What's the best medication you have ever taken for anxiety / depression?

[mrsibley]

Willing to try anything as long as side effects don't include weight gain (unless it was a bloody amazing anti depressant) and/ or insomnia (non negotiable)as being an overweight insomniac is huge part of the problem.

Have pretty much constant intrusive negative/ anxious thoughts and em, insomnia.

Currently on chlorpromazine to help me sleep but looking for a change as this is not helping with depression.

Any recommendations?

venlafaxine

Venlafaxine ended my chronic insomnia and anxiety. Wasn't really depressed other than being fed up with not sleeping!

No weight gain for me. The only downside is I can't come off them. Withdrawals are awful. Have been on them twice first time I came off them easily but now I can't without being hideously ill.

can you chop bits of the tablets/tip some beads out capsules? They are hard to come off, you need to taper them slowly.

Than you. Will look into that one. Hope you manage to find a way to come off very gradually yellow.

Anyone tried citalopram?

Another vote for Venlafaxine here. It literally sucked me out of a massive pit of despair. Started taking it just after my father's suicide and I honestly think it saved my life. My OH and I sent a card to the psychiatrist who prescribed it because I spent literally years trying to find one that worked.

Citalopram did nothing for me - other than give me an annoying teeth-grinding habit!

I hope you find the one that works for you soon.

Sertraline made me sick and unable to sleep.

Fluoxetine and anxiety = BAD

Citalopram is taking the edge off PND and anxiety.

Citalopram is good. did gain weight but cutting carbs and sugar dropped it off.

younggirl what an awful thing to have happened to you, Im so sorry. I'm sitting here with tears in my eyes. I don't want my kids to have to deal with anything like that and I feel so guilty because depression is crippling me and must already be affecting them.

I am so worried about putting on more weight and also the effect on my sex drive (non existent anyway but praying it can come back as trying to save my relationship here) as I am scared these side effects of anti depressants will be really counter productive.

mrsibley- I am not being dismissive of medical reasons, but would say that you should also look at your life.
I had a long long history of depressive episodes.
From the day I left my marriage, I have not had a single day of depression.

Sometimes its well worth looking at cause rather than forever trying to deal with the effects.

edited I honestly do little but look at my life....am working on the principal of the serenity prayer, ie changing what I can and trying to accept the rest. I have been on and off medication as had these kind of problems with depression and anxiety all my life. It's just so bad right now that I feel I need medication to try and help with some of the symptoms so I am actually well enough to start sorting my life out.

hiya, you sound a little like me in your experience. battle isn't it.

i am waiting to see a specialist as i now have anxiety on top of depression.

I have upped my Prozac, but not sure if it's time and my effort ( like you always looking at life and trying for the serene approach, mindfulness) or the tablets.
Or a combo of both.

pm if you like xx

I'm on venlafaxine too and it's great, takes a while for the side effects to die down and tweak the dosage but it helps me and doing cbt is getting me the rest of the way. Definitely have to stick with it through, being on and off has always made me regress

Venlaflaxine was a good ad for e, not great for anxiety. I put 2 stone on with it unlike other posters and horrific to come off for me. And dreadful for sex drive from my experience.

Sertraline at higher level was good.

Sertraline & just 1/2 the lowest dose of Olanzapine works for me. Not weight gain. I have taken a lot of anti d's & I'm sensitive to side effects.

mrs I am sure your kids just want their mum to be well, and you are in a much better position to cope if you can sort the pesky brain chemistry. It can take a long time to find the right drug, be kind to yourself.

Cupcake why do you say fluoxetine + anxiety = Bad?

Works very well for me. It totally depends on the person and how each individual reacts from a drug will be different

Started on just sertraline then added lamotrigine. Now take only 50mg sertraline daily but 125mg lamotrigine daily, it's the lamotrigine that works for me

Lamotrigine. Twice daily

Trazodone my friend - at night time. Helps with the insomnia massively and deals with daytime anxiety etc. G.P advice and prescription needed.

I was referring to my own experience. Your right for some it works, for me it made me even worse.

I also had severe episode of intrusive, negative thoughts recently. Horrible, I really sympathise. For me, sertraline + CBT + vigorous exercise have helped. Exercise is nature's valium IMO, at least for me - great when the adrenaline is racing, if you're lucky enough to be able to do some (I go out on my bike as a rule. I'm in my 50s by the way, so no huge athleticism involved!). Have also totally given up coffee, and all but 1 cuppa tea per day is decaff. I wake myself up with a cold shower instead. Really. (not so bad actually.)

CBT was great for me because , little by little, I learned that it is possible to have at least some control over my thoughts. But I don't think I'd have made such fast progres without the meds. I do think though it will be an invaluable skill in future if I manage to come off - and I do still use the learning from time to time if anxiety breaks through.

Took a while for the Sertraline to kick in I think (possibly made anxiety worse for 1st few weeks?) - now been on for abt 3-4 months and no noticeable weight gain yet. Citalopram made me fat, but maybe I'm more on my guard this time round?

However Sertaline does seem to give me diarrhoea - bit of a nuisance but I suppose it might be keeping the lid on any weight gain.

Lastly for getting back to sleep in the night, I like this deep breathing podcast a lot- can learn how to do it without having to plug in your earphones (though the voice is quite soothing company in the cruel wee hours), quite simple to do.

www.mentalhealth.org.uk/help-information/podcasts/stress-relaxation-full-works/

Proprananol for me. Beta blockers. Work great at keeping the mega panic away most of the time. And I do CBT to help with everyday stuff. Not the quickest of treatments but certainly helped. I didn't like citalapram they didn't help at all- but everyone is different x

Thanks ladies. Am seeing gp tomorrow and not sure what to ask for. Never met a gp who really knows much about this so more interested in opinions of people like yourselves. Of course everyone's different though.

Just so scared of the damn side effects.

i think quetiapine slows down my racing anxious thoughts; am currently on a 60 day dose of pregabalin from the consultant (also take venlafaxine and lamotrogine- no massive weight gain so far) good luck.