Medications for me are a really tough subject. I have always had horrible reactions to almost everything I have ever been given. Starting with birth control pills back in 1974, & progressing to horrible reactions to things like benedryl that causes the problems that it is supposed to stop from happening. Then they started me on AD's & couldn't stay on anything more than a few days because of the horrible reactions & side effects. Then I started getting migraines & they ended up being so chronic that they never went away.

From that was where I learned about how to take meds. Initially with my migraines, it was like a roller coaster. Pain, take a med, no pain, pain, take a med, no pain........... Now I am on patches that give a constant dose of the med & I am no longer on the roller coaster. It is costant relief & no breakthrough pain at all. Rather than chasing the pain, it is important to keep it constantly under control. Initially we tried to find psych meds that would do the same thing for me, but could never find anything I could take. Even now, I end up taking the seroquel after an anxiety attack is almost full blown....you would think I would notice it before it gets to that point but no. I am not good at that. I only take that when I need it.

I hate being dependent on meds, but the feeling of not having any migraines is so wonderful that I don't mind staying on that stuff. It's the seroquel that I only want to take when I feel the need. Unfortunately, it takes time for it to kick in, making me have to deal with the anxiety attacks for some time before getting the relief. I think that the Dr's try to prescribe the anti-depressants to act the same way as my migraine meds so that we don't have to go through those horrible roller coaster rides that happen when we aren't consistant with taking our meds. With me, I don't like the way I feel when taking my psych meds, so I don't want to feel that out of it all the time. It's tough to figure out what works best for us based on what our Dr's prescribe. My pdoc gave me the natural meds (DHEA, St John's Wort, etc.....along with light therapy). They did't cause any horrible "out of it" feelings but didn't seem to help either. We are the only ones who can tell if something is working or not. It is great when we have a pdoc/Dr that will listen to what we have to say or how we really feel without trying to force meds on us. My pdoc has even gone to the liquid form of a med in order for me to be able to get a small enough dose so as not to have a horrible side effect but enough to tell if I will have a side effect.

I also think it is easier to stay on stuff when we see it working.....if not, we wonder why we are wasting our time, money, & putting stuff into our bodies that don't work. It is a tough decision to make, but it is our own bodies to decide about.

Debbie