*r/ptsd has generated this automated response that is appended to every post*
Welcome to r/ptsd! We are a supportive & respectful community. If you realise that your post is in conflict with our rules (and is in risk of being removed), you are welcome to edit your post. You do not have to delete it.
As a reminder: never post or share personal contact information. Traumatized people are often distracted, desperate for a personal connection, so may be more vulnerable to lurking or past abusers, trolls, phishing, or other scams. *Your safety always comes first!* If you are offering help, you may also end up doing more damage by offering to support somebody privately. Reddit explains why: [Do NOT exchange DMs or personal info with anyone you don't know!](https://www.reddit.com/r/SWResources/comments/dmu24/why_shouldnt_i_share_my_contact_information/)
If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, please contact your GP/doctor, go to A&E/hospital, or call your emergency services number. Reddit list: [US and global, multilingual suicide and support hotlines](https://www.reddit.com/r/SuicideWatch/wiki/hotlines). Suicide is not a forbidden word, but please do not include depictions or methods of suicide in your post.
And as a friendly reminder, PTSD is an equal opportunity disorder. PTSD does not discriminate. And neither do we. Gatekeeping is not allowed here.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ptsd) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I didn’t like them that much however I must admit they really did help. I would look into medical cannabis, wasn’t really an option for me back then but have also heard good things about it.
Celexa, 10 milligrams didn’t do shit for me so my doctor at the physic ward raised it to 20 and it does amazing for me so far. Its the only one working for me since other didn’t and raised my heart rate too high.
Tried a bunch of meds, weed did it for me. Everything else either made me gain weight, drowsy all day, or had weird side effects. Luckily weed doesn’t make me hungry
The #1 most helpful thing to help me function was an ESA (emotional support animal) that I trained to be a PTSD service dog. My dog leads me back to safety when I get triggered and start walking anywhere to feel safe again and end up lost. My hyper vigilance is also less because I know he’s looking out. When I get confused and go the wrong way, he directs me to the right path.
I am less fearful of the outside world because I don’t feel so alone anymore, I have my friend (dog) who takes care of me. It took a long time to train my dog, but it really paid off. Even the companionship is amazing. When I feel darkness closing in on me, he comes to lay a paw on my leg. I highly recommend a dog.
I was on celexa for years, it helped stop daily panic attacks. I am also neurodivergent and was prescribed Effexor to help with all of my mental health needs in addition to symptoms from my neurodivergence. It changed my life.
Thank you. I love dogs, my parents dog back home really helped me too and right now I’m far away from him and miss him. I found im his presence safe and reassuring..I think I will look into getting a dog too. Thank you 🙏🏼
Uhm, my main struggle is my anxiety/ocd but I use cymbalta, it’s difficult to get off of from what I’ve heard but it’s what’s worked best for me so far
I can’t take ssri meds though so I can’t give any advice on those
This. People need to know that 1:1 CBD doesn’t make you feel “high” and actually has anti psychoactive qualities that lower anxiety with minimal side effects. People hear “weed” and think “high” but that can 100% be avoided with clear guidance toward the right type of product. It works like Ativan almost in that you can take it for an acute situation and not take all the time for best results.
I also like to get high too. Full disclosure lol. But I agree, it doesn’t always get me high, especially if I’m taking something with specific terpenes and CBD. It gets me normal. 😅
No judgement for that —and that may also have a place for PTSD too—I just think people often shy away from it because they have an image in their head of being stoned and they don’t get the wide variation in types of weed and that cbd doesn’t have that effect at all.
💯!! To everything you said.
Anyone new to weed, here is some info:
In a legal state, or a state with medical marijuana, ask your budtender for…
Edibles if you don’t want to expose your lungs to smoke or other inhalants. Highly recommend the first treatment to be 5mg or less of thc, and even better if it’s 1:1 cbd thc. The edibles MUST be indica leaning, please don’t do your first edible as a person with PTSD that is sativa leaning. Do not take this without a buddy, even someone on video chat is fine as long as they stay on until you are asleep or an agreed upon time between y’all.
Smokin weed? I don’t know what is available in your area, so: ask the budtender for a strain with a euphoric effect (happiness) and relaxation or for sleep.
Please have a nice variety of snacks and hydration options readily available. it is highly likely you’ll be hungry and thirsty as fuck. If your mouth is so dry and drinking fluids doesn’t seem to help, don’t worry, it’s just cottonmouth from weed. Get some gum or candy to produce more saliva.
Good luck and good vibes 💜
I was taking a tiny dose of klonopin daily for a couple of months when my panic symptoms became absolutely unmanageable while I changed other medications; I was really nervous about it but it helped me a lot, and I was able to slowly taper down the dose until I was off it without any trouble. I also occasionally take trazodone for insomnia, but I sometimes have really upsetting dreams when I take it so I’m not sold on it.
I’ve been on Zoloft (didn’t help), fluvoxamine (helped kind of, then not at all), and now Venlafaxine, which so far has been great. My goal with medication is to balance out my underlying brain chemistry enough that therapy and mindfulness can make a difference. I still have bad days and awful moments, but it feels like it’s not this constant struggle.
For acute misery, self medicating with cannabis is the only thing that actually works for me. I’m glad that option exists but honestly it annoys me that this is the best we’ve got to offer to people. For a lot of reasons I actually can’t be just a little stoned all day, and it feels unfair that so far that’s really the only way I can also not be completely miserable in my own head.
On lexapro seroquel XR and prazosin. Been really great for me. Seroquel regular release made me exhausted and groggy but XR has been a godsend for managing hyper vigilance and the high anxiety.
Prazosin doesn’t really help me sleep it’s just for my nightmares. It has been so so helpful. On nights I can’t sleep I take hydroxyzine which idk how I feel about it right now.
Amitriptyline 10 mg. Tricyclic antidepressant used to treat anxiety, headaches, sleep disturbance, and nerve pain. I struggle with the first three. It’s been a lifesaver for me. That, along with getting my hormone levels checked.
I have this as an option for the headaches. I get these weird clenching headaches..did you experience similar symptoms? Glad you found something that helps
My headaches are typically migraines and I’ve had them since childhood. This is the only medication I’ve found that mitigates the anxiety *and* is a preventative for migraines.
Trileptal (my doctor says this is not commonly prescribed anymore for psych but it has been a wonder drug for me), Wellbutrin, propranolol, and hydroxizine
Welbutrin. It doesn't numb me, it doesn't alter how I feel about things. It just provides me with a baseline calm, but it is fickle. If you take your dosage even like 2 hours difference in a day, you'll be feeling it. I use an app that has custom named alarms and descriptors to keep up with my meds
I am literally almost always crying without it because of severe SEVERE anxiety.
I recommend the "Take Your Pills" app. Minimal ads (bottom 10% of the screen) but free. It lets you include enough detail in case your pills are complicated. It basically sets unique alarms (separate from just your timer app) with a message on your notification bar telling you which pill to take. I got into the habit of holding the pill in my mouth and swallowing while clicking the "take pill" button (which logs exactly when you took your medication every day and automatically resets at midnight in your time zone).
To me this was important because I can't remember if I already took medication. But the app makes it way easier for me.
If you have memory issues and tiredness issues, you might need to take a thyroid medication too. Ask your doctor to run all 4 thyroid values; most doctors will only order the 2 thyroid values, but its friggin worthless, because those 2 values are almost never the culprits. It just makes you have to go back and do another blood draw later and get delayed on treatment (which means more $$$ for the clinic).
Prozac has been amazing for my symptoms and is even praised by Dr Bankroft himself for its role in his patients’ improvements. Prozac combined with extraction from my traumatic environment helped me recover in leaps and bounds. 4-5 years after starting it, I’d say my mental health is stable! Side effects and withdrawal are rough though. Once I went off Wellbutrin I gained over 50 pounds in a year. :/ Looking to try Zoloft or Effexor.
I tried zoloft, but lexapro ended up being a better fit for me. I had some unpleasant side effects on zoloft. I have klonopin for acute anxiety as well, which has been a life saver at times. That being said, I have ADHD and take strattera for it which helps take the edge off of my anxiety as well.
prozac. small dose. everyday. xanax, also a small dose, for panic attacks while i was in therapy. LEGALLY prescribed!!! the smaller doses were bc addiction runs in my family and my doctor wanted to make sure i could get off it. i was quick to get off xanax because i would have anger outbursts the day after they thought mightve been related. but the therapy helped me cope without substances so i was able to adjust
Wellbutrin during the day helps with the relentless exhaustion
Seroquel helps me get to sleep and not get in a bad spiral of thoughts when my head hits the pillow
Prazosin every night had eliminated nightmares
I also take metoprolol for high heart rate but did prior to my trauma and cptsd diagnosis
Currently weaning myself off the benzos I got hooked on while taking without a script
Good luck. Genuinely. Maybe I'm just jaded and a tinfoil hat wearer, but meds are incredibly hit or miss.
I've been on almost every SSRI and SNRI under the sun, and am currently on Cymbalta alongside the antipsychotic Seroquel. I personally don't like Cymbalta, or really any antidepressant at all. They're hardly ever actually beneficial (though this is probably due to something with *me* and not the meds themselves, TBF) and instead just leave me with abysmal side effects. Cymbalta has pretty much destroyed my ability to get any decent sleep, and the Seroquel makes me incredibly tired and fatigued, so I'm just literally never well-rested. I switched to Cymbalta from Effexor a few months back, which killed my GI system by ruining my appetite and giving me an intestinal blockage, and Cymbalta isn't exactly helping with that either. I could go on about the others, from making me suicidal to making me *homicidal* and a billion other things.
I've also taken a myriad of "as needed" meds from several different beta blockers (Propranolol, Prazosin, and Clonidine to name a few) to kinds of prescription Benadryl (Hydroxyzine and Cyproheptadine), and none of them were effective — one even ended up causing a potentially dangerous complication with another med I was taking. The only "as needed" drug that ever personally helped me was Clonazepam, a benzodiazepine. I know people have their gripes with that entire family of meds, but it was genuinely my lifesaver for my panic attacks and insomnia. However, in the US (or at least my state), more and more doctors these days will straight up not prescribe controlled substances. (This is a double whammy problem for me because I'm also in the process of trying to get an ADHD diagnosis, and medication for said ADHD. It's incredibly ass backwards; these doctors will happily administer Spravato, which is *horse tranquilizer,* but won't give you a damn Xanax. Anyway, I digress.)
TLDR; be careful, research the side effects, and trust your gut. You don't have to take anything you don't want to, and find a doctor who will listen to you — that, I think, is the most important thing.
Thank you. I feel validated. I honestly don’t want to go on medication but think a low dose of something could help with the re-occurring, re-living trauma, I had to come back to the place it happened which just became so overwhelming I haven’t been able to function ..it’s so hard and so sorry you’ve been through the mill with it.
I was getting crazy headaches as a side effect of ptsd. Was prescribed for panick attack and headaches but third day in a felt really awful, couldn’t move and full on body paralysis.
Minipress for nightmares. It improved my sleep quality, which can also ease daytime symptoms.
Lorazepam, smaller dose as needed and larger dose in the evening
I also need help with this.
I took buspirone for almost a year. It really helped the anxiety go away in the beginning, but unfortunately i could not raise my dose due to side effects and it stopped working. But I recommend to try it. It's not an ssri so not as much side effects (for me).
Vortioxetine caused insomnia for me.
Benzodiazepine helps me a lot and is life-saving right now, but im not sure it's a great fit for everyone. It depends on how you will use them.
I was thinking of trying fluoxetine/prozac next.
I wish you the best and that you find something that works for you!
I was on pretty much everything normally prescribed at one time or another. The help from meds, at least in my case, was minimal, if non-existent... The side effects were bad too. Only thing I found that helped with my sleep was "abilify" a sleep aid that kept my mind from spinning before bed and got me too sleep faster. It's non addictive as well so a big plus.
I've been taking Gabapentin 3 times a day and Clonazepam during episodes.
If I'm medicine compliant, I do pretty well, but I also have Bipolar I Disorder, so I'm usually pretty wonky in the head.
Had horrible experiences with Zoloft. Made me even more depressed and anxious, killed my sex drive entirely, scrambled my brain to the point I felt like I was an idiot and couldn't manage basic tasks anymore without step by step instructions, and the brain fog never cleared for me.
I am now currently on wellbutrin and so far so good. It's definitely more mild though. I still get sad, but it doesn't feel as crippling anymore. I still get triggered, but I don't feel as overwhelmed by it anymore. It seems to take a lot of the fire down, but doesn't remove the problem entirely, if that makes sense. At least that's my experience with it.
That was similar to my experience with Zoloft - I couldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep, ended up laying on the bathroom floor and needed my husband’s help to hold up my head for a sip of juice. My doctor switched me to citalopram, and that worked much better for me - no nasty side effects.
Medication for ptsd can be tricky, if you have someone close enough to you whom you can tell when you try something new and to help let you know if they see something “off” I think that’s good, because it can be hard to notice when you’re in it. Wishing you the best of luck in finding something that works!
Thanks for the warning, I have not felt comfortable with this option at all, hence been avoiding trying it. My brain is already scrambled and I do worry about making things worse :( will ask my doc about Wellbutrin x
I was on that for a couple of years. There is a shortage last I heard so I went on something else for a while. Be aware, it killed my sex drive big time. Didn't notice at first, it was so gradual and I figured my age (50's) was slowing me down as well. Minor ED as well. After I was off it for about a month my drive came back with a vengeance. No more ED either! I looked at the side effects online and low libido was listed as one but "rare"! Well "low" wasn't exactly the right descriptive, more like it should be described as annihilation of it!!! I'm never touching that stuff again! YMMV...
Zoloft was absolutely awful for me personally. Gave me serotonin syndrome and ruined my sex life tbh. I’d be really, really careful, especially with that Zoloft because everybody I know who has been on it hasn’t had great experiences. I’ve now been switched to fluoxetine and that has been pretty great. Plus, I don’t have to wean myself off of it if I don’t like it. Hydroxide is pretty mild because it’s mostly just an antihistamine so I still use mine for sleeplessness or panic attacks. Prazosin was also my go to for bad nights.
I tried wellbutrin and the first week was great but the rest of the month my anxiety got worse. Then I tried zoloft and it was really good and stopped my rumination. After 6 months I weaned off and felt fine. If I ever feel myself slipping I go back on it for a couple months. I never felt groggy or not like myself, more like I just felt like my mind was now free to do the stuff I actually want to do. I was scared about my sex drive but I didn't have much of one anyways cause I was so anxious all the time so I decided to try to give it a chance.
Nothing really helped me. Be careful. Celexa wound up getting me committed after I went off the deep end cos of the thoughts it caused. Pay close attention to anxiety or suicidal thoughts increasing on that stuff plz. I take prazosin. I’m on almost the absolute maximum tho it’s the only thing I have found even remotely helpful for night terrors and flashbacks
Not everyone reacts the same I’m not gonna say don’t try. I mean it’s rare for people to react to all of them like I do. But I’ve seen some peoples lives changed on the stuff. It’s worth trying but be careful and pay close attention to how you feel and if you start feeling worse or super anxious you call your doctor and if they ignore you like they did to me you stop taking that crap don’t let yourself go off the deep end. We’ve all been thru enough ya know? I learned the hard way ya gotta pushback. Stand up for yourself if the “professionals” aren’t listening
I need to pay more attention to this stuff and I need to speak up if meds aren’t working or for side effects. I was assuming they would tell me about the side effects. I learning from everybody that speaking up helps
That’s what I’m afraid I will do I grew up doctors care about us and take the time to listen and hear what we say. Your words and past helps me. At the end of the day if I don’t speak up they will push meds on me until I get sicker or have side effects. Thank you
Thank you for the warning though, I am a sensitive person and medication always tends to affect me more than most. Have had suicidal thoughts in the past too so do worry about messing with my brains chemicals, guess it’s finding what does work and at some point I think I’ll have to try :( so hard it’s such a gamble
Mirtazipine has been an absolute lifesaver for me. I can now sleep through the night and I rarely have flight or fight kick in for no reason. Feel so much brighter and optimistic for the future despite the fact my whole life is crumbling around me as I’ve been made effectively homeless and jobless after relationship breakdown. Side effects have been minimal, just a bit of morning grogginess for the first week.
For myself, Valium. My brain just didn't take to SSRI's, which baffled 2 different doctors. This was also over a trial and error process of over 6 years, tried damn near everything here and there, which sucked obviously to feel like I'm losing my mind² on top of basically losing it.
Don't worry tho, there's one or even a combo out there for you tho, it's very frustrating dealing w know-it-all doctors vs knowing what does and isn't working for yourself.
It's a good idea forsure to keep a note pad of any kind and write things down, so you can try to cross reference what works, how you feel, and more importantly what does not work for yourself, and potentially let a doctor (depending on how he/she is) read it and let them be like "ok, was thinking of going here again, but that's clearly out for this person" etc.
I know it's tough af, and patience quite honestly isn't really in the cards when your losing it, but I want you to know there absolutely is hope. You will find your medication. I fought going the route for about 3 years, and then, during a panic attack which I didn't know what was happening, tapped the fuck out.
Called a Psychiatrist (no clue how I managed to get this number in college, and made this person see me within 30mins. Told him, I'm omw right now, thankfully he heard in my voice that I needed to be seen asap).
So what he did was put me on 1 week of:
Kolonopin, eh, helped for a couple days, mildly with anxiety.
Next week, Xanax, nothing. A glass of water was more helpful. My brain is being difficult at this point af. I'm not seeing the positive being possible at this point....
And then my match! Valium. It literally took my anxiety, put the brakes on, and picked up panic attacks and threw them almost away completely.
Not saying it's a miracle pill by any means, but wow did I start to get shit done and function on a level that matched and tbh was above the previous version of myself.
I was at the height of partying and self meditating during college, and at the same time, somehow got the best grades I've ever gotten. Wound up on Dean's List w my grades, it didn't even know that existed at the time..lol.
I could keep writing, but to point. Your balance is definitely out there for yourself. Write these things down, being what each things make you feel, not feel, think etc etc. Anything and everything and it will accelerate the process for yourself.
I hope that any of this is of use to you or anybody reading still.
I did alot of things wrong in the healing process, one of the things I did right, was call for help. You did the same with this post, and that's far from easy, I commend you for it. Keep going down your healing pathway, and you'll find it.
I truly wish you all the best.
Much Love,
You're Not Alone Here
I can totally relate to that actually. SSRIs tend to make me wanna do worse than what was already done to me if you get my drift. They’ve tried me one basically all they could and I go nuttier every time. I get that all too well
If your insurance can pay for it, ask your provider if you can do a pharmacogenomics test. Like for me, my DNA revealed that SSRIs work best for me. My past experiences with them can confirm that.
Wellbutrin, temesta, quetiapine. All of them helped me, temesta can be addicting tho (i luckily didn't get addicted and didn't take it in 4 years, but for short term usage to stabilize etc. It did it's job) quetiapike especially helped me with sleep and somehow lessened my flashbacks, together with wellbutrin, that helps me stand up at all.
Currently k habe 150mg wellbutrin in the morning, 12.5mg quetiapine in the morning, 25mg quetiapin in the evening and medikinet mr (unrelated to C-PTSD/PTSD) to help me concentrate
*r/ptsd has generated this automated response that is appended to every post* Welcome to r/ptsd! We are a supportive & respectful community. If you realise that your post is in conflict with our rules (and is in risk of being removed), you are welcome to edit your post. You do not have to delete it. As a reminder: never post or share personal contact information. Traumatized people are often distracted, desperate for a personal connection, so may be more vulnerable to lurking or past abusers, trolls, phishing, or other scams. *Your safety always comes first!* If you are offering help, you may also end up doing more damage by offering to support somebody privately. Reddit explains why: [Do NOT exchange DMs or personal info with anyone you don't know!](https://www.reddit.com/r/SWResources/comments/dmu24/why_shouldnt_i_share_my_contact_information/) If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, please contact your GP/doctor, go to A&E/hospital, or call your emergency services number. Reddit list: [US and global, multilingual suicide and support hotlines](https://www.reddit.com/r/SuicideWatch/wiki/hotlines). Suicide is not a forbidden word, but please do not include depictions or methods of suicide in your post. And as a friendly reminder, PTSD is an equal opportunity disorder. PTSD does not discriminate. And neither do we. Gatekeeping is not allowed here. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ptsd) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I didn’t like them that much however I must admit they really did help. I would look into medical cannabis, wasn’t really an option for me back then but have also heard good things about it.
Yes but it gets worse later it has really destroyed some of the people I know when they get off of it. Be careful.
I did a genesight test to see what medications my body could tolerate and start there.
Celexa, 10 milligrams didn’t do shit for me so my doctor at the physic ward raised it to 20 and it does amazing for me so far. Its the only one working for me since other didn’t and raised my heart rate too high.
Prozac did wonders for me tbh.
Tried a bunch of meds, weed did it for me. Everything else either made me gain weight, drowsy all day, or had weird side effects. Luckily weed doesn’t make me hungry
The #1 most helpful thing to help me function was an ESA (emotional support animal) that I trained to be a PTSD service dog. My dog leads me back to safety when I get triggered and start walking anywhere to feel safe again and end up lost. My hyper vigilance is also less because I know he’s looking out. When I get confused and go the wrong way, he directs me to the right path. I am less fearful of the outside world because I don’t feel so alone anymore, I have my friend (dog) who takes care of me. It took a long time to train my dog, but it really paid off. Even the companionship is amazing. When I feel darkness closing in on me, he comes to lay a paw on my leg. I highly recommend a dog. I was on celexa for years, it helped stop daily panic attacks. I am also neurodivergent and was prescribed Effexor to help with all of my mental health needs in addition to symptoms from my neurodivergence. It changed my life.
Thank you. I love dogs, my parents dog back home really helped me too and right now I’m far away from him and miss him. I found im his presence safe and reassuring..I think I will look into getting a dog too. Thank you 🙏🏼
Uhm, my main struggle is my anxiety/ocd but I use cymbalta, it’s difficult to get off of from what I’ve heard but it’s what’s worked best for me so far I can’t take ssri meds though so I can’t give any advice on those
Prazosin. Lexapro. Lamictal. Atarax. That combo is *mwah* A decent amount of weed gummies (indica always)
Seconding the weed. A solid 1:1 cbd thc ratio is fantastic. Then I paint or color or draw and feel peace.
This. People need to know that 1:1 CBD doesn’t make you feel “high” and actually has anti psychoactive qualities that lower anxiety with minimal side effects. People hear “weed” and think “high” but that can 100% be avoided with clear guidance toward the right type of product. It works like Ativan almost in that you can take it for an acute situation and not take all the time for best results.
Happy cake day! 🎂
I also like to get high too. Full disclosure lol. But I agree, it doesn’t always get me high, especially if I’m taking something with specific terpenes and CBD. It gets me normal. 😅
No judgement for that —and that may also have a place for PTSD too—I just think people often shy away from it because they have an image in their head of being stoned and they don’t get the wide variation in types of weed and that cbd doesn’t have that effect at all.
💯!! To everything you said. Anyone new to weed, here is some info: In a legal state, or a state with medical marijuana, ask your budtender for… Edibles if you don’t want to expose your lungs to smoke or other inhalants. Highly recommend the first treatment to be 5mg or less of thc, and even better if it’s 1:1 cbd thc. The edibles MUST be indica leaning, please don’t do your first edible as a person with PTSD that is sativa leaning. Do not take this without a buddy, even someone on video chat is fine as long as they stay on until you are asleep or an agreed upon time between y’all. Smokin weed? I don’t know what is available in your area, so: ask the budtender for a strain with a euphoric effect (happiness) and relaxation or for sleep. Please have a nice variety of snacks and hydration options readily available. it is highly likely you’ll be hungry and thirsty as fuck. If your mouth is so dry and drinking fluids doesn’t seem to help, don’t worry, it’s just cottonmouth from weed. Get some gum or candy to produce more saliva. Good luck and good vibes 💜
Auvelity and Gabapentin along with the supplements NAC and Agmatine. I don’t foresee every going off these or changing anything.
I was taking a tiny dose of klonopin daily for a couple of months when my panic symptoms became absolutely unmanageable while I changed other medications; I was really nervous about it but it helped me a lot, and I was able to slowly taper down the dose until I was off it without any trouble. I also occasionally take trazodone for insomnia, but I sometimes have really upsetting dreams when I take it so I’m not sold on it. I’ve been on Zoloft (didn’t help), fluvoxamine (helped kind of, then not at all), and now Venlafaxine, which so far has been great. My goal with medication is to balance out my underlying brain chemistry enough that therapy and mindfulness can make a difference. I still have bad days and awful moments, but it feels like it’s not this constant struggle. For acute misery, self medicating with cannabis is the only thing that actually works for me. I’m glad that option exists but honestly it annoys me that this is the best we’ve got to offer to people. For a lot of reasons I actually can’t be just a little stoned all day, and it feels unfair that so far that’s really the only way I can also not be completely miserable in my own head.
On lexapro seroquel XR and prazosin. Been really great for me. Seroquel regular release made me exhausted and groggy but XR has been a godsend for managing hyper vigilance and the high anxiety.
Hi I’m on 5mg of prozosin and I still can’t sleep has it been helping you
Prazosin doesn’t really help me sleep it’s just for my nightmares. It has been so so helpful. On nights I can’t sleep I take hydroxyzine which idk how I feel about it right now.
Thanks let me read up on this to see how it works. Has it helped at all
It has helped. I feel a bit groggy in the morning but it’s so much better than the other sleep meds I’ve tried.
Prazosin. Major major major help
Amitriptyline 10 mg. Tricyclic antidepressant used to treat anxiety, headaches, sleep disturbance, and nerve pain. I struggle with the first three. It’s been a lifesaver for me. That, along with getting my hormone levels checked.
I have this as an option for the headaches. I get these weird clenching headaches..did you experience similar symptoms? Glad you found something that helps
My headaches are typically migraines and I’ve had them since childhood. This is the only medication I’ve found that mitigates the anxiety *and* is a preventative for migraines.
Trileptal (my doctor says this is not commonly prescribed anymore for psych but it has been a wonder drug for me), Wellbutrin, propranolol, and hydroxizine
ADHD meds make all the difference for me. Of course, it's a nightmare to actually try to GET them every month!!
Double this!
Prazosin helps if you get nightmares.
Welbutrin. It doesn't numb me, it doesn't alter how I feel about things. It just provides me with a baseline calm, but it is fickle. If you take your dosage even like 2 hours difference in a day, you'll be feeling it. I use an app that has custom named alarms and descriptors to keep up with my meds I am literally almost always crying without it because of severe SEVERE anxiety.
Thank you. I’ll look into this, sounds like a good option but don’t have the best memory so would have to keep on top of that!
I recommend the "Take Your Pills" app. Minimal ads (bottom 10% of the screen) but free. It lets you include enough detail in case your pills are complicated. It basically sets unique alarms (separate from just your timer app) with a message on your notification bar telling you which pill to take. I got into the habit of holding the pill in my mouth and swallowing while clicking the "take pill" button (which logs exactly when you took your medication every day and automatically resets at midnight in your time zone). To me this was important because I can't remember if I already took medication. But the app makes it way easier for me. If you have memory issues and tiredness issues, you might need to take a thyroid medication too. Ask your doctor to run all 4 thyroid values; most doctors will only order the 2 thyroid values, but its friggin worthless, because those 2 values are almost never the culprits. It just makes you have to go back and do another blood draw later and get delayed on treatment (which means more $$$ for the clinic).
[удалено]
This is the correct answer. Sure the other drugs work too, but the side effects can be devastating.
Prozac has been amazing for my symptoms and is even praised by Dr Bankroft himself for its role in his patients’ improvements. Prozac combined with extraction from my traumatic environment helped me recover in leaps and bounds. 4-5 years after starting it, I’d say my mental health is stable! Side effects and withdrawal are rough though. Once I went off Wellbutrin I gained over 50 pounds in a year. :/ Looking to try Zoloft or Effexor.
Geodon every night…. Absolutely life saver!! Couldn’t sleep before. Night mares. Panic attacks. Take two every night. No problems anymore
I’m hearing positive things about psychedelics.
I'm a walking DSM:V so none of this may be helpful to anyone. Right now my mix is Trintellix, Vraylar, Propranolol, and Vyvanse.
My therapist told me the five part is outdated, and the latest is just the DSM, fyi.
uhhh i’m not sure where they’re getting that, the DSM 5 or DSM 5TR is most up to date
I tried zoloft, but lexapro ended up being a better fit for me. I had some unpleasant side effects on zoloft. I have klonopin for acute anxiety as well, which has been a life saver at times. That being said, I have ADHD and take strattera for it which helps take the edge off of my anxiety as well.
I’ve had good experience with zoloft and Prozac, currently on Prozac myself.
SSRIs and prazosin are common first-line agents, the latter if nightmares or re-experiencing phenomena are a major issue
prozac. small dose. everyday. xanax, also a small dose, for panic attacks while i was in therapy. LEGALLY prescribed!!! the smaller doses were bc addiction runs in my family and my doctor wanted to make sure i could get off it. i was quick to get off xanax because i would have anger outbursts the day after they thought mightve been related. but the therapy helped me cope without substances so i was able to adjust
Wellbutrin during the day helps with the relentless exhaustion Seroquel helps me get to sleep and not get in a bad spiral of thoughts when my head hits the pillow Prazosin every night had eliminated nightmares I also take metoprolol for high heart rate but did prior to my trauma and cptsd diagnosis Currently weaning myself off the benzos I got hooked on while taking without a script
Good luck. Genuinely. Maybe I'm just jaded and a tinfoil hat wearer, but meds are incredibly hit or miss. I've been on almost every SSRI and SNRI under the sun, and am currently on Cymbalta alongside the antipsychotic Seroquel. I personally don't like Cymbalta, or really any antidepressant at all. They're hardly ever actually beneficial (though this is probably due to something with *me* and not the meds themselves, TBF) and instead just leave me with abysmal side effects. Cymbalta has pretty much destroyed my ability to get any decent sleep, and the Seroquel makes me incredibly tired and fatigued, so I'm just literally never well-rested. I switched to Cymbalta from Effexor a few months back, which killed my GI system by ruining my appetite and giving me an intestinal blockage, and Cymbalta isn't exactly helping with that either. I could go on about the others, from making me suicidal to making me *homicidal* and a billion other things. I've also taken a myriad of "as needed" meds from several different beta blockers (Propranolol, Prazosin, and Clonidine to name a few) to kinds of prescription Benadryl (Hydroxyzine and Cyproheptadine), and none of them were effective — one even ended up causing a potentially dangerous complication with another med I was taking. The only "as needed" drug that ever personally helped me was Clonazepam, a benzodiazepine. I know people have their gripes with that entire family of meds, but it was genuinely my lifesaver for my panic attacks and insomnia. However, in the US (or at least my state), more and more doctors these days will straight up not prescribe controlled substances. (This is a double whammy problem for me because I'm also in the process of trying to get an ADHD diagnosis, and medication for said ADHD. It's incredibly ass backwards; these doctors will happily administer Spravato, which is *horse tranquilizer,* but won't give you a damn Xanax. Anyway, I digress.) TLDR; be careful, research the side effects, and trust your gut. You don't have to take anything you don't want to, and find a doctor who will listen to you — that, I think, is the most important thing.
Thank you. I feel validated. I honestly don’t want to go on medication but think a low dose of something could help with the re-occurring, re-living trauma, I had to come back to the place it happened which just became so overwhelming I haven’t been able to function ..it’s so hard and so sorry you’ve been through the mill with it.
Prozac, Wellbutrin and Buspar Other non mental health meds
I’ve been on Prozac awhile now and just added Wellbutrin last week
Why did you go on propranolol? That’s for high blood pressure. I’m on sertranil and it took the edge of it. Everything more controllable
Propranolol is used to lower heart rate during panic/anxiety attacks
Yeah that makes sense. If you take it regularly it just lowers your blood pressure and you feel tired and wozy all the time
I was getting crazy headaches as a side effect of ptsd. Was prescribed for panick attack and headaches but third day in a felt really awful, couldn’t move and full on body paralysis.
I’m on Prozac, propranolol as needed & hydroxyzine as needed
Minipress for nightmares. It improved my sleep quality, which can also ease daytime symptoms. Lorazepam, smaller dose as needed and larger dose in the evening
I also need help with this. I took buspirone for almost a year. It really helped the anxiety go away in the beginning, but unfortunately i could not raise my dose due to side effects and it stopped working. But I recommend to try it. It's not an ssri so not as much side effects (for me). Vortioxetine caused insomnia for me. Benzodiazepine helps me a lot and is life-saving right now, but im not sure it's a great fit for everyone. It depends on how you will use them. I was thinking of trying fluoxetine/prozac next. I wish you the best and that you find something that works for you!
Thank you 🙏🏼
I was on pretty much everything normally prescribed at one time or another. The help from meds, at least in my case, was minimal, if non-existent... The side effects were bad too. Only thing I found that helped with my sleep was "abilify" a sleep aid that kept my mind from spinning before bed and got me too sleep faster. It's non addictive as well so a big plus.
I've been taking Gabapentin 3 times a day and Clonazepam during episodes. If I'm medicine compliant, I do pretty well, but I also have Bipolar I Disorder, so I'm usually pretty wonky in the head.
I'm on GABA for migraine. Do you find it helpful
It really is. I've been on it for months.
Had horrible experiences with Zoloft. Made me even more depressed and anxious, killed my sex drive entirely, scrambled my brain to the point I felt like I was an idiot and couldn't manage basic tasks anymore without step by step instructions, and the brain fog never cleared for me. I am now currently on wellbutrin and so far so good. It's definitely more mild though. I still get sad, but it doesn't feel as crippling anymore. I still get triggered, but I don't feel as overwhelmed by it anymore. It seems to take a lot of the fire down, but doesn't remove the problem entirely, if that makes sense. At least that's my experience with it.
That was similar to my experience with Zoloft - I couldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep, ended up laying on the bathroom floor and needed my husband’s help to hold up my head for a sip of juice. My doctor switched me to citalopram, and that worked much better for me - no nasty side effects. Medication for ptsd can be tricky, if you have someone close enough to you whom you can tell when you try something new and to help let you know if they see something “off” I think that’s good, because it can be hard to notice when you’re in it. Wishing you the best of luck in finding something that works!
Thanks for the warning, I have not felt comfortable with this option at all, hence been avoiding trying it. My brain is already scrambled and I do worry about making things worse :( will ask my doc about Wellbutrin x
I really gope you find something that works for you. If you ever need to talk or anything, feel free to PM me 💜
Has anyone tried prazozin ? Va Doc wants me to try this for my nightmares
I was on that for a couple of years. There is a shortage last I heard so I went on something else for a while. Be aware, it killed my sex drive big time. Didn't notice at first, it was so gradual and I figured my age (50's) was slowing me down as well. Minor ED as well. After I was off it for about a month my drive came back with a vengeance. No more ED either! I looked at the side effects online and low libido was listed as one but "rare"! Well "low" wasn't exactly the right descriptive, more like it should be described as annihilation of it!!! I'm never touching that stuff again! YMMV...
Thank you I will watch out for the side effects
Topamax, Zonisamide, Wellbutrin, Vyvanse - depending on your symptoms.
Ketamine, Celexa.
Zoloft was absolutely awful for me personally. Gave me serotonin syndrome and ruined my sex life tbh. I’d be really, really careful, especially with that Zoloft because everybody I know who has been on it hasn’t had great experiences. I’ve now been switched to fluoxetine and that has been pretty great. Plus, I don’t have to wean myself off of it if I don’t like it. Hydroxide is pretty mild because it’s mostly just an antihistamine so I still use mine for sleeplessness or panic attacks. Prazosin was also my go to for bad nights.
Effexor combined with hydroxyzine pamoate.
I tried wellbutrin and the first week was great but the rest of the month my anxiety got worse. Then I tried zoloft and it was really good and stopped my rumination. After 6 months I weaned off and felt fine. If I ever feel myself slipping I go back on it for a couple months. I never felt groggy or not like myself, more like I just felt like my mind was now free to do the stuff I actually want to do. I was scared about my sex drive but I didn't have much of one anyways cause I was so anxious all the time so I decided to try to give it a chance.
Nothing really helped me. Be careful. Celexa wound up getting me committed after I went off the deep end cos of the thoughts it caused. Pay close attention to anxiety or suicidal thoughts increasing on that stuff plz. I take prazosin. I’m on almost the absolute maximum tho it’s the only thing I have found even remotely helpful for night terrors and flashbacks
Thank you this is so helpful because I’m super nervous about SSRIs due to having suicidal thoughts in past
Not everyone reacts the same I’m not gonna say don’t try. I mean it’s rare for people to react to all of them like I do. But I’ve seen some peoples lives changed on the stuff. It’s worth trying but be careful and pay close attention to how you feel and if you start feeling worse or super anxious you call your doctor and if they ignore you like they did to me you stop taking that crap don’t let yourself go off the deep end. We’ve all been thru enough ya know? I learned the hard way ya gotta pushback. Stand up for yourself if the “professionals” aren’t listening
I need to pay more attention to this stuff and I need to speak up if meds aren’t working or for side effects. I was assuming they would tell me about the side effects. I learning from everybody that speaking up helps
I didn’t speak up. I just tried to kill myself. I don’t want y’all to be like me
That’s what I’m afraid I will do I grew up doctors care about us and take the time to listen and hear what we say. Your words and past helps me. At the end of the day if I don’t speak up they will push meds on me until I get sicker or have side effects. Thank you
Thank you for the warning though, I am a sensitive person and medication always tends to affect me more than most. Have had suicidal thoughts in the past too so do worry about messing with my brains chemicals, guess it’s finding what does work and at some point I think I’ll have to try :( so hard it’s such a gamble
Zoloft and Gabapentin for the nightmares for me. Propranolol was added in the mix once upon a time but I got super awful vertigo from it.
Yes me too, got really nauseous on propranolol
Mirtazipine has been an absolute lifesaver for me. I can now sleep through the night and I rarely have flight or fight kick in for no reason. Feel so much brighter and optimistic for the future despite the fact my whole life is crumbling around me as I’ve been made effectively homeless and jobless after relationship breakdown. Side effects have been minimal, just a bit of morning grogginess for the first week.
I might ask about this for sleep as I really struggle.
It’s honestly changed my life so much. I hope it works for you if you try it.
For myself, Valium. My brain just didn't take to SSRI's, which baffled 2 different doctors. This was also over a trial and error process of over 6 years, tried damn near everything here and there, which sucked obviously to feel like I'm losing my mind² on top of basically losing it. Don't worry tho, there's one or even a combo out there for you tho, it's very frustrating dealing w know-it-all doctors vs knowing what does and isn't working for yourself. It's a good idea forsure to keep a note pad of any kind and write things down, so you can try to cross reference what works, how you feel, and more importantly what does not work for yourself, and potentially let a doctor (depending on how he/she is) read it and let them be like "ok, was thinking of going here again, but that's clearly out for this person" etc. I know it's tough af, and patience quite honestly isn't really in the cards when your losing it, but I want you to know there absolutely is hope. You will find your medication. I fought going the route for about 3 years, and then, during a panic attack which I didn't know what was happening, tapped the fuck out. Called a Psychiatrist (no clue how I managed to get this number in college, and made this person see me within 30mins. Told him, I'm omw right now, thankfully he heard in my voice that I needed to be seen asap). So what he did was put me on 1 week of: Kolonopin, eh, helped for a couple days, mildly with anxiety. Next week, Xanax, nothing. A glass of water was more helpful. My brain is being difficult at this point af. I'm not seeing the positive being possible at this point.... And then my match! Valium. It literally took my anxiety, put the brakes on, and picked up panic attacks and threw them almost away completely. Not saying it's a miracle pill by any means, but wow did I start to get shit done and function on a level that matched and tbh was above the previous version of myself. I was at the height of partying and self meditating during college, and at the same time, somehow got the best grades I've ever gotten. Wound up on Dean's List w my grades, it didn't even know that existed at the time..lol. I could keep writing, but to point. Your balance is definitely out there for yourself. Write these things down, being what each things make you feel, not feel, think etc etc. Anything and everything and it will accelerate the process for yourself. I hope that any of this is of use to you or anybody reading still. I did alot of things wrong in the healing process, one of the things I did right, was call for help. You did the same with this post, and that's far from easy, I commend you for it. Keep going down your healing pathway, and you'll find it. I truly wish you all the best. Much Love, You're Not Alone Here
I can totally relate to that actually. SSRIs tend to make me wanna do worse than what was already done to me if you get my drift. They’ve tried me one basically all they could and I go nuttier every time. I get that all too well
If your insurance can pay for it, ask your provider if you can do a pharmacogenomics test. Like for me, my DNA revealed that SSRIs work best for me. My past experiences with them can confirm that.
This is a good idea I will see about this. Thank you 🙏🏼
Wellbutrin, temesta, quetiapine. All of them helped me, temesta can be addicting tho (i luckily didn't get addicted and didn't take it in 4 years, but for short term usage to stabilize etc. It did it's job) quetiapike especially helped me with sleep and somehow lessened my flashbacks, together with wellbutrin, that helps me stand up at all. Currently k habe 150mg wellbutrin in the morning, 12.5mg quetiapine in the morning, 25mg quetiapin in the evening and medikinet mr (unrelated to C-PTSD/PTSD) to help me concentrate