Do you ladies think antidepressants (AD) can be a cure for anxiety? !
I have a 9 year old daughter. I feel sorry for her & feel very guilty. I am 49 and anxiety is too much that I don't want to do much outside the house, don't like inviting her friends around & dealing with other mums. My daughter is a very bright & very energetic girl. There is a world out there. I am sure she will learn and love it if her mum takes her out to places. She doesn't complain. She seems to be happy with what we are doing together but she doesn't know what she is missing. I feel awful. So I wondered if I take AD would I be a different person??? Will I feel more energetic and outgoing? If not AD, what else???? I hate this big PAUSE in my life. Help.me out of here!!!
I'm the same way with my grandkids.. I don't even like to go anywhere myself going through these stages of menopause, let alone bring any kids along, makes you quite nervous and on edge! egdge you feel guilty about there being a whole world out there.. And I know its different for you because she's with you all the time, but it is still similar with the grandkids .. I did just watch another summer come and go where I wish more fun stuff could have been planned and done, at least when they're with me, like I use to do with my kids when they were growing up, trips to zoos and water parks movies, but I did plan and do fun things at home which are movie times with baking cookies and popping popcorn, and coloring.. We even bought a lot of sidewalk chalk and had contests as to who colored the best pictures on the walkways, so lots of things that can be done at home until some of these symptoms go away ,with age, nothing will last we should get back to some normalcy sometime here.. Oh and I'm not on any antidepressants or anything so I can't advise for that I don't know how they make you feel , but hopefully some others on Here that are with more experience with them can let you know how they can help or not.. Take care ❤
Hello, I understand what you are saying. I have no energy to deal with other kids, moms, etc. My son is the same as your daughter , thank goodness school is starting soon. We used to go do stuff, movies, shopping, etc. Now just too BLAH! I get very dizzy too, which freaks me out! I am 9 weeks into taking Lexapro to manage perimenopause anxiety, etc until I can get my hormones figured out. I still do not have energy I was hoping for. I am able to do things here and there. But, I still mostly stick close to home. I’m not sure that an AD is supposed to give you crazy energy, I think it more or less stops the worrying and evens out your mood...that’s what I’ve found on it. I However, I do think in my case if my dizziness went away, I would be a little more motivated.
You could always try it, low and slow. Sometimes you have to try a couple of different ones. I lasted 2 days on others, but I am very medication sensitive and stubborn about taking them in the first place! The side effects stink, so you may want to take when you do not have a lot of obligations.
Good luck, whatever direction you choose! 😊
Imagine,
I can so relate to how you are feeling! My kids are both under age 14 and I am 48 going on 49. This peri nightmare hit me in June. I had a lot of the peri symptoms here and there starting at 45 but my hormones plummeted in June and that is when a ton of symptoms hit and it was awful!!!!!! For the first time ever I had the lethargy, adrenaline/anxiety rushes, doom and gloom, crying spells, aches and pains all over and ON and on. As of now June was my last period - so I guess I have entered the Meno Hallway and graduate once I hit 12 months.
I finally had to tell my girls what I was going through - that every woman goes through it and about 30% have a very rough time of it - and unfortunately I am in that percentage. We talked about how for the coming months I will be home a lot. I'm going out only when necessary. The guilt has been another very hard one for me. This summer over school break we did only the necessary. It's still the same. My husband has had to take so much on that I used to do and that has been hard for me to miss out on. They've always known me to be the non-stop, go-getting, zest for life woman in their life - now that woman is resting, resting, resting and watching movies a lot of the time.
Last week I decided I was going to try the natural over the counter progesterone cream for all of these symptoms. I am tracking my symptoms every single day and have been since this started in June. I am noticing a lot of patterns with anxiety, congestion, allergies, muscle aches, every single symptom! I will try this cream first to see if I start noticing small changes here and there. I am starting to notice that before I have a hot flash I have a lot of symptoms just before it comes. I read a lot on that last night and that is common. Looking back in June - I was having a lot of hot flashes (I didn't know what they were until now because I don't sweat on my face - I started feeling in between my chest after I started feeling anxious and low and behold it was wet but I never had noticed that before - then 5 minutes later I am cold).
This forum has been the biggest blessing to me right now. I have given myself the permission to be gentle with myself while my body adjusts to the hormones radically changing. I am SO much better than I was in June and July. In my mind now - my life as I knew it is in a holding pattern and as of today I am okay with that - more like I am learning to accept it. After reading so many stories on this forum - and after what I've been through - I've realized for the first time in my life that I would open to and anti-depressant/anti-anxiety and/or one of the natural creams they sell online. I'm starting with the creams.
I am sure many of the wonderful women on this group will share their anti-anxiety/anti-depressant stories with you. I have a good friend that is also 49 like me and her hormones plummeted last summer. She is on Lexapro and says it was a very good choice for her - she still is tired a lot - but the anxiety and other feelings have lessened significantly. My other good friend, who is a Pharmacist, recommended the otc natural progesterone cream as it worked for her - so that is what I am trying now. Take care. HUGS! you are NOT ALONE!
in my opinion no, I have had anxiety since before meni and it really didnt help me but everyone is different. I learned how to control it and now have it very little. when I do get anxious I get up and do something, like housework or exercise to get rid of the extra adrenaline. that is all anxiety is. I wish you the very best of luck and hang in there! because you have anxiety doesn't mean you have depression and if you do then maybe an AD would help you.
Hi Finny, I love and relate to your post. I am so glad you told your kids...I told my son too what’s happening with me because when I was running around last year “dying” with all my symptoms he got really scared. Kids are so in tune, amongst all the lip and eye rolls they give us...they do worry. Also, your girls will be ahead of the game in the future...knowledge is power...I wish My mom told me! hopefully, medical treatments will catch up by then! I was glad to hear about your friends lexapro experience...gives me hope! Take good care! 🙏😀
Hi there yes they have deffo worked for me I was in the same position as u and many others, I'm on 50mg sertraline and I'm 90 percent back to my old self, they did take 6 weeks or so to start working tho, I've been on them for 5 months now and I have my life back x
Lou,
Yes I could tell my girls were starting to get concerned so I wanted to just be open and up front as I want them to be informed. I was not. My mom's generation just didn't talk about this! My mom has been wonderful and has opened up so much about the experiences of my grandma and others that had a VERY rough go of it.
Maybe my mom didn't want to needlessly worry me with it in advance in case I had a breeze of it, like she did? When I started getting all of these horrible symptoms she said "I think it's menopause". And that is when she shared the scary stuff my grandma (her mom) went through. My grandma would tremble all over and shake/seizures/convulse - the doctor told her it was Meno way back when - and would all subside in up to a year or two - and it did and she lived a very long, blessed, happy life!!!!!
Yes! My friend on the Lexapro is such a go-getter! She is leader in so many committees/groups etc in our community and the Meno put her flat on her back for 3 months and then she decided she would have to do something. I reach out to her weekly as I need that confidence and reassurance from her that it will get better. I'm so glad this is an encouragement to you!!! I think she said 10mg? She said she is still tired - but not the level she was. She is the one that shared how terrible she felt for every judging women over the years who went on an AD. She was incredibly humbled by this meno experience!
Hello
You sound like me. I'm another's dizzy person. Why don't doctors recognise this?
I have started citalopram- day 6. Did 4 days at 10mg and was a nightmare. Went down to 2.5mg for 2 days and now going to start 5mg tomorrow. Really hoping it helps.
Xx
Wow your grandma would shake tremble etc and she lived a long happy life. So happy to hear that x
Hello! Yeah, I can’t stand it. My dr just keeps saying BPPV, it’s not though...mine is constant and I get head pressure too. Whuch could be the AD too 🙄 This weather is not helping either! I’m also more prone to sinus and throat issues. I started with 5, then 7.5... I just went up to 10mg on Lexapro...supposed to have gone up 6 weeks ago...but between the side effects and feeling lousy I went slowly. I’m going to keep at it, and be patient...believe me, they’ve almost gotten tossed in the bin several times. I still may save them to throw at my dr at the next visit 😀. I wish I had an answer for the dizzies, but, I am relieved that it is a problem for others. I’m supposed to drive my son to school in a couple of weeks, I am so scared...pathetic that we have to live like this! I hope your medication gives you some relief...just soldier through those side effects. 🤞🙏🤗
I tried the AD’s twice once 11 years ago for Peri and then just recently for meno as I was so desperate . They made me feel weird more nervous and edgy but if they agreed with me I would definitely say ... why not ! Do it !
I’m on BHRT now which has helped as it targets the problem which is hormones .
Probably not a cure, but they may be helpful. Everyone is different. I'm on an older AD, it's called Trazodone. It's a SNRI not a SSRI. I cannot take SSRI's, the side effects were too much.
I was on citalopram about 2 years ago, 10 mg, had very little side effects other than I gained about 5 pounds and nothing else in my life stule changed, it may have helped the anxiety a bit, but not enough that I felt great, after about a year my anxiety got worse. My Doctor changed me over to prozac, I suffered through 12 weeks and believe me I suffered, anxiety was worse, my low moods were worse, I wished a bus or car would just hit me, so I stopped those. Some say that after awhile those side effects will stop and had good results with prozac but it was too scary for me. I've been on absolutely nothing for a year, I just stick to my Yoga every single day. I have days were I have lots of energy and happy go lucky, friendly, then I have days where I'm tired, I don't want to go anywheres or talk to people.
I too have extensively (probably too much) explained this to my sons that are now 18 and 22. My thoughts are men need to know this stuff, so in the future when their wives get moody they don't take off and divorce her. ( I also explained PMS and pregnancy moods)
It's all so difficult to say what will work, everyone has different body chemistry. I gave them a try, they aren't for me; I wish they had of worked though. As long as you know that you may have to tough through some side effects in the beginning...anything is worth trying.
That’s great Samantha that you have educated your sons and it’s a complex subject to talk about . I mean how do we explain in words how we are feeling ?? The severity of everything.... unless you’re going through it you would never understand .
AD’s didn’t work for me either tried them twice lasted 3 days on one and 2 weeks on the other . It’s a hard pill to get on and then even harder to get off them .
It took 6 weeks of being on antidepressants to work for me and it was hell for the first 2 weeks but I knew it was going to be hard, but thankfully I stuck with them and they have made a huge difference to my life, anxiety is barely there now, only have the odd nervy day now and again
Lol. When I explained it, the youngest said he would buy a camp in the woods and go there if his wife was being moody. That kid cracks me up, he may be in the woods a lot when he gets married.
I had explain it, my poor kids put up with me flipping out or crying over nothing for a few years.
Yes, Im pretty sensitive to a lot medication, an alergy pill can make me loopy.
It’s great they worked for you life is too short to be miserable and yes I only lasted 2 weeks couldn’t take it .
Yeah it was very hard going at first, I kept thinking this is so miserable but my doc said please be patient the longer your on them the better it gets, so I thought well I'm miserable anyway so what have I got to lose, 5 months on and I'm so much happier and not so scared of everything, however I always remember to take my pills the thought of missing one terrifies me lol
That’s fabulous Haley ... and yes we feel like crap anyway so feeling a bit more crap doesn’t make any difference .
I’m on the BHRT patch which hopefully helps with anxiety too when it fully kicks in . You need the patience of a saint to get through all this !