LifeChanges

Please give me your personal experiences with any or all of these. Does it means I'm not sober if I take antidepressants? Will the sleeping pills which are non addictive help or hurt with being clean?
I've had the sleep meds for a year or more but never took because I was using alcohol every night to pass out. I have very poor sleep patterns with or without alcohol.

At an aa meeting last Friday, an old timer spoke after the lead and basically said anyone who takes anything for depression or anxiety is wrong. He knew two women who decided to get on antidepressants and they both killed them selves in one month. The girl sitting next to me was itching in her skin. I was surprised at his saying this as I think many of us alcoholics struggle with mental illness, but she was visibly agitated. She got her bearings and stood up, thanked the lead like everyone else but said she was bipolar and if she tried to fight the depression and anxiety she'd be drinking even more. The meeting ended right after. I touched her arm which is not like me. I thanked her for speaking up and said thank you, I really struggle with anxiety and depression. It's crippling. Nature and nurture. Thank you for speaking up. If they don't need it, they don't get it.

I hope to eventually need NOTHING. But I think I drink to self medicate and need some help now and maybe always

Horn95

The "old timer" guy was way out of line. A person who takes medicine for emotional/psychiatric purposes is night and day from a person who is addicted to alcohol. I know a great many bipolar patients, and it is a debilitating disease. Without meds many of those folks would be dead, in jail, or homeless.

I have had to endure anxiety and depression since I was in college. Alcohol only made it worse. I personally do not want to take meds, but I do not blame anyone who decides to, and needs them. My goal is, now that I am on the wagon, to address my anxiety and depression issues, so that I do not take up drinking again.

To reiterate, alcohol only makes the anxiety and depression worse (that's no my sole opinion, but is a well-documented medical fact). Quit as soon as you can.

2ndhandrose

Hi LifeChanges

I have struggled with depression for years. While I was still drinking I wouldn't consider an antidepressant because of the dangers of combining with alcohol. (yes, I get the irony of the danger I was in that drinking alone caused )

I continued to struggle for the first year of sobriety, I was back and forth to the doctor, having countless tests, until my doctor finally convinced me to try an antidepressant, as she suspected my issues were being caused by untreated depression and not, as I suspected, some undiscovered physical ailment.

I have been on an antidepressant for the past year and, for the most part, all of my physical ailments have disappeared. My racing heart, the constant pain in my neck, shoulders and back, my anxiety, have abated.

I don't feel 'high' from my antidepressant but I do feel a sense of calmness and control over my emotions rather than being constantly on the edge of a meltdown. I still feel sad and angry at times but in an appropriate and manageable way.

I feel a mental balance that I have never experienced before. I am very thankful that my doctor persisted in encouraging me to try as I was in a lot of denial about my depression.

My opinion..... shame on those that shame others that need these drugs in order to have some semblance of a life worth living.

DesertDawg

Absolutely agree with Horn95.

My understanding is that people with depression and other mental conditions often have imbalances in their brain chemistry that have nothing to do with (but can be exacerbated by) alcohol intake. I understand that the recovery community generally advises that alcoholics and other addicts are generally supposed to avoid any mind-altering substances in recovery. However, I would absolutely make an exception for medically necessary, prescription psychiatric medication, prescribed by a medical professional for a diagnosed condition.

least

The 'old timer' was wrong and was wrong for saying such a thing.

Anna

I'm not an AA person, but I think AA and your doctor should be completely separate. What your dr prescribes for you is between you and him for your physical and mental health.

I take an antidepressant. I needed to have my depression treated before I was able to stop drinking. I expect to continue taking the antidepressant my dr has prescribed because I refuse to slip back into the dark hole, which I know would be the beginning of a slippery slope.

Forward12

AA has a pretty strong position of being anti-medication which I don't agree with. Many of us battle with mental health issues and medication to help us with that I feel is extremely important.

BrendaChenowyth

It is MY personal belief that if I were to quit alcohol and start using another substance to help me cope, I would not be sober, I would still be dependent on a chemical substance.

Marissa41

I agree he was very wrong. I was diagnosed last April with mild depression by a therapist. I should be on an antidepressant but haven't taken them because I was drinking and also didn't want to mix. I do believe I will give them a try again soon. I took them years ago and found one with very few if any side effects.
If we need them we need them. It's that simple.

thomas11

I'll give you my 2 cents. Prescription sleep medication was very hard to get off of. The withdrawals are pretty bad, I would avoid if possible. Anti anxiety meds--same thing, they can be addicting if taken long term and folks have trouble getting off of them. The anti depressant I take changed my life for the better. I will take it until I can no longer swallow.

I'm anti meds, but if someone is accepting that they will needs these meds for life, I can't necessarily argue with that. I would not drink on the cocktail of meds.

Doug39

I am 53 years old. I have had anxiety and depression issues for as long as I can remember. At age 25 I started drinking heavily and it helped my anxiety and depression for several years. About 15 years ago alcohol turned against me but I still abused it daily.

I was always against depression medications but in 2013 I quit drinking for 4 months and tried Zoloft. I really didn't give it a chance (partly because I wanted to go back to the booze).

This past October my anxiety and depression was so bad I could no long function. I quit drinking 71 days ago and started medications for anxiety and depression 68 days ago.

I am feeling better - today is a bad day and I am having a bit of a setback but I always feel down in January anyway - I know I need these meds to function and it is nobody else's business what I do.

Doug39

Am I reading this wrong? You are anti-meds but on meds??

Doug39

If it is prescribed by a doctor and taken per the doctor's direction you are still considered sober in my book.

shortstop81

That old-timer was beyond wrong. Personal opinions are fine, but in that setting it could be potentially dangerous to say something like that to people who are struggling.

As for me - I take antidepressants (Cipralex), Campral for alcohol cravings, and Trazodone to help me sleep. The prideful side of me isn't pleased that I'm on 'all' these meds, but for the moment I need them to stabilize myself in early recovery. The Trazodone is non-habit forming and does not make me feel high or altered in any way.

I don't take my meds to escape from reality. They normalize my brain functions and allow me to get my life back together. In time I will likely taper off and not need them anymore, but I certainly don't believe they're currently compromising my sobriety in any way. And I don't need someone ELSE to make that judgement on me.

Andante

Well, on one end you have folks like your old-timer, who insist (often while puffing on a cigarette and sipping from a cup of coffee) that taking any medication that could be construed as “mind-altering” means you’re not sober, and any anxiety, depression, or insomnia you may experience is because you’re not “working your program” hard enough.

At the other end are those who believe that since anxiety, depression, and insomnia are all a matter of brain chemistry, then all you have to do is to treat the symptoms with the right cocktail of medications. No effort or action is required of the sufferer except to take the pills.

Personally, I have used medication for anxiety, depression, and insomnia all three, but I don’t rely on them exclusively. I believe they have assisted my recovery from alcoholism rather than hindering it. I see the difference between using alcohol and using medication as a matter of intent. I use the medications to help establish a baseline functionality so that I am able to do meaningful work on my recovery, not to escape reality or to get high.

It's perhaps worth mentioning that AA itself does not have an "anti-medication stance," although some members do. Ask the old timer to show you in the Big Book where it says not to take medications.

MLD51

The thing about AA is that all sorts of people with all sorts of opinions show up there. Anyone who puts his or her opinion about these things out there as if it were some sort of "rule" is wrong to do that. If you need medications for depression and anxiety, then you need them, period. That is a discussion for you and your doctor or therapist to have, not some guy from AA who is an old-time hardliner. I know for me, I really needed those anti-anxiety meds in early sobriety. I was in outpatient treatment, and they knew I was on them, and not once did they say I was not sober or clean because of them. There were people in my treatment who were on a wide variety of meds for depression, anxiety, and other mental illnesses. I was lucky enough that I was able to taper off and I no longer need them, but you should never be made to feel bad for needing them.

LifeChanges

Yes, trazodone is what my dr has given me, non addictive. When I said I haven used it I meant consistently. When I have used it very irregularly it does not far me any type but f high or sense of well being.

Bunny211

I see it both ways. I think that those with genuine mental illness and depression ought to have medication to alleviate symptoms. At the same time, I have seen many people get super drugged up on cocktails of anti-depressants and anti-anxiety meds, sleeping pills etc. Doctors do NOT know what to do with alcoholics and addicts. They mean well, but their solution is to throw a bunch of pills at you. I know a lot of people who were doing well in recovery, went down the pharma route, and are now just shells of people. Many relapse. Many stay sober but function on a zombie like level. At the same time, I know people who clearly had mental illness, got pharma help, and have done well. There is also a huge difference between a basic anti - depressant and a massive cocktail of anti psychotics, mood stabilizers and anti anxiety meds.

I have always had anxiety and depression. I went to a psych after getting sober (I was off all my medications at that time) and within 45 minutes she had diagnosed me with bipolar and prescribed 3 medications. The medications did not work for me...my anxiety was still there, only now I Was having suicidal thoughts and was so foggy headed I couldn't remember which street I took to get to the grocery store. I am not bipolar and I think that because I am an alcoholic and many alkies ARE bipolar, she lumped me in that group and threw a bunch of medication at me. I came off it all and am not going to go the pharma route without careful contemplation and counsel...and only if circumstances warrant. Now I do acupuncture and exercise and Vitamin B-12 for my anxiety. That helps me.

I do not hold that you are not sober if you are on psych meds. I do see that a lot of old timers have watched people with bright futures get sober and then either relapse after being given a cocktail of psych meds, or become a total zombie on psych meds. AA'ers are not doctors. What you do is between you and your medical care team. But I would be very wary and get multiple opinions before you take any medication. I would also advise taking one medication to start....don't start adding in numerous medications.

Also - The Big book states:

“We are convinced that a spiritual mode of living is a most powerful health restorative. … But this does not mean that we disregard human health measures. … though God has wrought miracles among us, we should never belittle a good doctor or psychiatrist. Their services are indispensable in treating a newcomer and in following his case afterward.” [Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, p. 133]

biminiblue

So...AA actually addresses this in their official pamphlet here:

http://www.aa.org/assets/en_US/p-11_...ersMedDrug.pdf

Like MLD says, opinions are a dime a dozen at AA - - - and everywhere else. That guy was out of line.

I learned really quickly NOT to share about certain topics in AA meetings. It's no one's business what prescribed drugs I take or don't take.

Bunny211

I agree with you. I will add that a lot of old timers do not consider anything other than the big book, the "true" AA as everything else came after and was added on. I've pointed out that pamphlet before only to have people say..."I don't go by pamphlets I go by the original formula since 1935...that's Alcoholics Anonymous and everything else has been added in to pander to the public."