Hi Debbi, Can you please post when a good time would be for us to chat in here on the IM? I have some info to get to you that I feel will really help you and cannot post it on the forums. Anyday, anytime just let me know. Beth :)

Hi Debbi :) Happy gobble gobble day to you and your family as well! Thanks for writing back with your age because it makes me think more and more that some of this if not ALL of this (your relaps after 8 months of being anxiety free) may have been triggered by a decrease in your progesterone and estrogen levels due to peri-menopause. I also suspect that as you said, your adrenal glands may be exhausted and could be producing more cortisol than needed. Cortisol helps us meet these challenges by converting proteins into energy, releasing glycogen and counteracting inflammation. For a short time, thats okay. But at sustained high levels, (high stress times ie: continued anxiety) cortisol gradually tears your body down which can be a result of high stress or anxiety over time. So you telling me that you are exhausted and tired all the time tells me that possibly your adrenal glands have been working so hard to keep up with your anxiety level that they are pooped. All of this (hormone imbalance and adrenal fatigue) in women can cause major upset changes in the system and result in higher than normal fight or flight responses (unnessesary anxiety) and also higher than normal depression responses along with all the other symptoms I listed in the previous post. I am not allowed (told to me by the moderators of this group) to give you a website addy in this posting so I want you to call these people directly. They see women from all over the world in regard to this issue and to the best of my knowledge (which is A LOT on this topic I swear to you) they are the only people that really understand fully women's issues with peri and post menopause, adrenal exhaustion, etc etc. Give this a try Debbi- I'm really thinking that this could be whats going on and if so, this CAN BE TREATED!!!!! ;) I have to go try and thaw out my turkey (lol) I hope you have a good day. Try to enjoy your family and keep a positive outlook. KNOW that you are strong and that you can get through this. Look up this group on the web. Great information and then call them!! Beth :)

Hi Debbie, So sorry to hear that you are not well. I think you may be very sensitive to certain medications. It may just be that Lexapro is not the right medication for you even if you increased the dose. You really need to find a better doctor than the ones you have - one that really listens to you and doesn't dismiss the symptoms you have whilst on medication. There are many other medications and with the right doctor you will find the right medication for you. And once your anxiety is under control, you can then start on CBT and start feeling better again. Please find a doctor who will listen to your concerns. Take care :)

Thank You all for your prayers, support and wonderful advice. I was not feeling good for a few days and was not even up to posting, I did not want to depress everyone, I know how hard you all have been rooting and praying for me. The Lexapro has been rough even at 2.5, I keep putting off going up to .5, I fear the side effects will even be worse, I cannot even tell anymore whats anxiety, whats side effects and its hard to distinguish between the emotional and physical, I think I am getting a urinary tract infection, I went last week to my MD and they found blood in my urine?! So of course I am freaking out thinking its bladder cancer, I am trying very very hard to fight that scary negative thought away, its a struggle. I know you asked me Beth about my age I am 45 and I do have some of those symptoms you wrote to me about, I do NOT have the hot flashes, but some of the others especially the depression, anxiety, I noticed before I more or less had basic panic, which in itself of course was bad, but this time depression also, sometimes I just burst into tears and cry and cry, even when I do not panic, I think I am afraid of getting old, health problems etc..... When I was younger it was so much easier to bounce back from the panic attacks, now not so easy, I am probably in perimenopause, I hate giving blood, just thinking about it makes the room start to spin, I do anything to avoid giving blood, it makes me faint, so I have not had any blood work done, just about everything else through. Its been so rough. Before the panic attacks would come out of the blue, now I get shaky because of the bodily symptoms, the dizziness, nausea, vomiting, pain, and all of a sudden I feel {the last week} an incredible "weakness" like I have not strength left in my body, like an exhaustion like you get after a very bad flu and I did not have the flu, this is scaring me too, if I could I would stay in bed all day, I sleep and sleep and all day I am so tired, this is a new scary symptom, unless I have totally ehausted my andenal glands by three months of non-stop panic, I use to run to the Doctor all the time, and they never found anything, I cannot really go to Doctors anymore my husband gets furious at the time and money I have spent only to tell me they dont know whats wron

Debbie, I'm so sorry I have not answered you in a long time. Dont mind me, I have been busy with my job and havn't had time to even come here that often. I too have been feeling really anxious lately.....but i'm trying to work on this. Im' so extremely sorry for what you are going through. I really hope that everything is alright. Just to let you know, anxiety/depression can make you feel a lot of things. Do not under-estimate what anxiety can make you feel. You already know this....so keep this in mind when you are feeling down. You can do this Debbie. I know you. Remember when you told all of us that you have turned the CORNER.....well there is never turning back Debbie........you are still in the light......u are getting there.....there is no way you can go back to square one. Trust me. I believe in you. And it looks like everyone else does too! Beth and Isabella have given you wonderful advice. (beth i love the positive/negative list.....i'm gonna try that...you give great advice!). Please just hang in there, pray, and stay strong. I know you can do this. Just make sure you BELIEVE too. god bless you :)

Me again ;) I just thought I'd add that it seems like a lot of your anxiety and fears are caused by taking meds. Have you already tried the natural route? I am talking psychologist, exercise, eating a proper diet, breathing techniques, keeping a journal, etc. If you are so scared of meds and believe they are doing nothing for you maybe just get strong and talk with your doc/nurse about doing it on your own. That will take more time than the meds but atleast you won't have to worry about side effects, interactions, overdosing, etc. Just a thought because meds have helped alot of people but some just prefer to do it on their own. It is up to you. Stay strong.

Debbie, I am so happy to hear from you but I am so sorry that you still aren't feeling very well. Let me tell you, I have been where you are now. Just 7 months ago I was nauseous everyday, I threw up, I was extremely tired, had an ulcer, was constantly dizzy and feared that something extremely bad was happening to me. I had tests ran, went to the ER, went to the doctor's office weekly, I was looking up diseases on the internet,etc. I worried about not being here for my son, I angered my fiance with mounting medical bills, I felt guilty all the time like I was ruining their lives. Debbie, these are the things that are caused by anxiety and depression. Anxiety, panic, and depression can wreak havoc on your body causing all kinds of very real physical symptoms. What you need to realize is that dwelling and obsessing about these things only makes them worse and continues the horrible cycle. My advice to you, because I have been there, is to start the 5mg of lexapro so you can work up to the 10mg and get the therapeutic effects of the SSRI. You are probably experiencing psychosomatic symptoms (i've been there too)with the low dose that you are currently on. Take Beth's advice too. I encourage you to do breathing exercises because they help tremendously with the dizziness and I know how that makes you worry when you are dizzy like that. Depression can debilitate you, making it hard for you to do anything. Without treatment, the average depression lasts for 9 months before lifting. I wouldn't want you to suffer that long so please take your nurse's advice. They are skilled and trained in what they do and they don't want anything bad to happen to you either. You will be fine but you have to muster up all the strength you have to get out of bed and do something positive for once. Play with your son, go outside (if it isn't too cold), call a friend. With depression comes anhedonia, or the loss of pleasure in activities you once enjoyed. I have found that talking to someone who is unbiased, such as a therapist, was better than going to the doctor who will just give you meds because that is what they do. You will survive, you probably don't have a disease, and you are most likely experiencing the darkness of depression mixed with anxiety. Also, bec

Hi Debbi, SO good to hear from you but so sad to hear that you are still not feeling well at all. I am so sorry you feel so horrible. :( I am glad you are keeping in touch with your doctor and letting them know how the Lexepro is making you feel. A couple of things came to mind when I read your postings and I thought I would write about them. Can you tell me how old you are? Is there any way you could be in peri-menopause? Sometimes this happens as early as 35yrs for some women and it throws you right off kilter. PLEASE let me know how old you are! I have gone through this and can give you some really kicker advise to speak with your doc about that just may turn this whole situation around for you. :) Common symptoms of hormonal imbalance: Fatigue Cravings for sweets or carbohydrates Weight gain Hot flashes or night sweats PMS Feeling depressed or overwhelmed Mood swings or irritability Insomnia or restless sleep Headaches Loss of desire Fuzzy thinking Digestive issues Stiffness or joint pain Anxiety Heart palpitations Breast pain Urinary dysfunction Hair loss/dry skin Vaginal dryness Irregular periods Fibroids If you are in peri, your estrogen levels (E1, E2, E3) could be dropping, your progesterone & testosterone levels could be dropping as well. They have bioidentical hormone creams available now that dont even process through your liver (this means you wont react to it nor be sensitive to it and it isnt synthetic which is derived from animals)that can assist you in feeling more balanced and help you deal with stress, anxiety and depression. If you feel that you could be in peri-menopause, there is a saliva or blood test out there to test your hormone levels so you know EXACTLY which hormones are dropping and need to be suplimented. Also, do you take a multi vit? That is VERY IMPORTANT for your brain and body to take one. Vit B Complex directly works with your brain to stablize seratonin which is essencial to stabalize mood. Vit C works on your immune system, Vit E, D and all the antioxidants along with minerals help your body deal with stress hense, decreasing it. Calcium should be in there too to help in keeping your bone

I am so sorry I have not wrote for a few days. I have been in a real bad way and did not want to depress or upset anyone. The anxiety and depression have been very bad, its hard to get out of bed. I am supposed to increase my Lexapro to .5 from 2.5 and I am scared to do this, the nausea and dizziness have been awful along with the increased anxiety, increasing it I fear will only make these horrible symptoms worse, my nurse tells me 2.5 is not a theraputic dose of Lexapro and I must increase to .5 then eventually 10, I have been taking the 2.5 for over 3 weeks shouldnt the effects of gone away by now? I thought my body would adjust, it seems like all I am getting is the brutal side effects and no relief, its making me cry all the time, my nurse said "Please keep taking it, it will help soon" I am praying it will, I have been so sick for months now. I have Klonopin but I am afraid to take too much I do not want to overdose or have the two meds interact, the nurse and pharmisist say its alright, but I am not sure, I am so med-sensitive if it happens it happens to me, Zoloft made me so ill, and Paxil sent me to ER vomiting blood! There is not too much more to try after the Lexapro, I have heard its the least of all side effects, but I am still having them, I am afraid to increase and get deathly ill. Do you all think thats true? will increasing it help me get better?? or will it make me sickert?? I wish I knew I do not want to die or get sick from this, but I so want to get better, my son needs me so much and my husband is so upset, everyone is angry at me right now. I know its not all about meds, positive thinking, CBT etc.... but its SO hard to do that when the room is whirling around, vomiting all the time, nausea, crying, exhaustion, panic......I know you all understand this, its so hard to live it, I think there is something physically terribly wrong with me because of all the bodily symptoms that do not go away, I do not want to go running to the DOctor again twice a week, my husband gets so very mad, we cannot afford it and it really does not help, I went last Monday, they said my vitals were fine, a little blood in my urine, but the white blood cells were NOT evulated and he said he did not want to put me on an antibotic if I did not need one, th

Yes Debbi please let us know how you are alright. Beth :)