Ativan

Have anyone ever took Ativan medicine? Big attack last night finally thought about taking one so I did. I don't care for taking any medicine but this time I wanted to see what my doctor was talkng about how relax I would be and he was right. The medicine works.

I don't want to depend on the pill so I'm still drinking my herb teal and working out 3 times a week )

This is a woderful place to find support. Thanks. Will post later

Enjoy Life

Hope I spelled the word correct. )

Enjoy Life

I have tried it but i didn't want to get dependant either so just took 1 and had quite bad side effects. Herb tea is great don't know about cammomile because it gives me panic attacks, peppermint is a good alternative for caffeine something that taste's nice.

ginseng is a stimulant so a BIG NO with panic/anxiety.
am currently on no medication still get attacks but not as much as when im on medication.

note: i don't know about anybody else but with me the better the tablet the more you have a chance to get dependant even if you don't get addicted attacks can be made worse after weeks of feeling generally ok then coming off the meds.

sorry if i've said anything to unsettle you,
hope you get better

Wow! Maybe I didn't have side effects from it because he only gave me 1 mg.

I usually drink Jasmine,green, camomile, and sandman tea. Helps me to relax alone with a 2 hour bath wigh anti-stress relax salt in my tub. )

Thanks a lot.

Enjoy Life

if you want to find more about medicatio scarycat31 or anyone else for that then go to www.netdoctor.co.uk then click on the medicine link and then browse by effect, brain and nervous system then anxiety,
ativan is right.
maybe if your meds aren't working you could look some up and ask your doctor about them just a thought as i know it hard having to try almost all of the meds

Thanks XAN2004

Enjoy Life

Hello and welcome to the forums.

I have taken Ativan before. It helped with my anxiety. Then 10 years ago I was prescribed Valium (which is in the Ativan "family" ) for anxiety/panic disorder. I wasn't told to take it as needed and took it as prescribed for years. Then a new doctor wanted to reduce me from 40mg a day to 20mg day. The withdrawls from the tapering down were terrible, I experienced terrible withdrawl anxiety and panic. Now I am on 20 mg a day routinely. I can't go without it and I am now physically dependant still after 10 years.

I think you are doing well by taking it only when you need it. I just didn't know that taking these anti anxiety drug class were extremely addictive when taked daily over a long period of time.

I will have to try the herbal tea's they sound relaxing.

Take care

KRIS


Spread the joy of a positive 2004 remember random acts of kindness

If you think you have totally gave up, you haven't, because you are here!

Don't be afraid, as long as you ONLY use it as prescribed you will not have any problems with it.
Klonopin, ativan's cousin is another anti-anxiety med and my pdoc told me it is slow release or time release, so he gave me that to take when needed during the day or before bed, it I am really overwound then he said to take an ativan before bed.
Just thought I'd share with you my experience, it is great for what it was designed for
Though you may not like taking meds.)I do not think many of us like to take it) it is wise to use it if needed, just be sure to follow the docs prescribed dosages and instructions, you'll be fine
If teas help you (sometimes some Earl Grey which is my favorite) then sit, try to relax to a cup and some music, good book or show, that helps too sometimes

Take care,
"darkeyes"

In giving advice seek to help, not please your friend
SOLON

Thank you Darkeyes, I will also try Early Grey with some music )

Enjoy Life

Thanks Krzykris101,

Please try some herb tea, I know it don't help for some people but it really helps me. My anxiety is only at night so I can't sleep, racing heart, and my chest hurts. After the tea, I can sleep like a baby. Yesterday was my first time trying Ativan and my was I relax but I just don't like drugs because of side effects.

Good luck!!

Enjoy Life

I had a prescription and took it rarely, it didn't do much for me. My wife is a pharmacist and she advised me not to take it. It's highly addictive.

I have been on ativan 1mg twice daily for four years it does relax me enough but I still get anxiety and panic breakthroughs a lot but the ativan works for a little while, I think that my body has started getting immune to its sedative affect. I take Depakote for my Bipolar and I ask my pdoc if it helped with anxiety and panic because I had read that it does and she said it really doesn't help that much she said the drug companies say a lot of the medicines are good for things and they really don't help at all, I am just repeating what she told me, I think that it does help some though since she raised the Depakote level I am taking my nerves have been getting better.

I took Ativan for a while and thought it worked well. If you want something non-addictive, you can take the perscriptio form of dymatap/drammamine....don't remember the name...maybe someone here knows.

I was on ativan for a bit to calm anxiety, I was also on another tranqulizer and it was just terrible, I was slurring like I was drunk, I was jut stoned out of my mind, even on a quarter dose.

They do work for people though just not really me.

<font color=red>~Sundance~</font color=red>

<font color=blue>"Never react emotionally to criticism. Analyze yourself to determine whether it is justified. If it is, correct yourself. Otherwise, go on about your business."</font color=blue>

<font color=black>Norman Vincent Peale</font color=black>

I have been on Ativan for a few weeks now. I really like it alot. It calms me down pretty fast. I only take it when absolutely necessary, or if I am going to be in a situation where I know I will be anxious. I know it can be adictive, so I am playing it safe. I dont really believe in medicine, but want to use this while I try to come up with some kind of trick or personal method of calming me down. I think that once I can do that I wont need medicine at all. Atleast I hope so!!

Mike

I still take it sometimes when I fly.

<font color=blue> "Is it any wonder that my mind's on fire, in prisioned by the thought of what to do? Is it any wonder that my joke's a laugh, and the joke's on you." Blue Oyster Cult </font color=blue>

I have some Ativan now in case of emergencies. To me, feeling like I'm gonna scream is emergency enough. I've also been on Xanax (first cousin to Ativan) for quite a while when my anxiety first started. If I was addicted to it, I never knew it. Maybe it was because I went from Xanax to a med that took care of anxiety and depression as well.

Xanax is said to be more addicting that Ativan but the secret is to not abuse the drug. Use it for what it's indended for. Only you know when you've reached your own threshold of discomfort.

There's a website where you can check what "natural" herbs can interact with prescription meds. It might be worth your while to check the herbs you take and the Ativan.

Here's the link: <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.drugdigest.org/DD/Home>http://www.drugdigest.org/DD/Home</A>

Good luck!

<font color=blue>"Our doubts are traitors and make us lose the good we oft might win by fearing to attempt" --Shakespeare</font color=blue>

I take xanax which is similar to ativan but is much more addicting-i took ativan and it didnt really work too well for me but it took the edge off but be careful but i am not so dependent on xanax i cant leave my house w/o knowing i have it with me!! and my liver is messed up from taking so much medicine!! good luck and it sounds like you're doing the right thing by trying alternatives first good for you!!

the one thing you have to be careful when on a drug like that is it can become addictive, most tranqulizers are.. some people benefit from them, I did on lorazepam, but when I went on clonazepam It was just terrible..


<font color=red>~Sundance~</font color=red>

<font color=blue>"Never react emotionally to criticism. Analyze yourself to determine whether it is justified. If it is, correct yourself. Otherwise, go on about your business."</font color=blue>

<font color=black>Norman Vincent Peale</font color=black>