Posted by jflange on July 18, 2008, at 1:58:26
In reply to Is it truly Generalized Anxiety Disorder ? (GAD), posted by Mike_Cohen_2 on July 14, 2008, at 15:28:15
Hi Gary,
I was just like you - with all the symptoms of GAD but nothing in particular to worry about. Just the constant anxiety I was having and the exhaustion it caused.
Well, after 4 years of meds trial and error, finding a good pdoc and lots of reading this board, I realized that GAD is not always characterized about worrying about one thing or concrete things. There's not a lot of rhyme or reason as to why generalized anxiety crops up at certain times in our lives. It's the physical symptom of anxiety which creates specific fears - mostly because you fear your own physical response to situations that once caused you anxiety, no matter how random those situations are.
Talking therapy can be great stuff, but not unless the more important issue of the physical symptoms of anxiety are under control. The best things my pdoc said to me were a. he doesn't know why some people experience GAD and others don't. b. he (along with most psychiatrists) does not have a full grasp of the chemistry that makes certain medications work for some people. The most he can offer is experience with other patients with similar symptoms who have had success with certain meds.
I don't know how to answer all of your questions, since I did find a med combo that has worked for me and I don't expect to get off of it anytime soon, perhaps never. All I can say is to try to keep an open mind to all possibilities and continue to experiment until you find relief.
Be well,
jflange
poster:jflange
thread:839698
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20080706/msgs/840381.html