Anxiety

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Bonogirl777

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So I thought I'd just come here and kinda lay this all out here because I just kinda need some support.

In early December, I was put on birth control for my severe menstrual cramping and also for my acne. I stopped taking it about 2 weeks ago. Not only did it not help the cramping (I had a really bad 2 day episode over vacation, almost had to go to the hospital), but it gave me horrible side effects. Anxiousness, depression, dizziness, nausea, mood swings, just feeling very, very emotional, etc. So since I've stopped taking it, the side effects have stayed the same if not gotten worse. I still feel extremely anxious sometimes, causing me to miss a lot of school and music rehearsals. The lightheadedness doesn't make it any better either. I still have days where I feel out of control and just plain depressed. I've had to leave school multiple times in the past 2 weeks. I do have stress, but before this, it's never ever been this bad. I've been seeing a counselor since about mid-November. You'd think it would get better. I really don't want to use medications to help this but it's difficult.
 
I'm so sorry you're going through this.

What does your doctor say about the lingering side effects? I'd first want to know if it's "normal" for extreme side effects to last that long afterward?

And while I understand not wanting to resort to medication right away to try and help, please don't forget that for all the talk about people being overmedicated and relying on meds unnecessarily, it does help many, many people and allows them to function.

Many people are also able to find some relief from anxiety and the like with exercise and diet changes - mediation, yoga, cutting out whatever dietary thing might be making things worse. But just remember that for some people, lifestyle changes will only go so far.

Hang in there. You're not alone in going through some of these things, and talking about it with friends can help. :hug:
 
:hug: I can't offer any more than cori just said, but just a hug. And some medications side-effects do take a while to go, so definitely check with your doctor about that.
 
I'll admit that I wondered from your messages what was going on. I had terrible mood swings while on BC but awful PMS without them. Was it a low dose BC? I know some pills like Yazz are supposed to help with that. And it possible that the side effects are lingering coupled by seasonal depression. You, like me, live in NE and this time of the year is the major suck for us up here.

And Cori is right, I know that medication seems the last resort, but some people use it for a time and are able to weened from it. I'd have a very honest talk with your counselor and it might time to seek a different voice. Medication can be avoided with behavior modification like meditation and sensory therapy. That's what my husband and it took some time - but it worked and he can use those skills now.

But I am glad you have come here for support. Are you able to talk to your parents about what's going on? You can PM here or FB if you need a little more support.
 
I'm so sorry you're going through this.

What does your doctor say about the lingering side effects? I'd first want to know if it's "normal" for extreme side effects to last that long afterward?

And while I understand not wanting to resort to medication right away to try and help, please don't forget that for all the talk about people being overmedicated and relying on meds unnecessarily, it does help many, many people and allows them to function.

Many people are also able to find some relief from anxiety and the like with exercise and diet changes - mediation, yoga, cutting out whatever dietary thing might be making things worse. But just remember that for some people, lifestyle changes will only go so far.

Hang in there. You're not alone in going through some of these things, and talking about it with friends can help. :hug:

I went to the doctor the other day and she said that it's most likely not the pill, but supposes there is always a possibility it could be. Seeing as I only took it for a month and I've been off it for 2 weeks now, you'd think it'd be out of my system. But I've never had anxiety or depression like this until I started taking it. This makes me wonder if it's the pill's side-effects or a coincidence that this anxiety was triggered at the same time I started taking it and I have some sort of disorder. As far as medication, I suppose I will look into it if I get to a point where I can't function.
Thanks so much. :hug:

:hug: I can't offer any more than cori just said, but just a hug. And some medications side-effects do take a while to go, so definitely check with your doctor about that.

Thanks Comet. :hug: Your hug is appreciated. :)

I'll admit that I wondered from your messages what was going on. I had terrible mood swings while on BC but awful PMS without them. Was it a low dose BC? I know some pills like Yazz are supposed to help with that. And it possible that the side effects are lingering coupled by seasonal depression. You, like me, live in NE and this time of the year is the major suck for us up here.

And Cori is right, I know that medication seems the last resort, but some people use it for a time and are able to weened from it. I'd have a very honest talk with your counselor and it might time to seek a different voice. Medication can be avoided with behavior modification like meditation and sensory therapy. That's what my husband and it took some time - but it worked and he can use those skills now.

But I am glad you have come here for support. Are you able to talk to your parents about what's going on? You can PM here or FB if you need a little more support.

I was on Tri-Sprintec. I got to the the "placebo" pills and stopped because of the side effects of the other ones. And you're right, seasonal depression could be a part of it, although I've never experienced it before. My mom's side of the family does have a history of anxiety and depression though, so I could be more prone to stuff like this.

My parents are well aware of what's going on and I'm able to talk to them, yes. My mom is very understanding since she suffers the effects of anxiety as well. I have a counselor's appointment on Monday and I'm going to definitely talk about some of this recent stuff.

Thanks guys. It really does help. :hug:
 
Liz, I'm sorry to learn that you are having such problems. Everyone has offered good advice--it may take a new med to help, maybe even a low-dosage anti-depressant. Sending you many hugs and good vibes. :hug:
 
:hug: Liz. I thought about your mom when reading your post, glad she is supportive to you. Hope she is doing well. You are lucky to have open communication with family and friends. Do speak with your counselor more about this. I understand what you are experiencing. I too suffered very painful periods in my younger years & was prescribed BC that only caused more problems. I too quit taking it. Years later I was put on anti depressant for depression and anxiety which has really helped me a lot. I don't like being all over the place emotionally and feeling super anxious all the time. Having a good medical doctor monitoring your health and seeing a counselor should help. It could be long term. Anti depressants can take several weeks to work. Be patient with the whole process and be good to yourself. You aren't the only one to experience this and you will get thru it. Use your support systems. Don't forget to check in with us since many of us know what you are going through.

:hug:
 
Hugs from me as well! :hug::hug::hug:

You know we are here for you!

Definitely. :grouphug:

:hug: Liz. I thought about your mom when reading your post, glad she is supportive to you. Hope she is doing well. You are lucky to have open communication with family and friends. Do speak with your counselor more about this. I understand what you are experiencing. I too suffered very painful periods in my younger years & was prescribed BC that only caused more problems. I too quit taking it. Years later I was put on anti depressant for depression and anxiety which has really helped me a lot. I don't like being all over the place emotionally and feeling super anxious all the time. Having a good medical doctor monitoring your health and seeing a counselor should help. It could be long term. Anti depressants can take several weeks to work. Be patient with the whole process and be good to yourself. You aren't the only one to experience this and you will get thru it. Use your support systems. Don't forget to check in with us since many of us know what you are going through.

:hug:

Oh my gosh Carek, this means so much to me. :hug: When I read this post, I felt better because your experience is so much similar to my experience. I'm absolutely going to talk to my counselor about it tomorrow and see what she thinks about it, and what my options are. It's so uncomfortable to be all over the place emotionally and to just all of the sudden not feel like yourself. I hate it.
I know that I can come here and talk you guys, though. :heart: :hug:
 
Can't comment on the pills themselves but I fully echo everyone's sentiments here about checking with the doctor and all that sort of thing, they'll be able to help ease your fears a lot more easily, I think.

Also with the others in hoping you get to feeling better as soon as possible. I can't imagine how scary this must be, but your family's got your back, it seems, and you know we've all got you here, too, so keep hold of that thought :) :hug:.
 
I went to my counselor yesterday and I've now moved from mild depression to moderate depression (I had scored a 9 before, now it's a 12). I answered "more than half of the time" to sleeping too much/too little, overeating/not eating much, irritability, sense of feeling down, etc. She gave me a phrase called, "act as if". Act as if you're going to pull through and that you're going to make it. It's sort of like pretending and it will eventually trick your brain into automatically thinking more positively.

Today was extremely difficult. Found out I had a mid-term for AP Government that I had no idea about because we had a snow day on Thursday and I had a doc's appointment on Friday. Completely slipped my mind. (It did make me feel better that a lot of people didn't study or completely forgot like I did. :p ) But by the end of the day, I just had enough and felt extremely anxious and just...down. So I went to the nurses' office to kinda chill out for a bit and it sorta helped. And jazz band was after school so that made me feel better for a while. But then the enormous weight found my shoulders again and I was back to feeling overwhelmed. It's just so difficult.
 
I don't have depression, and I have never been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, but I did have some pretty severe anxiety issues back in year 8/year 9. Every thought that popped into my head at night I had to write down. "Check what time the sun rose" and shit like that. I wasn't getting to sleep until 3 or 4 in the morning, and I'd wake up with my arms covered in pen. I got over it, completely, with help of the school's counsellor, but I still get pretty anxious about stuff from time to time. What I've found has helped immeasurably is what you mentioned above - positive thinking. The mind is extremely powerful. I find that forcing myself to think positively, and telling myself that you can't control the uncontrollables, helps a lot. :)
 
I'm having a hard time for these past two days. It's hard to get out of bed. I feel overwhelmed a lot. Sometimes I feel ok, the next, I just want to curl up in bed and get away from the world. I have high highs and low lows. I feel like all of my energy has been sucked out of me and I'm just tired all the time. We called my counselor and she said that I could see a psychiatrist. But none of them are really accepting patients for a month, and some don't accept adolescents. So I went to my family doctor today and he prescribed me an anti-depressant. I'm a little hesitant to start taking it even though he said it's not that addictive. It's a really low dosage but still.
 
Oh, I'm so sorry. :(

I can't speak to the drugs being addictive, but based on friends' experiences, I know that it can often take some trial and error - some people have to try different drugs, different doses, or even a combination of drugs to find what works for them.

But I would give it a shot. If it doesn't feel like it's working after however long your doctor said to monitor it, let him know and go from there.
 
I'm on Tri-Sprintec too. It can mess you up if you're off and on. Maybe a different brand would be better. I've been on lots of different kinds of medicine for my anxiety and I have it pretty damn bad. Honestly, try homeopathic. It works. Unfortunately, I had to switch to regular shit because eventually it wasn't helping. I have two different pills plus this spray shit. I usually throw up so I pretty much don't have a choice.

Like Carek said, it's great you have that support. Without it anxiety and depression usually win or get worse.

If you have any questions about it or you just want to talk you got my number fool. I know how shitty it can be.

:hug:
 
PS Don't do Lexapro! My dad was being a jackass and wouldn't send me my shit to school and I went through really bad withdrawal symptoms. I couldn't eat for like four days without throwing it up. Sorry for the details. :cute: Just trying to be informative.
 
I'm having a hard time for these past two days. It's hard to get out of bed. I feel overwhelmed a lot. Sometimes I feel ok, the next, I just want to curl up in bed and get away from the world. I have high highs and low lows. I feel like all of my energy has been sucked out of me and I'm just tired all the time. We called my counselor and she said that I could see a psychiatrist. But none of them are really accepting patients for a month, and some don't accept adolescents. So I went to my family doctor today and he prescribed me an anti-depressant. I'm a little hesitant to start taking it even though he said it's not that addictive. It's a really low dosage but still.


I am sorry to hear of this too. Anxiety can be overwelming. I suffer from PD (Panic Disorder) and it is biological. My brain isn't able to produce enough of certain chemicals, so I have to take medication to help correct it.
 
I'm on Tri-Sprintec too. It can mess you up if you're off and on. Maybe a different brand would be better. I've been on lots of different kinds of medicine for my anxiety and I have it pretty damn bad. Honestly, try homeopathic. It works. Unfortunately, I had to switch to regular shit because eventually it wasn't helping. I have two different pills plus this spray shit. I usually throw up so I pretty much don't have a choice.

Like Carek said, it's great you have that support. Without it anxiety and depression usually win or get worse.

If you have any questions about it or you just want to talk you got my number fool. I know how shitty it can be.

:hug:

Ugh, thanks so much. :heart:
Maybe I'll send a text your way. :)
That sucks about your anxiety. I think we talked a bit about it the last time I saw you.

PS Don't do Lexapro! My dad was being a jackass and wouldn't send me my shit to school and I went through really bad withdrawal symptoms. I couldn't eat for like four days without throwing it up. Sorry for the details. :cute: Just trying to be informative.

Don't worry, I'm not. I'm on Zoloft right now.
And that blows, man!
 
Anyways, I suppose I'll give an update of how I'm doing. I've been on Zoloft for two weeks now. I felt a lot better within the first few days of taking it, actually. But I sort of feel myself slowly becoming more tired and slightly less interested in things. It's much better than before, but still noticeable. So I talked to my counselor and she said that if I have potential to feel even a bit better, maybe the right dosage would be 50 mg. So I started that two days ago and didn't feel quite that instant feeling of relief. We'll see where it takes me. This shit is certainly is a battle but I'm f*cking willing to fight it.
 
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