Is there hope for "untreated"???

Thanks so much. I can't tell you how meaningful this is for me. Yes, I do deep breathing when I have anxiety attacks and it works. However, why am I getting the anxiety attacks??? I just want them to stop. I love what you have to say about the cardio...extending it to 60 minutes. I think this might be a real key...and yet...I have never heard anyone anywhere mention this before. But it makes sense and I can't wait to test it out this week. Brilliant suggestion!

Okay, so I looked this up. Experiential therapy, that is. It probably wouldn't be anything I would benefit from. I'm not too interested in emotional content. I just want to be more adaptive, which is why I like cognitive behavioral and dialectical therapies. One of my main problems is that I don't do well with change and transition, and I have a lot of change going on in my life right now. Also, thanks for the essential oils information. I have used them in the past and considered them supportive rather than transforming tools. The incense I got is from an Ayurvedic company and can be trusted. Most incense is created using blends, but if the company is reputable then you know it's okay. Mainly, cheap incense should not be trusted, I think. Same with essential oils.

Thank you!

There is always hope glad you found PC

There are many things you can do for yourself.

Yea that kinda therapy is not for everyone - but it got me curious - and I got looking around - there are many different kinds of therapies used not just the 3 or 4 basic ones you always hear about. I agree with you - essential oils n incense are very untrustworthy if bought among the "cheap brand" varieties- i have not really studied up on the company you mentioned so do not know about their credentials but i have heard of them . I do hope you will find them as helpful as I have .

If any company says they are Ayurvedic it means that they don't use any synthetic chemicals in their products, and use only the highest quality ingrediants. Ayurvedic is an ancient healing system from India.

About the various therapies --- I didn't know there were so many out there. All I have to say is bless the Internet, because we can research all these different medications and therapies. I researched BuSpar because some people on here have suggested it might be good for my situation, but according to some of my research BuSpar has as many as 150 possible bad side effects! That is why I have decided to take the holistic health path. My body reacts badly to synthetic chemicals.

Ok thank you for clarification- I may have known that I cannot say for sure. Essential oils is something I have done for about 2yrs now but I don't keep up with much unless I use it a lot bc my memory is really bad ever since my coma so I only try to remember what I absolutely have to so as not to overwhelm myself too much - weird sounding I guess. Anyway - I pulled up the site where I discovered all the different types of therapies...

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_psychotherapies

As far as the buspar ... that was another med I was on n had no success with, but a few side effects. That's the problem with mist conventional therapy there is a lot of side effects. Not saying holistic has no side effects but it is less likely and easier to control..

I think that you can give it a go on your own and keep eating well, getting exercise and sleep. Perhaps add keeping a journal, meditating and getting some info on CBT. Give it a reasonable amount of time and if you're still stuck or feeling worse I would find a way to seek out help. I wish you luck on your journey.

@DechanDawa , I had a few more thoughts on exercise.

First of all, it makes a huge difference for me. When I stop exercising for a while, I become so miserable and unproductive. I feel nauseated all the time. Everything tastes chalky. ... yuck. When I finally start exercising again, I can really see the difference in my mood. Life really is barely tolerable when I don't exercise.

Second, you need some music and/or a TV. Gyms always have something mind-numbingly boring on TV like CNN business report or something. There is no way I could walk on a treadmill and stare at something like CNN. You need music with a good repetitive beat and no slow spots. Most music has slow spots and that is no good for cardio exercise.

How many days in the week do you exercise? Morning or evening?

Ideally I exercise every day in the afternoon. At times I have exercised early in the morning, late at night, mid morning, ... all those work fine. The important thing for me is to do the cardio every day. When I miss one day, I start to feel bad, and it is harder to make myself do the cardio on the next day. When I do it every day, I don't argue with myself about maybe being lazy today. When I take two days off, I get so depressed that I might miss a whole week before I can turn around the downward spiral, so I try to do it every day.

A problem with late at night is getting to sleep and eating afterwards. It's not good to eat right before going to sleep, and the exercise usually makes me a little hyper afterwards.

Thank you. PC is so great

Thank you. I love all the encouragement to be proactive.

Your self-care is very inspiring. Thank you for explaining your schedule.

I hope so because right now I'm "untreated". I am giving therapy a break after going thru a bad stretch of trying to find somebody. Also I tried a new antidepressant and it was bad. Real bad side effects even after stopping using it. I'm sick of it all. Right now the cure is worse thane the disease. I'm also going to be looking for a particular kind of therapist that will be hard to find. So for now I'm studying DBT on my own , and using it as much as possible. Also I'm going to try and exercise more , watch what I eat etc......
Good luck to me and all those out there who are doing it on there own if possible. Bravo.

i'm happy you are on the ball with taking care of yourself, and maybe you can find a better t and doc. sometimes we have to weed them out and make our own judgements as to who we see for help. good luck

Have you tried a lot of different antidepressants? I had such bad side effects from the antidepressant given me I went off in less than three weeks, and I wouldn't take another one under any conditions. I am interested to know your experience. I am now studying DBT too. I have a workbook. It is hard - really hard - to change one's views and behavior, but I see that it's necessary because being depressed and anxious isn't normal even if it feels like it is.

Hi DD , Thanks for your reply. Now I have to say that what I'm saying here is only my experience. You know the old what could bad for me could be good for you thing. But It sounds like we have similar experiences.

The problem is that nobody knows ahead of time if a particular anti-depressant will work on you You have to try them out one by one hoping for the best. And they usually take a good two weeks or more to really get into your bloodstream. So it's all trial and error. After over 40 yrs of taking some kind of A-D I've still haven't been able to kick this deep down depression.

Some had tolerable side effects but some had intolerable side effects. Even if they might have helped I wouldn't even be able to say. It was always in conjunction with talk therapy. I would say that dependimg on your Dx etc... I wouldn't totally shut the door on them. Sometimes the pain is so bad you'll take anything to help ease it .

Now as far as the DBT , this treatment model seems all the rave right now. I consider this a valid treatment method BUT I'm not ready for the formal training. I do an extensive amount of reading and try to self learn at this point ( I have to point out also that I'm old school ). I am not ready for any structured scenario. My mind is "scattered " right now , my concentration level is low , including patience. No "diaries" , homework , etc. for me right now.

I'm trying to find a psychotherapist who can deal with a BPD and understands modern day nuero-science , the attachment theory and takes a rather multi-disciplinarian approach. That's just been my life long dream. To re-create my neuro-pathways by reliving the trauma and changing my brains response. I know it sounds complicated , and it is , but it's what I dream about.

You get all the info you can get your hands on and hope for the best. This is a very complex thing were dealing with here. But there is hope , don't ever give up.

PM me anytime for an " off the record discussion " if you'd like. That goes for anybody whos interested in talking to me in an " out of thread " mode.

No more anti-depressants for me. My depression seems to be resolving itself, and the one drug I took had such bad side effects it practically traumatized me. I mainly had anxiety and the the AD took the anxiety to an intolerable level, and the doctor refused to give me anything for anxiety. This was not treatment. It was mistreatment. Thank goodness I am getting stronger and I will do everything I can to not go back to that place of vulnerability.

I bought a workbook on DBT and at first it seemed overwhelmingly complicated and I couldn't focus. There was too much material and things to fill out. But I pursued. So although I think DBT would best be done in a group situation with trained leaders, I have been getting some things out of the book. A lot of people here on Psych Central practice mindfulness, and there are threads on Psych Central that promote it. It is very slow going, but the changes I am making are not the result of a pill, but my own motivation. I don't know about you but motivation is something I lost in life, and getting it back is my main battle. I have learned so much from communicating with everyone here on Psych Central. These people are fantastic.

I agree you need a psychiatrist. Mine is wonderful and I do take benzos for Panic Disorder and GAD. Thinking of you *hugs*

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Well, I don't think I would ever again accept medication of this kind from a primary care physician. I think I should have been referred, but I am with new insurance I am not even sure if they provide a psychiatrist. I actually seem to be improving with all the lifestyle changes and holistic stuff I am doing, so even though it is slow I will go with it.

I would be totally unwilling to try one drug after another and wait to see how effective it is 4 or 6 or 8 weeks out. I know this about these drugs, I also know about the side effects while on them and coming off them. I think if patients continue to accept this as "normal" then we will stay in pharma dark ages regarding treatment of mental health.

I have been working with DBT now for several months (on my own) and it's beginning to make sense. At first DBT can be a little overwhelming, but it is easily understood if one takes it slowly.

One year later...

Since this thread a year ago I saw a psychiatrist for an assessment. He refused to diagnose me with anything, said social isolation and living alone was causing my anxiety, and refused to prescribe me benzodiazepines.............I am not in therapy and haven't been in the past year.

I cleaned up my diet and started the ketogenic diet in August.

For the most part quit alcohol.

Am still doing CBT and DBT on my own.

Depression and anxiety??? Still causing problems although I no longer have panic attacks when I wake up in the morning, and I sleep fine without medication.

I sometimes take the herb valerian at night, but it is only mildly effective.

The big thing I have not done is resolve my social isolation and frankly I think that's the linchpin. I moved in the past year. I do not have family or close friends nearby. I am in a new neighborhood, and know no one, and dearly miss my old neighborhood and its familiarity.

My goal for the coming year is to break out of social isolation. It is going to be a difficult task as I really dug myself in a deep hole.

Today I registered for a half-marathon, and I have 6 months to train, both outdoors, and at a gym. I am interested to see how this vigorous training program affects my mood.

I am tired of managing this. I am not willing to go on AD's as they make me manically anxious. No way. No thank you.

I can't get benzodiazepines prescribed which seems insane as my anxiety is the main problem. My GP and the shrink refuse.

So now it's running and training, continued ketogenic diet, and focus on breaking through social isolation with job, volunteerism, church, meditation center, and/or whatever it takes.