Anxiety

[juneyjen]

Ds just diagnosed with extreme anxiety & prescribed Prozac. Im very uncomfortable with this. Anybody had experience of a child taking anti depressants? Side effects? Long term effects? Would really appreciate any feedback. My Ds is 10. Thanks.

No advice i'm afraid but i didn't want your post to go unanswered. I also have a ds with extreme anxiety although haven't been offered meds thus far. I do know of 2 adults that take prozac though and definitely benefit from it.

I would want to know what the alternatives were... although it is a drug commonly used to treat anxiety and depression, there are some risks associated with it, especially in the first few weeks of taking it. Many people nevertheless find it helpful. I was not one of them which may be colouring my view of it a bit...

If you look up Fluoxetine on "NHS choices" there is quite a bit of information. I would link, but when I link to the page and then follow the link I get a "this page has moved" message. Not helpful.

DS started taking SSRIs for severe anxiety at age 15. When they finally hit on the right medication the results were quick and positive. It doesn't stop the anxiety but it takes the edge off it and allows him to concentrate more easily.

ds2 (also 10) was prescribed fluoxetine (same as prozac I think) for anxiety but only took it for six days because he hated the mint flavour. He was also up in the middle of night so I think it probably disturbed his sleep. We were warned it might make matters worse before it got better so we made sure he was under no pressure when we started - but we didn't really notice anything. Pharmacist did warn me to watch out for self-harming.

He is now trying risperidone which seems to be going better no noticeable side effects (he is on very low dose though) and we think it is taking a tiny bit of the anxiety away.

We agonized for months over whether to go the medication route but as he is totally unable to access any CBT type therapies and is so withdrawn we felt it was worth trying. We are lucky enough to be seeing an excellent child psychiatrist at CAMHS and she is adopting a very careful approach of starting with low dose and monitoring side effects.

Thanks everyone for your input. I've done lots of reading on the Internet and talking to people - the overall opinion I seem to be getting is that at 10 my ds is too young. And nothing else has been tried yet. It's such a difficult one as some say going on meds will help calm him down before accessing psychological help but I'm thinking to try psychology first.... I've heard that risperidone is possibly better for anxiety - I think another conversation with CAMHS is needed - if they ever return my calls! I also know adults on Prozac with positive benefits but my thinking is as an adult you are in control of your decision & can understand why you may feel worse before you feel better. V difficult I think for a child to take all that on board...

DS started on Risperidone. I would not recommend it as it turned him into a zombie. Risperidone seems to be the drug of choice within CAMHS for everything from anxiety to eating disorders. It's a anti-psychotic drug whereas anxiety is a neurosis.

He changed to an SSRI which was effective very quickly.

Definitely try everything else first but there may come a point where the benefit of the drug will outweigh your concerns. I don't think you're at that point?

No we're not WetAugust so am definitely trying other things first. Did actually manage to speak to Dr at CAMHS this afternoon - they can't offer Psychology Appt for possibly 3 months!! Interesting to know about your experience with Risperidone. Am looking in to other natural treatments too - if anyone has any thoughts on hypnotherapy, reiki, etc etc helping with anxiety, would be good to know.

I keep suggesting hypnotherapy to DS. He tells me you can't hypnotise an Aspie. I don't know if you can or not but he's adamant you can't

Exercise was the best for us - very, very long walks.

Heard good things about hypnotherapy but not sure if my ds would be receptive to it - way too anxious. Worth investigating though. Wish I could go for long walks but he has become agrophobic and won't leave the house.

DS went through that stage. We used to go out at night for very long walks. Pounded the pavements in the early hours of the morning many times Gradually got him out during the day.

Reading with interest here-have ds 13 with As but doing ok. Also have dd,16,only recently dx with As also but has terrible social anxiety which seems to be getting worse.I have asked GP to refer to CAMHS but I am very concerned as she is becoming reluctant to leave the house etc. How much worse does this sort of anxiety get as they get older?I know they are all different etc but just curious as things do seem to be nosediving rapidly here.

I know my ds is only 10 but his anxiety has steadily got worse as he gets older. I suppose a child pre disposed to anxiety is going to find the demands of growing up harder than most. I was given a link to a very comprehensive website all about dealing with all types of anxiety. www.cci.health.wa.gov.au Look under resources. It is geared to adults but the modules could easily be adapted for older children I think.
I have found CAMHS in my area particularly unhelpful - I am working really hard with my ds myself with tiny but positive steps forward, although I believe it is going to take professional help to explore the root of the anxiety.

My dd (9) has been on Sertraline for anxiety for a month now. It was a hard choice, but we'd tried play therapy for a year and she was getting so much worse. It's still early days, but dd does seem 'better'. Although she is still anxious, it seems muted and she definitely has more confidence and is coming out of her shell. Good luck with whatever you decide.

piedpiper- do you think it was worth doing the play therapy? 8 year old DD (HFA and selective mutism) is on the waitng list for psychotherapy (I imagine it will take the form of play therapy). DH and I are still unsure whether we should go ahead when it is offered - we have been told the course will be 26 sessions over a year.

juneyjen DS2 with HFA was prescribed Sertraline for anxiety aged 14 (and is still taking it now 4 years later). CBT hadn't worked for him before we agreed to the medication. It isn't perfect (minor sleep and appetite side effects) but it helps - the anxiety is definitely still there but it 'smooths' it to a generally more manageable level.

Pannetone- dd has same problems and social phobia. It's hard to say if play therapy helped to be honest. She had an hours session every week from September til July. All I can say is, dd went down hill drastically during the time she had it, but we'll never know how low she would have got without it, if you see what I mean. Also, play therapy is apparently known not to help sm, but we hoped it would work on her social phobia. We wouldn't have gone down the meds route without trying it though.

It's so hard to know what to do. I'm still feeling that I would like to give some kind of CBT/therapy/counselling a go before medication. Meanwhile I'm trying pet therapy having purchased 4 chickens at the weekend! Not strictly pets I know but a distraction and things that need looking after etc etc. We shall see...