What should I do?

About a year ago I woke up scare and without reasons, all of the sudden I was diagnose by my PD that I was having GAD. I have always been concern about illness and getting sick, once I am tested then I relax. After my incident I was prescribed Zoloft 100mg which I took for about 4 months and then stop taking it. Then started feeling GAD and combine with some tinnitus and after researching the internet about tinnitus then started againg being afraid that I was getting tinnitus and was going to go crazy with it. Then the Dr. took me back to Zoloft and xanax which after several weeks put me back to normal and my new tinnitus when back to minimum.

He says that I am a hypochondriac and that I need to be on these pills at least for a year. Now I have been back on Zoloft and xanax for about 3 months, but I feel I do not need them any more and I do not want to depend on them for life.

One thing that I am getting concern now is that this time my short term memory has been affected and it has me very concern and worried, since the previous time I took Zoloft
It had no side effects on me.

Is this memory problem a side effect of the Zoloft or it is going now to be forever?

Could also has been the tinnitus caused by the Zoloft?

Is there a more natural way to approach my problems?

Any suggestion or comments will be appreciated.

Thanks

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

I still think that the best  treatment for gad is psychotherapy, and its something you might start now while on Zoloft, and then taper off while working with a professional. The relationship between tinnitus is unclear, but I don't think the zoloft would cause it independently of the anxiety.