LOSTSOUL

For the first time in my life, I have decided to get help for mood , anxiety and depression problems. This was about 10 months ago. My primary care doc was no help except to give me zoloft untill that didn't work. Then he gave me paxilcr and like 10 .5 ativan. Wow a whole 5 mg of ativan. Anyways so I find a counciling center to go to and they sucked. All the psychiatrist did is up my paxil cr and say I dont need any benzos or anything to help me sleep. He also said if I quit smoking It would help my depression. So obviously I found a new psychitrist at the hospital. Well I saw him 3 times and for the next 3 weeks he is going to be helping out someplace else and then on vacation for 3 weeks. He kept me on the paxil cr 50 mg and switched me to klonopin .05 twice a day or as needed. I feel th ssri just mask my emotions. I still feel the same! I still get thoughts about suicide or dying. I feel that no psychiatrist can help me. Maybe I need to keep searching, but Im sick of going over the same story every time you meet a new shrink. My psychiatrist doesn't do anything to help. He ask how I have been feeling. Says he wants to keep me on the same meds. I say ssri scare me a little and he assures me there safe even though paxil has the worst withdrawl symptoms. I ask him today if I could get either 3 .05 klonopin a day as needed or 2, 1mg k-pins a day as needed. Of course he says no because they are addicting. What isn't addicting in this world , pills,tv,sex,money,food,shopping. Anyways sorry to ramble ,but I just want to get back on my feet and live life. Is there no answer for my pain? There was no cause, so maybe no answer? The only thing paxil does is makes me more liveable with at home , less xteme and hides my emotions. Should I continue to take it? I dont want to die yet , but I don't want to live either. GOD BLESS

Good luck, I can relate to your pain. I was on various meds for many years. Usually, the pills would work for a while then stop working. I eventually, slowly, with the help of a psychiatrist got off my meds. I learned to control my moods with exercise, self-help meetings (like Recovery, Inc), helping others , and journal writing. Most people that is over 50% receive help with pills; I found another way, but it did take some time and effort.
Good Luck,
Jim S

SICK OF IT ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I WANT TO EXPLODE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

JER06,

Sometimes depression has a chemical basis, sometimes it has an unresolved crisis basis and sometimes it is both.

I do not care for the anti-Psych board, but, given where you are at in teasing out your experiences/symptoms vs. the alphabit soup of drugs you have been given, I would say that you have been badly treated so far, and they might have some more ammo against the write script first and ask questions second P's.

If you want advice, I would start combing the net for a Therapist (not a psychiatrist, not a GP), with experience in trauma and depression, and talk - it may take 15 or more sessions. If they agree with the first diag/treatment - or they do not, you are sure of a lot more then you are now.

Good luck,
Walt

Thanks everyone for comments