To ask about anxiety medication

[Sunshinesusie23]

I've suffered from anxiety for years but not continually. I go through phases where it's bad and times when I'm ok. Certain situations exacerbate it - lately anything from a work meeting to a hairdressers appointment has resulted in a bad attack. Symptoms are urgently needing the toilet, sweating, shaking and prickling feeling on hands and chest. Just generally horrible tbh.

It's getting to the stage where I feel I need something to take the edge off. I know a lot of anxiety meds require taking daily but because I can go through periods of calm I don't know if I really need this. I'm sorry if this sounds ignorant but I wondered if there are any medications you can just take as and when you need them rather than routinely? Doesn't even necessarily need to be prescribed - has anyone had any success with St. John's wort and the like? Interested in hearing responses and experience :)

You really need to ask your GP this question.

You don't have be anxious every single day to benefit from daily medication. There is a diagnostic questionnaire that some healthcare professionals use and the questions ask you how often you have felt certain ways over the past few weeks - every day, most days, some days, a few days or never (or something along those lines) and you certainly don't have to say 'all days' to be diagnosed with anxiety.

I also have an anxiety problem and some days I'm terrible, some days I'm OK, but the right prescription for me is still something I take every day.

There probably are things you can take 'as and when' but they would probably be a last resort.

I personally wouldn't recommend St John's Wort. There's no evidence at all that it works and it can interfere with other medications.

My GP recently recommended I try Proprananol. It's not an anti anxiety medication it's a beta blocker. It doesn't stop the anxious thoughts but it helps to control some of the physical symptoms of anxiety such as racing heart, shaking, sweating, etc.
I can't tell you if it actually helps though as I had some side effects so he told me to stop taking it immediately.

Sorry meant to also say, you don't have to take it every day. You can just take it when you feel you need it, for example take one an hour before your work meeting or appointment.

Maybe get referred to your local nhs cbt service, cbt (cognitive behavioural therapy) will help you understand your anxiety better and quite possibly stop it altogether however in terms of medication beta blockers propanol can help certain symptoms such as heart racing but anti depressants can help reduce anxiety also, please see your gp for these obviously xx

Propranolol*

I tried cbt before and it did nothing for me. I take Immoidum as a precaution because one of my symptoms is needing a loo urgently (which in itself also causes panic and anxiety!) but they obviously don't stop the other symptoms or even that one sometimes.

I know some the medications can become addictive. I had hoped for a magic pill I can take when needed to instantly calm me down but perhaps it doesn't exist

I can't think of any anxiety meds that are addictive. Some require gradual withdrawal if you want to stop taking them, but that's to allow your body to acclimatise to the loss of them. Definitely talk to your GP as they deal with this sort of thing all the time.

I take propanol as and when. I find it helps. It treats the physical symptoms (mine are racing heart, shaking, sweating) and this in turn calms my mind. I also find it works fairly quickly once I’ve taken the pill although this may be the placebo effect!

Thanks all. My friend has a serious phobia of flying and recently her gp have her Valium (it may not have actually been Valium but something along those lines) to take before the flight. I guess I was wondering if there is anything like that but on a lesser scale available to people who only suffer with anxiety in bursts or in certain situations. Perhaps not.