The psychiatrist I saw yesterday...

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I have no qualms about taking meds for largely Aspergers-induced anxiety. At all.

Same here, but the side effects were getting too uncomfortable for me. I always felt that SSRIs and SNRIs seem to fix the problem in way where it might sorta help one thing but screw something else up somewhere else. To be honest, it seems like most medications work in that way. They don't really target the actual problem, it seems like they target something else which effects the actual problem, and affects other things too. Seems like the mechanism of anxiety is not completely understood because of how complex the brain is. What bothered me the most were the sexual side effects and the intensity of suicidal thoughts and depression when taking sertraline. My anxiety was only helped a little bit, I still stuttered, I still had sensory issues. Withdraw symptoms from sertraline were quite unpleasant as well. They are intense when you abruptly stop taking it, and when you wane yourself off it it, the symptoms are much lesser, but still unpleasant. I guess this experience has made me afraid of trying new medications, like Cymbalta.

I initially sought treatment for social anxiety, and 7 years later I have not gotten much relief. Taking sertraline has helped me become more social, more use to loud noises, helped me learn how to drive, helped me get a new job, all because it helped me focus and pay attention, but it worked in such a roundabout way that it really messed up my head along the way. I'm hoping CBT will help me for the time being.