Spacecat

Hello board,
My name is Simon & I am a 39 year old Christian male, & I've been told by some of my fellow Christian brothers & sisters that I have a very negative outlook on life at times....
My psychiatrist diagnosed me as suffering from mild paranoid psychosis & depression, but I believe he has misdiagnosed me...I believe I suffer from acute anxiety.....
I have been taking 50 mgs of Zoloft for depression for over 5 years & 400 mgs of an anti-psychotic called Solian for about the same period of time...
I recently began having severe panic attacks during the last few days & have become very sick, mentally...
I was under the impression that Zoloft was supposed to prevent panic attacks & some of the adverse side-effects I have been experiencing while taking Zoloft, have been weight gain, insomnia, an almost non-existent sex drive & most importantly I recently discovered I have been suffering from mania or hypo-mania which is listed as a side-effect which signals an almost allergic reaction to the drug...
I'm going to see my psychiatrist today & I'm going to ask him if Effexor could be a good alternative to Zoloft....can anyone tell me a long-term drug treatment that might work or would work for someone who has adverse sid-effects from Zoloft?
I thank everyone of you for simply being here for me or there..& I am seeking guidance from God as to what will best work for me...

Yours Sincerely,

Simon

margo

Hi Simon - we can't really advise you on what drugs might be best for you, but we can certainly support you in this difficult time and let you know that you are not alone. You are doing the right thing by seeing your psychiatrist in follow-up and hopefully s/he can get you onto a medication that will be more beneficial for you. Lots of our members have been/are on Zoloft, Effexor, and many others and may be able to share their personal experiences on the use of these drugs. I also suffer from anxiety attacks and I know it can really be hell. You can talk to us here and even if we don't have all the answers, we do understand what you're going through and that helps a whole lot (in my opinion!).

Hugs!

Spacecat

I really appreciate your advice, Margo....it's only 5 hours until my appointment with my psychiatrist & I thank you, Margo for your kind words of support....& for everyone on this forum....

Yours Sincerely,

Simon

ccgirl

I can only speak from my experience, but when I'm depressed, I'm very negative.

Spacecat

Thanks for your feedback, ccgirl....it is much appreciated....now I know that my sometimes negative outlook is caused by my anxiety disorder....

Yours Sincerely,

Simon

best

Hello Simon
Just sharing my opinion here. I think you are taking some good steps and thinking things through... Good job.

I can't speak for you I can only speak for myself.
I find that when I harbor a negative outlook, I can run into an anxiety kind of feeling. What came first? The chicken or the egg?
What I do and tell others may be a good thing to try...
I look over what could be driving my emotions or feelings.
A faith issue?
A moral issue?
An imbalance of some sort?

I find the areas I can control and change.
I give over the areas I can't control or change to God.

Seems you are doing things right. Talking things over with your Dr will help figure out if there is an imbalance that the proper Rx could help with.
Weight gain and diet can set me off on an emotional level from time to time as well. Exercise may be another area to look into.

cinderellawkids

ALl meds effect everyone differently.
When I was on zoloft they had me up to 100 mg. It helped for anxiety but I was blah and more depressed than ever.
When they remooved me from that they put me on Lexapro 10 mg. That was great for a while until suddennly life became overwhelming again and they increased the dosage and recommended returning to counseling to practice breathing techniques. Just explain to your doctor how you feel and they will make appropriate recommendations.

What ever you do, dont go off something cold turkey. When I did I started having visions of driving off a cliff and ive never been suicidal

margo

Hi Simon - how'd it go yesterday?

Spacecat

Hi board,
it's Simon again, I would like to firstly thank everyone for their kind words of advice & ask that you would pray for me over Easter for it will be a difficult time for me....I have consulted my psychiatrist & he said that Effexor would be a good alternative to Zoloft, although he made me aware that it would be difficult to withdraw from if I ever had to cease the medication for any reason....
It will be a hard time over the next week as I have to go off Zoloft for 48 hrs cold turkey, after a gradual reduction of Zoloft for 3-4 days, but this is where I have to trust that my faith in God will get me through this....
I am not totally alone in my endeavour to start taking the right med for my condition as he gave me a small dosage of Valium to get me through the transition phase & I have my family here at Sober & Recovery for support as well as my friend support group, in the wider Church...
Unfortunately, my flesh & blood family are so afflicted with mental illness themselves, that they can barely help themselves let alone, me, as I am the only member of my family that believes in God....or have any faith in a higher power outside themselves...
I really appreciate your kind words, ccgirl, Margo, Best & Cinderallawkids, & thankyou for giving me insight into my questions about negativity & depression.....

Yours Sincerely,

Simon

best

Simon

I know what it is like being the only believer in the house. Still for me and my house we shall serve the Lord.

Prayers go with you my brother.

Spacecat

I greatly appreciate your kind words of encouragement & your prayers, best...
Thankyou,

I will continue to dwell on the good things of God & know that Jesus is carrying me through this difficult time....

God bless you,

Simon

margo

(((((Simon))))) It sounds like you have a really good doctor who is sympathetic to your needs and fears. I really hope the new medication works out well for you. I will pray for you, Simon, that you may be restored to health. Easter is a time of new beginnings - may it be for you also.

Spacecat

Thankyou, Margo....it is so encouraging to hear from you....This board or forum is my extended family & with my faith in God & the love & support I receive from everyone here, I'm becoming more & more aware that there is
a light at the end of the tunnel for me.....I am so grateful to everyone who has supported me by their kind words, thoughts & prayers & I feel more secure knowing that I have everyone on this forum, as well as the Great Shepherd, Jesus, to encourage me on as I prepare to go through the gates of hell....
I'm reminded of the Footprints poster at this time, as it's message is that sometimes God will carry us, when we are to weak to walk with him....
Another thing that I realised that everyone here on this forum is united, as we all share the same suffering & even though we all come from different backgrounds, both spiritually & physically, we all share a common illness....

God bless,

Yours Sincerely,

Simon


Yeah, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, thou art with me,

thy rod & thy staff, they comfort me....

margo

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed
he was walking along the beach with the Lord.

Across the sky flashed scenes from his life.
For each scene he noticed two sets of
footprints in the sand: one belonging
to him, and the other to the Lord.

When the last scene of his life flashed before him,
he looked back at the footprints in the sand.

He noticed that many times along the path of
his life there was only one set of footprints.

He also noticed that it happened at the very
lowest and saddest times in his life.

This really bothered him and he
questioned the Lord about it:

"Lord, you said that once I decided to follow
you, you'd walk with me all the way.
But I have noticed that during the most
troublesome times in my life,
there is only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why when
I needed you most you would leave me."

The Lord replied:

"My son, my precious child,
I love you and I would never leave you.
During your times of trial and suffering,
when you see only one set of footprints,
it was then that I carried you."

written by Mary Stevenson

Spacecat

Thanks, Margo,
that is beautiful,

Yours Sincerely,

Simon


The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want,
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures,
He leadeth me beside the still waters,
He restoreth my soul,

(Excerpt from Psalm 23)

screen_name

>My psychiatrist diagnosed me as suffering from mild paranoid psychosis & depression, but I believe he has misdiagnosed me...I believe I suffer from acute anxiety.....<

I'm hesitant to speak to a diagnosis of "mild paranoid psychosis." Totally out of my realm of experience.

What I can say is that I noticed something very interesting: anxiety often gets initially diagnosed as depression. Why? Because depression is what the patient "presents" with when he finally gets to the point where he feels he has to see a doctor about his problem.

Thing is, though, I think depression in some caes is just what happens when a person crashes from anxiety. Anxiety can wear you out, physically and mentally, and what you end up with is depression.

But if you try to treat an axiety disorder like depression, some weird things can happen. In my case, for example, I was given Wellbutrin, which you shouldn't give people with anxiety because it makes them agitated. And I mean agitated. I took the stuff for three days and thought I was going to explode.

Which is not really the doctor's fault. They go mostly by what you tell them and if you tell them you're depressed, which you are at that point, then they're going to go that route.

This is a very subtle thing. Everyone I knew, including my wife, was convinced I was suffering from depression. For some reason, I thought otherwise. It wasn't until I understood depressive symptoms as just a crash from anxiety, and was able to express the symptoms of anxiety clearly to my doctor, that a proper mode of treatment was reached.

You really have to pay close attention, which is, admittedly, quite difficult in these situations. But no one else is in your head but you. If nothing else, back up and think about things leading up your diagnosis that maybe you didn't tell your doctor. Go through it step by step. Granted, these aren't fun feelings to have to re-experience, but it may make a big difference.

Spacecat

Thanks for that wise advice, Screen Name,

I am now aware that there were many things I failed to tell my psychiatrist when I first got sick & I believe that is why I was wrongly diagnosed.....
Doctors can only diagnose from what information we give them....
Good one, Screen Name,
Thanks,

Yours Sincerely,

Simon

screen_name

You're quite welcome. Perhaps ironically, you guys just helped me figure out my career path. I had already decided to change careers and go to nursing school, but I didn't really have any specialty in mind: I would love to be a psych nurse.

Not saying you people belong on a psych ward (haha), just that all this conversation has helped clarify who I really want to be involved in helping.

Spacecat

Great profession, Screen Name,
I always wanted to become a male nurse.....
Nursing is such an honourable career....

All I can say is, go for it....pursue your dreams


Yours Sincerely,

Simon

Codieneaddict

Yes, me too. Depression is a bummer!