![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 18 of 18. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by whitman on December 17, 2002, at 15:50:11
I am curious if anybody else is having problems with meds causing anxiety, shakiness and just an uneasy feeling. I have been taking phsych meds for years, almost everyone out there. I am currently taking 400 mg of wellbutrin, 80 mg of geodon and 600 mg of trileptal. I don't know if it is the increase in wellbutrin, but we tried adding lexapro and that made me feel nervous ,even codeine is unbearable. My Pdoc won't give me an anti-anxiety because I od'd on klonapin. anybody having this side affect???
Posted by Aadika on December 17, 2002, at 17:55:30
In reply to anxiety from meds, posted by whitman on December 17, 2002, at 15:50:11
I've had that side effect from many psychopharmaceuticals... and Wellbutrin is notorious for causing anxiety, as I'm sure you know. How about talking to your pdoc about supplementing with Seroquel? (a neuroleptic with anxiolytic properties) There are many other options as well... I've found the OTC amino-acid L-Theanine to be a miracle worker, but PLEASE discuss any supplements with your pdoc before trying them out. Best of luck!
~ Aadika
Posted by judy1 on December 17, 2002, at 19:21:32
In reply to Re: anxiety from meds, posted by Aadika on December 17, 2002, at 17:55:30
I agree that wellbutrin is an anxiety producing med; but I wouldn't be so quick to try an AP w/o psychosis. I would taper off the wellbutrin first and see how you do. If you still have anxiety- then benzos would be indicated. I've ODed before on them but I was suicidal then and I'm not now. If your doc is too afraid and you don't to change docs then try having him or your pharmacist dole out small amounts, benzos aren't particularly dangerous unless combined with alcohol or other CNS depressants. best of luck, judy
Posted by Aadika on December 17, 2002, at 19:41:28
In reply to Re: anxiety from meds, posted by judy1 on December 17, 2002, at 19:21:32
Actually, yes, I agree with what you said about the use of APs. I myself take Klonopin (2mg b.i.d. + 1mg h.s.) and am very well aware of how wonderful benzos can be in these circumstances. I too ODd on benzos and barbs many times, and at one point had become EXTREMELY addicted and tolerant to Xanax (using upwards of 100mg / day). But Klonopin has not been a problem with me in any way (I never feel as if I'm on a drug when taking it... I just feel normal), and without it I doubt I would be around today.
~ Aadika
Posted by Francisco on December 19, 2002, at 3:50:40
In reply to Re: anxiety from meds, posted by Aadika on December 17, 2002, at 19:41:28
yea i get da same effects of the 1st poster. i find moderate usage of marijuana very effective against the anxiety.
Posted by whitman on December 19, 2002, at 11:53:45
In reply to Re: anxiety from meds, posted by Francisco on December 19, 2002, at 3:50:40
I do take seroquil at night for sleep, but I can really only tolerate 100 mg at max and that is if I have alot of time to sleep in the next day. I also have found that alcohol helps but since I come from along line of alcoholics, that is not a wise choice for me. My husband is cop,so the marijuana is not a choice for me. My anxiety for his career is not a good trade off. I also felt great on klonapin, but my pdoc thinks the benzos make depression worse. What about xanax, I have never tried that and if it is not a benzo, than what is it???
Posted by Aadika on December 19, 2002, at 12:00:55
In reply to Re: anxiety from meds, posted by whitman on December 19, 2002, at 11:53:45
Xanax *is* a benzo (a triazolo-benzodiazepine, like Halcion, to be more specific), and a quite addictive one at that... but it may be the best option we currently have in the U.S. for avoiding depression that benzos may cause, as Xanax is often claimed to have anti-depressant properties. (Sure wish adinazolam would come to the states.......) Good luck finding a doctor who'll prescribe it for sleep, though. What about trazodone?
As a side note, I take Klonopin personally, and it doesn't make me the least bit depressed... quite the contrary.
~ Aadika
Posted by viridis on December 19, 2002, at 13:05:48
In reply to Re: anxiety from meds, posted by whitman on December 19, 2002, at 11:53:45
Benzos do seem to cause depression in some people (mainly based on what I've seen here), but it's highly variable. Klonopin and Xanax both have strong antidepressant properties for me, probably in part because most of my depression results from anxiety. As Aadika pointed out, Xanax is actually regarded as having specific antidepressant properties, but many doctors don't like it because it's supposedly "addictive" (it can cause dependency, like most other psychiatric meds, but whether it's likely to cause addiction in many people is pretty questionable).
Anyway, if you did so well with Klonopin, why not just ask your doctor to let you continue it? If depression does become a problem then you might have to change strategies, but I wouldn't assume it will make you depressed, especially if it hasn't in the past.
Posted by McPac on December 21, 2002, at 1:42:26
In reply to Re: anxiety from meds, posted by Aadika on December 17, 2002, at 17:55:30
"I've found the OTC amino-acid L-Theanine to be a miracle worker"
Does it remain effective if taken indefinitely or does it seem to lose effect?
Thanks!
Posted by J. Wesley on December 21, 2002, at 4:59:13
In reply to Re: anxiety from meds, posted by Aadika on December 17, 2002, at 19:41:28
I too ODd on benzos and barbs many times, and at one point had become EXTREMELY addicted and tolerant to Xanax (using upwards of 100mg / day). >
> ~ Aadika__________________________________
Umm...I assume that 100mgs/day of xanax was a typo. Surely you meant to say 10mgs/day, which is the upper limit recommended. I use between 5-8mgs/day, depending on the waxing and waning of my panic attacks, which changes on a daily basis.
J.
Posted by Aadika on December 21, 2002, at 9:46:21
In reply to Re: xanax at 100mgs/day? » Aadika, posted by J. Wesley on December 21, 2002, at 4:59:13
Actually, that was no typo... I was taking upwards of 50 2mg "bars" every day; I bought most of them off the street, of course.
~ Aadika
Posted by J. Wesley on December 21, 2002, at 10:31:34
In reply to Re: xanax at 100mgs/day?, posted by Aadika on December 21, 2002, at 9:46:21
> Actually, that was no typo... I was taking upwards of 50 2mg "bars" every day; I bought most of them off the street, of course.
>
> ~ Aadika_________________________________
Wow...that is one high tolerance. Hope you don't mind a couple of questions, besides the one you already answered about how you aquired that much.
How long were you taking that much xanax and how did you manage to stop? Did you have to take anti-seizure drugs to facilitate the withdrawal or did you withdraw slowly over a long period of time?
J. Wesley
Posted by judy1 on December 21, 2002, at 10:56:40
In reply to Re: xanax at 100mgs/day? » Aadika, posted by J. Wesley on December 21, 2002, at 10:31:34
I don't want to answer Aadika's question- but just some more input from someone who used to abuse valium at over 100mg/day. Tolerance can develope pretty quickly with benzos if you chase the high- just like with opiates. Aadika, I'm really glad you are doing so well now- judy
Posted by Aadika on December 21, 2002, at 10:57:39
In reply to Re: xanax at 100mgs/day? » Aadika, posted by J. Wesley on December 21, 2002, at 10:31:34
I suppose I was at or above the 100mg/day mark for a total of about 8 weeks... before that, I was gradually taking more and more over a course of 6 months. I was able to stop only because I was hospitalized as a result of threatening to kill my mother's favorite cat if she didn't give me HER bottle of Xanax. That's just how bad off I was... I mean, Xanax is absolutely not the first drug on the list that I've had an addiction to (though most other addictions were illicit drugs; cocaine, marijuana, ecstasy, etc.), but it was the one drug that showed me just how awful addiction can be and brought me to decide never to do drugs again.
As far as taking an anti-epileptic when I was withdrawing, no-- the staff at this particular hospital were so ignorant that I was just left strapped in my bed for three days and denied ANYTHING to help relieve some withdrawal symptoms (or prevent SEIZURES). The withdrawal was by far the worst I've ever been through... far worse than cocaine withdrawal. But oddly enough, I never have a problem if I miss a dose or two of Klonopin... must be the long half-life?
~ Aadika
Posted by Aadika on December 21, 2002, at 11:02:13
In reply to Re: xanax at 100mgs/day?, posted by judy1 on December 21, 2002, at 10:56:40
Thank you, Judy, I'm glad to hear that you no longer abuse benzos as well. You know what's weird... I was taking huge amounts of Xanax just to get to school every day and to relieve my symptoms of avoidancy and anxiety... yet in retrospect, that period made my social anxieties MUCH worse simply through the fact that I made an ass of myself so many times while on all those benzos that I now don't even want to show my face around any of my old friends... funny, I've never thought of it that way before.
~ Aadika
Posted by J. Wesley on December 21, 2002, at 11:57:34
In reply to Re: xanax at 100mgs/day? » J. Wesley, posted by Aadika on December 21, 2002, at 10:57:39
> I suppose I was at or above the 100mg/day mark for a total of about 8 weeks... before that, I was gradually taking more and more over a course of 6 months. I was able to stop only because I was hospitalized as a result of threatening to kill my mother's favorite cat if she didn't give me HER bottle of Xanax. That's just how bad off I was... I mean, Xanax is absolutely not the first drug on the list that I've had an addiction to (though most other addictions were illicit drugs; cocaine, marijuana, ecstasy, etc.), but it was the one drug that showed me just how awful addiction can be and brought me to decide never to do drugs again.
>
> As far as taking an anti-epileptic when I was withdrawing, no-- the staff at this particular hospital were so ignorant that I was just left strapped in my bed for three days and denied ANYTHING to help relieve some withdrawal symptoms (or prevent SEIZURES). The withdrawal was by far the worst I've ever been through... far worse than cocaine withdrawal. But oddly enough, I never have a problem if I miss a dose or two of Klonopin... must be the long half-life?
>
> ~ Aadika_______________________________
Thank you for sharing that information. I can't fathom medical professionals being so negligent. I also can't fathom the suffering you must have endured going cold turkey from 100mgs of xanax/day.
I'm glad to hear that you made it through that trauma. You must be emotionally very strong to have survived that experience.
I'm happy that you are in a better place now and wish you the best for the future.
Happy Holidays,
J. Wesley
Posted by HIBA on December 21, 2002, at 22:45:34
In reply to Re: xanax at 100mgs/day? » Aadika, posted by J. Wesley on December 21, 2002, at 11:57:34
Posted by judy1 on December 22, 2002, at 11:10:31
In reply to Re: xanax at 100mgs/day? » J. Wesley, posted by Aadika on December 21, 2002, at 10:57:39
As far as taking an anti-epileptic when I was withdrawing, no-- the staff at this particular hospital were so ignorant
that I was just left strapped in my bed for three days and denied ANYTHING to help relieve some withdrawal
symptoms (or prevent SEIZURES). The withdrawal was by far the worst I've ever been through... far worse than
cocaine withdrawal. But oddly enough, I never have a problem if I miss a dose or two of Klonopin... must be the
long half-life?Tales like this make me just furious, 'professionals' at some psych hospitals can be incredibly ignorant. You're fortunate to have lived to tell the tale. Xanax is particularly dangerous to withdraw fromm because of it's short half-life, and klonopin is often substituted to control any seizure and generally make the patient more comfortable. I also took clonidine when I went through de-tox. And yes you can easily go a day w/o klonopin and be fine because of its long half-life. Take care, judy
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.