UNHAPPY777

Hi
Has anyone here ever been prescribed anxiety meds to cope with their loved ones addiction?

Well back in July 08 I was prescribed anxiety and depression meds. I took them for 2 days and realized they weren't for me. So, this week my BP has been out the roof from stress. My reg doctor wasn't in yesterday and the Dr I had a appt with told me that she was gonna prescribe valuim for stress. My BP was 146/102. I politely said no thanks. So, she looked in the records and said well I see you have been prescribed anxiety meds and I explained how I didn't like them and wanted to just concentrate on my BP. So, in the mix of it all she said well just try a half of dose. So, then she tried to refill the RX and I said no I still have 28/30 pills at home.

Wow is it that easy for someone to get meds. If I hadn't insisted that she NOT write a new RX then I would have a cabinet full of meds. Isn't that just tooooo easy. Well I did take 1/2 dose last night @8 and it is now 1:00pm and I still fill drowsy. The RX was only for .5mg. I have now confirmed what I felt before NO ANXIETY MEDS for me....... Has anyone else ever experienced this?


Thanks

I HOPE THIS POST WAS EASY TO UNDERSTAND/READ!!!

Freedom1990

When a situation is causing so much anxiety that my blood pressure is dangerously high, I am way overdue on re-evaluating what I need to do with my life in order to be healthy. (and I've been there before, believe me)

Taking anxiety meds in that situation is like putting a bandaid on a gaping chest wound, in my opinion.

What is your physical health worth to you? What is your life worth to you?

I value my life today. I take care of my physical health today.

:ghug :ghug

Suspicious

I have been thinking about when to jump in posting on this board and then I found this msg. I was also prescribed anti anxiety meds by my dr but I did request them. This was back in Nov and I was having panic attacks. I thought that I had fallen out of love with my AH (didnt realize the A part at that time) and I was struggling with what to do about our marriage. I took them for about a month or so and in that time I realized the behavior I was seeing was addiction to his pain meds and that what I thought was a breakdown of our marriage was the mental checking out that he was doing. In my search on his addiction I discovered just how addictive the anti anxiety meds could be and stopped taking them.
I am lucky tho with our family dr because I know they wouldnt have pushed the med on me and they would have monitored me well on it. It is one of the reasons AH quit seeing him for his back injury. Our dr is old school wanted AH to depend more on therapy and anti inflamatory meds with just a few narcotics to help on the really bad days. He would choke if he saw the huge bottle AH comes home with from the 'pain management clinic' every month.

winnie12

I've been prescribed meds for panic attacks but never anything like valium. only took them for a little while but none of them had any type of mood altering qualities. i guess i'm lucky because none of my docs have ever wanted to give me anything like that especially since they knew i lived with an addict who would steal them.

UNHAPPY777

Freedom I do agree..........

All of my other problems such as Diabetes and cholesterol is under control. I have lost 65 lbs with just walking. When I told the Dr I was stressed I also said that I can handle that part. Another thing is my reg DR took me off of my water pill for BP and the othe DR said that was a nono. See with my first child I had pregnancy HBP. It went away for a while but, came back. With my second child I had pregnancy diabeties it went away and came back. I think they have been fondeling with my med until they got the correct dosage. I didn't even go there in search of anxiety meds. Just for them to finish with the experiment they started when they gave me the HBP meds. True I am stressed but, more upset that people are given meds without proper test and psychological counseling being done first.

I think that I felt better before taken the 1/2 dose last night. Life is living life....IF THAT MAKES SENSE......So, I have decided to face issues head on not live behind anxiety meds.

jerect

Alanon works much better then meds...

Freedom1990

Can I hear an amen, sister?!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, and on the subject of BP meds, I'm on the lisinopril with the diuretic in it, and my BP is nicely under control these days. Unfortunately, hypertension runs in the family on both sides.

So what are you going to do about facing the issues, Unhappy? If nothing changes, nothing changes, right?

:ghug :ghug

winnie12

What i wonder is why some docs still prescribe valium when there are so many non-addictive meds out there that help with anxiety and stress better - not to mention a lot of foods and even physical therapy. I can see valium for a day or two if someone has some major tragedy happen but dont understand a doc prescribing a months worth. my doc wouldnt even give me a prescription for more than two of sleeping pills when i couldnt sleep for three days because of the stress. she felt i was under too much stress to give me sleeping pills because that's when people commit suicide. the two nights sleep from the pills did a world of good and got me right back on track being able to sleep on my own.

UNHAPPY777

Suspicious and Winnie
I don't think my regular Dr would have tried to prescribe Valium either. He did prescribe the anxiety and depression meds,but I think he did so knowing me. He knows that I don't like to take any meds so he knew that I would only use them as needed.

UNHAPPY777

I agree fixing the problem is much better. Because after you take those meds and the felling wears off the problems are still going to be there...

Lisinipril was the first BP med but, I experienced all of the side effects. The coughing and itching. The coughing triggered my asthma and caused me to have me first attack in over 15years. I take Cozaar and now I think it's hydroclorizide(SP)

Impurrfect

(((Suspicious)))

Welcome to SR!!!

((Unhappy)))

Sadly, it IS that easy, sometimes, to get meds. Stepmom gets 100 pain pills from one dr, each month, 90 from another dr. That doesn't include the sleeping pills, xanax and whatever else she can convince them she needs. Dad calls the one dr. her "pusher". With all this, I still have to hide my seroquel so she won't take them.

In the town I used to live in, there is a dr. who is facing years of prison for doling out tons of opiates and benzos without even checking out the patients. I knew of him, but never went to him (my own dr. gave me whatever I wanted ). This dr. did this for years, and years. He got caught...who knows how many there are who don't get caught? It's pretty scary.

Hugs and prayers!

Amy

UNHAPPY777

Impurrfect

Sometimes I wonder if the doctors are getting kick backs from the drug companies. It's sad that society has to suffer for the old mighty dollar.

Freedom1990

Let's get back on track here.

So what are you going to do about facing the issues, Unhappy? If nothing changes, nothing changes, right?

Impurrfect

You're right, ((DeVon))..sorry for getting off track.

((Unhappy)) - When I get the "urge" to use, it is almost ALWAYS because of something triggering the codie side of me. Now, I'm an RA, and you're not. However, I wasn't always an addict...an abuser, yes, a codie...oh yeah, but not an addict.

I'm saying this because I use this as a red flag. I stop whatever I'm doing and figure out what I need, right then, to get ME back on track. Do I need to rest, eat, get away for a few minute an hour or two? Do I need to get on SR and vent, ask for advice? Do I need chocolate? Do I need to go take a long walk?

It took me a while to put 2 and 2 together, but it's helped me to just say "whoa...what's going on here? What do I need?" It's really helped me.

Hugs and prayers!

Amy

UNHAPPY777

Believe me I need to get to this point. I have worried about others all my life. I was the GO TO GIRL. I never let anything or anyone stress me out when I was younger. Now everything seems to bother me. I need to find an outlet just fo ME

UNHAPPY777

Thanks Anvil those were powerful words...... Day off sounds great but, I have testing coming but, asap I will try this for a day or two

rahsue

I tend to worry about things I can not control or fix. So much so that I have be hospitalized twice for panic attacks. I do have xanax, I was prescribed 20 pills for the month of january and I still have 9 left. With that being said, I take a pill, or sometimes just a half, when I feel the "heart attack symptoms" coming on.
I don't take them when I'm anxious or upset, just when I feel like I'm getting those awful sypmtoms. they will make me drowsy but I'll take that over pain.

jerect

In all honesty, I'm afraid to take any kind of meds.. I have sat through enough NA meetings with my AH to realize that I suffer from the same disease as he does.. the only difference is that I have not picked up the drug yet. I just use food and exercise to escape from myself..

Don't get me wrong, I think meds have their place. My AH is on several anxiety and anti depressents and I think they have helped him a lot but it's the meetings and working the program that have kept him clean.. the same thing goes with me.. I could go to the Doc and get a pill but that would just be putting a band aid on the problem.. looking within and facing demons is very hard and at times very painful and uncomfortable but with the help of alanon I have been able to do just that and my anxiety level has greatly decreased.. when I do have anxiety attacks, I just go back through steps one, two and three and if that doesn't work the I call someone from my group.. For the first time in my life I'm actually having to deal with my problems and myself.. I have a long way to go.. but I also know that I have come a long way from where I started from too.

Godsgirl

This post was kind of coincidental for me...I had my yearly exam Monday with a new doctor and new resident. They asked if I would like a low-dose something for anxiety. Well, since mental illness is rampant in my dad's side of the family i.e. schizophrenia, manic-depression, etc., I said no to Prozac, Zoloft, etc. and asked for Xanax which they refused (because its a classified street drug?). At any rate, my next check is in three months. Maybe I will ask for a mild Valium if there is such a thing. I have not experienced much anxiety since the clean break about 4 weeks ago, just some inability to concentrate and finish tasks....so at any rate, I think my nerves (nervousness) are more of an issue than anxiety.

Impurrfect

(((Godsgirl))) - when I had the inabilty to concentrate and finish tasks, I was diagnosed with depression...this was after I had been through some pretty heavy losses in my life (loss of mom, grandfather and 18-year-old stepsister in 4 years). An anti-depressant and therapy helped tremendously.

I'm not advocating anti-d's, only stating that anxiety meds aren't always the answer. I would recommend meetings or therapy first...I was already seeing a counselor, and it was she who sent me to a psychiatrist who started me on the anti-d. It had gotten to the point where it was about to interfere with my job (as an ICU nurse).

The psychiatrist explained to me, that enough stressors will actually change the chemicals in the brain and this causes the inability to concentrate (this is in layman's terms).

Which brings us back to the original topic. What can WE do to keep from getting all stressed out, over someone else's actions/inactions, bad decisions, etc. In this thread, alone, we've pointed out that not taking care of US, focusing on the A can lead to some serious health issues and yes, mental issues.

We really need to keep the focus on US, and learn to let the A's focus on them. I can assure you, when I was using...I had one thing on my mind...using. I'm embarrassed to admit it, today, but it was what it was.

Hugs and prayers!

Amy