What are some medications for anxiety/panic disorders?

Question

I cannot take anything in the same class as Paxil and Lexapro...

Just wondering if anyone has tried anything else, or what their experiences are with this disease.

Answer 1

Xanax is an anti anxiety agent that is effective for many people. Wellbutrin is another that is often used. You could try Buspar, that is another helpful drug for anxiety. Paxil is an SSRI, an antidepressant which won't direct anxiety, but may be useful if depression is present with the anxiety.

You should talk to your doctor. I'm sure he'll have more suggestions.

Best wishes.

Answer 2

I could write a book on panic disorder and meds after having it for only 4 years. The symptoms are debilitating and not caused by stress and worry as the name would suggest.

The meds used to treat panic disorder are generally benzodiazipams (spelling ?) Klonopin, Xanax, Valium, Ativan, etc. For me the Valium worked the best, however you must take it daily or when you expect attacks (if you can trace them to like a menstrual cycle for example). The downfall and its a big one-- it that 1/2 of the smallest dose of valium knocked me out for 3-4 days. I would not realize my 3 kids were playing in the same room -- they would wake me and ask me to cook dinner at 8 or 9 pm. I was totally oblivious.

So the doc prescribed Provigil to help me stay awake through the day. This helped, but the dose has been increased several times and it is very very expensive.

Next we used Xyrem (the date rape drug GHB). It is new and wonderful!!!!!!!!! It just puts me into stage 3 & 4 of sleep instead of light sleeping and hearing everyone breathe all night long. This has really benefited me in the day time and relaxed me from the inside out. Panic attacks have decreased and I only take the valium 3-4 times per year when life gets to be a little too much.

Not sure why you mention Paxil and Lexapro cuz they are for depression.

Panic disorder can be a lonely disease with others thinking that it is all in your head and you can calm yourself down. If you need to chat feel free [e-mail]

Answer 3

I've had PTSD for decades and had the best luck with Zyprexa, but the side effects are radical and can lead to serious health risks. Don't let anyone give you Zyprexa.
Now I use a combination of Clonazapam, diet, NO CAFFEINE or other stimulates, like sugar or nicotine. Moderate activities that raise your stress level and change jobs if necessary to lower stress and stimulus. Put your health first.
Use meditation and breathing exercises. I also recommend The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook and any literature you can find on Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. In my experience medication is only oner piece in a successful treatment plan, which includes support groups and help lines. You have ultimate control over your illness. There is no magic bullet.
Try developing a routine that helps you calm down: i.e. hot baths, listening to music, and walking or other mild exercise. Keep seeking medical help until you find a health care professional or treatment plan that treats the whole problem. Anxiety is a symptom, not a disease. Your own behavior modifications can potentially make a bigger impact on improvement than pharmaceuticals, although they can definitely provide a crucial piece to the recovery puzzle. Keep with it and once you see some improvement you'll feel more in control, which will reduce your anxiety in and of itself.
Good Luck!!!
:0)

Answer 4

There are so many little helpful pills for those who have need during those anxious moments. Of course, there is no such thing as a "one size fits all" philosophy when it comes to medication.

Clonazapam and anxiety, though, seems to work well together.

Clonazapam is of the benzodiazepine family, which means it is basically a sedative. It acts on one of the neurotransmitter chemicals of the brain called GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid, which was discovered in 1950). This chemical, which is produced by agitation (excitment), needs to be balanced by limitation. GABA is the chemical of the brain that allows the body to relax, to feel good, and to sleep. Clonazapam and anxiety work together because the drug works to stimulate the GABA neurotransmitters to produce the needed relaxation.

A lack of GABA will usually cause trouble, such as epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, and sleep disorders. Clonazapam stimulates these neurotransmitters to produce the needed chemicals for relaxation. Although GABA can be purchased as a supplement, it still has difficulty crossing the blood-brain barrier, so it can only work in a very limited way. Clonazapam and anxiety, though, do work across this barrier.

When using Clonazapam and anxiety, many prefer it to other similar drugs on the market. One reason is that it lasts a little longer, and this means that its effects are also lasting longer.
A Tolerance May Develop

Clonazapam and anxiety work because the medicine is able to change the balance of GABA and increase it to more desirable levels. This, however, seems to be able to work for a little season, and then a tolerance may develop. This means, of course, that the drug quantity must also be increased in order to have the same effect.

I take it, and it works for me...Quite a calmer-downer...And it's very inexpensive...

Answer 5

I suffer from the exact same things as you. I tried Paxil for awhile and it seemed to work for some time and then for some unknown reason just STOPPED! UGH, it was awful....then I jumped around a bit and tried Elavil, Wellbutrin, a few more but I can't even remember the names now.

So now I'm taking Cymbalta in the morning and a Librium at night and it seems to be working well. I had to stop the Wellbutrin because I couldn't go up any more without risking seizures and I really needed to go up on the dosage because it wasn't doing anything at all for me. (I also have to be honest...I have to deal with high cholesterol [taking Lipitor]; migraines [taking Topomax]; pre-diabieties condition [taking IMetformin] and acid stomach [taking Aciphex] all on top of the other medicatons.

I hope this helps you out some and at least gives you some ideast to take to your doctoer.

Answer 6

If you can not take any of the SSRI's like lexapro you can try lamictal. It is an anti convulsant that is used in bipolar disorder but also works for people with depression that are unable to take SSRI's. You could also try medications in the benzodiazapine group such as xanax. Wellbutrin is another option.

Answer 7

I have Panic Disorder and I couldn't take any of those SSRI's either! Plus, come to find out later, they probably cause irreversible brain damage (Talking Back to Prozac by Joseph Brennigan?) Anyways, try Buspar. It really helped me!

Hang in there. I know that it sucks!

Good luck!

Answer 8

Why not try a solution that does not require the use of medication. Check out this site:

http://www.cureanxietydisorder.com/?utm_source=YahooAnswers&utm_medium=link%2Bpost

It has helped many people that have had panic/anxiety attacks....

All the best...

Answer 9

I've been on welbutrin for a year (on and off- no insurance). It helped my anxiety of thoughts like I can't control anything, there's not enought time to even start anything, gonna die soon, and depression, but made my mind kind of numb...like nothing is really important.

Answer 10

40000 Cured Social Anxiety : http://SocialAnxiety.uzaev.com/?HXMU