Search the Community

So, I was extremely depressed in January after tapering off all my meds on my own (stupid). My doctor put me back on Wellbutrin, and we decided to try Prozac as an SSRI. The Prozac wasn't kicking in and I learned about the GeneSight genetic test for antidepressants. I asked for and had the task done. They never sent me a copy of the results. After a month on the Prozac and no help, I also asked to go up from 300mg Wellbutrin XL to 450mg, and that seemed to help. I had an appointment mid-April and was mostly feeling better. He decided to keep me where I was at. I forgot to ask about the GeneSight results. I generally feel good during the week but am miserable on the weekends. I generally lay in bed all day feeling depressed, binge eat, try and sleep as much as possible. I don't know if this is something that can be fixed with medication or if it is purely behavioral. My therapist suggests making plans for the weekend ahead of time and trying to make my weekends structured. I finally got around to sending the doc a message on the patient portal asking about the GeneSight results. He responded that the report showed all my meds were good for me except Prozac. The test recommends Lexapro or Zoloft instead. He did not say anything about changing the Prozac. For three days I have been trying to make an appointment to see the doctor. If I call I'm on hold for 10 minutes before leaving a message. I've also tried requesting an appointment with the patient portal. Nothing. So, I'm thinking about just messaging the doc (since I know he responds) and mention the problems I'm having on the weekends as well as concerns I have about staying on Prozac. I want to know if I should switch, or if I should just stay where I'm at since I'm basically doing good except no motivation and very depressed on the weekends. What do you all think I should do? Ask the doctor online about switching, keep trying to make an appointment, or just try and add structure to the weekends and see if I can get by without a med change? Current meds (all generic): Wellburtrin XL: 450mg Prozac: 20mg Seroquel: 200mg trazodone: 400mg hydroxyzine: 25mg 3x daily P.R.N.

Hey, So about 5pm every day of late, my mood just turns black. I can't buy a neutral (forget positive) cognition or emotion, I start to feel and think very negatively no matter what I do. Of course, I'm feeling and thinking badly beforehand, but it just sinks to another level, or depth if you will. So I'm wondering if it's a med (or meds) that I'm taking that's losing effect around 5pm. I take the following meds - yes, it's a crazy-looking brew I know, but it allows me to function somewhat - at 6am (in milligrams): 200 Provigil, 2.5 Abilify, 40 Fetzima, 30 Lexapro, 15 BuSpar, 150 Lyrica, 10 Percocet and these at 2pm: 150 Lyrica, 15 BuSpar and these 4 times a day, where the last dose is typically 2pm: 15 Adderall 10 Percocet (for chronic pain) and these at 7pm for sleep: 150 Trazodone, 50 Benedryl It's impossible to confidently predict a "culprit" but if anyone has any hunches, I'd love to hear them. For example, today I'm splitting (some of) the 6am batch into two and taking the second half at 2pm as an experiment. I feel that empirical experimentation might be the way to go because the theory is too complex with this many psychotropic medications in play. Cheers , Pete

.

.

I recently went through several weeks of constant akathisia, two of them severe. I'm still going through it, but it's not constant anymore. I discovered that I get akathisia from both sertraline and trazodone and at relatively low doses. I was only removed from the sertaline initially, so my symptoms kept getting worse. At the peak I got to the point where I felt like I wanted to rip out my guts and my teeth and my whole body coursed with an electrical burning. I had to stand, I had to move until I got so sore and tired that I could only lie down, shake uncontrollably and cry uncontrollably. I can't even do a good job of describing it; there is so much of the experience that I can't find words for. I've been struggling to cope with having survived the experience. I know I'm not the only person to have ever had akathisia. What have other people experienced? How do you go back to normal life, how do you talk to friends or family about the experience? I'm also very scared because my depression has been worsening since I was taken off the medications, but if I try a new medication it could start over again. I don't know how I made it through last time, and I don't know if I could do it again.

I've been on trazodone (desyrel/molipaxin) for almost a year now. I take a low dose, 50 mg, and I also take 100 mg lamotrigine.Initially it worked fantastic. However, after about six months, my depression started to come back, up to the point where I feel really bad most of the time. At least I still manage to go to work, and do my work properly. But it feels like all the negative things in my life are weighing me down, to the point where it is consuming me, as if it is a constant presence in my chest. We are going through a difficult time in my country, droughts and heat waves, political clashes and riots, bad exchange rates, we're about to have food shortages etc., and I have a lot lf stress in my personal life as well, but it shouldn't affect one so much, right? To the point of thinking only about it? I'm also feeling really anxious at work, but at least it's not on anxiety attack level yet. At night I take xanax/xanor to cope. So what I want to know is - is it my meds that are not working properly anymore, or is it just a rough patch? Will it pass? And what can I do to make it pass? I'm too tired to exercise, but I really want to... Changing meds is really a big thing for me. So I don't want to do it unnecessarily. Maybe an increase in the trazodone eill help? Any advice from someone who has been in a similar position?

Hi all !! So I've been tapering off Quetiapine for a good while now, as my only bout of severe depression has been in remission since 2011, and am now on 87.5mg. Four weeks ago, I believe I suffered a concussion/mild brain trauma from boxing, my cognitive functions have suffered significantly and I've had bad anxiety/depressive thoughts too - my pdoc is viweing this is a flare up of my past depression which needs resovling ASAP. So I was offered Paroxetine, then Venlafaxine, I really wanted Wellbutrin because it has the least reported sexual dysfunction issues and may help with mental sharpness. Pdoc wasn't sure, so in the end I've been prescribed Trazodone 150mg at night - along with the existing Quetiapine dose! I woke up at 4am feeling like I was drowning / suffocating inside my own body and my mind was actually racing for a while before I zonked out back to sleep. I eventually came to around 8am feeling really groggy and struggled dizzily to the bathroom mirror - my eyes were a mess, I looked as if I had been on a huge night out on the town. I've not been able to think properly all day, there was no way I would have been able to function in work and in light of the fact that I believe I am already suffering cognitive impairment from the concussion, over sedation is the absolute last thing I need. At one point I had a really bad migraine type headache, which I never get, so I managed to speak to Pdoc, who eventually suggested cutting the pills in half, then review the over-sedation issue Friday. My gut feel is Quetiapine combined with Trazodone is heavy duty. If its still an issue, it looks Venlafaxine at 75mg/d, though he conceded to looking into the possibility of Wellbutrin too (largely subject to establishing any contra-indications with Quetiapine). All I know is I cant take any more Trazodone tonight and will start 75mg tomorrow evening to see how I get on - if I return to a state of non-complis mentis on Thursday, they are going in the bin. This basically leaves the pdocs preferred choice of Venlafaxine, or possibly the Wellbutrin; Does anyone have any experience with Trazodone and Quetiapine combined? How about any opinions on Venlafaxine and sexual dysfunction?What experience do people have with Wellbutrin in terms of its anti-depressant / anxiety efficacy or mental lucidity and whether it impacted sleep?

Well.... I found this site by searching "self harm kits", I just wanted to know what other people did, if it was common for people to carry around supplies with them or whatever. So now I'm here, reading about other people and their struggles. Relating and not relating, though still understanding. I think that maybe if I have an actual place to talk, a real place that I can have feedback on, then maybe I'll be able to resist hurting myself. Okay so actual info part: My name is Shane. I'm listed as agender on here but a more accurate term would be agender/transmasculine. I use He/Him pronouns but they/them is also okay. I'm 19, I'll be turning 20 in December. I've been dealing with self harm problems and MI for almost 8 years now. I'm also trans so that doesn't exactly help me in any way... Anyways, from the beginning now. In 6th grade I became friends with someone who is my best friend. At the time, he was self harming and I guess that's where I had gotten the idea to do it to myself but I don't blame him or anything, it's not his fault that I started to do the same thing. Though not as intense as him, he was actually cutting and giving himself eraser burns, I was doing no-bleed scratches with a bent paperclip. At the time, I didn't really understand why it helped, but it did. Sometime in junior high I tried to tell my mother that I was depressed and had been for a few years. I had scoured websites, taken quizzes, doubted I was mentally ill, retook quizzes, looked up symptoms. Everything was the same. I was depressed and I didn't want to feel this way. So I tried to tell my mom, she didn't think the same thing. She didn't think I had any reason to be depressed. Which of course made me feel worse because I knew there was no emotional/situational reason for me to be depressed, I just was and I couldn't stop it. So I continued to self harm. There were a few times when my mom had confronted me about the scratches on my arm and even a time when I had a huge bleeding scratch down my arm. (all in 8th grade). It wasn't until 11th grade that my mom actually took me in to see a doctor. I had to check off a list to see if I was actually depressed and I was prescribed medication (Fluoxetine and Xanax), it helped but not for long. Eventually it stopped working, so I stopped taking it (I know, I know). I again tried to tell my mom that the meds weren't working anymore. She just thought I wasn't taking them, of course I wasn't but they weren't working long before that. This last February (2015), I didn't quite try to kill myself. I was in college by then (second semester). I was in a campus library, downstairs, in an area I knew people didn't walk around a lot. I found myself a spot and had decided to take the bottle. I didn't. I was scared it wouldn't work, so anxiety took over and stopped me. I went home that night and cried in my mom's arms. I told her that I was scared and that I needed to be admitted. She was very hesitant to take me in. So I was in a mental hospital for about 2 weeks.I am now taking duloxetine and klonopin and trazodone. I attempted to kill myself by overdosing on trazodone a few months afterwards. My girlfriend forced me to throw them up. I still self harm. I don't think my meds are working anymore. So anyways. That's my story. Thanks for reading. 12 yrs - 17 yrs: sx- Depression, GAD 17 yrs - 19 yrs: Depression, Anxiety, sx-BPD 19 yrs - now: Depression, Panic Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder Also, on and off anorexia that hasn't be professionally diagnosed.... idk, I go through periods of not eating at all to completely binging myself out on food.

Though I came up surrounded by close family members who struggled with various mental illnesses, I wouldn't say I had an especially traumatic or even a really remarkable childhood, apart from the sporadic, sometimes episodic fireworks Crazy can bring. On the whole I had a pretty typical middle class upbringing, for which I am grateful. My older sister served as my introduction to the mysteries and miseries of mental illness. She suffered from Bipolar Disorder, and it was clear my parents despaired at her condition. There was much acting out, at least one suicide attempt that I am aware of, multiple stays at inpatient facilities, and an ever-changing cocktail of medications throughout her teens. She tapered off meds when she planned to start a family, and has done amazingly well without them. My younger sister struggles with panic disorder and more physical ailments than anyone her young age ought to be saddled with. My mother was a survivor of child abuse, and subsequent to the passing of her father when I was about 12, she suffered a series of psychotic breaks that led to the first of several inpatient hospitalizations, and a lifetime of profound treatment resistant MDD that continues to this day. Not only did she not perpetuate the cycle of abuse she suffered but I never even knew what she'd been through until I was much older. My father never (to my knowledge) sought treatment for any mental illness, and tended towards stoicism and emotional opaqueness. I suspect however that he suffered (or even suffers still) from depression -- at the very least. HIs siblings suffered from myriad mental maladies. His upbringing was somewhat of a mystery to me, as what remained of his immediate family were separated by geography. I believe he too was a survivor of child abuse, based on what I've gleaned from anecdotes. My older brother was a bit of a black sheep, and when youthful indiscretions of the self-medicating type became too much for my well-meaning folks to handle he was given an ultimatum and joined the armed services. He was stationed in South Korea, and I gather his self-medicating ways came along for the ride. Upon returning stateside he had a hard time reintegrating, finding stable work, and had to rely on the support of his family more than I think he would have liked. He was a very emotional person, and felt things very deeply. I imagine if I would have asked him for one word to describe himself he might have chosen "failure". That's certainly not how I would have described him, but he was the type of person for whom every setback might have seemed like the universe pointing a spindly celestial finger at the tip of his nose and proclaiming FUCK. YOU. By the time my brother killed himself with the sputtering exhaust of the sparkly brown hatchback my mother had given him, I was living my own kind of Crazy. Today, I find myself at a strange cross roads. I am happily married. Successful, especially considering I never finished college. I have more than my fair share of material possessions. I have family and friends whom I love, and who love me. As much as I curse those who use the phrase, I'm Blessed. And yet, I can't recall a time I felt more lost. You see, growing up as an insatiably curious child in a household surrounded by Crazy, and where both parents worked in the medical field. So I didn't just *live* with Crazy, I, in a sense, *studied* it. Psychology. Anatomy. Psychiatry. Biology. Pharmacology. And most especially *Psychopharmacology*. I was never under the illusion that reading medical texts would make me a doctor any more than reading cookbooks would make me a chef. But I found, and still find the subject phenomenally interesting. In the late 80's and early 90's before webforums, TV drug adverts, wikipedia, etc., it seemed physicians expected laypeople to know almost nothing about medicine, so much so, that if you knew even a little, and went in with talking points memorized, you were going to leave with whatever it was you came for (within reason). Maybe it's always been that way. But I certainly felt clever, and in retrospect maybe a part of the burgeoning vanguard that changed how pharmaceuticals are consumed. Modern medicine is so unabashedly, brazenly consumer driven, I doubt any clinician bats an eye when patients come in and know exactly what their diagnosis is, the name brand and dosage of the drug they want, and oh by the way I've already printed off my own coupon that makes my copay 3 dollars until the drug goes off patent in 2030. But back to my personal tale of medico-consumerism. 22 years ago, at about 14 years of age, I self-diagnosed myself with depression. PART II To Follow Later

*Hello. I'm brand new and researching certain drugs in relation to a personal tragedy and checked out a few threads on this forum about adverse reactions and interactions. I am not a "troll" and not interested in drug wars. I am in search of answers, understanding, and knowledge in the event of a lawsuit. I hope you will carefully consider my (probably too lengthy) story for a forum seriously, especially if you are experiencing similar effects. Actually, if I start with the backstory I'll end up tangenting too much to get the point out so let's get that out of the way first. My former husband and son's father was an Iraq war vet who served 6 years with assorted combat medals and a pretty secure position. Prior to military, while a genuinely good guy with a wry wit and higher than usual intelligence, was still plagued with the most exasperating, homicidal rage inducing (for everyone else dealing with it) financial irresponsibility and poor impulse control. We had a child together long before we married because I couldn't respect anyone who can't grow up and take care of their responsibilities. Aside from our issues trying to corral his immaturity to be a proper parent, we never fought, argued or had any negative, abusive, dysfunctional relationship. We were close friends who saw the world the same way. My beef with him was his penchant for escapism and blowing money instead of focusing on security for his child's welfare. Partly why he joined the military. We married after his enlistment and for the duration, life went well. No issues. He returned, his Army stint over with, but he returned more of a shell of who he was when he went in. Nothing problematic. In fact, he seemed more calm and soldier-esque, disciplined. And we had no further financial issues...until he reunited with his civilian buddies welcoming him back. I began to see him drinking a little more but never anything over the top. Within a year of his return, however, we had an amicable separation that resulted in him having no "supervision" anymore - military or myself and left to his own devices, literally blew through our joint savings to overdrafting hundreds of dollars that continued for weeks until I finally convinced our bank to lock it down. He went AWOL in civilian life and later claimed he'd suddenly felt abandoned and alone, some was fear, some was anger, some was devastation, and some was spite. We officially divorced and he was on the hook for support. I won by default, though we'd been in contact and were otherwise amicable again in spite of it. He knew he screwed up and copped to it. He relocated to the PNW and began or continued treatment at [edited specific locations] VAs. He seemed to be getting better, at least as far as employment goes. Got a killer job making a nice salary but couldn't manage his money and was constantly dropping the ball with financial support for his child. It resulted in us losing everything - literally, to homelessness. He was constantly gambling and robbing Peter AND Paul to pay child support. Eventually I couldn't take it anymore, realized he'll always be irresponsible and can't be bothered to support his child or even participate in his life, in spite of his continued claims otherwise. So I opted to disconnect entirely and drop contact. Life was calm and pleasant for nearly a year. In late April '14, I guess I felt sentimental and ended up calling him to check in, see how he was doing and the call seemed to resurrect things. He was doing better, claimed he was in treatment for PTSD, depression, talked to his shrink about us, our relationship, Iraq, and that he wasn't happy with the meds...they made him feel dull, indifferent, didn't feel anything at all. I suggested he stop taking them and he said it'd be better if he weened off and would probably speak to his doctors to lower the dosage since they weren't working. If he stopped cold turkey it could make things worse. He didn't want to shoot up a school. In the end, we'd opened dialogue about my son and I moving to where he was, trying a co-parenting arrangement, and potentially remarrying. Not out of romance (we weren't really there but were still close friends). We began making plans for the relocation and since he'd left us destitute being a "loser" he agreed to send more money to either get us there or to fly to us and we drive to the PNW together. These plans were open from the end of April through the end of June. Then he began dodging me and I figured something happened. He sent an email at the end of June finally admitting he went gambling and blew 2 grand trying to double it so we could get there sooner and have money for our son's birthday in August. When he lost it all he was ashamed and figured I'd be livid so he steered clear til he felt he could face me. I was and responded that it'll never stop...and if he just admits he really doesn't care for his child and doesn't want to be a parent, acknowledge it for real (instead of sabotage, escapism and absenteesim) then I'll let him off the hook, close the door and we'll go our separate ways. He refused and agreed to work it out...but wanted me to understand he was "just fucked up" and was trying to get it worked out. In early August, our son turned 16. He never even called to wish him Happy Birthday, never sent him a gift, never did anything at all after getting him excited about moving up there. All along though, which I chalked up to too much Forensic Files, I had the worst uneasy vibe that Oregon is full of death, that we might end up victims of a murder suicide or something and inwardly was kind of relieved he screwed it up and we weren't going. In late August, I learned he was dead. As information began trickling in, I learned he'd taken his own life and as far as I was concerned, good riddance. He'd rather choose death than be a father, than choose his child - I had no sympathy and vowed to delete him entirely from my reality. This was the most selfish, unconscionable thing he's ever done. My son was disappointed and pissed, feeling that his father was broken and weak...it fit, really. I did file several of the standard claims on behalf of our son though and a little SSA payment began to arrive a few months later. As angry as I was at him, I could not shake the reality that this was out of the blue. He's never been suicidal a day in his life, nor for as long as I knew him. And he didn't sound suicidal when we spoke or made plans. Even our son winced and said, "It doesn't seem like him to do that..." it wasn't him. I had to accept that PTSD played a role and I have no real idea what he'd experienced during and post military so it could be that he was and I just wasn't as close anymore and missed it. Eventually I received the ME report and read over it...initially finding that he'd apparently tried to attempt it several times through 2014. First in mid April which was surprising because he'd been released April 22 within days of my contacting him and while he acknowledged "treatment" (though he'd been in treatment since 2011 at other VAMCs) he never mentioned attempted suicide. After reading his several failed attempts and because the person I always knew was not suicidal "for real" I couldn't help wonder if it was a spinal tap of attempts to maybe show the VA he needed a higher disability rating or something and the last time, it actually worked. In a tragic comical way, he was pretending to be suicidal and then it actually accidentally worked. Or maybe he pissed someone off - someone in his life I had no knowledge of - and they drugged him and faked a suicide. It was so out of character I even wondered if a relative of his got fed up with being owed a ton of money due to his gambling debts they just put him out of their misery. He just wasn't suicidal. Yet the ME report described a very undeniably clear course of thought out behavior to end his life...and if he chose this option over us, his child, so be it. We were done. We tried to move on best we could and it was more recently that I sat down and actually read the ME report more thoroughly and it suddenly illuminated the truth. The ME report and description included details about the events of 2014 beginning with the first incident. He'd been feeling suicidal and voluntarily admitted himself in the VA for help. The VA let him stay until he "sobered up" basically, prescribed antidepressants and sent him home. On his way home he pulled over, ingested a bunch of prescription meds and endured a failed attempt. When he came to, he called 911 and later requested transport to the VA where he'd been treated for PTSD. This time he was admitted to the psych ward, detoxed, prescribed more drugs, diagnosed with alcohol induced mood disorder, told to stop drinking and sent on his way. The next failed attempt was early August, 2 days after our son's birthday. [edited out by mod because details specific suicide details]. He drove himself back to the VA and admitted himself. He requested in patient treatment and it was denied. Instead, the VA prescribed new antidepressants, sent him to group therapy, and released him when he was no longer an immediate threat. Within 4 days of his release, he drove to a rest stop and took his life[edited by mod due to specific means]. The thing I did not catch initially was that though he'd been prescribed sertraline (Zoloft) and told to continue it, they also added Zoloft (sertraline), Desyrel (trazodone), Vistaril (hydroxyzine), Lunesta (eszopiclone), and Baclofen, that he'd been taking for awhile, the only drug found in his system aside from [other thing used to die] had been Venlafaxine. There was nothing else but that. After researching all of these medications, their combined interactions proved to ultimately lead an otherwise sound and clear minded person seeking help for PTSD down the road to suicide. Though he'd been financially irresponsible and escapist since we met, he was never *suicidal* until he began being treated by both [edited out names] VA med centers. They pumped him so full of antidepressants, several of which have clear warnings against being administered to anyone with a history of suicide thoughts or attempts that his entire ability for clear thinking and rational judgment was impaired. The side effects of feeling dull, indifferent, dead, no edge, confused, anxious, unable to sleep...were all things he described feeling. He repeatedly told them these meds were not working. Instead of monitoring his intake, under supervision, they upped his dosage and added more to the list. The last one, venlafaxine has the FDA warning of intensifying and aggravating suicidal behavior. I realized that he did not just opt out to be a selfish loser, same old same old. He was a victim. The [mod edited out specific hospitals] VAMCs in Oregon killed him. Another casualty of incompetence, negligence, lies, and ineptitude and an overloading of drugs that should not only never have been combined but prescribed to begin with - all of them clearly carrying warnings they should not be given to those with suicidal depression. He didn't OD. He did not mix anything with beer. He did not take uncharacteristic dosage. PTSD didn't even play a part one way or another. It was all venlafaxine. A fatal suicide success story courtesy of [edited] VAMC. He took what was prescribed and it fatally impaired his entire ability to behave rationally. He was NEVER suicidal until [VAMC] began drugging him. If you have been prescribed any combination of these (and add Prozac, he was on that too for awhile), and particularly if you are being treated by the VA for PTSD or anything else, please, please be mindful that if you weren't suicidal before being a patient there, then you are being slowly murdered. They are not helping you, they are killing you. The next VA asswipe who thanks me for his service is getting throat punched. They killed my child's father. He repeatedly tried to get help. He wanted more significant treatment, in patient and was refused. He voluntarily admitted himself, called 911, drove himself to get help...which is a glaring factual reality that wen he sobered up, he was not suicidal at all - just as the reality that he was quite sober from the end of April through June - and while planning for our trip to where he was there's conspicuously no further attempts after April until he screwed up in late June. He did NOT want to die. He WANTED help and he was too wrecked to realize he'd sought help from the very people who were slowly killing him all along. I can appreciate sentiments being sorry for our loss, and thanks for that but I'm here to spread a very real warning. These drugs to not help you. They will be your downfall. Best of luck. Lexi

Hi, I was prescribed Trazodone 50 mg for severe anxiety. I was only on it for 2 days. After I took it I felt the anxiety lift (which has never happened on any other medicine I've tried, except for Buspar). The SSRI's, Seroquel XR, and clonazepam have never lifted my anxiety like that, they just numbed some of my anxiety. I also felt weak and shaky, and I began living totally in my head and not wanting to face reality or go outside of my room. I had no energy or motivation to exercise, and when I exercised I was barely able to break a sweat. I didn't want to face anything unpleasant, and the most pleasant place became inside my head, in fantasy land. I started becoming obsessed with certain actors (which is to be expected considered I'm lonely in real life and never had a boyfriend at 31 yo). I didn't want to deal with real life anymore, which for me has been painful and full of anxiety since I was a teen. I absolutely didn't want to go out of my house (or room), or even study inside my room, because I hate studying and I hate the pressure of school. I also think the medicine got into the air and effected the people I live with, including my cat. I also was very, very tired when I took it (which is to be expected b/c it's used also for a sleeping aid). I would take it at night and wake up the next morning exhausted and confused, not wanting to get out of bed. I felt tired, forgetful, and dazed the whole day, not just at night. Although it lifted my anxiety from my body and mind, I decided to stop taking it b/c of the unwanted side effects, and I was afraid I would fail school, b/c I absolutely couldn't motivate myself to open the books and study, and when I tried to study, I couldn't. The same thing happened when I took Wellbutrin (where I began living totally in my head and refused to do anything unpleasant for me, like going outside my house and going to school, and I ended up dropping out of college). On both meds, I couldn't get myself to care about anything unpleasant in reality (which was everything- school, going out of my room, etc.), because reality was too uncomfortable and painful for me since I was about 11 yo. I started living totally in my head and on the internet, in a fantasy life where everything was nice. I know I only gave it two days before I got nervous about the side effects and quit it. Now I'm thinking that despite the unwanted side effects it had on me and my parents and sister, I should try Trazodone again, because it lifted my anxiety more than any other med I've tried (besides Buspar, which also had bad side effects for me). Has anyone taken Trazodone 50 mg for severe anxiety (social) and does one's body get used to it after a certain amount of time? Are there any other meds out there that are good for lifting anxiety? Besides the SSRI's, Seroquel XR, and clonazepam, and hydroxyzine, and buspar? Thank You, Shana

If you are prescribed Trazodone for insomnia, do you have to take it every day? My Latuda is causing insomnia but there are some nights I can fall asleep. So I wouldn't want to take it unless I needed to. I was on it years ago for insomnia but dont remember if you can only take as needed.

Hi! I have Major Depression, PTSD, and issues with anxiety and insomnia. I take Zoloft and now Trazodone. My newish pdoc took me off Seroquel because I've gained almost 30lbs since November. He replaced it with Trazodone and told me the side effects, including the very comforting genital swelling, which made me apprehensive but I still took my first dose last night around nine. About 15 minutes go by and i stand up and realize the room is spinning and i couldn't walk straight. This continued until I laid down 30 minutes later. I have a history of fainting and lightheadness but I've never experienced anything like that before. I was curious if anyone else has experienced similar things on Trazodone and how effective it is. Thanks

Hi all! New member here. I've been having some serious trouble from what I can only assume is my Abilify, and am hoping I can find some similar experiences here. I've been taking it (2mg) since April of this year. When I first started it, by the next morning, I was wide awake and fully energized between 6-7am. This continued until August no matter how much/little sleep I'd gotten the night before. I really enjoyed it and it also helped with my MDD (rx in signature). Since August, I've been having difficulties keeping a normal sleep cycle. It started out with me not being able to get tired until later and later, and when I woke up it was nearly impossible to get out of bed; not because of my depression, but because of being so exhausted. In September, I found that I was able to go to sleep at a reasonable hour with the help of diphenhydramine, but even after getting 8 hours of rest, I still literally couldn't get out of bed sometimes. I basically felt like I'd just taken a 2 hour nap, which (for me) always make me feel more tired when I wake up than I did before the nap. For the past 2-3 weeks, I haven't been able to get to sleep until 5-6am. I went to my psychiatrist last Tuesday and told her about all of this, but she didn't seem to think that the sleep problems and the Abilify were linked. She prescribed me Trazodone and thus far, it's been very hit or miss. I feel relaxed when I take it, but often not tired at all or enough to sleep. I've never had trouble like this before in my entire life, and the only thing I can think of is that it's the medication since it had the opposite effect in the beginning. I have stopped taking the Abilify as of last week (on my own accord for the sleep troubles and for the fact that it costs $600) and am still wired all through the night even with the Trazodone. I'm wondering if it's because it may take up to a month to completely get out of my system (opinions?). Has anyone else experienced this trouble? Thanks so much!

About two months ago I switched from paroxetine to trazadone. It hasn't done a lot for the anxiety and panic attacks (which are relatively mild), but I've been increasingly been getting a sort of nervous energy, the not being able to sit still, or concentrate, but accompanied by the twisty stomach feeling of anxiety. That comes in bouts whenever it fancies it, sometimes with attacks sometimes just on its own. Problem is, tonight (it's currently nearly 11pm here) I haven't been able to stop shaking/twitching for the past couple of hours. I danced to try and work off energy, I've eaten plenty, I tried to go to sleep but can't lie still. I'm unfocused, can't get my head together, and spasms in my hands mean I'm typing this very slowly. :| Has anyone else who's had these symptoms advise me? Is it worth just waiting it out? Would the A+E be able to do anything? I''m getting a headache.