Anyone know if it is more harmful to take anti-anxiety meds or sleep aids than to deal with stress naturally?

Question

If you have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, and also have great difficulty sleeping ... do you think the meds cause more damage to your body, or do you think by not taking the meds to reduce anxiety and help your body sleep, that the stress would cause more harm to the body in the long run?

Does it make more sense to get a good night's sleep and feel healthy, rather than irritable and unable to concentrate?

Aside from the dangers of addiction to meds of course, what do you think is more healthy? With or without meds?

Answer 1

I will not say that you should do without your anxiety meds.

But I can share with you what has helped me a great deal in dealing with stress, anxiety, and anger.

*Please Patiently read. Thank You.*
As we approach the stressors in our life with optimism, we effectively deal with stress, anger, anxiety, depression, worry, etc. successfully. I take 15 min. early in the morning, and 15 min. in the evening to practice a simple meditation called the mindfulness of breathing. [I also practice Analytical meditation for 15 min. a day; spoken of later].
Mindfulness of Breathing exercises:
1) Be in a comfortable position, whether sitting
or lying down.
2) Have someone watch your other children for
about 15 min. [Increase in time gradually, after practicing for a month].
Then close your eyes, and concentrate
totally on your breathing.
3) At the end of your first inhalation of oxygen,
count one. Keep doing this until you get to Ten. Then start back at one. Remain patient with yourself.
4) Then focus your attention on breathing only
through your nostrils, which filter out all
the things, which are not healthy to breath
into your lungs. Be aware of the various
sensations through your nostrils, while you
continue the counting. When you get to
ten, start again at one.
5) When a distracting thoughts enters your mind
allow them to pass through {your mind], or judging them, or trying to fix them.
And then gently, patiently bring your full
attention back to your breath. Every time,
a distracting thought {any thought which
would take your attention of your breath),
comes to your mind, you need to use this
skillful, disciplinary method of bring it back.
Thoughts do come into our minds, especially
worrisome , or pressing thoughts
which indicate to us that we have an anxious mind.
Just be patient w/yourself, and keep practicing.
**"There is proven evidence of the
Success of The Mindfulness of Breathing
Exercises Proven by Dr. Jon Kabat-ZinnPhD
Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn PhD. has a book
out called, "Coming to Our Senses' which
teaches this.
The Mindfulness of Breathing greatly help us to more clearly see things as they really are, in order to act and react in a healthy manner toward people, and situations in life. Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn PhD. has proven that Mindfulness of Breathing practiced 15 min. a day improves the Cognitive areas of our brain {memory, concentration, focus). It has helped me in these areas as well.
I practice mindfulness of breathing to reduce stress, anger, anxiety, and to cultivate Patience. In Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn's clinic in Mass. he teaches the mindfulness of breathing to his patients to help them reduce pain, stress, anxiety, anger, depression, and worry. For some, who are very Analytical, and might have a difficult time calming down their mind, "analytical meditation" is probably geared more for them. This method of meditation is excellent for effectively dealing with pain, stress, & anger. Training in Patience: The meditation of observing our stress and anger involves paying close attention to the storyline behind stress and anger. We note the blood rushing to our head, our heart pounding, the emotional pain of hurt feelings, disappointment, & unfulfilled expectations. Simply observing these, “but Not reacting to them by clinging to them or pushing them away, we experience them as they are in the present. In doing so, we watch them arise And Cease in their own accord.” Mindfulness is very effective in letting go of Negative thoughts/emotions. “Techniques in which we re-frame the situation constitute most of this volume, and they fall in the category of 'Analytical meditation, in which we investigate our thoughts, feeling, and perceptions to discern if they are accurate and beneficial. Changing the way we describe and interpret situations subdue stress, anxiety, anger because we stop exaggerating and projecting negativities onto people, situations, and objects.' In this way, the external event, its meaning, & our position in it appear to us differently, and our stress and anger evaporates.” Meditation on love and compassion{loving-kindness meditation], (which many do as form of walking meditation) strengthens these positive thoughts and emotions in our minds and hearts, which are beneficial because these thoughts and emotions act not only as antidotes to stress and anger, but also as measures preventing them from arising. Reacting stressfully, with anxiety, and occasionally in anger are deeply ingrained habits, & like all habits, it takes time to unlearn. Practice The Mindfulness of Breathing daily. It has been proven to very effective for many people.

I hope I did not offend you in any way. Only wanted to share with you these self-help methods which have helped me a great deal in dealing with anxiety, stress, and occasional anger.

Thanks for Reading. Have a Great Week.

Answer 2

With. Definitely with meds unless it was a child or teen that was still developing. The stress might be transitory and you have to use the meds that are not addicting. Go to the bookstore and buy a book on Prescription Drugs to make sure you don't take something addicting. The stress can wreak havoc with your brain and your body too. With all this terrorism in the world today, a lot of people are turning to meds for too much anxiety.
Consequently, newer and better drugs are coming out every year!! Good Luck!!

Answer 3

I've had anxiety and depression for years - I have taken meds and not taken meds - I think its better to try to go natural if you can. Try exercise first. My dr. told me 30 minutes of intense exercise released seriton- a chemical that make you feel good - and exercise has as good a result as prescription anti-depression and anxiety medicine. I also had great results from a program called attacking anxiety. www.attackinganxiety.com

Answer 4

Listen I take both anti-anxiety meds AND sleep aids. I feel great (unless I forget to take either).

Absolutely no harm comes of taking both.

Answer 5

Taking meds doesn't help the underlying problem. Some ways you can learn to release your anxiety are: The Sedona Method or EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique).

The Sedona Method is a technique taught by Hale Dwoskin to learn how to RELEASE any/all negative emotions in the moment. You can learn how to do it by reading the book (The Sedona Method) or by cassette tapes/cds which are sold on The Sedona Method website.

EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) or Emotional Tapping is a technique taught by Gary Craig. EFT is the most amazing technique I have ever used to help with negative emotions. EFT is easy to learn (you can learn the basics in about 15-30 minutes), easy to use, you can use it anytime, anyplace for ANY EMOTIONAL or PHYSICAL problem (anxiety is both emotional and physical). EFT is basically using acupressure 'tapping' on certain points of the body to help release emotion. It works painlessly and FAST.

You can download the FREE EFT instruction manual from the Emotional Freedom website (www.emofree.com).

I used to have a lot of emotional issues. I did therapy with DUBIOUS results. I learned The Sedona Method and finally found some relief. Later I learned how to do EFT. Now I use both every day. Because of this my life has changed SO MUCH.

Answer 6

I would like to know the answer too. I have always said anti-depressants are over prescribed. Now I am wondering if I should reconsider taking them. I have had difficulty sleeping for 2 years now and the problems just seem to be getting worse.
Sorry, I'm not much help.

Answer 7

I am so happy, it was only a 35 minute drive ( 70 minutes total) but absolutely no sign of anxiety or panic i shopped till I dropped - brilliant! I will now go for the next stage DUAL CARRIAGE way, probably at the weekend, with my husband accompanying me first then the solo drive, if successful the final stage of driving on motorway

Beat Anxiety And Panic Attacks Naturally?

Answer 8

I think you should take the meds but do not assume they are your answer to the problem. It is important to work on yourself while on the meds .This will help you get to the point where you don't need them. Don't put a time limit on it. It is best to just commit to yourself that you are going to do it. You only get out of therapy what you put into it. It may help though. Life in general is your best therapist. Good luck!

Answer 9

It makes sense to take meds (trying natural things first, like herbal teas, etc) when you must than to try to deal with something you can't deal with.

You wouldn't refuse pain meds if you were badly hurt.

Answer 10

Well , the natural way to tackle your body and mind is always a good option,but its important to take the anti anxiety drugs when you feel that you are getting out of control.I would say it hepls sometimes.

Answer 11

I have 'Post Traumatic Stress Disorder' and that 'includes' having 'anxiety disorder' and many other 'psychiatric problems' that don't 'respond' to 'regular medication' the way they're supposed to. I'm thinking that what you have may actually be a lot closer to PTSD than it is an 'anxiety disorder' ... and you don't have to 'remember' any particular trauma' to have this, by the way ... but I can possibly give you some HELP in dealing with your problems:

For now, continue to take your meds as 'prescribed' ... but LEARN EVERYTHING YOU CAN ABOUT THEM, including how to 'get off' them eventually.

Start learning to 'meditate' ... I use the 'hatha yoga' form where I sit in lotus position with my hands on my knees and palms up, but you can take any 'meditation' class that advertises itself as 'helping stress' ... and do it every day, for the same amount of time at the same time every day. If you want a 'good night's sleep' then you should do this around noon every day ... and that means seven days a week, not just M-F.

Once every two weeks, sit down and write two lists ... your 'good things about me' and your 'bad things about me' ... and after you've done both, take all of those 'bad things' and write them out as 'good things': if you wrote 'My house is always a horrible mess' in your 'bad' list, then change it to read 'I am tolerant of more 'mess' in my life because I have better things to do than simply clean' on your 'good' list. After you have 'transformed' all of the 'bad' into good, you should 'burn' the bad list ... and make a little 'ritual' of it and do it the same way every time you make your lists.

Learn 'one minute meditation' for when you are 'out and about' and get 'anxious' ... take ten 'deep breaths' and let them out slowly, and think of something that you REALLY enjoy ... a painting, or doing some special thing ... and do this 'standing in place' rather than 'running' from your anxiety. I have a huge problem when I hear sirens, because I used to have to do 'crisis intervention' and sirens were a frequent 'sound effect' to that ... now I simply 'cross myself' (I am a Catholic) and say 'Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for them' and sort of 'aim that' prayer toward the people who are at the 'end' of those sirens blaring. Now I do it so 'naturally' that no one even notices I do it ... but it helps me to 'maintain my calm' when I hear sirens, instead of having to fight that 'do I run toward the place or away from the place' tearing that comes when I hear those sirens.

After you have all of these 'helps' in 'place' so that you are doing them 'naturally' (without really thinking about it) you can, with your doctor's help, start 'weaning yourself' from the drugs you take to stop the anxiety and the sleep deprivation ... and you may be able to stop at least 'some' of them entirely, but may not be able to stop taking everything every day.

This will take 'time' ... I took at least four years to 'get rid' of all of the 'psychiatric drugs' I was on, but I am much 'better' now, and since I have an excellent doctor whom I trust completely, I know that if I do get into any 'trouble' down the line that he'll prescribe 'something' for awhile, but he'll also know that I don't want to take any 'drug' except ones that control 'hormonal conditions' (I have hypothyroidism) for the 'rest of my life.' Good luck ... You CAN DO IT 'without meds' but you have to know that it may take 'years' to get there, and if you get 'depressed' because it's taking so long you can simply go to see your doctor for 'help' to get you through that 'bad time' ...