[Betony]

Hi all,

For those of you who deal with clinical depression, do you also have anxiety issues? I'm trying (and struggling) to deal with both right now, without the benefit of a therapist or medications (due to a family history of drug addiction, I'm VERY reluctant to compound my issues by getting dependent on medication) and am just pondering how these two issues relate for others. For me, I think I've been dealing with anxiety for far longer than I've been dealing with depression -- I remember being over-the-top-fearful about things that wouldn't bother other kids for more than a minute (getting below a B on a short quiz, for example), but I don't recall dealing with depression until after puberty (damn hormones anyway).

Either way, right now I'm struggling with trying to figure out how to deal with this on my own, and trying to not use food as an emotional safety blanket (yeah, good luck with that....today sucked.) Any suggestions?

[mamaspank]

I use working out as my emotional safety blanket. I started having depression issues -- bad -- after I got pregnant. My father had died about five months before, and I was on a really wild drinking binge that lasted that long exactly. Getting pregnant probably saved me because I was no longer able to drink and therefore not numbing my pain in that way. I haven't ever got back into drinking since, and it has been three years.

For me, depression came first. I started having anxiety problems at Christmas this year. I stopped sleeping and am now on medication for sleeping and just started some medication for my anxiety. I was diagnosed ADD a few months ago after a misdiagnosis of bipolar disorder. I finally feel as if I am getting somewhere as far as doing something besides just covering everything with a big huge medicated Band-aid.

I am in better physical shape now than I was ten years ago, as far as weight, strength, and the way I eat. A couple weeks ago I stressed my neck and back either rock climbing or just being stressed out. Yesterday I went on a naturopathy spending spree at our local co-op. Today I felt a lot better. I don't know if your anxiety is bringing on any actual nasty physical symptoms, but here are some suggestions of stuff that helped me:

A "Bucky" buckwheat body neck wrap/hottie pillow
Elemental Herbs Herbal Cool spray. It's like Icy Hot, which I used to use a lot as a teen. I love this spray; the cooling sensation lasts a lot longer than anything I have ever used. I used this spray, along with my new pillow instead of an older pillow, and it is like night/day difference.

My top suggestion is do what you love -- and do it a lot. For me, this is softball and running with the two-a-week trips rock climbing. I play a LOT of softball, about four to six games a week. When I am not playing ball, I am running at the track. I love the repetitiveness of it, and I love pushing myself.

[Betony]

Thanks, Mamaspank, for the suggestions.

It does bring on physical symptoms, but they're more of the immediate, anxiety attack kind -- lots of tension in my back and shoulders, heart racing, feeling of being smothered (not shortness of breath exactly...I can breathe fine, just feel like everything is falling in around me if that makes any sense), and typically (and most embarrassing) I end up breaking out in tears, and usually end up with a nasty headache from trying to fight it. This is just wonderful to experience when I'm at work. Sigh.

I think it's part of the depression -- I end up feeling like people are looking at me thinking this is a woman who just can't hold it together, and it eats into me. I know what I can handle (I know what I've had to handle in the past, and if I survived those things, I know I can handle much more than an average day will throw at me), but if I'm the only one who knows it, it doesn't really matter, does it? I'm not looking for an answer to that, just trying to explain the feeling.

I'm going to go clean house, and planning a long day (for me lol) at the gym tomorrow. Hopefully that will start to clear out some of the mess in my head.

[Jacqui_D]

Betony, I have depression and anxiety issues, and I am not on meds. (The idea of taking meds in itself gives me anxiety, lol! I laugh, but it's true!) However, I do see a psychologist regularly. He's my "medication" basically! Being able to talk things out makes all the difference! Is there a reason why you've chosen not to see a therapist? If it's cost, maybe your local health department can make a recommendation. If seeing a therapist is not viable, do you have any close, trustworthy friends that you can just talk to? Getting things off your chest really does help you work through the issues; it helps you to put things into perspective when they seem so overwhelming. If you have no one to talk to, consider keeping a journal or blog to express yourself. Other things that I do to cope are: I avoid anything that I know will upset me--for example, the evening news. I just can't handle the news on tv. I can read some of it online (it doesn't quite affect my senses the same) but the tv news really gets to me. Likewise, I don't watch upsetting movies. Also, positive self-talk may seem silly, but it really is a good thing. It's so easy to beat ourselves up and you really need to find the good in yourself and give yourself credit for it! Likewise, prayer or "counting your blessings" really helps, because if you start recognizing everything that you have to be thankful for in your life, it's a way of thinking positively, and positive thinking makes all the difference! Also, I try to surround myself with things that will affect my senses positively, like if I'm feeling down, I'll bring some freshly cut flowers into the house for their beauty, I'll listen to some upbeat music, I'll go to youtube and watch cute animal videos--anything that will help me to feel better. It's like I try to get my senses to override my thoughts! I also drink green tea, which is supposed to be calming, and I take vitamins, which also are supposed to help. St John's Wort is a natural option for an lot of people (although it and I do not get along well). I take Relacore, which I get at Walmart for $20. It is touted as a belly fat reducer, but really it is made up of B vitamins and other natural ingredients that have a calming affect, therefore it is a natural mild anti-anxiety supplement that contains no caffeine or any meds, so it won't interact with anything. What it does is help you feel calmer and that supposedly helps reduce cortisol which has an effect on belly fat, and that's why they market it as a belly fat reducer. I can't tell you if it reduces belly fat since I've been on a weight reduction plan anyway, but it does have a calming effect. Also, avoid excess caffeine, because it can definitely overstimulate you. And get exercise. Its effects on depression and anxiety are proven. (If nothing else, just get out and walk.) And when you are feeling anxious (often this occurs at night because of brain chemicals), just keep telling yourself that the fear is not rational and it will pass, it will get better, because it really is a brain chemical overstimulation thing. I hope this helps! I have been off meds and doing well, staying stable (other than common emotional ups and downs, not the sweeping lows of depression and anxiety) for 6 years now, and I know you can do it too! Good luck!

[MissRicer]

Hello Betony,

I am also on anti-depressents for anxiety. I had been on them before and was upset about having to take pills to feel "normal" and took myself off which did not go well. My doctor made me committ to staying on them for a year to give them a chance, I'm at ten months now. I admit that I do feel more myself and in control of my emotions but I feel angry for not being able to control them myself, without the help of medication.
Jacqui, good for you for dealing with everything med free; I really admire you for that. That takes a lot of strength.

I know that working out causes the release of "feel-good" hormones and chemicals. I think that in the long run, this may be able to help me ween myself off meds.

Good luck ladies. I am really happy to have found this forum. I really don't talk about this with anyone; I will chat with you again soon!

[Jacqui_D]

Originally Posted by MissRicer

Jacqui, good for you for dealing with everything med free; I really admire you for that. That takes a lot of strength.

Thank you, MissRicer. It can be challenging, but it's a choice that I feel works best for me. When I was originally put on anti-depressants for the depression/anxiety, it threw me into hypomania, which the doctor then tried to straighten out with mood stabilizers. No combination of anti-depressant/mood stabilizer seemed to work well, and it all just stressed me out even worse, which made the highs and lows even worse. After three years of this, I weaned myself off of all meds, and starting working with my doctor and therapist to cope in other ways. It's something I have to be very vigilant with, but it's still the best solution for me.

Originally Posted by MissRicer

Good luck ladies. I am really happy to have found this forum. I really don't talk about this with anyone; I will chat with you again soon!

And we are so glad to have you!

[MissRicer]

Hello Ladies,

Jacqui, I've never heard of a mood stabilizer. Would that be used more for anxiety than depression?
P.S. Good for you for reaching some of your goals already. That must feel good!

[Biju]

Betony,

I have both depression and anxiety and am on both an anti-depressant and an anti-anxiety benzo, which can be addictive. i strongly reccomend that you try an anti-depressant that is also used to treat anxiety, such as zoloft or lexapro. anti-depressants are not addictive, but if you try to wean yourself off them, you will just have some nasty withdrawal symptoms for a few days that quickly go away. anti-depressants are the choice i ever made!

as for the benzos, i use them sparingly because of their addictive properties.

best of lucky!

[blue fairy]

I can deffinatly relate with the anxiety that can be associated with depression. My anxiety manifested itself as hives across my chest. I ended up taking effexor for my depression and it has helped with anxiety attacks. I understand your concerns about getting addicted. There are some out there that can be highly addicting. Here are a couple of tricks that help me. The first is that I have a mantra that I say when every I notice that I am starting an anxiety attack. Now this is going to sound funny so feel free to luagh. The mantra I use is "Fish are friends, Not food." From the movie Finding nemo. It stuck in my head for some reason, and I started saying it while I knitt and I noticed thatit made me feel better, so now I use it when ever I start getting worked up, and it works for me. A calming mantra does not have to be anything that really make sense as long as it works for you. My second thing I do to calm my self down is to sniff an herb bag that I made. I sewed a little bag filled with rice and herbs that I like the scent of. It is small enough to keep in my pocket so I pull it out whenever I need it. My scent is cinnamon. I know it is not an herb but it works for me though I would recamend staying away from food scents so that you dont get hungry when you smell it. The only reason that I use cinnamon is that I hate how it taste so it does not make me hungry when I smell it. I know not to conventional but hey some times the crazy stuff works.

Good Luck

[Jacqui_D]

Originally Posted by MissRicer

Hello Ladies,

Jacqui, I've never heard of a mood stabilizer. Would that be used more for anxiety than depression?
P.S. Good for you for reaching some of your goals already. That must feel good!

MissRicer, a mood stabilizer is used for hypomania or mania, both of which are the opposite of depression. Taking an anti-depressant threw me into hypomania, which is why I was also then put on a mood stabilizer. I'm not positive but I believe the meds for depression have more of an effect on relieving anxiety than mood stabilizers do.

[Toonces]

Originally Posted by Jacqui_D

MissRicer, a mood stabilizer is used for hypomania or mania, both of which are the opposite of depression. Taking an anti-depressant threw me into hypomania, which is why I was also then put on a mood stabilizer. I'm not positive but I believe the meds for depression have more of an effect on relieving anxiety than mood stabilizers do.

The problem with anti-depression, mood stabilizers, anti-anxiety et al. medication is that their effectiveness or efficacy can vary from person to person, so it's always hard to say. Though, since depression medication is design to regulate serotonin levels, making a difference in your anxiety can be expected since anxiety is directly affected by the serotonin levels in your brain. Thus sometimes medication termed as an antidepressant and an anti-anxiety can be used interchangeably. I think you can safely be positive about it

Serotonin can be affected by medication, obviously, but also by our physical activity (eg: walking, but that always comes with the 'time to think' scenario), and by what and how much we eat. Many chemical additives, such as that which is found in most processed foods affect, I believe, the chemicals of the brain adversely. Believing this does not, apparently, stop me from eating Doritos. Weight loss is probably what brought most of us here, I'd imagine. Yet, eating properly can do far more for our physical wellbeing than just weight loss and the benefits that come from that (more energy, better cardiovascular) but mental wellbeing as well.

[MissRicer]

Thanks Jacqui and Toonces,

I had never heard of mood stabilizers before. Yeah, when I was first put on an anti-depressant for anxiety I didn't like the idea. But it seems to be working so I've gotten over it. Anyway, thanks for filling me in!

[rachinma]

I am taking Wellbutrin for clinical depressions and have a prescription for Xanax for anxiety (that I almost never take).

I remember when I first started taking Wellbutrin. Everything was much more in-focus, and I was able to start *and complete* tasks. I'm very successful at work, but always felt like the bottom is going to fall out from under me. Also, I no longer felt those ragey type feelings when I wanted to lash out at people (including my kids). I thought to myself, "Is this how normal people feel?!" It was sort of sad, LOL.

I don't really need the anti-anxiety meds (Xanax) because I feel much less irritable on the anti-depressant.

I do know that I need more sleep.

[Betony]

I made an appointment to see a psych -- while I wanted to try to handle these feelings without medication, things are getting worse instead of better. I just need to hang in there for two more weeks until I can see her.

I'm on this site primarily for weight loss, but for right now, I need to get this under a little control first. Otherwise, I'm finding myself just sunk, and I don't like this.

[Shopaholic1204]

I have depression and axiety too. I take Prozac for depression..and because my anxiety is very horrible, I have to take a daily pill called, clonazepham. I also have Xanax for whenever my anxiety gets out of control.

Long story short..I've been on meds, and I've been without them. And I do not function well while off. It's just better for me to be on them. But thats my personal choice. I have to start seeing a therapist now, because I'm starting to get paranoid and fearful about things.

I hope you can get better without medication.