Posted by Rick on September 12, 2000, at 2:03:31
In reply to Re: Squirrely? Donna Lynn, posted by Donna Lynn on September 11, 2000, at 9:52:07
Donna --
Yes, I would absolutely prefer the risk of drug dependence over remaining miserable! While a small but significant number of people have developed severe withdrawal symptoms when trying to get off a benzo, these problems are temporary and can be minimized by weaning off properly, under your doctor's supervision. Very often, the perceived "withdrawal" symptoms are really the acute return of anxiety after the benzo is completely discontinued and gone from the body.
And no, I wasn't suggesting that long-term Klonopin (or other benzo) use will damage the body or vital functions! To the contrary, Klonopin is very safe in this regard -- as safe as today's most-touted antidepressants (and much safer than some old-line AD's). Virtually ANY med -- even aspirin -- can cause severe physical problems in rare instances.Unfortunately, I won't much time to visit this site or answer e-mails for awhile. But please do look at these links, which give a capsule summary of the placebo-controlled study of clonazepam (Klonopin) in Social Phobia:
Another follow-up, which I didn't provide the link for, showed that much of the Social Phobia benefit from limited-time Klonopin use persisted for years after the med was discontinued. While there's no guarantee that Klonopin will help you as much as it helped me, I'm sure it's your best bet, especially for quick relief.
One more point: You're likely on track that the Social Phobia led to your depression. And it's also a good bet that helping lessen the Social Phobia WILL lead to remission of the depression. But that's by no means a given, so you *might* need more than Klonopin, which does not have antidepressant qualities. Remember, while I was feeling kind of "down" about my anxiety and the stress it caused, I was NOT (and never have been) clinically depressed. Similarly, those in the study did not have concurrent depression, even though depression commonly eminates from severe Social Phobia. Wha I'm saying is, keep an open mind about depression treatment. But on the flip side, be careful NOT to do what so many patients and their doctors do: namely, jump to the conclusion that fatigue other symptoms during combined AD/benzo use are due to the benzo, rather than the AD or a combination effect.
Finally, for support in terms of situation/idea sharing with other Social Phobics, visit the link below (run by the Anxiety Disorders Association of America; requires free instant, anonymous registration).
http://www.adaa.org/consumerresources/login.cfm
Good Luck,
Rick
poster:Rick
thread:44488
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20000905/msgs/44661.html