Anxiety group or councillor recommendations?

[mysideofthings]

interior health has an anxiety/CBT group through the mental health center. but it's likely a morning group, so if you work, it might not be the best fit. i believe it also has a psychologist and/or psychiatrist as part it who you check in with. it might be time limited though, like a few weeks.

there USED to be the LEAF program here, but they only ran it a few times many years ago, and it never stuck. there are really such limited resources for most mental health issues in general, unfortunately.

i've struggled with various issues including social anxiety, so i understand how difficult it is.

i take an anti anxiety med as needed and have just had to learn to adapt and work around anxiety flares which means avoidance/isolating when things are too difficult.

[JollyGreenBully]

Stay away from the SSRI's Some have irreversible side effects with no cure, even after you stop taking them.

This isn't true, at all. Plus, SSRIs actually have fewer side-effects and are generally deemed safer than the older tricyclic drugs.

I've been on SSRI medication nearly my entire life for severe social anxiety and depression. The drugs can help a lot but they're not a panacea and CBT isn't either.

BY FAR the best advice I can give is to deal with a caring GP somewhere who knows about mental health issues. I've had nothing but serious issues with the psychiatrists in this area and so have many other mentally ill people here. One of them didn't even talk to me before prescribing drugs - he had me fill out a short survey and then tried prescribing medication based on my written answers and not talking to me at all. He also refused to look at any previous medical history. Another one focused on my homosexuality and told me I'm not actually gay and that Jesus could cure me of my homosexuality. Other ones will get really angry if their medication choices are questioned (not their experience, but just general questions about doses, etc). I had one walk over to the door, say his role was over, and then he just awkwardly stood there expecting me to leave.

I have like 70+ of these stories over a 25 year period. It's insane....just deal with a GP or find a good counselor from the health building people have mentioned.

[perspicacious]

Anxiety is one of the worst things to experience. Prolonged periods reek havoc on you're entire body.

I've taken the meds for anxiety and I think it can be addictive if you enjoy having your brain go from 100 to 2 and it takes the care out if things. 8 tend to think the best course of action is recognition of triggers and knowing when they are coming on and knowing how to avoid this altogether. The worst is when an attack hits you for no reason at all and it comes out of the blue. This has been happening to me more often lately. I would not wish this on anyone.

[Gixxer]

This isn't true, at all. Plus, SSRIs actually have fewer side-effects and are generally deemed safer than the older tricyclic drugs.

I've been on SSRI medication nearly my entire life for severe social anxiety and depression. The drugs can help a lot but they're not a panacea and CBT isn't either.

BY FAR the best advice I can give is to deal with a caring GP somewhere who knows about mental health issues. I've had nothing but serious issues with the psychiatrists in this area and so have many other mentally ill people here. One of them didn't even talk to me before prescribing drugs - he had me fill out a short survey and then tried prescribing medication based on my written answers and not talking to me at all. He also refused to look at any previous medical history. Another one focused on my homosexuality and told me I'm not actually gay and that Jesus could cure me of my homosexuality. Other ones will get really angry if their medication choices are questioned (not their experience, but just general questions about doses, etc). I had one walk over to the door, say his role was over, and then he just awkwardly stood there expecting me to leave.

I have like 70+ of these stories over a 25 year period. It's insane....just deal with a GP or find a good counselor from the health building people have mentioned.

Im sorry but you're wrong SSRI are very dangerous and have irreversible side effects aftet a person stops using them.

Google PSSD (post SSRI sexual dysfunction) and tell me Im wrong.

STAY away from SSRI at all costs.

Look into maybe doing plant medicine's or pyscadelic's

[WeatherWoman]

SSRI can be dangerous for some people, not all. Unfortunately the is little options for people dealing with severe mental health issues and sometimes medication is the only hope to even live.

The hope that CBT, counselling and healthy diet and exercise are enough but in many cases it's not.

We easily treat a broken broken without many questions, why is mental heath so different?

[mysideofthings]

Im sorry but you're wrong SSRI are very dangerous and have irreversible side effects aftet a person stops using them.

Google PSSD (post SSRI sexual dysfunction) and tell me Im wrong.

STAY away from SSRI at all costs.

Look into maybe doing plant medicine's or pyscadelic's

it is known that ANY psych med has a long list of side effects, not just SSRIs. it is NOT known what side effects each individual will have, if any, though.

i started on SSRIs at 14 due to severe depression. while they did not help me ever and some did cause side effects, they did NOT cause long term effects for me. what the issue was more was that my diagnosis was incorrect, and the depression was not chemical, so a chemical was not going to significantly improve my symptoms, at least in regard to that time period. even the antipsychotics i took (and still take as nightly at a low dose) hasn't left me with any long lasting issue. some people might, but again not everyone does.

each person responds different to a medication in terms of how their body metabolizes it and sensitivities to a med. some feel the effect after the first dose, others might not until a few weeks later. some end up with side effects, others do not. it's important though to understand what a person is dealing with, whether it's a true clinical (chemical) depression or anxiety disorder or situational, etc. before a medication is just prescribed..and also consulting a pharmacist. there are ways people can try to manage symptoms, but each person is unique in what works for them.

at one point, i was having severe panic attacks daily along with generalized anxiety and social anxiety for years. i was given an anti anxiety med that i have now been taking as needed for many, many years. if taken properly, it isn't addictive nor have i become dependent on it. it actually works better for me now when i need it even when my anxiety/panic attacks are less than it did at higher doses when i used it daily. so, in saying that, symptoms also can change as can the need for certain medications.

saying that medication is dangerous is just your personal opinion regardless if people have had side effects or not. i had side effects from one particular med that triggered another mental health issue that i struggled with for many years and almost didn't survive, so i don't say that out of ignorance.

while i am not a fan of taking meds, i take what i find helps me for the symptoms that i need lessened in order to function better. each person has the right to make their own choice and do what helps. it is trial and error, unfortunately, with a lot of meds, but in the end, when you are desperate to feel better, sometimes that is what you choose to try.