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Best med for panic disorder

I have been expierancing anxiety for 10 years. Tried every med out there. Most worked great however the side effects suck. In the about 3 years I gained almost 100lbs. No sex drive...no drive at all really. So after several different meds I tried Wellbutrin SR. I actually lost 15lbs while on it. I don't know if it was the med or other changes in my life. Wellbutrin worked great for about 5 months. Then all of the sudden I started having panic issues. The first one was just lightheadedness and a detached feeling from myself. But the most recent one brought me to the hospital. I am tapering off the Wellbutrin and using Xanax as needed (which has become alomost everyday). I'm looking to start a new med. Any suggestions for the best med for panic disorder. Would theropy possibly be enough? Also are there any out there that don't make you gain weight? My doctor wants me to try Effexor again. But looking back I think that is when I started putting the weight on. It's been a little over 2 weeks since my tramatic attack. Will I ever feel normal again?  
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Avatar universal
Therapy has never worked for me and i have done lots,medication has been my salvation..Tofranil stopped all my attacks but we are all different aren't we?
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Avatar universal
Therapy has never worked for me and i have done lots,medication has been my salvation..Tofranil stopped all my attacks but we are all different aren't we?
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Avatar universal
I totally, 100% agree with JSGeare, there is no magic pill out there that will do what we want it to completly. The medications are designed to take the edge off while we, the patient, get busy and get to work on our selfs. If not, then  be prepared to welcome back that "same old feeling"  Ugh. Not nice.  There are many good medication's out there, it's finding the one that's right for you, what's right for me may not be at all right for you.  

Therapy, I feel is the best, You learn so much about yourself,  I hope that you can find a good therapist and togeather with a good medication, I'm sure you will be on track in no time.

Stay in touch lovely, I know there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Kathy
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Avatar universal
klonopin is the only medication indicated solely for panic disorder - many people on this forum have had success with this medication.
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366811 tn?1217422672
At the end of this response I'm going to explain how to join this forum as an actual member, which I hope you will do, because, based on what you report, we need you, and you need us.

Here's the deal, short and sweet: In addition to whatever drugs help with the symptoms, you need therapy. I'm talking about some pretty serious emotional archaeology here, designed to dig down and root out the prime movers which are triggering anxiety and panic. Do you want to spend your life looking for the magic bullet? Or do you want to get rid of the problem?

Get a psychiatrist who specializes in this disorder. Meanwhile, think back to your first ever episodes of panic. What was going on in your life at that time, or somewhat before the first onset. If you can't think of any incidents or events, then what was your life like? Who were the important people in your life, and what were THEY like.

That'll get you started. OK, about membership:

One of the BEST ways to get the most out of this forum to work is to JOIN it - become a part of it. Its easy -just click the Join Link -enter some profile information about yourself -even a picture if you care to- and anything you think would help us get to know you faster and better, and you can change this material whenever you like. You will also be accessible to receive private messages when other members click the name you've given yourself -sort of a "push to talk" feature. After you've done that, spend some time just using various features of the forum. For example, to see all the posts or responses that someone has made, just click their handle, go to their profile, click Posts, and read to your heart's content. You may also enter search terms -including member names- in the search box at the upper right of your screen and the system will retrun everything matching the term(s) you entered. This INCLUDES a drug database that will give you both user posts about drugs as well as the medical information about the drug. A great way to get quick answers about therapeutic effect, side effects, interactions, etc.

One of the profile categories is your mood, which you may change anytime you like.

Along the right side of your screen is a section of Recent Activity, which not only alerts you to new posts, but new ANYTHING, including journal entries and mood. This is a way to telegraph the community at large without actually creating a separate post. Thus, if you see a friend's mood has changed while you are working on a response or post, it can alert you to send them a private message to learn more or simply let them know you're thinking of them. Likewise, if you are going to be "out," you could enter something like "off line for the night" as your mood, and people would know you're away from the forum for awhile.

If you do this kind of exploring and experimenting right away, you'll be up-to-speed quickly. If you see the message you are reading now as part of a direct response I (or anyone) has made to one of your posts, it was probably copied and pasted from this journal. I hate form letters and auto-responses as much as anyone -but I also hate forgetting to tell people what they need to know, so this is my safety-net. Consider it as part of your "Welcome" kit. So -please join and try things out.

You might also want to read my entries for the "Right Click Trick" and "When in Haste, Use Copy 'n Paste" for some other convenient time-savers.

We're glad you are here!
Helpful - 0
299889 tn?1257339377
I take Lexapro and it is working well for me.  Good luck
Helpful - 0
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