![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by pekostar on November 18, 2003, at 22:06:45
Effexor has really helped with my depression. I was recently redianosed with a chronic post traumatic stress disorder.
I seem to be having break through anxiety attacks.
anyone else having these?
Posted by crazychickuk on November 19, 2003, at 6:18:44
In reply to panic attacks, posted by pekostar on November 18, 2003, at 22:06:45
Sure i think everyone on this board has them.. mine started when i was on effexor for mild depression the ptsd set in.
Posted by vanessa33 on November 19, 2003, at 11:45:06
In reply to panic attacks, posted by pekostar on November 18, 2003, at 22:06:45
I think panic attacks and anxiety attacks are two different things. I'm no expert on the terminology! But I THINK it's different.
I've had both. Anxiety attacks for me, were like getting obsessed with a worry and not being able to shake it. Like, "I can't believe I said this stupid thing the other day, and now I just know something awful is going to come of it." - waking up in the middle of the night with a jerk - a month after the dumb thing I said - still replaying my stupid words in my mind, still terrified that something just awful is going to happen because of it.
Panic attacks, on the other hand, seem to be entirely different. They're the sudden feeling that you're having a heart attack or a seizure or are becoming physically paralyzed. Your heart races and you shake and you think 'oh my god, I'm losing the use of my arms' or 'my heart's going too fast and I can't stop it. Help!'
Very different! Though probably related.
I found for myself, that zoloft, over time, cured both.
In my case, when I finally found a good doctor, he told me, "It's all depression. It's not lots of different things - sadness, anxiety, panic. It's all one basic chemical imbalance causing many different symptoms. If we really cure the depression - then we'll cure it all." And he turned out to be right.
If you're having ANXIETY attacks on your meds, then if I were you, after telling my doctor about it, I might just wait and see if it subsides when the depression does.
But if you're having PANIC attacks - I wouldn't put up with that, personally! I found that a couple drugs can cause them and for me, that's a big fat, "No". As in, "Try a different drug, doc."
That's just my amateur opinion, though!
Posted by Viridis on November 20, 2003, at 2:56:26
In reply to Re: panic attacks, posted by vanessa33 on November 19, 2003, at 11:45:06
I don't buy the idea that it's all depression. That view seems to be widespread, and is fueled by the pharmaceutical companies that keep pushing the latest antidepressant for anxiety. Yet, all of the "antidepressants" I've tried have made my anxiety worse, and really haven't helped with depression.
I told my current psychiatrist that my depression seems to result from anxiety, and he agreed that this is likely for some people. Treatment with an anti-anxiety med (Klonopin) did much more for depression than any SSRI etc. ever has for me, and it worked immediately.
I still experienced another kind of depression (much milder than that which I experience when I get very anxious, and qualitatively different); addition of Adderall (for ADD) helped a lot with that.
The relationship between anxiety and depression is controversial and seems to vary among individuals. But for me, the worst depression always follows a period of intense anxiety/panic attacks, and knocking out the anxiety with a benzodiazepene is the most effective strategy by far.
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.