meds to determine whether one of them may be the cause. Until then, try not to be overly focused on it (as hard as that is sometimes). The busier you stay, the less you will be thinking about it, it does help!
Hang in there!!
The most likely cause is the steroid shot you received. Any steroid based medication has a VERY common side effect of anxiety. The timing is perfect too.
Another possibility (and probably the least likely) is a delayed withdrawal symptom of the Oxy withdrawal. There is a syndrome called PAWS (post acute withdrawal syndrome) which is a similar set of symptoms as the original w/d that present much later. PAWS causes more emotional symptoms than phsyical ones, including anxiety and depression. It may be possible that the reintroduction of the Oxy into your system has triggered an anxiety response, especially because some people have a sort of "memory" when it comes to opiate tolerance, meaning, even though you haven't taken it for a while, your body may feel like it needs more. Just a possibility to throw out there.
Again, I think the most likely explanation is the steroid shot you received. That's my guess. Figuring out a cause for anxiety isn't always easy. My advice to you is to give it some time, at least another week or so, and keep taking your medications as you were, don't increase, decrease, or stop any of the meds.
If after some time goes by, you still are having anxiety, then I would recommend addressing it with your doctor. He/she may need to reevaluate your meds to determine whether one of them may be the cause. Until then, try not to be overly focused on it (as hard as that is sometimes). The busier you stay, the less you will be thinking about it, it does help!
Hang in there!!
Hi,
It is possible that the ativan suppresses your anxiety symptoms when you take it at night and then when you wake up in the morning it has worn off... It is also possible that you were experiencing anxiety without knowing that you had it.. a lot of people have physical symptoms and don't realize that they have anxiety... I was prescribed ativan after experiencing my first panic attack but only took it for a few days.. the ER doc said that ativan is 10 times stronger than xanax which is pretty strong itself.. I would not be surprised if your body is wanting more ativan to control the anxiety symptoms... I would recommend that you get an appointment with your doctor and discuss what is going on and I agree with you wanting to get off ativan it is a highly addictive medication but absolutely do not stop taking it without talking to your doctor first because it can have negative effects on your body such as seizures. I am sorry that you are having to deal with all of this and I wish you the best of luck!
It is possible that the ativan suppresses your anxiety symptoms when you take it at night and then when you wake up in the morning it has worn off... It is also possible that you were experiencing anxiety without knowing that you had it.. a lot of people have physical symptoms and don't realize that they have anxiety... I was prescribed ativan after experiencing my first panic attack but only took it for a few days.. the ER doc said that ativan is 10 times stronger than xanax which is pretty strong itself.. I would not be surprised if your body is wanting more ativan to control the anxiety symptoms... I would recommend that you get an appointment with your doctor and discuss what is going on and I agree with you wanting to get off ativan it is a highly addictive medication but absolutely do not stop taking it without talking to your doctor first because it can have negative effects on your body such as seizures. I am sorry that you are having to deal with all of this and I wish you the best of luck!
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