mixing different anxiety meds

[Mrsbrooks1]

hi all, i am on 20mg of fluoxetine but have been increased to 40 in increments of 10mg. i am too scared to do this due to side effects from an increase (absolute catch 22!!! anxious about anxiety meds) my dr also prescribed 2mg of diazepam for emergencies which i really dont want to take. is there anything else i can take as a calmer rather taht diazepam to ease the side effects? my GP is pretty useless and instantly sent me away with these drugs that im afraid of. i've read a bit about pregabalin?? i'm moving house and the upheaval and uncertainty has set me off in a bad way :(

For short term use, the diazepam sounds sensible to be honest.

Anything else you add in, like pregablin etc will have it a own set of possible side
effects.

Am I right in thinking fluoxetine is only available as capsules?

If so, and you wanted to be super cautious, can you talk to the GP about taking 20 and 30mg on alternate days for a few days/week before 30mg for a week then the 30 and 40mg alternate days before going up to 40mg daily?

It's a case of balancing out reducing the severity of side effects with prolonging the time till you are up to 40mg.

Oh and you could also take half a 2mg diazepam tablet next time you have an acute episode/really bad day and just see how you get on with it.

thanks @Foodylicious for your reply. i have never actually taken a diazepam so i'm wary of how it will make me feel, stupid i know. i have been given 10mg capsules to be able to do it slowly but even that has scared me. is there anyone who has had a fluoxetine increase? good or bad stories welcome!!