Medicine for Anxiety

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Maybe while I’m in the hospital, I can ask for anxiety medication. I been in the hospital for over a week, I have not had my daily anxiety, I only had anxiety twice, once I had a little meltdown & some anxiety, that was because of my surgery. What medicine do people take for anxiety?

Hi there Kitty. Sorry to hear you're going to be in hospital.

Of course I am coming at this from a position of not knowing your situation (Sorry, I only come back here occasionally these days). I always feel like I need to be clear about anxiety in and of itself simply being a normal emotion rather than anything requiring medical intervention. However, we are prone to more medical anxiety disorders and extremes, so assuming that is the kind of thing you're talking about, I found the beta blocker Propranolol to be quite helpful when I was having some difficulty.

It is non-addictive and has little in the way of side-effects, toxicity is low so overdose is not a big concern - it's pretty perfect as far as my situation was concerned.

It works by physiologically slowing the heart rate down which interrupts the mental-physiological feedback loop that can define a nasty case of anxiety. Quite clever really.

I'm not a doctor so speak to someone who knows more though.

Good luck

Si

I take Klonopin as needed for severe anxiety and panic attacks.

If you are in a hospital they commonly give out Ativan/Lorazepam for anxiety. Should be easy enough to get.

Doctors prescribe a variety of medications for anxiety, depending on the person. The might give you something like a long-acting benzodiazepine or beta-blocker to help control anxiety or panic attacks. If you have an anxiety disorder, they may give you an SSRI, which can also help with anxiety. I hope your anxiety goes away soon !

I take sertraline (100mg a day) for anxiety and depression. I find that it really takes the edge off of difficult emotions. Anxiety-wise, I've noticed a major improvement in social anxiety specifically. However, what works for me won't work for everyone. That's why it's important for people to work with a doctor to figure out what medication/dose might be helpful for them, and to adjust these as necessary.

I think a lot of people underestimate how helpful non-medication measures can be though. In my case, I've found exercise and yoga/meditation to be really helpful. Exercise helps me to feel less stressed, while meditation/yoga has helped me to better manage racing thoughts.

I hope this helps! Best of luck to you.

I have tried multiple medications for anxiety, mostly benzodiazepines.

Klonopin was ineffective for me. Ativan caused me to forget to breathe. How do you forget to breathe? I don't know, but my chest hurt and then I would realize that I hadn't taken a breath in quite some time. Xanax works the best out of all of them for me, though it doesn't completely eliminate my anxiety. It just brings it down to a dull roar.

They have side effects, of course. I feel like I'm thinking through a fog most of the time. My memory has gotten worse. I get really clumsy and uncoordinated (worse than I normally am). You can't suddenly stop... you have to wean yourself off or it'll mess you up bad. I don't like it but it beats the alternative, which was nearly constant panic attacks.

Whatever you get, I hope it works well for you and that when you're ready to leave the hospital you feel good.

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CBD oil with 500 mil of fish oil
and I carry around my lavender sachet

I don't think there's anything for anxiety that's not addictive or have tons of side effects, like weight gain and diabetes. It might be the best to avoid taking anything other than for acute anxiety. I took low dose lorazepam for many years, then cut it cold turkey. It was horrible and from what I learned my withdrawals were actually not too bad. It took me ages to completely get over it, and I'm afraid it has permanently affected my memory. I don't feel as smart as before. All the anti-depressants I tried had awful side effect, too. The only thing that did help me was a group therapy., I learned a lot about how to let go and accept things. Being together with other sufferers and hear their stories helped, too. Knowing how common it is and you're not alone made me feel it's OK.

If you really want something beta-blockers can be very effective. I took a small dose a couple times before things like presentations, and felt cool and calm. They can cause insomnia, though. If you like supplements, you can try passion flower. It's pretty mellow and relaxing, and not addictive as far as I know.

The good news is anxiety lessen as you get older and more experienced in life. People who have lost several loved ones, gone through divorce, major illness, job loss...etc. are more ready for what life throws at them. They know they can handle them.

I agree, lorazepam made me dumber than a box of rocks and I think my memory is permanently the worse for it. I switched for just that reason, though Xanax still messes with me to a lesser extent. If my anxiety wasn't so profound and so constant it wouldn't be worth the cost to my mental acuity.

If medicinal marijuana / CBD oil was legal here I would be all over it.

I have been on Prozac since the beginning of this year and am tired of the side effects!

Kratom. It doesn't need a prescription. The mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine in it work both analgesic (pain relief) and anxiolytic (anxiety relief). It works very well for me. Plus it is pretty cheap. You just need to use it responsibly.