I completely agree about the hoping and praying Charlie. It would be a dream come true if docs could just do a blood test and say, yuppers, this one needs Effexor, and this one will need an Parnate, and this will need Lexapro, etc. It took about 18 months of trial and error to discover that none of the SSRI's worked for me. I was then put on Effexor, and bamo - it was like they say in books. A gray curtain lifted - the colors suddenly looked brighter. That was about 4 years ago. Unfortunately, this year things got dark again...so back to the drawing board. We played around with a few things, but got me back on track just recently....same thing - I got my colors back again. Red is red. My depression is so clearly based in my chemistry.

But it's more than just taking a pill, of course. Years of depression takes it's toll on the brain. We learn to think in set patterns of negative thinking. For me, CBT helps to remind myself when I am thinking with my depressive brain. It good to at least recognize it, so I can try to change it - like you did with your anxiety. But in all honesty, without the meds, I can only notice the negative thinking....don't much have the energy to work on changing it!

Ok, guess I'm rambling too. Caffiene overdose again. Take care Charlie.

emmy