Posted by worrier on May 14, 2003, at 19:12:20
In reply to Re: ativan and axiety, posted by Ativan-Tim on May 13, 2003, at 22:13:46
> I disagree with you here. Not because I think you shouldn't take benzos. The fact is that the benzos mask the problem-- they don't fix anything. So, if you intend to be on them for life, "like a diabetic needs insulin", I'd project you're in for a scary encounter. You not only build up a tolerance to benzos, where you'll need higher and higher doses, but you'll effectively never be "free" to live without them around. Benzos are great for the short term, yes. But whatever that's causing the generalized anxiety problems (breath hunger-- I've got them all) will forever be at bay as long as you're on them. Unless, of course, you're in psychotherapy. I'd recommend this alternative over benzos, as well as increased daily exercise with a watch to intake of drugs and alcohol. This recipe ended up working for me (not totally, but to where I can manage), so that I don't need the Ativan anymore. I also found a lot about myself along the way, things I would not have located until I quit drinking and taking Ativan. Knowing the issues that are causing the symptoms is a HUGE release. And, it gets your body on the road to recovering and healing itself. Without meds...
>Everyone is certainly entitled to their opinion and to persue whatever avenues work for them...I am well aware that many people end up with serious addiction problems with benzos and I certainly don't think they are a magic bullet that can fix everyting for everyone. I personally hope to find some way to live a life without any meds, but at this point that's not possible. As for your comments regarding tolerance and ever increasing doses, there is alot of evidence that suggests this doesn't happen very often in folks with anxiety/panic disorder. You can find lots of posts and links regarding that all over this site. I have only increased my dose once in a year and am still on an extremely small dose, so small in fact that my pdoc keeps trying to get me to increase it to provide better symptom control. As far as therapy is concerned, I see a therapist in addition to my pdoc and an alternative medicine DR for dietary/nutritional support. I also practice deep muscle relaxation techniques and Tai-chi. I have left very few if any stones unturned...I struggled with this without meds for nearly 20 years...many of those in some sort of therapy because I didn't want to resort to meds. There is a large body of evidence to suggest a biological basis for anxiety/panic disorder...some studies have found evidence that panic attacks and anxiety attacks closely resemble seizures. This may be why alot of the same meds that are used to treat seizure disorder are effective for anxiety. I am thrilled that you have been able to find ways to deal with your problems without meds and hope that some day I'll be able to as well. But for now, the worst thing I could do would be to go off the meds. Things aren't always as simple as we'd like them to be. As an aside, my analogy to the diabetic/insulin thing was to make the distinction between addiction and dependence which are different ...addicts abuse meds, chase the high, whatever you want to call it.This isn't true for most people who use benzos for anxiety disorders). Sorry to have gone on so long and I don't mean to sound arguementative. Just wanted to clarify my situation. Best of luck to you. Worrier.
poster:worrier
thread:223045
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030514/msgs/226683.html