Has anyone ever needed to take an anxiety pill

antcat

I was wondering if anyone has ever needed to take something for the anxiety from cancer. I am presently taking BuSpar to help with my anxiety and with my trouble sleeping. If anyone has ever taken something like this, could you please let me know if it helped. Thanks.

azgrandma

i take
I take zanax it helps

Cafewoman53

Yes
It is very common to need to take something for anxiety. BuSpar is a good drug for that and you don't have to take it forever although you could if you need to.
I realized I needed something when I was waking up with pain in my whole body from all my joints and muscles tensing even my toes ! Now I take an ativan before bed and no more tense toes ! Good Luck
Colleen

srwruns

Ativan
I take Ativan the night of and after chemo to help me sleep. Occasionally I have had to take it between chemos due to night time anxiety. I've done ok during the day....I'm pretty active day time so I think helps me keep some of the demons at bay. However, if I was struggling during the day time I would not hestiate to take something but then also start to see a counselor/therapist so I can work with "issues" and work towards resolving them and back to a less medicated life. Many cancer centers have social workers that can help in referrals to therapists that specialize in patients with cancer.

pattysoo

antianxiety
I take Ativan as I feel I need it - maybe once or twice a week. It really helps me sleep through the night. Sometimes I'm just overwhelmed with worries and the ativan helps.

kikz

pattysoo said:

antianxiety
I take Ativan as I feel I need it - maybe once or twice a week. It really helps me sleep through the night. Sometimes I'm just overwhelmed with worries and the ativan helps.

Anxiety
The day of my diagnosis my primary gave me a prescription for Xanax because my heart was racing and I was having trouble just walking around. She called me later and said if I started to feel anything out of the norm, to go to the ER. A couple of my friends who were with me decided I should go. Once I got to the ER they found my heart was out of rythym. It was not anxiety. Luckily I have not had a problem with anxiety. My mom who cannot stand to see me in pain or even upset ended up in the ER twice and was also given Xanax because they determined she was having a panic attack. She is a person who thought people with anxiety were weak; she just never understood it. Now she has had to face it herself.

I still have the prescription and there have been times when I am having trouble going to sleep that I have thought of taking it. I seem to have a problem taking any kind of drugs. I never feel sure that I really need it. Then when I did take Vicodin for pain, it caused GI problems and made me not want to take anymore.

Karen

anicca

I have Ativan, but haven't
I have Ativan, but haven't taken it. I have taken Ambien quite a few times so I could sleep. I only have one left, and hadn't thought about the Ativan. Maybe the next time I have trouble sleeping, I'll try that. Ambien works well for me, except that I seem to always wake up after about 5 or 6 hours and stay awake for an hour before falling asleep again.

LaundryQueen

anicca said:

I have Ativan, but haven't
I have Ativan, but haven't taken it. I have taken Ambien quite a few times so I could sleep. I only have one left, and hadn't thought about the Ativan. Maybe the next time I have trouble sleeping, I'll try that. Ambien works well for me, except that I seem to always wake up after about 5 or 6 hours and stay awake for an hour before falling asleep again.

Trouble sleeping & anxiety
Antcat

I am wondering if your current medication is ineffective for your anxiety & insomnia.
Buspar is non-addicting and relatively safe to use; however, "nervousness" is listed as a common side effect. It doesn't seem to work for a lot of people but it is a good place to start. The problem with the prescriptions meds that are related to Valium (like Ativan & Xanax) is that over time, you become tolerant and then you need to increase your dose to receive the intended benefit and unfortunately, there is the risk of addiction.

Besides what everyone else has already shared, I think that an exercise program could be very helpful. Here's the "big explanation":

Anxiety is not just a mental issue but also the physiological result of worry--heart rate increases, blood pressure increases, palms can be sweaty, digestion stops, etc. The hormones that are associated with anxiety are called cortisol & adrenaline--these are the fight or flight hormones produced by our adrenal glands. Adrenaline has a short-term effect but cortisol hangs on much longer--for hours& hours and will interfere with sleep even though you may feel exhausted.

Exercise will lower the cortisol level if it is not too vigorous and not too close to bedtime. Talk to your doctor about how much exercise would be good for you. People who have occupations where they are physically active never seem to have trouble sleeping--even if they tend to be worriers.

Another hormone to consider is called oxytocin--this is also known as the "anti-stress hormone" because it will also lower cortisol. Oxytocin is released several ways including during massage and rocking--and during intercourse.

There are other helpful measures for insomnia which include dimming the lights for 1-2 hours before bedtime (so as not to interfere with melatonin production) and making sure that you are not having low blood sugar at night (low blood sugar jacks up the cortisol level & will make you wake up after sleeping a few hours). Ideally, you should sleep in total darkness.

I take an herb called Ashwaganda in the evening which has adrenal-strengthening properties and also helps lower excess cortisol. I believe that the herb helped me with the night sweats that interfered with my sleep that I had after the hysterectomy even though it has no hormones in it at all.

Maybe what works for me is not right for you but I thought I would give you something non-pharmaceutical to consider. Or you could just see if you do better on Ativan or Xanax.

Disneynutt

Oh definitely. I am taking
Oh definitely. I am taking Clonazepam which is great. I don't even feel that I am on a drug and I calm right down. My heart stops beating funny and I feel better in general. Highly recommend it if you need something for anxiety. Very mild stuff compared to Xanax.

It always cracks me up when someone says you don't be stressed.. it's bad for you. Hard not to be anxiety ridden when you have such a disease. I am actually thinking of going starting to use other methods of relaxation such as massages and .... well what else is there? :-)

But in my opinion, we gotta do what we gotta do.

Good luck antcat,
Kate

kikz

Disneynutt said:

Oh definitely. I am taking
Oh definitely. I am taking Clonazepam which is great. I don't even feel that I am on a drug and I calm right down. My heart stops beating funny and I feel better in general. Highly recommend it if you need something for anxiety. Very mild stuff compared to Xanax.

It always cracks me up when someone says you don't be stressed.. it's bad for you. Hard not to be anxiety ridden when you have such a disease. I am actually thinking of going starting to use other methods of relaxation such as massages and .... well what else is there? :-)

But in my opinion, we gotta do what we gotta do.

Good luck antcat,
Kate

Yoga
is an excellent way to de-stress.

Karen

Christine B.

Yes,
My chemo doctor put me on Ativan my first visit with him. I used it pretty regularly for a while, but have been able to cut down to using it when I wake up at 3AM and cannot get back to sleep. I tend to be a terribly anxious person by nature, always have been worried/anxious about something or other. A few weeks ago the sadness and crying really got to be too much. I am now seeing a therapist and am attending an anxiety class to learn techniques for dealing with my anxieties, worries, and fears. I have also begun taking Zoloft for depression. I am reaching out to friends and giving my poor husband a break. Prayer has also helped a lot. Oh! Learning about meditation or "mindfullness" learning to be to be in the now. Yoga sounds like a good step too! Christine

Mwee

trouble sleeping
I also have zanax to help with anxiety and I do take it when necessary. I sometimes have trouble falling or staying asleep especially when I'm anxious or in pain.... let's face it cancer is stressful! I found that if I listen to my MP3 that I have filled with audiobooks, it lulls me to sleep for I can't think of anything else while concentrating on the story. I do the same thing if I should wake in the night for I find that the worst time to lay there and and think in the dark. Audiobooks can be downloaded for free from your local library and if anyone needs more info, please feel free to get in touch with me. I'd much rather concentrate on a "who dun it" than "what if" ... sweet dreams!
(((HUGS))) Maria

anicca

LaundryQueen said:

Trouble sleeping & anxiety
Antcat

I am wondering if your current medication is ineffective for your anxiety & insomnia.
Buspar is non-addicting and relatively safe to use; however, "nervousness" is listed as a common side effect. It doesn't seem to work for a lot of people but it is a good place to start. The problem with the prescriptions meds that are related to Valium (like Ativan & Xanax) is that over time, you become tolerant and then you need to increase your dose to receive the intended benefit and unfortunately, there is the risk of addiction.

Besides what everyone else has already shared, I think that an exercise program could be very helpful. Here's the "big explanation":

Anxiety is not just a mental issue but also the physiological result of worry--heart rate increases, blood pressure increases, palms can be sweaty, digestion stops, etc. The hormones that are associated with anxiety are called cortisol & adrenaline--these are the fight or flight hormones produced by our adrenal glands. Adrenaline has a short-term effect but cortisol hangs on much longer--for hours& hours and will interfere with sleep even though you may feel exhausted.

Exercise will lower the cortisol level if it is not too vigorous and not too close to bedtime. Talk to your doctor about how much exercise would be good for you. People who have occupations where they are physically active never seem to have trouble sleeping--even if they tend to be worriers.

Another hormone to consider is called oxytocin--this is also known as the "anti-stress hormone" because it will also lower cortisol. Oxytocin is released several ways including during massage and rocking--and during intercourse.

There are other helpful measures for insomnia which include dimming the lights for 1-2 hours before bedtime (so as not to interfere with melatonin production) and making sure that you are not having low blood sugar at night (low blood sugar jacks up the cortisol level & will make you wake up after sleeping a few hours). Ideally, you should sleep in total darkness.

I take an herb called Ashwaganda in the evening which has adrenal-strengthening properties and also helps lower excess cortisol. I believe that the herb helped me with the night sweats that interfered with my sleep that I had after the hysterectomy even though it has no hormones in it at all.

Maybe what works for me is not right for you but I thought I would give you something non-pharmaceutical to consider. Or you could just see if you do better on Ativan or Xanax.

The very best anti-anxiety
The very best anti-anxiety aid I have ever used is Vipassana meditation, which is one of the mindful awareness mediations. Vipassana is the oldest form of Buddhist meditation, but it is very difficult to learn, and has to be practiced daily to be effective. I have been to two 10 day Vipassana retreats, and am in love with the philosophy and the technique, but have very little ability to follow through with practice. I really wished I had been practicing before my surgery, because it would have been extremely helpful. If anyone is interested in learning Vipassana, it is taught for free, but you have to do a 10 day retreat to learn it. The retreat was an amazing experience and I would love to do another one to try to get back into it, but I haven't had the time. Having done one, I am now eligible to do shorter retreats, to participate in meditation groups, and to do volunteer work at retreats, but haven't found anything that I can do time-wise, since I work on weekends. I am hoping I can start again on my own.

Anyway, the organization which teaches Vipassana worldwide is found at www.dhamma.org. There is no religion involved, and I met (afterwards, no talking allowed during) Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox Jews, atheists, Muslims, and agnostics at the both retreats. The food is strictly vegetarian, and you must pledge to observe noble silence and refrain from killing anything (go in winter, when there aren't many biting bugs around!) Every effort is made to accommodate
individual issues, such as the inability to sit on the floor, or having a hearing disability.

Hissy_Fitz

Mwee said:

trouble sleeping
I also have zanax to help with anxiety and I do take it when necessary. I sometimes have trouble falling or staying asleep especially when I'm anxious or in pain.... let's face it cancer is stressful! I found that if I listen to my MP3 that I have filled with audiobooks, it lulls me to sleep for I can't think of anything else while concentrating on the story. I do the same thing if I should wake in the night for I find that the worst time to lay there and and think in the dark. Audiobooks can be downloaded for free from your local library and if anyone needs more info, please feel free to get in touch with me. I'd much rather concentrate on a "who dun it" than "what if" ... sweet dreams!
(((HUGS))) Maria

Another fan of Clonazepam
Another fan of Clonazepam here. It has a long half-life, so you don't wake up in the middle of the night. I don't have my own script. I take them so rarely, I just boost a couple from my husband's bottle. He gets enough to take 3 per day, but almost never takes more than one, so we have a huge surplus.

Come to think of it.....how much do you suppose those things are worth on the street? (Just kidding, boad monitors. I have never even had a traffic ticket, let alone dealt drugs.)

Carlene

childofthestars

Happy pills
OMG yes and it really does help...... and why not!
Michelle x

anicca

Saw my doctor today, and he
Saw my doctor today, and he prescribed gabapantin (Neurontin) for my neuropathy, and I think that is just what I need as a sleep aid!