October 27 2009
My doctor……………………..?
Ok I have anxiety and sometimes I get panic attacks so my regular doctor prescribed me Prozac, Citalopram, and Cymbalta (not at the same time, one after the other after I told him it made me faint) All 3 of these SSRI’s made me faint and he continued to prescribe me more SSRI’s which guess what? Made me faint, I hate SSRI’s never have liked them I think they’re one of the worst drugs if you don’t have depression, which I don’t (SSRI’s are made for treatment of major depressive disorder which I don’t have and CAN also "treat" anxiety) So since the SSRI’s make me faint he told me to see a psychatrist and he put me on Ativan which I like cuz it works to a degree but he said I’ll be on it for 2 months and then he’ll "transition" me to another SSRI???!!!!! That’s the whole reason I’m seeing him!!!! What do I tell him because I already told him I went to see him because I DON’T want to take SSRI’s….and for some reason he’s still gonna put me on it and I don’t want to take it. What do I tell him??
You, as the patient, have the right to refuse any treatment or medication at any time. Tell your Doctor point blank that you absolutely refuse to be put on another SSRI, so he had better re think what his plan is for you. He is your employee, you hired him to do a job, you have the final say. If this one doen’t listen to you, fire him and get a second opinion.
P.S. I was on SSRI’s and a horrible side effect was IMPOTENCE. You don’t want that, dude. It took me two weeks to get the feeling back in my dick after I stopped taking the SSRI’s.
Go to a different Dr if he doesn’t want to listen to your reservations about taking certain drugs.
in the brain, we have only a handful of neurotransmitters. its actually amazing that only a few chemicals can produce conscious life…but i digress.
SSRIs work on serotonin. serotonin is responsible for many things, not just depression. remember, only a few chemicals do everything in the brain. so when we give you an SSRI for anxiety, thats because serotonin is a key player in the many causes of anxiety. SSRIs even work great for chronic pain (which has nothing to do with depression), because again, only a few chemicals in the brain run the whole show. serotonin has many roles, not just depression (thats your take-away).
why do we try one SSRI after another when we all know previous attepmts make you faint? because unfortunately, thats the best stuff that we have right now. your md is doing the best he can to help you. unfotunately, he is working with a limited toolbox b/c the damned pharm companies havent produced anything better than an SSRI yet.
as for ativan, its great for short term use. you dont wanna stay on that stuff. ativan is a newer generation valium. you dont want or need that. its chemically no different then medicating yourself with alcohol, which i do NOT recommend!
now. there are numerous nonmedical treatments for anxiety. if you are having panic attacks, i would advise you to make an appointment with a psychiatrist. psychiatrists are physicians (just like your regular md) who can also do proven nonmedical treatments for panic attacks, like exposure therapy, etc. they can also counsel you on other things, like meditation.
all-in-all, your md is correct to re-introduce the SSRI. thats simply the best stuff we have right now. sorry.
*this post should not substitute for medical advice*