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Posted 12/17/2012 7:47 AM (GMT -5)
I need to deal better with my anxiety. Over health issues in particular, but in general as well. As i said in another thread, i started Lexapro three days ago, took the first pill Friday night (half dose, 5mg, for the first two weeks). I felt like crap all weekend, slept 11 hours Saturday night, havent done that in 20 years.
Today i am feeling a little better, not great.

But the more i think about it, i dont like the idea of being on this anti anxiety/depression drug. I really dont think i am clinically depressed i'm a happy but nervous person. The potential side effects, while i understand are not all common and are listed for legal reasons, make me say, why even take this drug, it cant be good for your physical health. Plus i am already on 4 other drugs for bp and lipids.
And i feel somewhat defeated, by taking this (can't explain that, i just do)

So i guess my question is this; you guys have more reason, at times, than i, and more right, to feel anxiety. How do you deal with it. I really want to find a way to deal with it without drugs. Easy to say, just relax, but its not easy to change your persona. Gym? Meditation? Logic?
Thanks for indulging me on this, i know its not a PC question, hope its ok to post. I went to the Anxiety topic on HW, but it seems not to be as active, and more oriented to people with more serious symptoms.
Posted 12/17/2012 8:17 AM (GMT -5)
Might consider finding a good head shrinker. (Psychologist)

When I met mine, I had lost 30 lbs due to stress from a failing relationship.

I still pop in and visit with Doc Don from time to time to get a tune up.
Posted 12/17/2012 8:33 AM (GMT -5)

I usually stray from giving opinions on roads not traveled.  But, stress is not a stranger to me.  The mind is a powerful master, and yes easier said than done.

Meditation and/or yoga are good. You must fight off the lazy monster, which taunts me. Consistently engage with an activity you enjoy, this would prevent your mind drifting to the dark side.

Posted 12/17/2012 11:09 AM (GMT -5)
Steve in Dallas gave some good advice. Seek some professional help. Like choosing a PCa doctor, look for the best help you can find. Do not rely on a percription from a GP to help with a condition involving depression/anxiety. You would do better with someone who has treated many cases of depression/anxiety.

I get anxiety attacks often. The psychiatrist did give me meds; and, the psychologist gave me good coping skills. I found group therapy very helpful (met folks with similar/worse anxiety). Haven't needed the meds for a few years. i find exercise (walking and weigths) very helpful. I also ty to stay busy. Some days that is hard as my energy level feels way down, so I keep a list of things to do and force myself to do them.

Hope this helps. Good luck and best wishes.
Posted 12/17/2012 11:25 AM (GMT -5)
You have some good advice that was posted from others here. My 2 cents to your questions is "The best treatment for anxiety is multi chaneled. Talk therapy, exercise (either alone walking or biking, or gym) and medication to get you over the hump. Hope this is a bit of help to you.

Cajun Jeff
Posted 12/17/2012 11:30 AM (GMT -5)
shortly after I finished my radiation treatments I was having trouble sleeping and had more than a little depression going. I went to see my primary care doctor because my blood pressure was acting up. She said that something close to 80% of all men treated for PC will have some kind of depression - some classified as clinical. Has nothing to do with how strong you think you are but your body is changing and those changes affect the mind. Think about what you've been through - any normal person would have the right to be a more that a bit upset, depressed, anxious and angry over it all. Completely normal. Now you just need to figure a way out of those feelings.

Nothing wrong with a little help from the doctors and the anti-depression meds. My doc put me on some sleeping pills for a couple of weeks and that helped a lot. In my case she though the RT just messed up my sleep patterns and if we reset them I'd be better but if that didn't work she was prepare to refer me over to the mental health side for the anti-depressants. You might need something for a little while to help you adjust. Talk to you docs.

I also find exercise, like walking, to be very helpful. Plus I write a lot, have people I can confide in and of course speed a lot of time in my workshop making things. Find something you enjoy and that energizes you.

All the best,
Andrew
Posted 12/17/2012 11:46 AM (GMT -5)
Things that help me:

Hot tea and sunlight. A bit of caffeine to get me moving and some fresh air to cheer me up. Walking is very therapeutic.

Controlling my blood sugar. I am on a very low carbohydrate diet that keeps my blood sugar very flat. It seems to help with my anxiety.

Xanax. There are very few things that I agree with FDR about but his quote that "there is nothing to fear but fear itself" offers quite a bit of insight into my occasional nervousness. I find Xanax very helpful and the most common way I use it is to carry it around in my pocket. In situations where I worry about my ability to cope without becoming unpleasantly anxious I find that having the pills in my pocket is usually enough. I know that if I become fearful I have a way to calm down. I seldom need it. The last time I actually took a calm-me-down pill was when my urologist called me in to talk about my post-op pathology report.
Posted 12/17/2012 1:52 PM (GMT -5)
So i guess my question is this; you guys have more reason, at times, than i, and more right, to feel anxiety.

not necessarily.  don't minimize the way you feel.  it's different for all of us.  since being diagnosed three years ago i have been on anti-depressants twice.  i am off of them now.  the anti-depressants also have their SEs but they helped me alot and when on them i didn't feel like i was going to die.

i also exercise regularly and occasionally am somewhat strict about my diet.  i have attended 12-step meetings for more than two decades and i have more than doubled the number of meetings i attend since being diagnosed. and for six months i also attended therapy (a first for me).  i also attend an "illness in recovery" group weekly and now i reach out and stay in touch with friends who are ill.

i work hard at feeling good and for the past couple of months i feel better than i have in years. 

ed

 

Posted 12/17/2012 3:43 PM (GMT -5)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cS40pePzCM

LOL, I found this to be funny, and also true at times

 

Posted 12/17/2012 3:45 PM (GMT -5)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQ5ob9B9yD4

Maybe we can start a band !

Posted 12/17/2012 3:58 PM (GMT -5)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=O57mcVUd4Yg

A suggested theme song for this thread.
Posted 12/17/2012 4:03 PM (GMT -5)
In the very early spring to early summer, I had some anxiety issues...at that time, mostly due to some work-related stuff (own a small biz). At the same time my GP was trying to push my borderline high cholesterol down with higher and higher doses of statins (like lipitor and crestor). I had some pretty bad SE's from the cholesterol drugs without having a significant drop in overall cholesterol or LDL. Not the first time. My cholesterol is familial and there is a limit...what presciption drugs will do.

I added the stuff about the statins because, for me, they had a negative impact on any workouts or exercise I could do (muscle/joint pain, fatigue, memory fog...a few others).

Having said that, my GP has since dropped my statin dose and I am getting back to working out. When I do work out vigorously, I feel great. Probably due to the endorphins released. I was prescibed a mild (IMHO) drug called lorazepam at 1mG (1/2 to be taken when necessary) to help offset any anxiety. I refused others. Never used it much and don't need it anymore.

This is just my particular set of circumstances. If you are fit enough to work out well or be able to ease in to a good exercise regimen over time...it could work wonders.

Make sure your doc is on the same page with you...mine was.
Posted 12/17/2012 4:04 PM (GMT -5)
I still think that for a man who has just had a negative test result for PCa the amount of time that Pratoman spends on this forum represents a tragic waste of online opportunity.

Pratoman:

A bit of homework: research the following questions --
1) what color are Camille Crimson's eyes?
2) why do you spend so much time on this forum?
Posted 12/17/2012 4:11 PM (GMT -5)
Agree with Peter- walking is very therapeutic-

Also meditation- 20- 25 minutes twice a day will do wonders for you- if standard meditation technique is difficult-- in a dim lit or darkened room stare at a lighted candle- clear your mind and simply concentrate on your breathing- same effect-

Don't drink when you're down- alcohol is a depressant- I should listen to my own advice on that one-
Posted 12/17/2012 4:18 PM (GMT -5)
I still think that for a man who has just had a negative test result for PCa the amount of time that Pratoman spends on this forum represents a tragic waste of online opportunity.

you see it as a cause?  i see it as a symptom. 

ed

 

Posted 12/17/2012 5:24 PM (GMT -5)
I would like to add motorcycle riding to Yoga and Meditation. We all need to find the thing that works for us. I know of a women who says gardening does it for her, it's her meditation. Listening to good music may be another. Working on motorcycles and cars sometimes does it for me, too.

Whatever gets rid of the "noise" that surrounds us and lets us hear what our inner voice is - no kidding guys.
Posted 12/17/2012 10:12 PM (GMT -5)
Thanks guys, all good stuff. Cool videos, i love the country boys.

@Peter - you are funny. To the first question - i have no idea - every picture i see of Camille Crimson, her eyes are closed LOL.
To the second - i dunno. I find a forum for everything. But this is a good one, very active, and i got a lot out of it, so i feel like i should hang around. But i know you are right. i PROBABLY need a break. Should probably take one, and come back in early May, just before my next PSA. But i think I'm addicted. We'll see.

OK, back to the subject at hand.
I dunno, i don't think i am depressed, i think i am high strung. Although i suppose that could just be a sympton of depression.
In any case, i have considered seeing a psych, but I dont think i am there yet. I have no idea how to meditate, dont even know what it is, except that it has a calming effect, guess i should buy a book on it.
After going back and forth all day, i decided when i got home tonight that i am not going to continue with the Lexapro. I am on too many prescription drugs, i want to get off some, not on more.
My GP seems reluctant to give me a full prescription for Xanax. When i ask, he gives me 10. I think i am going to go back to him, tell him i decided not to go thru with the Lexapro, and plead my case for a full prescription of xanax, just to have it around. Like Peter, i think it makes me feel better to just have it. 30 WOULD last me almost a year.
I also think i am going to try to be more concious of when i get nuts, and think things through logically, and more deliberately, and try to control emotions from taking over.
And i think i have a new rule - Fridays at 1pm, I'm done, and I'm required to do something i enjoy.
Last, i do work out, but not as consistentoy as i should. That has to change, and working out is now going to be a priority over working in the office. I belong to a gym a quarter mile from the office, no reason i can;t be there 3-4 days a week at lunch, when i dont have appointments.

So less work, more gym, more thinking, and learn meditation. And get Xanax to use as needed.
And i think i am going to make a goal to lose a few more and convince the doc to take me off one of the 4 lipid meds that i am on. (triglycerides, not cholesterol)
Posted 12/18/2012 9:37 AM (GMT -5)
Another suggestion is to look into hobbies you have had in the past. Maybe some interest in one of them will re-develop and provide some escape from current worries.
Posted 12/18/2012 7:34 PM (GMT -5)
Thanks Inspector. I am going to either take up photography, or guitar lessons, haven't decided which yet. I always wanted to play guitar like Clapton, or Joe Walsh. But photography interests me alot, although it gets expensive.
And of course, my business keeps me busy. But i am going to fix that a little. Slight adjustments downward in my hours
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