Having problems with anxiety. . .

Oh! I am so sorry you are living this. So, so, sorry. I know you probably don´t know me, but I really wanted to write to you.
Would you mind if I pm you? I don´t want to be intrusive, but I would really like to talk to you.

Lor, I would start with my regular doctor, and move on from there, the older you get the worse it will get. Try to hang in there.

Deb-Thank you!
 
Mariana-Sure, you can PM me! 

Ah, this is not fun.  I find that living in the country and being "energy efficient"...which means having DH stop and pick up milk or coffee creamer I'm becoming a little recluse too.  But, I'm not anxious about going out, I'm just getting flat lazy and complacent about being home.  But, I do find that I've been more depressed this winter with soooo little sunshine.
 
I agree, start with your regular doc.  There are wonderful SSRI's to help deal with the depression, which is nothing more than a chemical imbalance in the brain, and terrific anti-anxiety meds.  But, above all, dont' start kicking yourself for feeling what you feel.  Right now this is your "normal" and it's ok to feel whatever you feel.  That doesn't mean you don't want to seek help and meds, but it does mean don't beat yourself up for impacting someone ELSES life.  These are MEDICAL problems and if you had a broken leg and couldn't go out you wouldn't blame yourself, so don't on this either.
 
I'd almost BET that if you started an SSRI for the depression that the anxiety would ease greatly really quickly.  It takes a couple to a few weeks for SSRI's to build up to a theraputic level in your system so don't be impatient with yourself.  This isn't something you can MAKE go away quicker.
 
After I got hurt and had to stop working, I too had "episodes" of depression that I could psych myself out of....but they kept getting longer and harder.  After we went to a station Christmas party and I spent so many hours around the sales types, I started to really MISS my work and got into a MAJOR depression.  I FINALLY asked my pain doc about it and guess what?  Chronic pain is depressing!!!  What I was feeling was totally NORMAL!!  And he was SHOCKED that none of my docs had ever put me on antidepressents.  It wasn't overnite, but within a few weeks, I found myself just happier in general and suddenly realized that I wasn't getting those "down in the dumps" feelings anymore.  Today, by golly, you could take my pain meds, with a fight, but you'd have to pry my happy pills out of my cold dead hands to get them!  I soooo swear by antidepressents.
 
Needing help doesn't make you crazy...and if your Mom is anything like mine she won't understand what you have to be depressed about.  Life can be WONDERFUL, but if the chemicals are whacky, you're gonna be depressed and anxious.  Remember, this is a MEDICAL condition, just like high blood pressure or diabetis.
 
Feel free to PM me anytime......

Thank you Glenda.    If you don't mind me asking, which medication are you on?  You can PM me if you're more comfortable. 
 
Yeah, my mom will think I can just snap out of it like I can control it.  I've been trying to do that for a long while now but I really can't.  This problem wins now and it didn't before. 
 
Thank you all so much for everything.  I'm feeling a little better just being able to discuss this.  I've been feeling so disconnected from everything. 
 
So, this is pretty common huh?? 

Yeah, it's pretty common...and finally more and more folks are admitting that they HAVE a problem, because FINALLY the idea that someone with problems like this is "sick in the head" or mentally ill, is going away.  There are some major, major mental illnesses, that can still be treated with medications, and while I don't know, I would suspect that a LOT of those have to do with chemical imbalances as well.
 
I take 20 mg Celexa 2x a day.  Every medication doesn't work for every person, but the good news is that there are dozens to choose from.  So give the first med a good 4-6 weeks before you decide that it isn't helping, cuz remember, it has to build up to a theraputic level in your system.....but don't be afraid to tell the doc that you think you need to try a different medication.  These days, the only thing that they are likely to have samples of are the NEW drugs, and those are the ones with the higher copays.......so you might be better off to opt for a generic FIRST.  Celexa is old enough that it does have a generic.
 
Thanks for the offer to let me PM.....but I'm not even slightly embarrassed that I need something to help keep my chemicals balanced!  While chronic pain IS depressing, I suspect that I would have benefitted from meds long before I got hurt.  And that's ok.  We all are wired a little differently, and particularly if there is a family pre-disposition, it doesn't take a lot for those brain chems to get off kilter.
 
Please don't let ANYONE try to make you feel like there is "something wrong with you"....this is a MEDICAL problem, that's all. []

Yeah, it is definitely at genetic thing for me.  My aunt had serious mental illness, schziophrenia ( I know that's not how it's spelled, LOL) which she denied having and wouldn't take her medication.  My dad (her brother) has nervious, anxiety type issues as well. 
 
I spoke to my cousin about this (she's the aunt's daughter, so my first cousin and she's on Zoloft for similar problems that I've got! 
 
So, I don't know if it makes me feel better that it's in my family or not??  I feel like I'm going to be stuck with it because it's genetic, ya know. 
 
Willow's take on all this is, do you want to play with this ball with me??  Dogs!!

Please don't let ANYONE try to make you feel like there is "something wrong with you"....this is a MEDICAL problem, that's all.

ORIGINAL: glenmar

Yeah, it's pretty common...and finally more and more folks are admitting that they HAVE a problem, because FINALLY the idea that someone with problems like this is "sick in the head" or mentally ill, is going away.  There are some major, major mental illnesses, that can still be treated with medications, and while I don't know, I would suspect that a LOT of those have to do with chemical imbalances as well.

I take 20 mg Celexa 2x a day.  Every medication doesn't work for every person, but the good news is that there are dozens to choose from.  So give the first med a good 4-6 weeks before you decide that it isn't helping, cuz remember, it has to build up to a theraputic level in your system.....but don't be afraid to tell the doc that you think you need to try a different medication.  These days, the only thing that they are likely to have samples of are the NEW drugs, and those are the ones with the higher copays.......so you might be better off to opt for a generic FIRST.  Celexa is old enough that it does have a generic.

Thanks for the offer to let me PM.....but I'm not even slightly embarrassed that I need something to help keep my chemicals balanced!  While chronic pain IS depressing, I suspect that I would have benefitted from meds long before I got hurt.  And that's ok.  We all are wired a little differently, and particularly if there is a family pre-disposition, it doesn't take a lot for those brain chems to get off kilter.

Please don't let ANYONE try to make you feel like there is "something wrong with you"....this is a MEDICAL problem, that's all. []

Thanks Glenda for sharing and making that statement about letting people make you feel bad it is so true[]

I spoke to my cousin about this (she's the aunt's daughter, so my first cousin and she's on Zoloft for similar problems that I've got!

I have heard that Zoloft works very well for depression but also have known Dr's who have given it to take at bedtime to help aslo with sleep. Just something to think about with the possibility of the groggy feeling.[]

There is ABSOLUTELY a genetic componate to this.  For YEARS we were told our cholestrol was high because we ate wrong.  Not true.
 
And of course Garrett.  I really feel strongly that people NOT allow themselves to feel shamed or embarrased because of something that they CANNOT control.

I always thought that everyone had days where they didn't want to get out of bed.  I didn't realize that not everyone had those days 4-6 times a week!

It wasn't until my mother died unexpectedly that I sought professional help.  I went to see a therapist, who recommended an anti-depressant.  My DH and I did alot of online research - these drugs are very serious stuff!  I read horror stories of people going through major withdrawl type symptoms after missing a dose or trying to get off the drug they were taking.  I'm not good at remembering to take drugs every day so that was a big concern for me.  Another concern was the effect some drugs had on your sex drive.

So, after doing the research we picked Welbutrin (not sure if it's spelled right).  Went to my regular doc and asked for that drug.  She wasn't happy that WE had picked a drug and weanted to talk us into one of the ones that had the serious withdrawl effects.  I finally got the drug I wanted AND I found a new doc.

I started at a high dose, found it made my blood pressure go through the roof, slowly weaned it down to a dose that helped me AND didn't screw up my BP.

DH noticed a change in me within just a few short weeks.  I noticed a change after about two months.

It really helps!

I know my relatives, especially my father, were ashamed.  That's why until recently my dad was a nervous wreck all the time.  He didn't think there was anything wrong with him.  Possibly, some of the way he acted when I was growing up has also caused me some of these problems too.  He didn't treat me all that great and I think that also has caused my brain to go out of wack a bit.  Ugh, this stinks! 

Thank you Lauri, I do have to be careful, I take medication daily for high blood pressure.  That's another wonderful gift my family has given me! 

I would be willing to take medication but I don't want anything addicting or that's going to cause me to be in a daze all day. 

Lori - I think it's a huge step in the right direction just being able to discuss this and ask for help on this board, so give yourself a big pat on the back (and a hug).  I think you've gotten some great advice regarding medication, but I also think that hooking up with a counselor or therapist that you can talk to would help too.  You might not need years of therapy (altho I loved the one I saw so much, I never wanted to stop) but at least to sort through some of the things you're feeling.  I know that it's pretty common these days for Dr.'s just to prescribe a anti-anxiety or anti-depressant, but I think it's beneficial if it's done in conjunction with counseling.  Good luck to you- you've already taken one step in the right direction.
p.s. if you end up with a therapist who isn't helping you (what a waste of time that can be), then look for a different one.