“Need a way to manage my anxiety but my history is making it hard on the doctors?”
I've been diagnosed with GAD, panic disorder as well as others like major depressive disorder, borderline personality disorder, etc. I've been on every SSRI, antipsychotic, anti-anxiety medication you can imagine. I'm having trouble now because the psychiatrist I see knows my history of addiction. I had a problem with opiates, mainly H, but nothing else. I have a year clean under my belt and I'm on a methadone maintenance program. My dose is 160 but it's not even holding me completely. The doctor knows this but the only medication that helps with my anxiety is Klonopin. Since it's a benzo and I have history, it looks bad. My doctor wants me to lower my dose asap which I can't, and the anxiety of him dropping me as a client is not helping. I've seen other doctors and they would rather run me through the gauntlet again of every medication I've tried 10x only to tell me that they won't prescribe anything controlled and I've run out of medications to try. I know what helps, at least until an anti-depressant works to help my anxiety too (and that can take months). There's no worse feeling than not being able to breathe and feeling like your chest is being crushed. I guess the question is what can I do if all the doctors I see use my history against me? Its been 10+ years of this and it's only gotten worse.
Male | 25 years old
Complaint duration: At least the last 5 years
Medications: Klonopin, Methadone, Zoloft
Conditions: Depression, GAD, panic disorder, borderline personality disorder
3 Answers
Dear Sir,
Sorry to hear that you have a complicated history of multiple diagnoses. Have you learned progressive muscle relaxation? Or considered hypnotherapy to manage your anxieties, panic attacks, and depression? You may want to read "Feeling Good" by Dr. David Burns and "Anxiety and Phobia Workbook" by Edmund J. Bourne while you search for a licensed professional in your area. There are many free guided relaxation and meditation available online.
Take care and be safe.
Dr. Lata Sonpal
Sorry to hear that you have a complicated history of multiple diagnoses. Have you learned progressive muscle relaxation? Or considered hypnotherapy to manage your anxieties, panic attacks, and depression? You may want to read "Feeling Good" by Dr. David Burns and "Anxiety and Phobia Workbook" by Edmund J. Bourne while you search for a licensed professional in your area. There are many free guided relaxation and meditation available online.
Take care and be safe.
Dr. Lata Sonpal
You might want to consider a systems approach to your anxiety issues and work an integrated team of psychologist//psychiatrist/nutritionist. There is an excellent self-help workbook you should get called Anxiety and Phobia Workbook by Bourne 7th edition. Just using medication is not the answer.
From what you have shared, it sounds like your difficulties have only been addressed with medication. In my experience, that is at best a partial answer to the kinds of problems that have had the greatest influence on your life. If I were you, I would try to find an experienced therapist who could help you gain greater influence over the issues confronting your life. Again, in my experience, such issues are not "brain diseases" they are challenges in living that include relationships, meaningful work, safety.
