Anxiety

I've been thinking of starting this thread for a while and just reading the depression thread I thought I'd give this a go.

I have been suffering from severe anxiety in the last few months. It's been severely crippling and has affected all aspects of my life in a negative way. I've always battled depression, but this anxiety is 10 x worse than any depression I have gone through. I have panic attacks, an elevated heart rate, and days where I just lay in bed to cope with it. My Dr recently prescribed effexor which I had a terrible reaction to and ended up in the ER it was so bad. Right now it's at its worst and I just feel lost.

Anyone else had this? Any suggestions for coping with this or stories of success would be greatly appreciated, as right now it just feels like a mountain I can't get over. It's developed into anxiety about health (hypochondria is what it feels like) and not matter how many test I have that prove my health is fine, I just can't get over the fear and anxiety over it. This also translates into anxiety about work, social situations, and everything in between.

Not making this thread for attention, I'm genuinely interested if anyone has successfully overcome their anxiety and the best tools to do so. I'm meeting with a psychiatrist next week in hopes of finding a reasonable solution through medication/therapy as nothing I've tries thus far has seemed to work.

Thanks Sabrelady. I had been on Effexor ER for years and took myself off it (big mistake) because I didn't feel I needed it. The XR however, just whipped my butt. Had the worst stomach upset/pain of my life with it and lost of muscle pain (the DR said to was the serotonin). I'm now taking Valium and muscle relaxants to tide me over while the Effexor works its way out of my system. I often feel like anxiety is my way of coping with things I cannot control in life and it just spirals out of control quickly.

I've mostly been concerned about the rapid heart rate, though they say this is not uncommon for people with high anxiety levels. Thanks again for your stories, they do help in understanding that I'm not the only 1 who feels like this. My family and friends have been quite supportive, but none of them suffer from anxiety like this, so it's hard for them to wrap their heads fully around it. I had started to feel a bit better about it but after taking the Effexor, it seems at its all time worst. Hopefully they can give me something (in combination with therapy) that won't have multiple side effects that make everything seem worse than it did before. It's gotten to points where I've considered checking myself in somewhere, but I'm hopeful that it won't have to come to that.

Efexor had the exact opposite affect on me too. It sent me into a full blown anxiety attack.

My completely non-professional and shouldn't be taken as anything other than one person's opinion is:

Try some Xanax so you can get out this terrible hole you're in. It's quick acting and its PRN so you won't have to worry about any kind of dependence. ***EDITED TO ADD - XANAX CAN BE ADDICTIVE.

Once you're back on solid ground again you should re-evaluate your meds.

This should be something that's easily controlled if your prescriptions are right.

Updated On: 5/11/15 at 12:29 PM

I hadn't heard of biofeedback before. Did some reading on it and sounds interesting and effective for many. Will definitely bring this up with the psychiatrist. Thanks again, Sabre. Greatly appreciated.

Thanks Taz :) I do often feel like I'm alone in this anxiety and that it's something I created in my head as a coping mechanism for life stress (if that makes sense).

My regular pcp has been quite unhelpful in understanding how bad the anxiety is and seems to feel that a simple anxiety/antidepressant combo will alleviate it but it seems to make it worse.

It helps a lot to know that I'm not the only 1 that deals with this. While I know in my head that I'm surely not, it sure feels like it when the anxiety is at its worse. I've tried xanax before and it helps, but my DR seemed paranoid that I was going to become addicted to it (though I've never displayed addictive tendencies with anything). I'm hoping a fresh pair of eyes with this new DR will allow me to come to a solution through meds while I am going through whatever therapy they feel will fit me best.

Thanks again. I hope this is making sense. It's such a difficult thing for me to put into words sometimes.

I shared my story in the depression thread, but anxiety is as much a problem for me as depression. I have had a couple of hysterical panic attacks. When I go to bed, my brain kicks into overdrive. Mirtazapine is a wonder drug for anxiety that keeps you awake at night. HOWEVER, most people gain a bit of weight on it. Some gain a RIDICULOUS amount of weight on it. I lost a great deal of weight over the last four years. I have put over 3/4 of it back on in the last year. I was at a loss and it was adding to my anxiety. Then my doctor told me that I just must be one of those unlucky ones. I am working on it. I play tennis and run and eat whole, (mostly) healthy foods. I am trying to weigh (no pun intended) the great effect the drug has against my ever expanding ass.

I went through a whopper of a panic/anxiety bout several years ago. I found out much later what caused it (change of life) but at the time I thought it was physical and I was admitted for every test in the book. Of course they found nothing .

anyway, my treatment in the Hosp was Xanax round the clock. I was so anxious and wound up l lost 20 lbs in two weeks. I stayed on Xanax until the anxiety gradually left. It was all about hormones gone wild,

xanax is the savior in my opinion.

good luck

Thanks everyone for the suggestions and stories, it really has helped what has been an awful week for me start to look up. Right now it's really a matter of the Effexor working its way out of my system. Right now I feel fairly calm and clear headed, which I haven't felt in a long time. Hopefully I'll be able to find long term solutions when I see the psychiatrist next week :) Again, I truly appreciate all of the suggestions and am looking forward to finding a solution for this painful anxiety. It's easy to feel like I'm the only 1 who feels like this when it's this bad and all your comments have alleviated a lot of that.

I was on Effexor er for years and it worked quite well for me, though I did gain some weight and it made me extremely sluggish and unmotivated. I weened myself off of it late last year and actually felt better without it. But the effexor xr really through me for a loop. From the reading I've done the 2 have quite different effects in how they enter the blood stream, and clearly the ER doesn't mix well with my body.

I've taken Xanax in the past and it's been quite helpful, though, I was given such a little amount of it that I had to choose which panic attack or anxiety moment was worth using it for. Hopefully they'll be able to give me something that I don't have to pick and choose when to use it due to the quantity given.

At this point the anxiety has been so bad, dependency really isn't a concern of mine (I don't have an addictive personality in general). I know it's different for everyone but hoping it or something similar will do the trick and this new psychiatrist will be more proactive than my last Dr in understanding that this anxiety is completely taking over my life. Many of the medications they've given me in the past take so long to work, and often make things worse before they get better, that I've had little success in getting a handle on the anxiety. If that makes any sense at all lol.

What side effects did you have on the Effexor. Gaveston? For me it was extreme muscle pain all through my legs and an upset stomach unlike anything I've had before with stomach cramping to boot. I understand the side effects do go away for many but after 4 days I just didn't see the point as the anxiety was increasing too and my heart rate was up to 120 at a resting position. I think it came down to a serotonin overload.

I've dealt with depression in the past, so they seem to keep wanting to give me a anti-depressant/anxiety combo pill, but at this point, the only thing I'm really depressed about it the anxiety.

Updated On: 5/10/15 at 11:10 PM

Gaveston is correct, Xanax is addictive.

I've only ever taken it as PRN, so I misspoke in my earlier post.

Still, I can't recommend it strongly enough, at least temporarily, until you get over the hump.

"At this point the anxiety has been so bad, dependency really isn't a concern of mine (I don't have an addictive personality in general)."

It doesn't have anything to do with your personality.

Xanax is addictive, true, but in the sense that if you're taking it as prescribed by the dr., on any regular schedule, you can't stop cold turkey, but must be weaned off it gradually. I did it.

This isn't going to help you but I just wanted you to know that as someone who doesn't suffer from panic attacks, reading this thread is giving me one. Talk about anxiety....

I do not mean this in a snarky way as I genuinely have to wonder if obsessing over this anxiety is just making it that much worse?!

I was more asking in general. Do you think obsessing over a diagnosis (or non-diagnosis) makes the symptoms even worse? I am referring to mental disorders only.

For me, obsessing over other things is what creates the anxiety. Perhaps it can create a chain-reaction but for me, this thread has been very helpful in not feeling completely isolated in my anxiety/panic attacks. If that makes sense. I tend to obsess over other health issues, some existent, some just paranoia, and that's what leads to the anxiety. I do however obsess over the results of my anxiety, fast heart rate, muscle tightening, and that can often make it worse obsessing over those things. But I truly have found the stories and suggestions on this thread comforting and motivating for me to take action on this.

I hope that makes semi-sense. I'm terrible at communicating exactly what this anxiety does to me as it tends to come out of nowhere most of the time and in inconsistent ways. My key goal is getting better. I don't like feeling this way and if I'm obsessed with anything, it's getting better.