Posted by Down on the Upside on August 3, 2008, at 20:16:13
In reply to Re: Taking Klonopin for severe social phobia » Down on the Upside, posted by mickapoo on August 3, 2008, at 16:38:29
You're very welcome. Probably the first important step in battling SP is discovering that you are not screwed up in some ultraspecial way, that there are people out there who have the same devastating fear and avoidance that we have and most importantly, that there is a way back. This community is a great resource for battling SP, there's also http://www.psychforums.com/viewforum.php?f=137 which describes Avoidant Personality Disorder (AvPD) that describes my behaviour to a T
I never was able to make a trial of Nardil as apparently it's not available in my country.
My current regimen is:
300mg amitriptyline - single dose at night
50 mg sulpiride - single dose at night
37.5 mg tianeptinee - 3 x 12.5mg doses during the dayI've gotten a great mood lifting and anti-anxiety response from this novel combo after 18 years of debilitating depression and anxiety. I'm thinking of adding fluoexetine to help with the obsessions ruminations I have but I read some scary reports of fluoxetine dangerously potentiating the toxic effects of amitriptyline.
There are lots of people in this community like ace and SLS that have had a tremendous response to Nardil. I think the key to to Nardil's potency in treating SP is that it targets three neurotransmitters simultaneously - serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine. This might explain why SSRIs do not work very well for severe SP as they only target one or max two of these neurotransmitters.
I used to take Clonezam for a number of years but I came off it before starting this combo because it made me anhedonic and inhibted all the positive mood lifting and anti-anxiety respone of the other meds. The benzos help tremendously with anxiety and are considered first-line treatment for people peresenting SP symptoms but I'm not too happy with them for long term use. In my case the seemed only to treate the 'surface' anxiety symptoms of SP, not the underlying morbid thoughts and memories and emotions. And when I didn't take it the anxiety returned as bad as ever. But some people swear by Nardil + Klonopin for SP. If K makes you anhedonic and you don't need it for day-to-day survival maybe you could come off it during you trial of Nardil? At least you could be sure there is no negative interaction between the two drugs, and you can always augment the Nardil with K later.
So I really hope you have a response to the Nardil. You have at least one person who's with you on this long journey to reclaim our lives. and never give up hope, even in the darkest hours.
I
> > I hear you mate, I've had severe Social Phobia since I was thirteen. I underperfomed at school, dropped out of uni, never had a meaningful relationship, couldn't hold onto a job...all because of SP.
> >
> > Clonazepam is the anti-anxiety of choice for SP. I used to take clonazepam for a number of years and it helped a lot with the anixety, but it was very dulling. Clonazepam sort of anesthetized my mind - it reduced anxiety but also my motivation and capacity to feel anything. I came off it before starting my current combo and I feel a lot better emotion-wise.
> >
> > Nardil is also the AD of choice for severe SP so if you're starting it then it's time to feel hopeful (which is really hard for us SPs) The only thing I would suggest is to go up to highest dose and if you're still not responding to Nardil, take a break from the Klonopin, wait till it washes out of your system, and then reevaluate it.
> >
> > Keep us posted.
>
> You have really given me hope! Thank you! So are you on Nardil and has it significantly improved your SP? How long have you been on it? Are you on Klonopin as well? I agree with the motivation problem. I mentioned this to my dr in the past and she said yes, that's pretty much what it does- make you want to lay around on the couch all day! At least that's what it did to me anyway!
poster:Down on the Upside
thread:843763
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20080727/msgs/843997.html