Being anti-social and being socially-anxious are two entirely different sides of the spectrum. Being anti-social is being willing to do things that are malevolent just for the sake of saying "fuck socialization", or things like "fuck everyone else". It's ALMOST, but not quite, like being sociopathic. Being socially anxious is being afraid to socialize, usually because you're afraid of being judged by other people.

I am socially anxious (meaning I am somewhat afraid of people). When I was first diagnosed, the doctor didn't give me benzos. Benzos are considered drugs of LAST RESORT among qualified psychiatrists. They will usually give you anti-depressants first, since they have properties that suppress anxiety. If that doesn't work, then they'll try benzos.

Actually, I'm also diagnosed bipolar. I'm taking anti-seizure medication, and it actually works better than either the benzos or the anti-depressants for me at controlling my anxiety. The way they work is to prevent areas of the brain from spontaneously over-firing, so this could explain the anxiety-control properties (as well as the mood-control properties that are why they're used for bipolar patients).

Basically, in anxiety disorders, some areas of the brain start firing in response to stimuli (which you might not be aware of) and stimulate production of adrenaline. You can then either become anxious or become violent (fight-or-flight response). Any drug for anxiety simply prevents the mechanism from firing as easily, meaning you have less adrenaline in your system, and therefore feel better.

allright thx for the replys ... what should i say to the doctor.. i even get nervous around him really bad and cant talk just say yeah and no pretty much ... i havent always been this way started around 8th grade in school .. just started to become more and more anti social ..maybe becuse i always moved and went to new schools idk .. but im 20 now and out of school alot of the time im a huge asshole to my parents for no reason especially when im not high and i hate it but i cant control it any more help ??? thx

quote:Originally posted by Melba666:

benzos, its be what youd get prescribed for if you saw a Dr.



I highly doubt that. More than likely they will give something more like Zoloft or something shitty like that. You're not going to get benzos on your first visit just because you get a little shy.

And its also very clear that you're just trying to get a script to something good. Otherwise you wouldnt be asking "what to say to the doctor". If you really wanted help, you would just tell him how you're feeling and not be wondering the right thing to say to get something "good".

[This message has been edited by F4t4LShot (edited 05-30-2006).]

Tell him exactly what you told us. Print out this thread if you can't get it out vebally, and show it to him. It's really bad not to tell him EVERYTHING you're taking, including marijuana if you use it. He won't turn you in to the cops, since your medical information is federally protected (actually, it's more heavily protected than your Social Security records or credit card history). He'd need a court order to do it.

Just make sure you write on it that you're the initial poster, so he knows that it's you that has this problem. He'll know that it's easier to talk via Internet than in person, since it's less personal, and more anonymous. He'll understand.

quote:Originally posted by F4t4LShot:

And its also very clear that you're just trying to get a script to something good. Otherwise you wouldnt be asking "what to say to the doctor". If you really wanted help, you would just tell him how you're feeling and not be wondering the right thing to say to get something "good".

Get something "good" might mean get something effective for the condition. He might just mean he doesn't know how to explain to the doctor his symptoms... Maybe we should give him the benefit of the doubt?

If you want something effective for anxiety, anti-seizure meds can be very effective. So can anti-depressants, which will probably be what you get for your first consultation about this.

If you're not socially anxious yourself, you probably wouldn't understand that it's really HARD to know how to talk to the doctor if you're afraid of him.

[This message has been edited by oddballz194 (edited 05-30-2006).]

oddball thanks alot man you seriosuly helped me alot i am socially anxious that has to be it beucse im scared to talk to people becuse im scared of what they will think of me and yeah i can talk my mouth of on the internt but not in person to someone i dont know yes.. ive been going to the doc for depression for a few years he always give me something shitty like symbrax or prozac i havent old him how socially anxious i am tho im pretty sure he can tell buy the way i act but idk im going to go to him and just be honest he knows i smoke pot i tell him that .. but i just need be honest i think and try to force this shit out and talk to him about it thanks man

Fuck pills and "medicine".

I get anxious around people too, terrified.. or used to. So much that it made me anti-social, and avoidant, feels like panic attacks, I'm just making it clear that I completely understand and can relate. I've tried out certain meds, they seem like they could help for a couple weeks, but after a while its just rediculous and you're running off a false sense of being.

Pot usually makes it easy to become withdrawn at times, like you can just avoid and put things off easy and let your future self worry about it. Not saying its causing it, but its not helping, shouldn't really matter though.

Anyway, taking those pills is just feeling hopeless a lazy source of altering the chemicals and receptors your brain is functioning with/on. Seriously its all in the mind, you can adjust your brain just aswell, just have faith.

I'm not saying this would be a good personality to have, but if you try to see through people and just think they're "stupid and ignorant", it makes it alot easier to feel comfortable. That they're no different than you are, except you just analyze things more and need to relax, no one is out there worrying about you (unfortunately), if any thing they're worrying about themselves, and if they're seeming cool or friendly.

Another good thing to remember is, look at all the dumbasses out there, all the people who just don't make sense and say/do random "stupid" stuff. A few people may think they're dumbasses, but no one hates them for it, they still have friends. You're not going to lose respect or honesty just for apearing a little weird, everyone's different.

Just remember, its all in your head, its not a "problem" (even though it feels unnaturally horrible at times, its just a part of growing up and hormones). It's just being overanalytical and dwelling on how you present yourself.



[This message has been edited by b1naryh3ll (edited 05-30-2006).]

quote:Originally posted by freefallwithoutaparachute:

oddball thanks alot man you seriosuly helped me alot

You're welcome. As I said, it might be easier to just hand him a printout of this thread, with your real name written with an equal sign next to your Totse name.

I do try to help when I'm here.

quote:Originally posted by b1naryh3ll:

Just remember, its all in your head, its not a "problem" (even though it feels unnaturally horrible at times, its just a part of growing up and hormones). It's just being overanalytical and dwelling on how you present yourself.

This sounds like my aunt, who said "just get over it" to me. Anxiety disorders are a little more serious than you describe them. I doubt you've ever had a real panic attack, if you can just "think it away." They don't work like that.

I agree that changing your way of thinking helps as much as medication. That's what psychotherapy is for (in particular, I'd recommend Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for anxiety disorders). But if you have a truly serious version of the problems, you actually DO need the medication to even TRY to reach that point.

And it's not "just a part of growing up and hormones". For people with the real thing, it lasts long after "growing up" is basically completed. I'm 27 and have those problems.

[This message has been edited by oddballz194 (edited 05-30-2006).]

quote:Originally posted by The Benadryl Bandit:

I will get a life once you get my Moo Latay hoe



.........Here..............Enjoy....



Life???

[This message has been edited by ShermNSchlitz703 (edited 05-30-2006).]

quote:Originally posted by ShermNSchlitz703:



.........Here..............Enjoy....



Life???



This moo tastes like poo

Your fucking worthless hoe

no im not just trying to get drugs man just looking for help .. being this way sucks ....

quote:Originally posted by oddballz194:

This sounds like my aunt, who said "just get over it" to me. Anxiety disorders are a little more serious than you describe them. I doubt you've ever had a real panic attack, if you can just "think it away." They don't work like that.

I agree that changing your way of thinking helps as much as medication. That's what psychotherapy is for (in particular, I'd recommend Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for anxiety disorders). But if you have a truly serious version of the problems, you actually DO need the medication to even TRY to reach that point.

And it's not "just a part of growing up and hormones". For people with the real thing, it lasts long after "growing up" is basically completed. I'm 27 and have those problems.



Ok, I agree with what you're saying. But I did have serious "disorders". But at one point I had no friends for a few years. Every one always asked I why I was so shy, "why dont you talk", and every one always thought I was cool. There was no reason to feel the way I did but, I would have hot flushes and choke up and feeling a deep anxiety pain in my chest and just want to get the hell out of there, it felt awful and unpreventable. But after a while, I started thinking about it so often and I'm working my way out. I too would say to people "you cant just not care, you sound like every one else", I'm not saying to just "not care" its too hard that way... you might aswell just do the drugs if you 'dont want to care'. I'm trying to help him know that he has to "realize" some things and just have hope.

I just think meds, especially ssri's, really screw with your serotonin.

quote:Originally posted by b1naryh3ll:

you might aswell just do the drugs if you 'dont want to care'. I'm trying to help him know that he has to "realize" some things and just have hope.

I just think meds, especially ssri's, really screw with your serotonin.

But the drugs don't make you "not care", that's what you need to learn. They take some of the edge off of the anxiety so you can have enough rationality back in your thoughts to be able to realize when you're anxious about nothing.

Yes, SSRIs "screw with" serotonin. SNRIs "screw with" norepinephrine, and dopamine reuptake inhibitors "screw with" dopamine. They make more of it available by causing your body to not break down the chemicals involved. Not all of the medications do the same things -- in fact, there's a wide variety of ways the medications work.

In fact, the main component of treatment for anxiety MUST BE therapy of some sort. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is probably the most effective form of psychotherapy currently available for anxiety patients, and its main idea is to teach people to recognize when they're being irrational and adjust their thoughts and behaviors so that they'll feel better. Group therapy can sometimes be even more effective, once the patient is ready for it -- seeing other people who suffer from anxiety can make it easier to deal with it. However, the medical treatment can, in the worst cases of anxiety disorders, be instrumental in preparing to use the other forms of treatment. Some people aren't capable of correcting their thoughts, attitudes and behaviors themselves without medication because the thoughts and feelings have become so etched into their minds that they can't even question them because of their intensity. I have problems even going out my front door if I don't have my medication -- and yes, that problem occurred BEFORE I was medicated.

I've come a long way, from nearly passing out from shock on walking into the world to being able to walk down the street without constantly looking over my shoulder to see if the driver of that car driving by is watching me.

quote:Originally posted by ShermNSchlitz703:



Your a queer. You eat benadryl and brag about it. You also brag about stealing benadryl and other antihistamines... Get a motherfucking life!!!or a decent drug

I agree with b1naryh3ll on this one. I was the same way. In my old school when i had tons of friends and could get any girl i wanted. I just didnt realize it until now. Being forced into a new school was like a slap in the face. I had to make new friends and didnt do a very good job. I passed out standing up infront of class to read a paragraph from a book. I still go back to my old town and its great. I know everyone and am no longer a frightened little boy. Life is alot better once you learn that it doesnt matter what other people think. If other people done like me they can suck my dick. Your not the only one out there that feels the way you do. You probly pass several people a day walking down the street that feel just like you. I dont think drugs are the answer. People use to call me quite and ask why I didnt talk and it just made me panic. Im comtply different now. I can make new friends and most importantly talk to girls. Its harder to pick them up now im my new town but I do and try all the time. Its going to take time but you wont always feel like you do now.

Since oddballz seems sure that medication could possibly be necessary, I'll make some suggestions...

You could try St.Johns Wort and/or 5-htp. Don't need a perscription for either, and they're relatively cheap. Just remember that they arent going to fix you instantly, they'll just give you a break in helping yourself. Make sure you dont give up after just a week or two thinking it's not going to help, go for atleast a month and see how that works. There will deffinately be alot less side affects than prescriptions and ssri's. I'd suggest googling it and researching them to find out doses and other info. To my knowledge 50-100mg of 5-htp once or twice a day, and 300-500mg of St. Johns Wort 2-3 times a day. Good Luck.

hahahaha, i love the bandit

quote:Originally posted by rational gaze:

Booze.



I get kinda anti-social when im high, but booze gets rid of it. Atleast for at parties

quote:Originally posted by b1naryh3ll:

Just remember that they arent going to fix you instantly, they'll just give you a break in helping yourself. Make sure you dont give up after just a week or two thinking it's not going to help, go for atleast a month and see how that works. There will deffinately be alot less side affects than prescriptions and ssri's.

Those are good suggestions. Although the truth is that Saint John's Wort *IS* an SSRI anti-depressant, just a mild one. 5-HTP is the building block for serotonin that the body uses in making it. Either will have roughly the same effects as taking a prescription SSRI, only weaker in most cases (since you'll receive a lower amount of serotonin remaining in your system). If you take enough of either to make them as effective as prescription SSRIs they will cause EXACTLY the same side effects, and probably cost roughly as much.

The big thing that you got right is that medications WON'T fix you. (I say this, going even farther than your statement itself did.) Simple as that. All they will do is make it easier for you to understand and cope with the anxiety. If you want to be truly free of the anxiety, it will take a LOT of time and effort, and a long journey of self discovery so that you will understand why you are anxious. The medications are like opening the door; the journey itself is the key to freedom.

With either prescription medications or herbal/5-HTP remedies (and yes, I've tried both), it will take more than a month before you even begin to notice much, more than likely. Stick with whatever you decide to try until you're sure that it's not working, after giving it a chance and good honest effort. The good thing is that you're not actually depressed, so it's not as vital that the remedies work right away -- you're not likely to kill yourself over this.

ill agree with you again oddball if i see a next door neibor outside i wont even go out becuse im scared to talk to them for some reason