SSRI's are pretty good for anxiety and shit. I'm on Strattera for ADD and I can't even feel physical pain let alone emotions. I can still get angry as fuck when phones start ringing or people started asking me questions though.

well atomoxetine is an NRI so i dont see how this is relevant...

SSRIs are currently the only drugs that can lead to long-term solutions for anxiety/depression.

I'm hesitant to agree but I kind of agree. My experience with SSRIs has been pretty expansive -- I used to get anxiety often and went through a time of depression and I've increased and decreased my dosages without professional "supervision" countless times, skipped doses, and taken many drugs while on my SSRIs.

I've considered that SSRIs are a helpful tool for anyone going through a period of emotional turmoil or extreme self-reflection (aka high school). However, I don't know if SSRIs got me through those unstable teenage years or if they caused them to be that way (radical, sociopathic). Now that I'm out of high school, I've managed to completely wean myself from Zoloft and I'm happier than ever and, once again, I'm lightly distraught at the question of causation vs. correlation with SSRIs.

My advice to you: try as many ways as possible to get over your anxiety problem. I think that SSRIs may help you stabilize your life and let you look at your panic in a more objective way so you might want to head down that path. They're not all that bad once you get used to them, you just have to start slow with dosages (your doctor should help you with that). It takes about a week or two for you to get through the initial "loopy" period when your mind and body feel completely out-of-whack but with a little bit of exercise, good nutrition, and friends to talk to, you should be able to manage relatively easily.

However, if you still want to stick to benzos, you can. One of the downsides is that they mostly mask the problem, sorta like SSRIs, but even more so. So if you do take them and you stop, not only will you have a tolerance and worse attacks from the withdrawal, you still won't know how to deal with your anxiety!

SSRI's are pretty good for anxiety and shit. I'm on Strattera for ADD and I can't even feel physical pain let alone emotions. I can still get angry as fuck when phones start ringing or people started asking me questions though.

Strattera isn't an SSRI.

Strattera isn't an SSRI.

See above post.

This is a forum dedicated to recreational drug use. I freely admit I "abuse" many different chemicals... but not one of them is a benzodiazepine. I named the two most abused benzos because they're also the most common benzos, the only ones I'm familiar with, and the ones Wikipedia claims will most likely be prescribed for anxiety. I'm open to any medication that will help - kwerjack named some I'm looking up right now - but I don't think SSRIs will help, because I know a lot of people who have told me to stay far, far away from them.

Not that I have to justify myself to you. :p

You just cant make up your mind, can you kid?
Hazey just told you the information you wanted to hear so that you can try to bullshit your way to a benzo script; many others here have told you to try SSRI's yet you pretty much turn a blind eye to them. If your so open to anything to help then why are you trying to avoid SSRI's like the jews wanted to avoid Auschwitz?

FYI, valium and xanax arent the most common benzos, nor are they the most likely to be prescribed for anxiety. No doctor in their right mind would prescribe you xanax because you have social anxiety, simply because of the fact that it lasts for such a short time period and you would need to big of a dose in a daily basis. Valium and Ativan are the most common benzos used worldwide, and ill tell you that if your expecting to go into a shrinks office and tell him you have 'anxiety; and expect to walk out with a benzo script then your a fucking fool.

And im sure when you were young, folks told you to stay far away from drugs didnt they? There bad news, they will destroy your life, etc.. Obviously you didnt listen, so why would you listen to some 'supposed' people who told you to stay away from SSRI's? Fact is you hear what you want to hear, and I still stand by my assertion that your a fucking douchbag

~dU$tY

Helpful information
Helpful information
Thanks guys, your posts were a huge help. :) I'd still like to use benzos for specific situations and attacks; I have constant low-grade anxiety, which I guess is what SSRIs are supposed to help with, but some things (like my upcoming trip) are just impossible for me to force myself to do. :( I've tried a lot of mental tricks, like just making myself go out and forge through, and it HAS helped. I never feel better, which is why I want the medication, but I am able to, say, go buy milk at the store now - which is something, at least.

SSRI's are pretty good for anxiety and shit. I'm on Strattera for ADD and I can't even feel physical pain let alone emotions. I can still get angry as fuck when phones start ringing or people started asking me questions though.
Well, even though it's apparently a NRI, it sounds pretty good to me... :D

You just cant make up your mind, can you kid?
Hazey just told you the information you wanted to hear so that you can try to bullshit your way to a benzo script; many others here have told you to try SSRI's yet you pretty much turn a blind eye to them. If your so open to anything to help then why are you trying to avoid SSRI's like the jews wanted to avoid Auschwitz?
I'm not sure where I contradicted myself there. Didn't you read the rest of my post? I said I'd give them a try, since they apparently do help. I'm just leery of the side effects (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_serotonin_reuptake_inhibitor#Adverse_eff ects), and I think for good reason.

I'm not sure where I contradicted myself there. Didn't you read the rest of my post? I said I'd give them a try, since they apparently do help. I'm just leery of the side effects (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_serotonin_reuptake_inhibitor#Adverse_eff ects), and I think for good reason.


Trust me on this one bro, any negative side effects you may receive from SSRI's are a BLESSING compared to benzo addiction. I don't mean to be a dick, but use benzos as a last option always. For those of us who are in the grip of this hell, it makes no sense for people to go out of their way to score a benzo script when there are other first line treatments that are much better for your health then benzos are. Best of luck with the anxiety, I know how you feel, just alot worse.

~dU$tY

Sup nigga

Absolute - Thuzz is what it was, what it do player?

How you doing?

=D

I'm just leery of the side effects (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_serotonin_reuptake_inhibitor#Adverse_eff ects), and I think for good reason.

From that list, I'd say only the bold ones below last longer than the first few weeks for most:


* anhedonia
* nausea
* drowsiness or somnolence
* headache
* clenching of teeth
* extremely vivid and strange dreams
* dizziness
* changes in appetite
* weight loss/gain (measured by a change in bodyweight of 7 pounds)
* may result in a double risk of bone fractures and injuries
* changes in sexual behaviour (see the next section)
* increased feelings of depression and anxiety (which may sometimes provoke panic attacks)
* tremors
* autonomic dysfunction including orthostatic hypotension, increased or reduced sweating
* akathisia
* liver or renal impairment
* suicidal ideation (thoughts of suicide)
* Photosensitivity (increased risk of sunburn) (Use protective clothing, such as long sleeves and hats, and sunscreen to decrease the risk of sunburn.)

Some of those are specific to individual SSRIs -- some are sedating, some are more 'activating', some can lead to weight-gain, others to weight-loss. You can probably avoid some side-effects by choosing the right drug.

Also, you should probably ignore the part about liver/kidney impairment.

Remember they are anti-anxiety/anti-depressant meds, so if they made most people suicidal and depressed past a few weeks, they'd be pretty crap.

So my appointment got delayed, but finally I've gone. He's got me on Lexapro and Clonazepam (short term). Yes, I listened to Totse and have decided to give the SSRI a try. :p The Clonazepam has been a godsend; I'm hoping to get a stash for "emergency" use (i.e. have to give a speech or something :P).

Anyone have any experiences with Lexapro?

Trust me on this one bro, any negative side effects you may receive from SSRI's are a BLESSING compared to benzo addiction. I don't mean to be a dick, but use benzos as a last option always. For those of us who are in the grip of this hell, it makes no sense for people to go out of their way to score a benzo script when there are other first line treatments that are much better for your health then benzos are. Best of luck with the anxiety, I know how you feel, just alot worse.

~dU$tY
Thanks man. I appreciate the thought. As said above, I've got SSRIs for the long term now... still nervous, but what the heck.

So my appointment got delayed, but finally I've gone. He's got me on Lexapro and Clonazepam (short term). Yes, I listened to Totse and have decided to give the SSRI a try. :p The Clonazepam has been a godsend; I'm hoping to get a stash for "emergency" use (i.e. have to give a speech or something :P).

Anyone have any experiences with Lexapro?


Thanks man. I appreciate the thought. As said above, I've got SSRIs for the long term now... still nervous, but what the heck.

I was on Lexapro for a short time before benzos, and to be honest SSRI's made me feel like total shit(all of them). Backseat driver feeling, horrible headaches, lethargy, bad depression, I could go on and on. Yet one of my best freinds has been taking lexapro for a long time and it works wonders for him. It's all dependent on the person, which is why I still recommend people try SSRI's before going to benzos.

And 8 years ago, my doc perscribed me 1mg klonopin a day for 'short term' treatment. 8 years later, I take 10mg of klonopin a day, along with a tonload of other benzos; never believe anything a doctor tells you

Best of luck man, anxiety is a fucking bitch

When your really fucking depressed or extremely anxious SSRI's help. In my experince they let you get detached and indiffrent to your situation and surroundings. In my experince SSRI's are not something to take longer than a few months at a time. Bottom line is that you will have to take them AT LEAST once before a doctor will perscribe ANYTHING other than SSRI's. Be warned read up on any mood stabilizers or anti-psycotics they may try on you because those are often worse than SSRI's by a landslide.

Be warned read up on any mood stabilizers or anti-psycotics they may try on you because those are often worse than SSRI's by a landslide.

Seriously. If you find a doctor ready to prescribe you Seroquel or Risperdal for general anxiety it's time to get the fuck out of the office.

When I was about 16 or 17 I had my old crooked doc script me Thorazine 50 mg tablets for severe anxiety attacks. It was basically like nodding out on opiates only in dysphoria instead of euphoria.