Re: Weaning myself to wellness...

[Guest guest]

Dear ,

You said:

<<well

typing this actually feels kinda good, strange but it does. if anyone

can lend some good words, i would greatly appreciate it thank you all

for listening. (i feel like i could go on forever here)>>

** I'm on my way out the door now and will respond later tonight to your

entire post. I just wanted to welcome you, tell you that your story is not

unusual here, and offer you a big cyber hug. You're with people here who

understand. We'll help you get to where you want to be with this.

Regards,

[Guest guest]

Welcome. You have come to the right place. Our stories are somewhat

similar. Just a couple of points. Sounds like you have some big

stuff coming up. I, like you, have the strong desire to be chemical

free. However, I have learned the hard way what a lack of patience

can do to a recovery. If you go off the Klonopin to fast not only

will it make withdrawals and anxiety worse, but it will hinder your

ability to fully recover. You have to fight that impulse and go VERY

slowly. YOu will get good advice here on that. Also, sounds like you

are doing some good things health wise. Keep it up. That and what

you learn and put into practice here will enable you to do this

successfully. All the best,

Casey

>

> hello group, im new here and this is my first post. im currently

> taking clonazepam .5mg twice a day, im experiencing some

difficulty

> sleeping soundly, when i do sleep i have a lot of nightmares and

> teeth grinding, half the time i wake up more tired than when i

went

> to sleep. also i have some trouble with headaches. my goal is to

> become drug free. i had my first anxiety attack just over a year

ago,

> i had a total of five that day that were very bad. naturally i was

> scared i was dying so i was happy to do whatever my doctor told

me.

> he started me on paxil, i took that a couple months and completely

> lost my sex drive, although my anxiety was under control, but as

my

> wife and i were trying to have a baby this was not working for us.

> next he put me on celexa, after 2 weeks on that i got a severe

> headache, it lasted six weeks, 24 hrs. a day. some days i just

cried,

> im a 37 yr old man, and this was how bad things got, i hadn't

cried

> in a long time but i felt that i was losing control with these

> headaches, my doctor wanted to up my dosage, he thought that would

> cure my headaches. time for a new doctor. my next doctor put me on

> wellbutrin, this was a disaster, after 2 weeks i couldn't control

my

> thought process and was having suicidal thoughts, very scary. my

new

> doctor then put me on lorazepam to manage my anxiety until i could

> see a psychiatrist he recommended. after a couple months(thats how

> long it took to see the guy) i was feeling good managing my

anxiety

> with the lorazepam. i saw the psychiatrist and he switched me to

> clonazepam .5mg twice a day, which is where i am at now. im

thinking

> of trying to wean myself off this before i see the doctor again in

5

> weeks(my 1st psychiatrist took another position so im seeing my

> second one now, on the first visit he wanted me to switch to

zoloft),

> i think most of my anxiety is gone now, ive completely changed my

> lifestyle, no caffeine, no soda, no red meat, exercise 5 times a

> week, ive lost 20lbs. and gotten into descent shape, i eat a lot

of

> fish, green vegetables, salads, chicken, no snacks. my biggest

thing

> is im scared of having another attack, i thought i was going to

die

> that first day. also my wife is due with our first baby on jan.

16th

> (after i got off the paxil we were able to get pregnant). i dont

know

> if this is the time to start a change like this or not, but i do

know

> that i want to be me again, im tired of popping pills and always

> wondering what the next day will bring. i've een thought of going

to

> see a hypnotist that advertised that he could cure anxiety. im

just

> desperate to get off the meds and be me again, i see the worry on

my

> wifes face sometimes and cant help but think this is wrong im

> supposed to bear the burdens not her, and now with a baby coming

i

> want to be a normal dad, not a dad who is a prescribed drug

addict. i

> need some advice, or maybe just a friendly ear, i dont know. i do

> know that before this all started i was pretty normal, never had

any

> depression, but i am someone who is wound pretty tight, i keep

things

> bottled up, im a big ball of tension that needs to unwind. well

> typing this actually feels kinda good, strange but it does. if

anyone

> can lend some good words, i would greatly appreciate it thank you

all

> for listening. (i feel like i could go on forever her)

[Guest guest]

Hi Casey,

Your post (below) has some great advice! It's contributions like

these that make so much difference to new members! Thank you,

and thanks to all our members who share their experience. With

our ripples of knowledge and awareness spreading ever-outward, we

are changing the world.

Warm Blessings,

Kim

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Welcome to the group!

I'm sorry you've had such a bad experience with these drugs. I

guess you don't need any convincing about how truly evil they

are.

You've made some really positive changes in your life despite

your struggle with adverse effects of the drugs. That's

fantastic. I want you to know that there are ways to accomplish

your goals and heal the damage that's been done. Please be

patient-- is very, very busy and coping with some health

issues of her own.

Congratulations on the impending birth of your child! It's a

very special (and challenging) time.

I'm glad you found us. Hang in there, we'll be in touch. Keep

us posted on how you are doing.

Warm Blessings,

Kim

(Co-moderator)