Anyone who has read my threads on here knows I can be quite emotional. Well after years of ups and downs and yet another awful social function… I finally decided to see a doctor. We talked and he prescribed me some anti-depressants. I think I might have some clinical social anxiety disorder…perhaps some compulsion in there as well. I don’t want to jump to conclusions yet, I thought I’d get some dopers opinions. It may sound strange / gross but have been plucking small amounts of hair for as long as I can remember. I tend to latch on to emotional events and then keep running them in my mind. For example I got into a meaningless spat with someone at a conference…and I was still angry and frustrated some 10 hours later. I have felt anxious in social situations for as long as I can remember, and I had some panic attacks in university…though none recently. I seem to be able to work well in structured work environment group situations, but social occasions are extrememly difficult. I find it difficult to look people in the eye. This problem has been with me so long, I suppose my next goal in life is to overcome it. I really have a hard time making new friends…and I’m pushing my old ones away because of my emotional nature. My father is like this too, so thats why I thought it might be a medical problem.
Right now I feel numb, I’ve worked so hard in life, and it feels like I have been defeated…though I will pick up the pieces and figure this out like I’ve solved all the other problems in my life. I won’t let this stop me from being happy.
You did the right thing by going to see a doctor. I don’t know if you are looking for a diagnosis, but this isn’t the best place for that anyway. I would suggest in addition to seeing your MD (I assume a MD gave you the meds) you may want to see a counselor. There are some things that the medication can help you control, but talking one on one with someone can often give you the ability to fix some things.
If my symptoms are psychological or is it aproblem to do with medication? Also are my symptoms point towards a specific disorder? Any words of wisdom for dealing with this would be helpful as well…I suspect my eventually answer will be some kind of therapy perhaps mixed with medication…I still don’t know really whats wrong with me yet. The doctor wasn’t able to stay long, he wanted me to come see him again on Friday.
Some people respond well to medication, some to counseling. More people respond to both together than either individually (at least, cognitive-behavioral treatment, which is easier to standardize and measure). Some of the antidepressants are better for rumination and social anxiety, while others are better for the no-energy kind of depression. There’s a better response rate for medications that members of your family respond to as well.
I talk with my clients about getting a med consult, which they don’t have to follow up on, but it still gets them more information. Antidepressants can provide a window for noticing the relationship between your thoughts and feelings, and for practicing different behaviors as an experiment. This can give a person a basis for comparison that can be used if medication is discontinued later. On the other side of it, counseling can help a person identify patterns of internal and interpersonal relating that affect self-esteem, satisfaction, and quality of life. Bottom line: Whether the problem is primarily physiological, psychological, or both, biological and counseling interventions can be effective for some people if targeted correctly.
I could have fun and whip out my copy of the DSM-IV TR and make a fairly accurate guess, but that would not do you any good. The medication may take up to two weeks to be effective, so be patient. Doctors, IME, don’t usually spend a lot of time with the patients, so that is why I suggested you find a counselor. Look in the phone book or google community mental health in your area. Go see the doctor again. He will probably want to see if you are having any sort of physical reactions to the medication–i.e. elevated blood pressure, suicidal thoughts, etc.
You will get through this. babygirl has been on anti-depressants for about six months now and the change is incredible. Believe it or not, living with me can be stressful.
What everybody else said. Good for you to finally get some professional help; life and social life shouldn’t feel this hard. You’ve set the first steps on a path with a very large chance that things may very well be considerably better and more hopeful this time next year.
In the meantime, for some people it helps to read about what problems they may have. It helps to have the words to describe what your problems are. It also helps to know what your counselor is talking about, and to be able to say: " it’s not entirely that, it’s more a bit like that" so you reach a good diagnoisis and treatment together.
Such words, like depression, social anxiety, or panic attacs, are a gateway to lots of info on the ‘Net and dozens of in-depth books on Amazon. Read the customers’ reviews and just order a few of the books that appeal to you. Rinse and repeat.
For instance, such hair-plucking is common enough to have it’s own word: Trichotillomania ((Wiki link) Start googling!
Medications can interrupt habits and behaviors which feed into harmful cycles. Medications cannot change you alone. Counselling is a great idea when you have a personal stake, and perhaps even an objective. The combination matters a lot. Finding the professionals who can and will sell you what you need rather than what you will buy is a challenge, and one that has to be reevaluated fairly often. But they are professionals, not friends. You choose them for their qualities as professionals. Get references.
You, know, friends are good for that, too. Pick the friends who have the sort of strength you want to develop. You have to trust someone, so pick someone that you think is trustworthy, but you really do have to trust somebody.
You can change it. You can change it all. Pick stuff that is worth changing into. It took a while getting to where you are now, it’s gonna take some time to get somewhere else.
I seem to go in cycles…over the last few days I’ve been thinking alot about how I operate. There are times when everything seems normal, but then I always seem to lose control of my anxiety or emotions and things fall apart. Often people comment I look sad when I am in social groups, and I have a hard time letting go and going with the flow. I do a have a few trustworthy friends I haven’t tanked with yet, but really my group of friends I really trust is down to three. Right now I seem to be feeling a bit better…but I just wonder how long it will be before something breaks me again. I really don’t want to socialize right now until I learn to better handle myself, as I’m afraid of making a scene. I really feel bad about taking medication, and I would like to get off of it as soon as possible. I keep thinking I’m exagerrating the problem and it’s all in my head…but I’m 25 years old and these problems have been with me all my life to some degree. Friendships have been hard, and I’ve never had a relationship with a woman. I will do whatever it takes to get back to normal.
Yet another vote for “be patient, meds can take a while to work,” but also another vote for “different people respond to medications differently.” Listen to your mind and your body - if you’ve given a particular medication a fair chance and you see no change (or you feel worse), talk to your doctor about a different medication, pronto.
You sound quite a bit like me but especially here. Of course I run over events from 20 years ago and still get as angry and frustrated as I did back then.
I did seek treatment and it did work. I saw both a ‘talking doctor’ and a prescribing doctor. I don’t have health insurance now, otherwise I would probably still be taking the meds, though I did stop the talking thearpy after a while.
Things can change and get better, but you have to work at it.
