is this a setback?

[libbie123]

So last monday (dec 30) i was anxious at work, which came out of no where. And since then it has gotten worse. My anxiety seems to be getting to where it was before i found my right med combo. I am only on 5 mgs of lexapro ane at first it was great. I felt i had my life back to a semi normal way. I still had to take a xanax evry now and then and i would take restoril 7.5 mg at night to sleep maybe 4 nights a week. Now all of a sudden the intense fear is back and i guess depression too. Has my meds all of a sudden quit working or what? I mean i was out of control today crying hysterically. What have i done wrong? I cant believe that after 2 great months of no setbacks this has happened so suddenly and horribly. I absolutly cannot do this all again. It took 2 months of my life away from me before and i cant let it happen again. I cant eat, i feel nauseus, i dry heave, all of it. Please i need some uplifting and useful info.

[nursegirl6572]

Hi Frank!  Welcome to MedHelp and the anxiety community!  Glad you found us.  Please copy/paste your above post into a new thread of your own, so we can keep everyone straight, and minimize any confusion.

Here's the link to start a new thread:

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/new_with_new_subject?forum_id=71

Thanks, I'll keep my eye out for your new thread!

[Frankiemtz1]

Hello im Frank, I been suffering with anxiety for a couple of years.. I been on Lexapro for 4 mos. 10mg. and it seemed that it was working well however I think im having a setback it started 3 days ago while on a hot(very hot) bath I felt fearful.. frightened anxious scared fast heart rate you know awful!!!! now when I go in the shower its kinda scary!!!!! I am a very clean person shower every day. etc.... has anybody felt thi way before? could this be a set back??/ back to square one again????/ PLs. help!!!!!!!!
Frank................

[libbie123]

Thanks. Yeah ppl dont understand. I always get told to just relax n not do anything. But that is part of the prob cause i cant just sit n relax. Especially when im n the middle of a high anxiety attack. I feel alone and that doesnt help. But i am def going to talk to doc about my meds. Thanks again.

[birdie0907]

I didn't talk to people in daily life about anxiety either. They don't understand anxiety so their main interest would be gossip.
It sounds like you are focusing on the right things, but need doc or the therapist to figure if some kind of med change will work. Good luck.

[libbie123]

I have always believed in God and during my "fog", as i call the time the anxiety controlled my life, i know my faith grew stronger with God. I know that my prayers and those that were prayed for me helped me. And when i finally got on firm footing i didsee my therapist and practised breathing exercises. I also tried to spot my " anxiety triggers". I got pretty good at recognizing those, so thats why this setback caught me off guard. I knew for a few days that i needed to up my meds because that old tingly feeling in the back of my head was there. I have downloaded a few CBT books and i have a daily devotional app on my nook that i study everyday. I thought i was on top of this and managing well. I just may not have realized how this time of the year would effect me. Im sorry, ive rambled. Thats one reason i get on this forum, so i can talk about  all this with other ppl who have gone thru this. I dont really talk about this to anyone in my life

[birdie0907]

It sounds like your therapist/doc might need to tweak the dosages a bit with you to get you back to that low anxiety level you were at before so I will not pursue this issue any more.
Did you work on any anti-anxiety therapy such as counselling, reading philosophy or self help books during the 2 months break you had from the anxiety? That is very important so you have a strong base to help you through the anxious moments. As one meditation book said, I am as deep as the ocean and wide as the mountain so the anxiety flows past me while I remain rooted.

[libbie123]

When i started on my anxiety meds i started out on 20 mgs of prozac. What that did was make me so manic. For about 4 hours after i wud take it n the morning i would pace and cry and have bad thoughts. Shake uncontrollablly but be lethargic. So i was switched to 10 mgs lexapro. It did the exact same thing untill i cut it to 2.5 for about a week and then moved it up to 5 mgs. When i did that my anxiety leveled out. Plus like the xanax wheni took the prescribed dose at .5 mgs it wud knock me out. So i adjusted to just .25 if i needed. Btw my therapist knows the mgs of my meds that i take.

[birdie0907]

What sensitivity to the meds are you referring to? You only referred to "dependency" fears above.

[libbie123]

Isnt that part of the whole anxiety thing? Worrying? On my better days i realize the use of meds. But today isnt one of those days. My therapist has also pointed out about dealing with the present instead of what could happen. I also know how sensitive i am to these meds.

[birdie0907]

It doesn't make sense to go on too low of a dose to avoid overuse, if you need more to cure your problem. If you need a higher dose, then you need a higher dose. Worry about quitting after you are cured, if it comes to that. I quit Celexa with zero pings, zaps or problems so everyone doesn't have problems quitting and I think you are planning for something that may never happen instead of dealing with the present.
What dose did your doc tell you to take?

[libbie123]

The only place i use is the mental health facility i go to. The only doc i have seen ther only prescribes meds and i have seen a therapist 3 times. I dont get to go see the therapist till jan 23 and i havent tried to get an appt with the doc. In all seriousness i dont think he cares. But as far as what my insurance will cover that is the only place i can go to. I do my own research.  Im just completely caught of guard by this setback. I mean i knew i could have them but i had no idea it would cripple me so bad. I have added a 1/4 of lexapro to my dose to see if that helps any. I dont want to be on too high a dose of any meds as to develope a huge dependency. I just thought i should try and get advice from ppl on here. I have gotten great advice before so i hope to again. Btw im on the 5 mg of lexapro because when i tried to take the full 10 mg i was very manic.

[birdie0907]

You had 2 bad months in Sept and Oct then had 2 months on meds where things worked out, but before that you were not bothered by anxiety?
Anx and dep go hand in hand feeding off each other, which is only natural because it is depressing to have anxiety biting all the time and vice versa.

I see you did lots of posting in the past so probably have a good background in the subject. Do you use a 24 hour pharmacy or have a hospital call in number where you can get advice? My guess is if you still needed the occasional Zanax that you were on too low a dose of lex to do the complete job, so maybe your doc will tell you to up the dose. If it helps your hopes, I tried going with 20 Celexa after I stabilized at 30 but I started getting jitters and doc told me to go back up. Write back.