Posted by Melanie-00 on January 14, 2011, at 19:30:36
In reply to Re: Online Support Group for Anxiety?, posted by Lao Tzu on January 14, 2011, at 15:06:05
Thank you for your kind words and expressions of support. What you say makes a lot of sense--that is, that people online are all mostly looking for the same thing, so finding what everyone is looking for is going to be a lot harder than just being part of the crowd. I definitely agree that it wouldn't be like a one-on-one therapeutic relationship or even a face-to-face group. It would be useful for getting new ideas of what might work, like you say, and the occasional kind word (and the knowledge that we are not alone ...), but that's not really what I'm after when I think of a "support group". I do like Mtook's book suggestion, and I think I will start another thread asking for bibliotherapy suggestions.
I would love to find a good therapist, as you recommend, but I can't afford it right now. I think probably cognitive behavioral therapy would really help me. I don't know if my anxiety is biochemical or not. Maybe part of it is biochemical, but I think I've also learned some extremely bad "coping" mechanisms that are hard to unlearn. Also, my brief foray with benzos did not help me. The benzos certainly reduced my anxiety symptoms by a lot and did so very quickly, but it was almost as if I then had too little anxiety -- they made me a bit passive. Worse than that, I quickly developed the feeling/attitude that if I were going to be able deal with anything that really made me anxious, I had to take a benzo first. I don't take benzos (much) anymore (although I have a few left from an old prescription) and yet I still have that feeling of "needing" them. I know it's irrational, but knowing that doesn't help much. I'm always glad to have a few benzos on hand in case of "emergency". I'm certainly not physically addicted, as I almost never take a benzo, and when I do, I take a very small dose, but I did develop a psychological dependency.
That said, I'm definitely not opposed to medication, if they are the right ones.
The more I think about it, though, the more I feel that the medication I take should help me with my self-esteem, energy, and self-empowerment issues first, rather than simply mask my anxiety. I think if I felt more empowered, energized, and confident, I could cope better with stressors. In that case, I think anxiety would never get so out of control because I would be dealing with stressors in a much more expedient and forthright fashion.So I'm glad, in a way, that Rhodiola rosea has been among the first herbs I've tried to help with anxiety, since it has a reputation for helping overall mood, boosting positive outlook on life, and boosting energy. Unfortunately, so far, I cannot say if it's making a difference for me or not. However, at the start I was using one brand that I had heard was good by looking up reviews on the internet. It didn't seem to help, so I recently switched to Ameriden brand, which is a brand that is recommended by the authors of The Rhodiola Revolution and which has been around for a while. Maybe this brand will be more effective for me. Over the last day or two, I have felt a slight lift in my mood, but this could be just a random shift, or due to any number of factors. I've also been taking NAC for a few weeks, and this may be starting to kick in, too. Who knows? At least the herbs/supplements I am taking are few, so if something does seem to help, it shouldn't be too hard to narrow in on which one it is.
Thanks again for all your comments.
poster:Melanie-00
thread:976661
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20101202/msgs/976807.html