Jaeger

This last year has been one of the hardest years of my life. It has contained many highs but also many lows. I posted last week that my RAH celebrated his one yr sobriety bday. I didn't post that I have been almost no contact with my AS and it hurts. Bad. Most days I tear up multiple times and just overall feel very dark. I've experienced severe anxiety for the first time in my life (and I've been through a lot). I finally went to the doctor when my BP and heart rate was staying very high and some days having problems breathing. They put me through some physical tests, including an EKG but said everything physically looked good. I was given an anti depressant and a beta blocker. It helped tremendously.

Here's the rub....I was talking to a friend at an Al-Anon meeting and mentioned this. She told me that this may be ok but only for very short term. It made me very uncomfortable and I walked away feeling a little ashamed. Judged even. I know in my head she didn't mean for it to come off that way. I don't understand how they consider alcoholism a disease but don't see depression as a problem.

Has anyone had any experience with anything like this?

teatreeoil007

Do you she think she was telling you that being on meds was only okay for a short while; that she was sort of judging you as being weak for needing the meds? Could you give a little more info on that?

So, while I'm on that vein, I'll say it really irks me when people somehow feel "pressured" by others to get off meds....that being on meds is somehow a short-coming or something like that; that "toughing it out" is the higher path. Maybe you feel she is looking down on you and if that's the case I get it. That's why I don't feel I can talk about my own experiences with depression with just anyone.

I never thought I would be so depressed I needed meds. It's rather easy for folks to carelessly give indications that they somehow look down on you. These days, I am much open about it, but try not to be TMI about it. If it's brought up in discussions or someone wants to talk about it, I feel I can freely say what my experience was and most people actually admire you for getting help for yourself. I would much rather see people get help than just tough it out because they don't realize how their depression and anxiety is not just their own disease, but it's a disease that affects everyone in their life. So, in my humble opinion, getting help IS the higher path really. Overcoming it, of course is the goal.

Here's another rub: So MANY, many folks RUSH it ... they rush the process and they don't give it enough time... they sort of rush getting off meds too. It could end up being "short term" for you, but it could very well end up being long term, and that's OK.

Take care.

Ann

I think it is dangerous and unwise for anyone to comment on someone else's medication, when that person has been to a proper doctor and had tests and examinations to see what is right for them. It is simply nobody else's business. My reply would be "I will let my doctor decide what is best for me and my overall health".

That said, by all means stay on the medication as prescribed, but also maybe find ways to calm yourself down. Yoga, walking in nature, listening to classical music or something soothing all help me in the rough days. My son has been missing over 10 years, lost in his addiction somewhere, and I cannot lose my health and my life trying to control his.

What helps me is to pray for my son every morning, then live my day in peace knowing that God can do for him what I cannot.

I will add your son to my prayers. Hope you find your own peace very soon.

Hugs

alterity

I agree with Ann. I am extremely anti-pharmaceuticals, personally, as I have worked in a Regulatory Affairs Dept for a bio-engineering company (FDA drug approval processing). This being said, if anyone talks to me about their prescriptions, I keep my personal opinion to myself. At most, I may say that "I am wary about pharmaceuticals" and may talk about the industry, but I leave it at that.

Hechosedrugs

This is a tough one for me. I had terrible experiences with antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications, but they always worked for me in the beginning. I had a post deleted on a forum once because a pregnant woman who was taking anti-anxiety meds said that her doctor was advising her to stay on them, but she wasn't sure. I had been on that same medicine and miscarried, so I shared my story. I was told that I wasn't a qualified professional and shouldn't be preventing her from getting the help she needed. She had asked for my opinion! And guess what? That medicine, provigil, now has a warning label on it that it can cause miscarriages.

So I won't say too much more here, and I hope I haven't offended anyone so far. But just to play devil's advocate, maybe that woman has had a terrible experience herself, but like me, has learned she has to limit what she says about the drugs.

Hechosedrugs

And please forgive me if my post seemed harsh. I really am glad that you're feeling better. You deserve peace and calm.