Posted by Peter on August 16, 2003, at 8:07:21
In reply to Re: I'm scared-am I going insane?, posted by Jasmine Neroli on August 16, 2003, at 1:48:17
> Hi Peter:
> You're not insane, you're desperate for a way out of the pain of continual anxiety. Stick with your Klonopin for now, I've just been learning on this board, about how useful it is for so many people. It seems like you have an extreme case of Generalized Anxiety Disorder, since most of your anxieties are anticipatory in nature, continual worries about "what if" or "what might happen". Do you go over dangerous or tragic scenarios in your head? Trying to figure out how you would react, or what would happen if they really occurred? Then do you feel like you mightn't be able to cope,if they did happen?
>>>Definitely. 24/7.That's a GAD type of thinking. Your mind can't shut off those thoughts, especially at night. (I used to be like that and found Celexa really helped).There might be an obsessional aspect to it as well. I wonder if adding an SSRI for GAD/OCPD would help??.
>>>Even though my pdoc of 7 years has never diagnosed me with GAD (he has, however with social anxiety, and mixed mood states superimposed on some ADHD symptomology-at least that was the latest diagnosis; other docs I've been to for consultations have said there's no evidence of bipolar, but instead a lot of evidencie for 'depressive anxiety.' Another doc said no ADHD, but 'bipolar otherwise unspecified.' My steady pdoc seems to think it's a bit of everything!
He has prescirbed me every SSRI at different points over the years, and they did seem to help more than anything else with my core anxieties; but they always ended up switching me to what my pdoc called hypomanic-like behaviour or emotionally-numbing me and causing me to crave a lot of alcohol.
> Sounds to me like you need to stay away from the stimulants for now....if your mind has this constant agitated thinking going on all the time. Why do you think you crave them so? Did they give you social confidence? Or is it just that the new Klonipin dose makes you dozy?
>>Well, the adderall did put a stopper on a lot of my anxiety-filled thinking by narrowing my thought processes(sp?) down. In that sense, it calmed me in a certain way. But it also seemed to help with social anxiety where the klonopin didn't - that is, in terms of my energy and confidence. But, I really think an SSRI or something along those lines would be best for me, maybe in combination (though I've tried that too and we just ended up changing everything again because of increased anxiety. My doc said I definitely should not start up an SSRI again now, because he said it would probably increase my anxiety at the beginning (that's true - I've experienced a worsening of anxiety from the immediate, acute side-effects of SSRI's, and I guess he thinks I'm right now too anxious now to go through those acute, pre-therapeutic side-effects that SSRI's have always produced in me.
> I'm sorry that I've just given you a bunch more questions to add to your own, and little concrete info!! I was just hoping to help you evaluate your situation and give you encouragement to hang in there! I hope you are able to talk to you doc real soon. Let us know how you are doing and take care!
> Thank you
poster:Peter
thread:251194
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030812/msgs/251281.html