[siljie]

Hei I got prescribed both of them today to treat my PTSD(so of course anxiety and depression), along with Melatonin to treat my chronic insomnia. So this leaves me wondering about everyone elses experiences with these medications, or some insight about them - or if you have any warnings. Wish my luck! Insight appreciated, thank you

[porcupine2]

I'm on prozac for depression and xanax for anxiety, plus lamictal for mood swings. I know they make xanax seem like a street drug like heroin or something and some doctors won't prescribe it which I think is really stupid because it doesn't stay in your system long and can be very beneficial for anxiety attacks. To me the xanax is like an inhaler for an asthmatic. It will settle me down within 10 minutes so I can function again. It is addictive but what isn't? Melatonin is over the counter - some people it helps, some it doesn't, but maybe with the other drugs you take it will be more effective. As far as Lexapro I had too many side effects so went back to prozac. I hope this helps.

[missbelle]

Xanax XR...or xanax that is time released, has worked for me for a long time. I take a low dose and never increased it or abused it.

[siljie]

Originally Posted by porcupine2

I'm on prozac for depression and xanax for anxiety, plus lamictal for mood swings. I know they make xanax seem like a street drug like heroin or something and some doctors won't prescribe it which I think is really stupid because it doesn't stay in your system long and can be very beneficial for anxiety attacks. To me the xanax is like an inhaler for an asthmatic. It will settle me down within 10 minutes so I can function again. It is addictive but what isn't? Melatonin is over the counter - some people it helps, some it doesn't, but maybe with the other drugs you take it will be more effective. As far as Lexapro I had too many side effects so went back to prozac. I hope this helps.

I heard about how it can be more addictive than most anti anxiety, etc. but my p-doc only has me on it for about two weeks. Thanks for the insight.

Originally Posted by missbelle

Xanax XR...or xanax that is time released, has worked for me for a long time. I take a low dose and never increased it or abused it.

That's good to hear. Thank you

I just started lexapro...the side effects were pretty harsh but I guess starting week 3, getting a little better. It's not cheap!!! no generic is available. However this has been much better for me than Zoloft - wow was that bad!
As for the insomnia....I'm on klonapin - it's an anti-anxiety med, but when you need to sleep...boy this is what you want. I was taking melatonin for months...doesn't do it justice!

[Rose76]

I'm wondering why your pdoc started you on Xanax, intending to give it to you just for 2 weeks. It's not like PTSD or an anxiety disorder are going to go away in 2 weeks. Maybe I misread you and I just got things confused. Sorry, it I did.

Xanax is a benzodiazepine, your basic tranquilizer. The benzo family includes Valium, Klonopin, Ativan, and a bunch of others. I've taken those three I just mentioned and several others. I never took Xanax. Xanax stands out from the crowd. Because it kicks in fast, quickly changing how you feel, it tends to be a drug that some people get to really liking. It kicks in fast, and then kicks out fast. That makes some users feel like they need another one when they feel the effect wearing off. With other benzos, they wear off more gradually. If you can stick to your doctor's directions, you may find it a good help to you. If you get used to using it, coming off of it can be tricky. I've know of a number of people having to go inpatient to be able to get off Xanax when they got to overusing it. Withdrawal from Xanax is not pleasant, I am told.

Xanax is a drug that friends and family may tend to want to "borrow" from you, or so I've heard. For years, I took Librium, and nobody ever wanted to borrow it.

[arcangel]

No experience w/ Lexapro but I had a scrip for Xanax many years ago. I tried it for about a week. I felt no effects from the med good or bad. I may as well have been taking an M&M except that M&Ms taste good
Good luck on your new meds.

[Kiya]

i was on lexapro - when i came off it was like waking up; i hadn't known i was a zombie. but it did help with anxiety. i was put on citalopram and the anxiety went thru the roof. then they added buspirone... then they added lamictal. then when i ended up in the ER with a 1.5 week long anxiety attack and 15 hours straight panic, they put me on xanax (on top of the other 2).
with my latest ER (last monday) they added ativan for emergencies.
in the end it's all crap.

[Open Eyes]

I did take Xanex in the beginning for anxiety as needed and to get to sleep at night.
The problem with Xanex and getting to sleep is that I would wake up in the middle of the night and not be able to go back to sleep. I was treating PTSD too and the nice unwanted anxiety attacks that are one of the many gifts of PTSD.

I ended up taking Klonipin in the generic form called clonazapam at night to help me sleep and I did sleep through the night. I would only take 1/2 of a pill during the day if I was struggling with a lot of anxiety however I didn't like the fact that it made me drowzy during the day so I only used it on the very bad days.

I would have to say the draw back with klonipin is in the morning I felt hung over and sleepy and then on that 12th hour I would feel very confused, forgetful and strung out. It took me a while to connect the strange feelings of being confused and it didn't take much to get me all upset after the 12 hour after taking the Klonipin.

And it does effect your short term memory, and I had not noticed that right away and it is not advisable to go into a chat room after taking a klonipin, I found out the hard way. I have never chatted on it before I had just usually taken it before bed and after about an hour to 2 hours I would be ready to zonk out.

If I had to do it over again I would start with only 1/2 a pill at night to see if that is enough to help you sleep.

I have to admit that during some rough time after a bad experience my whole family experienced my husband and daughter did take the Klonipin to help them sleep too.
Both of them did not like feeling hung over the next morning. So they only took 1/2 a pill and even then the mornings were hard but after not sleeping several nights they would take it to sleep.

As everyone reacts differently to different meds you will have to see for yourself how you feel I am just giving you three opinions from my home.

I still take the Klonipin to help me sleep and sometimes during the day, but I do not like the short term memory loss and feeling confused at times.

Open Eyes

[Kiya]

I too took clonazapam - only for a week. it was awful for me. The time it worked for anxiety kept getting shorter and shorter so that I was taking extra xanax to get through. By the end of the week I didn't know anyone, didn't react to my own name, didn't recognize people standing right in front of me. My doc said "It is very important for you to NEVER take this again".

[Umbral_Seraph]

I was on Lexapro at one point but just flat out didn't work at all for me, nor its relatives.

I've taken Xanax, Ativan and Klonopin myself. I was never very impressed with any of them. They did calm me down, but it was minimal. I have no idea how anyone could be addicted to benzos, but that is a major concern, so I guess they work much better for most people. Benzos are generally a bit hard on your liver, so you don't want to take them too often for too long. At one point I tried mixing Ativan and Klonopin, trying to get an effect but to no avail. I found out that I was at about the max dosage for sedation and just stopped taking them...when I was taking them every day. The withdrawl was ridiculous, couldn't sleep for a week, and I'm very medication resistant.

[porcupine2]

Xanax is a drug that friends and family may tend to want to "borrow" from you, or so I've heard. For years, I took Librium, and nobody ever wanted to borrow it.[/quote]

For some reason Xanax became a 'street drug' for the high they got. Now they're not as popular - they'd rather look for oxycodone or loritabs. So yes, I defnitely would not let people know you have them.

[siljie]

Originally Posted by Rose76

I'm wondering why your pdoc started you on Xanax, intending to give it to you just for 2 weeks. It's not like PTSD or an anxiety disorder are going to go away in 2 weeks. Maybe I misread you and I just got things confused. Sorry, it I did.

I'm not so sure either, but I think because the Lexapro is supposed to kick in in a couple of weeks, and this is to hold me over?

My pdoc told me to use it every day but is this wise?

[ECHOES]

I use Xanax on an as-needed basis.
Although it's prescribed as .5mg, 3 times per day, that is so I can get a supply and then it lasts me for ages. My last script was over a year ago and I have the majority of them left.
I learned that if I took Xanax regularly, even less than prescribed, I felt depressed. So, what I do now is take it in 1/4 pieces, sometimes even 1/8. And I learned by trial and error to take it when I knew the anxiety was increasing and showing no signs of letting up in spite of using grounding and distracting techniques. I learned that would hold the anxiety at a level that I could tolerate and that I knew from experience would eventually subside. It is really useful to me this way, and with the positive effects of therapy I began needing it less and less. I rarely take it now. But it's nice to know that it's there if I feel like I need it.

[porcupine2]

Originally Posted by missbelle

Xanax XR...or xanax that is time released, has worked for me for a long time. I take a low dose and never increased it or abused it.

That's the key - stay on the same dosage and don't abuse it. Although I don't know how one could abuse it because it's heavily monitored. As with anything, moderation is important.

[SingDanceRunLife]

I have experience with both of these meds.

Xanax is a great drug - fast acting with few side effects. Fatigue is the only real side effect I've ever noticed with it.

Lexapro is the AD I'm on for my anxiety and OCD. For the first few weeks, it made me nauseous and decreased my appetite, but that went away. It also made me a bit fatigued, but that too went away. I find that it's extremely effective. It's my favorite out of all the ADs I've tried. I felt a difference within about 2-3 weeks of starting it which is fast.

[Kiya]

the side effects i get with xanax (alprazolam in my case) has been weight gain and these lil catch breaths (like a guppy) that make people wonder if I'm ok.
just never know...