Posted by johnny b good on September 18, 2003, at 21:40:47
In reply to Anyone switched to Lexapro? « ggrrl, posted by Dr. Bob on June 11, 2002, at 7:52:48
Hi to all of you. I am making my first post here today but have been following the writings for days now. I am in day 25 on Lexapro and have been having some good days and some less than good days so far. I know from reading the posts from you guys that it takes a while to get there. The medication is trying to work but not quite there yet. Some background on me: 58 yr old male. Recovering alcoholic. Been sober for over ten years with the help of Alcoholics Anonymous. Self medicated with alcohol on a daily basis for 25 years. My then family doctor told me after researching the results of my blood test, that I would have to either live without alcohol or my liver. He said "the choice is yours". I knew more old drunks than I did old doctors so I gave up my doctor. After two more years of denial the alcohol quit working and I couldn't drink enough to stop the pain. I became an AA member and was shown how to live my life without the crutch of alcohol. It was nice to see the world with a clear head but bouts of depression and anxiety were nipping at my heels. After a year or so I sought medical help for it and was introduced to AD's for the first time. Some worked and some didn't but at least I found out that I didn't have to live that way....Thank God. More lately I have been on Paxil for several years and did well except for the weight gain. Back in July I spent several days at my cabin at a ranch where we spend time and forgetfully came home without my medication. It is over 300+ miles away so going back for it was not an option. I made the decision to make the best of a bad situation and declared myself drug free. Right,no more Paxil.
By the way I don't recommend the cold turkey withdrawal method that I used for anyone. I have been on an exercise program at the local health club since May and managed to lose 25+ lbs in the process. So I stayed with the exercise routine in hopes that it would help me to live my life without the help of AD's. After about 6 weeks off medication I began to notice those old familiar dark clouds forming overhead and slowly but surely my zest for life started to slooowwww dowwnnn. I know the signs all too well so I tucked my pride away and saw my p-doc and confessed what I had done. Doc told me about this new wonder drug Lexapro and suggested I give it a whirl. The rest is soon to be history so I am going to see how it goes. You don't know what a comfort it is to have this board to turn to when the days seem hopeless. I know that I will soon be back to feeling great and I will post as often as I can to help those who are struggling to understand that good will only come through persistence. My side effects have not been that terrible and couldn't even compare to some hang overs I've had back in the day. Lets keep on keepin on.
poster:johnny b good
thread:109458
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030917/msgs/261494.html