Depression.

I'm now in my second week of treatment with Escitalopram and Clonazepam for anxiety

Spent the first week yawning constantly. That's subsided a bit now but other certain other side effects have appeared :p

Hopefully I should start seeing positive results soon :)

If I may ask, how much is the Escitalopram costing per month? As for the Clonazepam, it should help a lot, but please be careful - Don't use it long term.

Nice thread Copa.
I had a terrible bout of depression myself last year with the same characteristics you explained in your first post.
I'm was the biggest worry pot known to man and thought I was bipolar or something as I have never suffered this much in my life
.
I eventually got on to try epilim CR 200 and I have never felt better in my life.
I have GAD and have had my whole life without even knowing it.

However it was acceptance of self and slowly working through the issues I had no control over that has made an even bigger difference.
Thanks for sharing your story as you really have to fall into that pit of depression to understand it.

A pleasure to share, and I am glad you are finding solutions.

***

As an aside, I just want to reiterate again the importance of how you treat your body, and the effects of various substances you put into your meat machine.

I cannot stress strongly enough, that if you suffer from any anxiety related issues - Avoid alcohol, nicotine and sugar and caffeine like the plague.

It's no good taking strong psychiatric medication to deal with anxiety, if you are unable to even make small lifestyle changes that will make a far bigger difference probably than a little pill ever could.

And exercise, what a damned pleasure that is.
 
If I may ask, how much is the Escitalopram costing per month? As for the Clonazepam, it should help a lot, but please be careful - Don't use it long term.

It is R270 a month. Yeah, I am tapering off on the Clonazepam already and will only be using it for another two weeks
 
It is R270 a month. Yeah, I am tapering off on the Clonazepam already and will only be using it for another two weeks

Okay, thanks, reason I ask, is I am using Citalopram, which is:

Escitalopram (trade names Nexito, Anxiset-E (India), Lexapro, Cipralex, Seroplex, Lexamil, Lexam, Entact, Losita (Bangladesh)) is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of adults and children over 12 years of age with major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder. Escitalopram is the (S)-stereoisomer (enantiomer) of the earlier Lundbeck drug citalopram, hence the name escitalopram. Escitalopram is noted for its high selectivity with serotonin reuptake inhibition. Its side effects are typical for the SSRI class. Only one independent study has shown that escitalopram is more effective than citalopram, but in October 2011 it was reported that the company that sponsored the study had links to Lundbeck, the makers.[1] The similarity between escitalopram and citalopram has led to accusations of "evergreening", an accusation that Lundbeck has rejected.[1]

Citalopram (Brand name Cilift) is approximately 3 times cheaper (presuming you are on a 20mg/month equivalent dose), and the weight of evidence points to it being no less effective. They just created a new chemical because their patent on Citalopram ran out.
 
I cannot stress strongly enough, that if you suffer from any anxiety related issues - Avoid alcohol, nicotine and sugar and caffeine like the plague.

It's no good taking strong psychiatric medication to deal with anxiety, if you are unable to even make small lifestyle changes that will make a far bigger difference probably than a little pill ever could.

And exercise, what a damned pleasure that is.

Just gave up smoking , been a week now and I feel so much better. I dont do sugar in general but I do like my coffee though , does it really make such a big difference ? Also I started walking (not running lol) and so far I dont really feel much different ? What type of exercise do you recommend ?

PS - Thanks for the help so far , its been very helpful :)
 
Just gave up smoking , been a week now and I feel so much better. I dont do sugar in general but I do like my coffee though , does it really make such a big difference ? Also I started walking (not running lol) and so far I dont really feel much different ? What type of exercise do you recommend ?

PS - Thanks for the help so far , its been very helpful :)

Well, I drink quite a bit of tea, which does contain caffeine, so I am not completely caffeine free, but certainly if I do (rarely) have a couple of strong cups of coffee, it is very likely to exacerbate my anxiety. If you like coffee for the taste, try decaf, if you like it for the buzz, then assess whether it makes an impact on your anxiety levels and decide accordingly.

As for exercise, I recommend pushing yourself until you are bruised, aching and exhausted. :D

Makes me feel so much better, and I sleep well as a result. I've been bad though, need to kick myself in the arse and get going again.
 
I drink 6 to 8 cups of strong coffee a day and I've found just cutting down on the sugar I put in my coffee makes a huge difference. Whereas before I felt very jittery and nervous, after cutting my sugar to half to one teaspoon per cup I feel almost none of that while still drinking the same amount of coffee.

Conclusion: Sugar hammers your nervous system way harder than caffeine. For me anyway.
 
I drink 6 to 8 cups of strong coffee a day and I've found just cutting down on the sugar I put in my coffee makes a huge difference. Whereas before I felt very jittery and nervous, after cutting my sugar to half to one teaspoon per cup I feel almost none of that while still drinking the same amount of coffee.

Conclusion: Sugar hammers your nervous system way harder than caffeine. For me anyway.

Sugar is definitely a mother****er. I've cut it out pretty much completely.
 
I'm now in my second week of treatment with Escitalopram and Clonazepam for anxiety

Spent the first week yawning constantly. That's subsided a bit now but other certain other side effects have appeared :p

Hopefully I should start seeing positive results soon :)

If you dont mind me asking, was one of your symptoms that you were constantly short of breath, yawning a lot no matter how much sleep you get ( before you started the meds)?
 
Just gave up smoking , been a week now and I feel so much better. I dont do sugar in general but I do like my coffee though , does it really make such a big difference ? Also I started walking (not running lol) and so far I dont really feel much different ? What type of exercise do you recommend ?

PS - Thanks for the help so far , its been very helpful :)
It depends on your deficiency. I don't know about sugar but caffeine actually gives me a boost. Try to cut out tartrazine though as that can cause anything from ADD to bipolar.
 
Not really short of breath but definitely some fatigue. The most significant symptom and the reason why I sought treatment was a constant feeling of unreality like being high all the time which is rather unnerving. That feeling is starting to subside now thank goodness. The yawning only started after taking the meds but it has also subsided now.
 
I've been using Stevia which a pretty good substitute for sugar. Also eating low carb and trying to exercise daily

Sounds like a good plan.

Regarding the sugar thing, I find if I go without sweet stuff for a week or so, I pretty much lose any need for sweet tasting things, which is helpful with all the delicious temptations the world taunts me with.
 
1.jpg
 
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X