Medications for anxiety/ADHD/depression/executive function issues?

[Jumpback]

I had been off medication for awhile, partially due to insurance issues, but also due to fear of things being misunderstood by psychs.

I have been trying to get in somewhere, but there was a 6 week wait, so I went to this mental hospital that also has intensive outpatient therapy so you don’t have to be admitted to get medication.

The recent figuring out I am autism spectrum scale has helped a lot. I tried to explain bad executive function issues I am having, and person giving interview wanted to have me committed, possibly against my wishes for “not being able to take care of myself”, but I was able to explain enough to not be forced to be admitted with executive function things

Also helped with the nurse practionioner, who has experience with autism spectrum and agrees that I am on the spectrum in sort of an unusual way

But nurse practionioner started me off on low dosages of things, plus one medication insurance wouldn’t fill. But he seemed open to suggestions, but just is very conservative about giving controlled substances, which are unfortunately the only things that seem to clearly help

I might see him tomorrow (Tuesday)

I am still not doing well on medication. I was hopeful for a couple days and cut alcohol way, way down, but then a new, surprise stress and gave up and went back to drinking more because medication does so little

I just don’t know what to do, I still don’t seem to get much of a break ever from constant anxiety/adhd even on the medication unless I drink. I don’t want to drink, but it’s really, really just not fun to almost never get a break from constantly being a nervous wreck and pacing unless I keep a mild buzz all the time

Anyway, again, the nurse practionioner seems to be somewhat open to suggestions and I might see him today. Here is what I am on

Adderall: 40mg/day
Buspirone: 45mg/day
Klonopin: .5mg as needed (less than .5mg every day)

I mean I am so bad, I feel like I need something severe just so I can stand still and focus on the work I have to do, but this is what I am on.

 

[Major Tom]

I don't know, but Adderall is pretty much legalized methamphetamine and that is a pretty high dose... I'm guessing that could be the root of your anxiety problems. I say this from experience being a recovering methamphetamine addict.

 

[Giraffes]

I'm guessing that could be the root of your anxiety problems. I say this from experience being a recovering methamphetamine addict.

I feel but don't know if that's a part of the problem, i am currently trying to 'change' adapt aspects of how i react to what i presume to be criticism and marginalisation and on days i don't drink (my prop from 'being me') i have a much more positive focus, energy and self believe, it's more difficult in respects of anxiety but the 'pay back' experienced when drinking are massive.
Today i will begin my challenge to give up alcohol day by day,

but it’s really, really just not fun to almost never get a break from constantly being a nervous wreck and pacing unless I keep a mild buzz all the time

I added your quote here as believe me i think i understand the need for that 'buzz', i hope you find varied ways to lessen the need to 'excape' to enable some 'settling within who you are' prehaps advice/feed-back here will help?

 

[Jumpback]

I don't know, but Adderall is pretty much legalized methamphetamine and that is a pretty high dose... I'm guessing that could be the root of your anxiety problems. I say this from experience being a recovering methamphetamine addict.

No, I have only been on the Adderall for 6 days and was on at least as much before for several months and it definitely seemed to help

I only got diagnosed with ADHD a couple years ago but have been on and off anxiety medication for a long time. With just anxiety medication I am less anxious but cannot sit still.

The one he cut severely was Klonopin. I was on 3 times as much last year at this time and have been on higher doses than that of Klonopin or Xanax before

 

[Fino]

I was going to suggest Adderall as I was reading! Gabapentin also has been very helpful for me. Have you ever been on a mood stabilizer, such as Lithium? I've taken Buspirone and didn't notice any effects. Does it help you?

 

[Jumpback]

I feel but don't know if that's a part of the problem, i am currently trying to 'change' adapt aspects of how i react to what i presume to be criticism and marginalisation and on days i don't drink (my prop from 'being me') i have a much more positive focus, energy and self believe, it's more difficult in respects of anxiety but the 'pay back' experienced when drinking are massive.
Today i will begin my challenge to give up alcohol day by day,

I added your quote here as believe me i think i understand the need for that 'buzz', i hope you find varied ways to lessen the need to 'excape' to enable some 'settling within who you are' prehaps advice/feed-back here will help?

Talking here has helped, but I think I become overreliant on it to not think about other things

Alcohol is a terrible thing because it helps short term. Good for you for trying to stop completely

I have just gotten so bad...like last Tuesday before I was on any medication at first group therapy, therapy leader let me sit out in the hall so I could keep standing up and sitting down and rocking standing from one leg to the other like I do. At the first break, after 45 minutes, even this much being still was getting hard, and therapist let me pace up and down the hall for the rest of the group session.

My ex-gf said that I can seem like a caged animal, which seems pretty accurate

I mean these things get really bad with me and alcohol is something of an escape. I just wish that there was an easy medication fix that could make me more “normal” so alcohol didn’t seem so appealing

 

[Jumpback]

I was going to suggest Adderall as I was reading! Gabapentin also has been very helpful for me. Have you ever been on a mood stabilizer, such as Lithium? I've taken Buspirone and didn't notice any effects. Does it help you?

Thanks, I’ll look into Gabapentin. I have never been on lithium. I can’t tell if buspirone does anything or not, I was on it for about a year before

The thing that consistently clearly helps is either klonopin or Xanax in high doses, but these are controlled substances.

 

[Major Tom]

No, I have only been on the Adderall for 6 days and was on at least as much before for several months and it definitely seemed to help

I only got diagnosed with ADHD a couple years ago but have been on and off anxiety medication for a long time. With just anxiety medication I am less anxious but cannot sit still.

The one he cut severely was Klonopin. I was on 3 times as much last year at this time and have been on higher doses than that of Klonopin or Xanax before

Yea, with ADHD it does help for a while(I have ADD), but after an extended period it can and probably will ramp up your anxiety, paranoia, pacing, making structures out of emergency blankets etc. We are all different, but I am just speaking from my own personal experience.
These are some of the sideeffects of Adderall:
Drugs & Medications.

 

[Jumpback]

Yea, with ADHD it does help for a while(I have ADD), but after an extended period it can and probably will ramp up your anxiety, paranoia, pacing, making structures out of emergency blankets etc. We are all different, but I am just speaking from my own personal experience.
These are some of the sideeffects of Adderall:
Drugs & Medications.

I don’t know. I am doing pretty bad right now on medication, and you are warning me that the effectiveness of the medication is going to go down over time...

 

[Major Tom]

I don’t know. I am doing pretty bad right now on medication, and you are warning me that the effectiveness of the medication is going to go down over time...

Not trying to be a downer. I just think that people that are taking stimulants like Adderall should be aware of what it is they are actually taking. It is outlawed in the country I'm in and is considered a controlled substance. For good reasons. I'm not saying it doesn't help some people long term, but you should always be aware of what you are ingesting.

 

[Fino]

Thanks, I’ll look into Gabapentin. I have never been on lithium. I can’t tell if buspirone does anything or not, I was on it for about a year before

The thing that consistently clearly helps is either klonopin or Xanax in high doses, but these are controlled substances.

Yeah, I have some of the problems you describe and Gabapentin helps it a lot. Lithium helps my anxiety, apathy, and oversensitivity. And isn't Adderall also a controlled substance? They're very strict about it. Either way, my doctor is similar to yours and won't prescribe Xanax or Valium or anything like that. That's how I got Gabapentin.

And I don't know how long a period we're talking with Adderall losing effectiveness or having side-effects, but I've been taking it for over two years and it's just as much of a god-send as when I first started on it.

 

[Jumpback]

Not trying to be a downer. I just think that people that are taking stimulants like Adderall should be aware of what it is they are actually taking. It is outlawed in the country I'm in and is considered a controlled substance. For good reasons. I'm not saying it doesn't help some people long term, but you should always be aware of what you are ingesting.

You were right about 40mg of adderral being a higher dose, but that’s what I was on before and it was ok. This psych today said he was trying to prescribe 20mg, but I think he looked at my old pill bottle and made a mistake.

Thanks for the warning and info. It just gets depressing trying to live like this. I did a one hour intake interview at other psych place and solidly for the entire hour I was pacing. (I write on here on an iPad that I can wander around with).

 

[Jumpback]

Yeah, I have some of the problems you describe and Gabapentin helps it a lot. Lithium helps my anxiety, apathy, and oversensitivity. And isn't Adderall also a controlled substance? They're very strict about it. Either way, my doctor is similar to yours and won't prescribe Xanax or Valium or anything like that. That's how I got Gabapentin.

And I don't know how long a period we're talking with Adderall losing effectiveness or having side-effects, but I've been taking it for over two years and it's just as much of a god-send as when I first started on it.

He suggested Gabapentin today, so I said ok since you said it helps. Though when I looked it up, there is limited information that it helps. He also added Effexor

He really is a cool guy, it’s just that I am so incredibly bad with anxiety and have so many real world things that have to get done, that I really need for something heavy, even if just for a short time. When I was hospitalized for constant panic attacks when I was 21 they had me on very high doses of Xanax and then Klonopin and it helped. I mean it’s not my fault that every addictive substance or medication seems to be helpful and non-addictive thing does almost nothing, or works so slow that I can’t tell the difference

 

[Jumpback]

By the way, no psychs ever even suggested anything about autism spectrum before because I had sexual assaults issues that everyone always thought was the root of everything., including things like a significantly troubled brain, my potential danger to others and even ridiculous unrelated things in every direction.

But in the space of a week, one nurse practioner at short term facility who has some experience with autism thinks I am autistic spectrum, then other place I am trying to get in in intake interview with counselor who has a lot of experience with autism is virtually positive that I am on the spectrum

I actually have to lie or not mention things about sexual assault issues so the real issue isn’t trauma or repressed things and hate things, then I mention autism things I have learned from here and people get it.

Like, I don’t know, gay couple sexually assaults me in college and I check myself into hospital upset because this is the last straw of people treating me badly and pacing back and forth like a caged animal like I do and it just must be some combination of sexual assault trauma/repressed homosexuality/potential hate beliefs/danger to others/significant things wrong with my brain and on and on

Like, seriously, gay men like men and actually commit crimes like everyone else does and autistic people have trouble understanding things and have trouble reading signals or giving straightforward signals back. It should not have taken 20 some years of complete frustration and then solving everything on my own, for there to be the smallest level of understanding

 

[Major Tom]

You were right about 40mg of adderral being a higher dose, but that’s what I was on before and it was ok. This psych today said he was trying to prescribe 20mg, but I think he looked at my old pill bottle and made a mistake.

Thanks for the warning and info. It just gets depressing trying to live like this. I did a one hour intake interview at other psych place and solidly for the entire hour I was pacing. (I write on here on an iPad that I can wander around with).

I totally understand, living with anxiety, depression etc sucks. I hope that you can find some relief. I'm a big advocate for medicinal cannabis for anxiety, especially higher CBD content cannabis. I'm not sure if that's an option for you, but maybe check into that. It can really help.

 

[Jumpback]

I totally understand, living with anxiety, depression etc sucks. I hope that you can find some relief. I'm a big advocate for medicinal cannabis for anxiety, especially higher CBD content cannabis. I'm not sure if that's an option for you, but maybe check into that. It can really help.

I had tried weed before and it seemed to help, but there was also sort of a lack of interest in working. Maybe I just smoked too much. If I can find a supply I’ll try it again. Anything but alcohol (or harder drugs which I have never tried)

 

[Major Tom]

I had tried weed before and it seemed to help, but there was also sort of a lack of interest in working. Maybe I just smoked too much. If I can find a supply I’ll try it again. Anything but alcohol (or harder drugs which I have never tried)

I'm not really referring to weed in the traditional recreational sense. More of a high CBD oil that you can orally ingest. The effects of THC and CBD are quite different. THC makes you high and is fun, CBD has more of a relaxing/calming effect, but doesn't make you high. Thus it helps you to keep your motivation while keeping you relaxed as well. They are quite different. I hope someday it will be available for you to try legally. I know in most states they sell it at gas stations and such.

 

[Fino]

He suggested Gabapentin today, so I said ok since you said it helps. Though when I looked it up, there is limited information that it helps. He also added Effexor

He really is a cool guy, it’s just that I am so incredibly bad with anxiety and have so many real world things that have to get done, that I really need for something heavy, even if just for a short time. When I was hospitalized for constant panic attacks when I was 21 they had me on very high doses of Xanax and then Klonopin and it helped. I mean it’s not my fault that every addictive substance or medication seems to be helpful and non-addictive thing does almost nothing, or works so slow that I can’t tell the difference

I agree, I've tried finding information on Gabapentin and it's rather grim. It's helped people I know personally though. And it takes a rather high dosage to help me. I'm guessing you were started on something very low, of course, so don't be surprised if it doesn't do a whole lot yet. But it increases GABA in the brain, so how can that not be good?

 

[Fino]

I realized I should probably clarify how I take Gabapentin, but maybe this is already how you take it. I'm prescribed 600mg 4x a day, and I'm supposed to take that spread out over the day so that I always have the same amount of the drug in my system at all times. I did this close to a year and found it had no noticeable effect, similar to what I found when I googled it. So I started taking it only when I needed it. So rather than spreading out the four doses, I'll take three of them all at once before I work, because that's when I get anxious, and then I'll take the other one after work, or something similar to this. That's the way I've found it to be useful. I don't know how I would have kept working otherwise!

 

[Jumpback]

I realized I should probably clarify how I take Gabapentin, but maybe this is already how you take it. I'm prescribed 600mg 4x a day, and I'm supposed to take that spread out over the day so that I always have the same amount of the drug in my system at all times. I did this close to a year and found it had no noticeable effect, similar to what I found when I googled it. So I started taking it only when I needed it. So rather than spreading out the four doses, I'll take three of them all at once before I work, because that's when I get anxious, and then I'll take the other one after work, or something similar to this. That's the way I've found it to be useful. I don't know how I would have kept working otherwise!

I got 100mg tablets of Gabapentin 3 times a day. I guess the only thing that I can try to attempt to be able to work is take all 300mg of GAbapentin and my one .5mg tablet of klonopin just before attempting to work.

I hate how these things go. When I went to this place the choice was psych ward or intensive outpatient therapy with 9 hours a week of group therapy. And the person I talked to seemed to be highly in favor of psych hospital, possibly against my wishes

I just needed medication.

My overwhelming issue is anxiety so out of control that I cannot function due to being completely overwhelmed by a bunch of real world problems for the last 1.5 years. So why give such mild anxiety medication doses? And why in the world think that someone with ASD with very severe anxiety and moderately severe ADHD is going to benefit from sitting in a room talking to other people for 9 hours a week?

Honestly, it’s a lot less torturous than I expected because both the group therapy leader and the nurse practioner are really good, and group therapy leader let’s me pace the hallway or wait in another room if all the sitting still becomes too overwhelming, but it’s just not what I need. I need medication, especially heavy anxiety medication to get through a really difficult spot and that’s about it