Tell me about Xanax

[teenagebambam]

Some background - I have had panic attacks in the past, but haven't had one for about five years.

Since New Year's, have been having....not really panic ATTACKS, more like GAD - I seem to have enough skill at getting my breathing under conbtrol to stave off the actual attack. But I don't like feeling like I'm on the verge of attack ALL THE TIME.

I have been in a new town for two years, but have only had insurance for two months, so I have an appointment with a new physician in a month and a half. But today I went to a clinic just to make sure my breathing issues (which I'm assuming ARE anxiety related) weren't something real.

He concurred that it was anxiety related, and prescribed me Xanax, .25 mg, to be taken 1 to 3 times a day for three months. He then wanted me to taper off Xanax and start Zoloft, but I HAVE taken Zoloft before and hate it and won't touch it.

So, what do I need to know about Xanax? I've heard all the horror stories of addiction and withdrawal, which makes me nervous. I'm not debilitated by my anxiety and am wondering if I should just go on about my business. Or maybe fill the scrip and save it for plane rides or REALLY bad days? What does it do to you? How's it make you feel? Will I have to skip cocktail hour? Any info appreciated!

[davidthegnome]

1. I've been on xanax for almost a year now

Before that I was on ativan. For me, well, it calms me down, used to be if I felt a panic attack coming on I could take a xanax to stop it. The thing is, I've been taking four .25 pills every day as prescribed. Some times I think it makes me feel emotionally dead, kind of like a zombie - not so bad as zoloft (though I'm on that too, 150 MG) but still not decent. I think it also makes me pretty tired.

I've read the horror stories about addiction and withdrawal and such - but I'm hoping that because I'm on a light dose, it won't hit me as hard as it has others. I've weaned down before and had to get right back on it. That was hard - but not like the stories I've read.

I can't tell you how it will make you feel, just how it makes me feel. I think it's a little different for everyone. For me, it keeps me relatively calm, but I also feel that it kills a great deal of my emotions. It's hard to say some times, whether it's really worth it.

It's up to you. Weigh the pros and cons, just be careful. Good luck.

[EFerrari]

2. Some people can't taper off of Xanax. That can result in nerve damage.

Some people need to go off of it and onto something like phenobarbital for a short peried and then, go off of THAT.

I was on Xanax when it was still in clinical trials and when no one knew exactly how to get you off of it.

The drug changed my life, made it possible. I don't regret being on it for a single second.

But, when we all thought I could go off of it, the withdrawal was horrendous. No one knew what they were doing. I was fine with going off of it and that didn't matter in the least to my poor system. I was in awful pain for more than six months "tapering" before I tried to find a doc who knew more about the process because I trusted my doc who didn't. :shrug:

While I was "tapering", it felt like weasels were chewing on my spine. I mean, I'd taper on a Firday night so my work week wouldn't be affected and it didn't matter. My symptoms were awful and it didn't matter that I followed the doc's directions exactly. I had painful muscle spasms that were about as painful as anything I'd ever experienced. And it was all NEEDLESS.

Because there are other protocols that are nothing like that disruptive, let alone, painful.

So, I'd be a little wary of anyone who tells you you can simply taper. There are other protocols. Just make sure your doc knows what they are. fwiw

[DemExpat]

3. I would try to find expert help with your breathing.

Sometimes anxiety and panic disorder can be looked at as being a chicken or egg question, and can be approached from different ends, so to speak.

My daughter and myself have had more than adequate support with anxiety/panic disorder and problems by learning and practicing breathing exercises to adjust the way we breathe while under stress. I do carry a few pills with me when I travel or have extra stresses in my life, but have not taken them in over 25 years.

Since I had hell weaning myself off of medications in my twenties, I feel it might be worth trying breathing techniques and/or therapy first, especially since you seem to be functioning OK at the moment with the coping techniques you have.

All the best,

DemEx

[teenagebambam]

4. Yeah....

....I think I've decided to stick it out with breathing, and some Reiki that my sister is teaching me, at least until I see my new doctor next month. As you say, DemEx, I'm not debilitated - just uncomfortable and impatient! I just also recalled - I had a plane trip recently and a friend gave me a Xanax to take for the flight - but just having that one pill in my possession, I found that I had NO panic whatsoever and never took it. So I just have to remember that, for now at least, I have all the tools I need!

[EFerrari]

5. Several people in my family with the same tendencies

seem to do the same thing.

If we have a pill in our posession, lol, we relax and do better and figure out a different way to handle it.

One of my sons is a sales rep and has to drive and fly a lot. He carries a Valium with him but it seems to be more about knowing that he has that choice than it is about taking it. Go figure. :)

[DemExpat]

8. I wonder if I will EVER have the courage to, for example,

board an airplane without my little magic pill that does its wonder work by just offering the possibility of relief.

:shrug:

DemEx

[EFerrari]

9. I flew from CA to D.C. and back on just such a magical proposition.

Only George Bush would move me to do such a thing. :)

[DemExpat]

7. Sounds good, teenagebambam.....

The more you learn to handle the anxiety, the less threatening it becomes.

But after suffering for almost a decade with debilitating panic disorder in my 20's, its a part of me that I have simple learned to accept and not try to deny or reject. That is half the battle in my opinion. I see it as a learned behavioral response that is impossible to "unlearn" after it has been experienced and established. Once you know what it feels like to have a full-blown panic attack it is difficult to forget it, ignore it, or to believe that it can never happen again. But I have learned that it can be dealt with, handled, and lived with in a very satisfactory way. The sooner you get good coping techniques, the better, IMO, for you don't establish all of the limiting conditions or settings (of avoiding situations!) where these attacks have occurred, so no awful connotations of extreme anxiety in activities of living a normal life!

I do practically anything now since those awful years - travelling and extra exciting/stressful things still can cause me discomfort, but I accept this preliminary anxiety before the event nerves, keep doing what I want to do step by step, and have that little pill in my pocket "just in case" I lose my balance in my techniques to handle my fight or flight impulses and raging adrenaline sensations.

All the best, and I hope you have quick success with your problems.


DemEx

[hedgehog]

12. Be sure to tell your doctor about your experience with Zoloft.

If it was ineffective, there are plenty of other drugs to choose from! A lot of name brand drugs are really the same drug in different packaging. The new anti-depressants are not in that class; each one is subtlety different from the rest.

[qb]

6. It gives me fast relief for occasional anxiety. It makes me a little sleepy. I use it sparingly.

I've taken as much as 0.75 mg in a day, but usually just 0.25 mg 2 or 3 times a week. I haven't taken any in over a week and didn't have any withdrawal symptoms. I was frustrated with doctors who wanted to medicate me all the time (with SSRIs) for a problem I don't have all the time, and the SSRI's didn't help anyway. I told this to my PA and he prescribes an amount he is confident won't get me addicted and I come in for a re-evaluation every 3 months. I drink socially, but not while I'm on medication, and have had no ill effects.

[mdmc]

10. it is the best med ever

but the docs won't let ya stay on it forever.

I use it sparingly - I use it for anxiety and depression, and to relax or get some sleep.

it is awesome

[Stump]

11. I love it...

But I couldn't take it all the time...it would be like a living zombie. If you want to know what Xanax is, it's a true "chill pill." If you need to detach for a while and get some shit off your mind and sleep, pop one and enjoy the ride. I take 1 mg though, pretty good dose.