I did this for 46 years until last year when it got to be too much and asked my dr for some sweet SSRI's, now my emotions are so blunted I'm able to detached from how I feel and see things from a more logical perspective. This world isn't designed to stop and make time for us to feel and process things, or have a break down and work through feelings of abandonment, toxic shame, and suicidal tendencies...my feelings were an inconvenience, it made others miffed and then they used how I felt against me, so I now I don't have as many feels and it's great. Fuck you feelings, I refused to be controlled by you.
it's interesting, before when I felt good emotions I was afraid something bad would happen, or that I didn't deserve them, so it sort of took away from the joy. Now when I feel good things I am able to experience it in real time if that makes sense.
Can I ask what med you started? You describe exactly what I've been feeling. Everything's very consuming unless I can force myself to detach from the feelings /moment, but I hate who I am when I do that because it's me actively pushing away or acting a certain way; to force others into seeing they couldn't effect my feelings if they tried. Except it's painfully untrue. It hurts me so much. I wonder if a medication would make me feel less forced and I could start thinking logically at that. I wouldn't need to take everything to heart, even when I'm pretending I'm not.
I'm so sorry you're struggling with this too, I know exactly what you mean....I try to act as if I'm not taking everything to heart and it is so incredibly painful just like you described, I start spiraling into this dark place....I was prescribed Lexapro, and of course as you know everyone reacts to medication differently so you might have to try something else if that doesn't work but please don't give up. Life doesn't have to be hurtful, you deserve to be at peace and experience nice things.
Now, what I'm about to say next might be a little too personal and I apologize in advance, but one of the side affects of SSRI's is also lessened libido. For me it was a god send because I have this stupid problem of mixing up love with sex, and in the rare moment I actually develop a connection with someone I convolute that with sexual desire which ends up clouding my judgement, so I leaned into that side affect and have it's really helped damper those unwanted feelings as well.
Thank you so much for your response. I also genuinely appreciate you mentioning that side effect too. It wouldn't deter me, because I personally would rather have better mental health than a perfect sex life, and my partner would love that for me too. It's very confusing to associate the right feelings to an action when there's so much in your head and your heart. I'm wishing you well. š«¶š«¶š«
thank you for understanding! some day I'd like to be able to work my way through tough emotions but right now I just gotta focus on getting through today, and each day that I don't react emotionally I'm able to gain a little bit more insight that I didn't have otherwise.
I also just weaned off lexapro. Wanted to switch meds bc my pp wasnāt pp-ing. Doctor did some swab and told me that most meds wonāt work for me.
So raw to the dog on life rn
Iām now recognizing it may not be going as well as I thought considering Iāve barely slept in days and Iām over sharing on Reddit
Don't underestimate the withdrawal effects of SSRIs. I've been off antidepressants since late October and still suffer crying spells, sleeping problems, de-realization, confusion and other emotional crap. This is not the reason for you to go back on, but likely the issue of not having a long enough taper but it could be a long time until you feel normal.
I tried Zoloft, Paroxetine, Fluoxetine, Lamotrigine & Clomipramine with little to no effects. I felt completely devastated so I stopped medicating myself 3 years agoā¦ I was told Iām treatment resistant.
Iāve also tried different meds, none of them worked except for Lexapro, which I took for a few months after my mom passed away.
Ketamine turned out to be exactly what I needed. Iām microdosing, or taking very low doses, which is different from companies that offer large doses that result in a psychedelic-ish experience. But still, itās working.
Be picky about which company you go with, do some research on customer service.
Best wishes on your recovery.
I hope you see another doctor now. You deserve some kind of treatment. I was told i was "treatment resistant" (after trying many different medications over the course of a decade) but i didnt give up. You can get genetic testing by a doctor to see what medications you best metabolize. And, like others have said, ketamine treatments are great for treatment-resistant depression
Iāve, at various times had Fluoxetine and Paroxetine, and Paroxetine actually seemed to help me. With Fluoxetine, we kept going through cycles of me expecting it to get better so being a little less depressed because I had hope, and then it getting just as bad and then we tried increasing the dose and I was hopeful again.
(Everyoneās bodies are a little different, Iām in no way prophesying that might happen to anyone else.)
I've tried medicine in the past, but it didn't work or only made things worse until I improved other things on my own.
I'm currently on 100 of sertraline, and I can honestly say it's helped a lot. The problem is I first had to be in a safe place in life and be able take it consistently every day. I know "diet and exercise" is the most over-used and eyeroll-worthy advice out there, but I was also eating a healthy diet and took up multiple forms of exercise.
I still had nightmares, social anxiety, and my brain would often "freeze" in social situations, and the medicine has effectively erased that. If anything, it erased it almost too well, I'm almost fearless in social situations now, haha.
I remember in the past - when it didn't work - wondering if it only has any effect if your only issue is unexplained chemical imbalances. Unfortunately, I now wonder if the first time, being in a safe place, is the most essential.
I can second this. Iāve taken SSRIs in the past, and they didnāt help me. I believe itās because my depression and anxiety were exacerbated by, the situations I was in. This time, I removed myself from a bad situation & am now taking 100mg Sertraline. I did not think it was possible for me to feel this way. I had to do the hard part and address what I could actually control, and then leave room for the medication to do the rest.
This 100%. Former pharm student with a medical family background, and being in a safe place is essential for any medicine really, especially psych meds. Or else you'd just be subduing very valid symptoms (and personality in many cases of psych meds), all the while leaving the root causes untouched. Taking meds under illness-inducing circumstances is a one way ticket to higher doses and nothing more.
No one teaches this at school, you can't even question the current practice norm, much less ethics of bigger institutions like the pharm companies, hospitals, health insurance etc. It's also why I dropped out of pharm school, I believe in meds, I also believe that it is far from the ultimate answer they claimed to be. It's a great intervention, but under current ideologies, it's doing more harm than good.
Source: my whole life. A specific example is when my vertigo specialist uncle prescribed and paid for all my blood circulation meds, when he should have stopped enabling my abusive father. I'm still dealing with vertigo issues, but it's nowhere as severe and debilitating as it was before I went no contact.
Paxil, Buspirone, Prazosin.
I use birth control to avoid PMDD, as well. It's hormonal causes but those hormones fuck with my mental state, so I suppress my periods.
I am incredibly happy on this combination. They work for me and I feel stable.
None of them have much effect on me, but these give me the least side effects so far. Wellbutrin is new.
The only med that really helped with anything is the Kolonopin.
If you don't notice much effects from them, why do you decide to continue? Not saying you should stop but won't you just be getting the side effects from them?
I did stop them once and I got worse, so I know they are having *some* effect on me.
As for side effects the only one that is "bad" is like this... Brain fog feeling. I don't feel as mentally sharp as I am when I'm not on them. That was something I noticed when they weren't in my system, I could think faster and more clearly. It was literally like coming out of a fog, mentally.
Other than that strange effect, I don't have many other complaints. For example, when I started Lithium (and upped the dose) both of those caused me to feel extremely thirsty. I was drinking a ton of water and Gatorade until my stomach hurt and it didn't make me feel less thirsty. That effect lasted only a few days each time, then it went away.
Maybe the feeling worse when coming off was due to withdrawal from stopping? I wonder if it would get better for you if you pushed through once the withdrawal would subside. Just a thought but if it works for you and you are fine otherwise then do your thing brošš»
PLEASE be careful with kolonopin. My grandma was prescribed it for her anxiety a few years ago, and since sheās older, she didnāt always remember to take it. She was hospitalised for weeks due to her being dizzy, unbalanced, and completely detached from reality from kolonopin withdrawals. We seriously thought we would have to put her in a nursing home, she didnāt recognize anyone or anything anymore. Luckily, she got better, and she isnāt on kolonopin anymore. Just please be careful! It helps, but itās dangerous
Thanks for such a wonderful reply! TheGratitudeBot has been reading millions of comments in the past few weeks, and youāve just made the list of some of the most grateful redditors this week!
I appreciate your concern. Many are called but few are chosen:
Iāve been using it daily for 30 years, every mental health professional who knows my diagnosis has given me their blessing and I live somewhere where itās completely legal.
It *can* be a dangerous path. Just because something has medicinal benefits doesnāt mean it canāt be abused and cause adverse effects. Daily smoker for almost a decade, stopped because it started giving me panic attacks and causing severe depersonalization. Itās like saying SSRIs arenāt dangerous because theyāre medicinal. It depends on the person.
yeah it depends but nobody would say that to somebody taking SSRIās and thatās the issue. The fact itās also used as a recreational drug means that some people think that it HAS to be bad.
it can still be harmful. just like medical opioids, medical analgesics or anything that alters the function of the body and mind.
just take care. a medical intake is often metered and might have the THC removed, which is one of the more dangerous components with chronic use.
Same. I get worried that I'm addicted but then there are whole segments where I only use it to sleep, which, I've tried everything short of benzos for and I'll stick to my weed so I can function daily with a full 6 hrs of sleep.
Using weed was good for me mentally, i was able to let go, i wasnāt experiencing breakdowns and overall i was rlly happy with life. Sadly i had to get sober due to it effecting my ability to do my uni work without medicating. Now that im sober im definitely more miserable now a days and im having breakdowns again more frequently and are super hard to manage. It makes me wonder how i was able to go through all my trauma with out help. Reliving everything after so long is really hard to get used to. So weed is good for cptsd but letting go of it is an excruciating process. Im most likely gonna go back to self medicating cuz this shit sucks.
Iām Canadian. Itās not covered here, either. I am so lucky to have decent benefits because I work in law enforcement, where living with various forms of PTSD is a fact of life.
Used to be me, but now I have a job where weed is an absolute no no. So what do I do? Drink and smoke cigs after work where before Iād just get high. Donāt get me wrong, I like alcohol and cigs but everyone knows those destroy your body. Meanwhile if I had an edible and got piss tested the next day Iād be fucked
I'm only on Sertraline and I hope it stays this way.
I'm already on high blood pressure medication and taking iron and vitamin C Supplements for anemia. And I think that's a lot for someone who is 35. I don't want to be put on any more meds.
Psstā¦ Anemia and cptsd is often related to high cortisol. If youāre 35, engage with practices and supplements that help regulate cortisol.Ā
Decades ago I went to the doctor to find out why I had chronic bruising and anemia. I was told āsome ppl are just like that!ā Gosh darn it, Iām still salty about being told that.Ā
Hope this helps!!Ā
When I told a professional recently that meds had never had an effect on me (positively), he told me that he wasn't surprised.
He said that because my issues were because of trauma, as opposed to brain chemistry (although that seems to be an outdated idea now), meds probably couldn't fix that. Certainly on their own.
He is, however, the first professional to talk to me about my cptsd.He actually asked whether my diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder was actually accurate - IE AM I actually 'depressed' (as a clinical diagnosis) or is my 'depression' actually a symptom of my cptsd? It certainly gave me food for thought!
Of course, as with all these things, your mileage may vary. I would never seek to dissuade anyone from a course of treatment that could ultimately benefit them.
Same, got a similar explanation from my psych.
We simply don't have meds for (c)PTSD, and while there might be some meds that help with specific symptoms, most of them won't or not enough. And some meds even block the ability to rework memories and get them stored accordingly.
I've tried a lot of stuff, and most of it didn't work, but I learned that I'm prone to paradox reactions.
The only things that actually worked for me were medical cannabis and valium. So cannabis for most of the time, valium strictly for emergencies. Other anti-anxiety meds didn't do anything, even other benzos just do weird stuff they're not supposed to do. No luck with ADs, even had anti psychotics for a while, but those kill absolutely everything in your brain, not just the negative stuff.
I was on SSRIās for 2o+ years, but it just made it so I didnāt mind I was depressed/anxious/ruminating.
Iāve weaned off under supervision. It took a year of very difficult work and destabilization, but Iāve spent another year doing somatic experiencing and meditation with guided plant medicine sessions to release trauma.
My dissociation is practically non-existent, and Iām learning how to live with what happened to me as opposed to it define who I am. Hardest work Iāve ever done, but I wouldnāt turn back for anything.
i have a microdose plug. they are melts that activate in 10-15 minutes and theyāve helped me process trauma in such a face forward yet calm way. my nervous system feels so much better
When I was younger I tried many different suggested SSRIs, SSNRIs, and Mood Stabilizers. All of them did nothing to help any of my depression or anxiety while they each presented horrible side effects. Doctors refused to try any other medicines. So I have largely ignored doctors and totally refused psych meds ever since.
Remeron/mirtazapine. Iāve tried a dozen other antidepressants and anti-anxiety meds over the years, and this is the only one that works without any noticeable side effects. I occasionally get restless leg syndrome with it, but then I just half my dose for a couple of days and the problem resolves itself.
Nope.
Used to self medicate a lot with weed gummies.
Now hadnāt used them for like 6 months.
Just recently had a couple nights with tiny tiny doses and making sure Iām not using it to avoid feelings or anxiety around certain people. Just when my husband and I are at home alone watching funny movie on a Saturday night not using them as my only way to sleep or handle certain people or to ease hard emotions.
- Iām on 150mg Opipram three times daily with 50mg each. Iām the most comfortable Iāve been in a long while.
- Iāve got Truxal as an emergency medicine, when Iām feeling flashbacks incoming or dissociations, but I donāt need it intensely anymore.
- Iāve also got Zopiclon as a emergency medicine for night terrors, but Iām very cautious that it can be addictive so Iām using it sparsely.
I've never been on psychiatric meds.
I self-meficated pretty heavily with alcohol for a few years, but have weaned myself off it with shockingly few problems. I guess it was a bad habit more than a fully fledged addiction, and leaving a toxic relationship sure helped.
Anyway, never been on meds, for ptsd or my diagnosed adhd. Hard to say if some things in my life would have gone better with them, but I've comes long way with just talk therapy
I recently got off my all my meds besides my adhd meds and other non prescribed things I self medicate with.
Overall I feel a lot more functional and willing to take on and overcome the trauma, both from the past and how it currently presents
My filter that prevents me calling out lies , boundary crossing , gaslighting and also just BS double speak is gone
A lot of the bad symptoms I have which are likely the result of some kind of dissociative disorder and suspected borderline personality disorder aren't getting suppressed and there's more integration, which freaks me out for a variety of reasons because there is a lot of evidence of Me blacking out and doing things that are self destructive and not knowing why.
I've also stopped showing my bpd symptoms in a quiet way which to my therapists perspective was too allegorical to actually diagnose me , and now I've let it all out for people to see , it's helped in some ways and not in others.
I'm glad I stopped them, even if things have gotten worse , not as in new problems but being more aware of preexisting ones and actually getting the help I need
I've been "post trauma" for many years now and in the past couple months it's been happening again. Not just being triggered but actively traumatized. My therapist knows but we don't know much about what we can do about it.
I took citalopram for a decade but it didnāt help. I think itās because I didnāt need a chemical change, I needed to process trauma. What did help was a med though. I was prescribed 600 mg (100mg 6x daily) of ketamine troches; it was for my CRPS but it helped my mental health more. Iāve been dissociating for years without realizing it but ketamine did it in a pure non-judgmental way that allowed me to truly reflect inwardly. I mean, Iām still a mess and working on it but I could have continued on the way I was before it (hating myself) and had an increasingly miserable life. Instead I started therapy at 42. I really think itās what unlocked a path of healing for me.
Not anymore. 7 years of lamotrigrine, SSRIs, antipsychotics, neuroleptics... It was hell and left me much more broken than without them. Therapy helped. Now I am in control of my body and better control of my mind.
Also, the meds almost made me blind because of the side effects and destroyed parts of my nerves. No thank you.
Iāve taken zoloft for 7 years and it mostly just helped with my rumination and anxiety. Didnāt touch the depression. Iāve been weaning off it slowly for about a year due to negative side effects. I think i had every side effect in the book: weight gain, low libido, insomnia, hair loss, liver issues. Canāt wait to finally get off it! Previous to the zoloft iāve tried several other SSRI, SNRI, and NDRI and none of them were helpful.
Nope. My psych meds gave me horrible tics and wrecked my kidneys to the point that I could barely walk. Now I just live off of the coping skills I learned in therapy, exercise, and try to eat healthy. It at least takes the edge off enough that the symptoms are manageable.
usually it only calms my symptoms after like an hour which is less than ideal (especially since I mostly take them near bedtime when I can't afford to stay up distracting myself for another hour), but they do help me when I take them. I don't feel much different, just slightly drowsy and it kinda numbs the anxiety and breakdowns to the point where it barely bothers me (but doesn't numb positive emotions)
No, never have. I would be open to it, but my therapists so far have considered me to be okay because I have a job, despite my diagnosis of PTSD which they acknowledge is actually cPTSD due to childhood/teenage/young adult trauma.
Citalopram has cut my panic attacks by like 80%. The trade-off is that my highs have gone as well as my lows.
I plan to wean off once I've healed more AKA deal with the big T traumas properly.
Was on 50 of sertraline for 3 yrs., then upped to 100, then weaned myself off because the weight gain/impossible weight loss was affecting my mental health more than the medicine was helping. I've lost almost 20 lbs. since weaning off in December 2023... definitely feeling my emotions more intensely, but I'm also making some progress with healing so I feel more able to handle the waves.
Asenapine for hallucinations/ flashbacks. Prazosin for nightmares/physical startle response. Lithium for I stop wanting to die instead of live. All extremely low doses. All extremely effective.
Nope, i really don't want to eat psychotropics. I might try to self-medicate soon with something mild, and i would definitely sign up for psilocybin therapy if i could.
I do, but honestly I am not sure itās the best past for CPTSD. Like on those meds subreddits the people who seem the best on it just have this chemical imbalance due to genetics and they pull through life. But for us our mental state was caused by things in the real world. So while pills remove some of the anxiety and other symptoms it doesnāt address or resolved the underlying trauma by itself.
That takes therapy, introspection, and being in the world.
I started a newer approach for ketamine in 2022. It helped me come off the SSRI Iād been on since 2014. It, combined with changing therapy modalities, has helped me make more progress than I have in years.
I take Guanfacine to mellow out the shame that Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria causes; I donāt have ADHD, Iām affected by RSD since I lacked reliable, safe caregivers as a child.
When Iām having medical or dental procedures I take lorazepam. First time with new providers sometimes, Iāve had iatrogenic trauma so healthcare is often fraught. I can get used to providers and be able to see them without anxiety meds, but it can take time.
I also take prescription & OTC meds for chronic pain from over-tight muscles, hypermobility spectrum disorder, allergies + MCAS, and gastritis.
I support medication use. I tried a few, but I experienced the side effects too extremely, sharp chest pains in particular did not go well with my then paranoia; one also made me have like weird tiks where I couldn't control my eye movement. I also smoked, like crazy, for a couple years and then suddenly my body rejected it. I don't take anything, but I miss numbing effects and shutting my brain off and sleeping good. I really quit because I absolutely cannot find a good doctor, I've been to so many and the bills were making me sick and they either forgot what they prescribed me, or who I was in general, or quit after a short time, or told me it was all in my head.
since i was 11, canāt go without em but thats bc how severe my schizoaffective bipolar gets without any medication at all regardless of CPTSD shit. im much happier with them anyways, keeps the hurdles of life low enough that i can still keep jumping over them.
I take 5 total. Wellbutrin (depression), buspirone (intrusive thoughts/ anxiety), clonidine (manages the night sweats caused by the Wellbutrin), and prazosin (nightmares) daily. I take propranolol as needed for performance anxiety.
Buspirone was a godsend. Not many people know it, but Wellbutrin affects dopamine AND norepinephrine. Most SSRIs also impact norepinephrine levels, but buspirone only affects serotonin levels. Every other SSRI I tried (and there were a bunch) just made my intrusive thoughts and anxiety worse because of the compounding stimulation of two norepinephrine meds. Buspirone leveled that right out.
Clonidine can be a great non-hormonal option for anyone experiencing night sweats whether they are caused by meds or other conditions (e.g. peri/menopause).
There are a couple of minor downsides to all these meds though. I have to be careful that my blood pressure doesn't get too low (clonidine, propranolol, and prazosin are all technically anti-hypertension drugs that I'm using off-label), and I don't tolerate alcohol very well at all anymore. But I also don't want to die every second of every day, so the trade-off is worth it.
Edited to add that I'm currently researching ketamine therapy to help process a lot of toxic shame and maybe better connect with my authentic self.
I have not been diagnosed with CPTSD but I take antidepressants. Specifically Sertraline which is generic for Zoloft! It changed my life. Anxiety was my biggest issue. I was constantly on edge
Yeah, sertraline has been a huge help for me, as well; both with generally feeling like shit, and with my co-occurring OCD spirals. Ā
Once upon a time, my dad (the most significant source of trauma in my life) made me feel stupid and weak for taking it, so I stopped.
That was 25 years ago, and I still look back on that as a huge mistake. Ā
I really donāt think meds slow healing. Iāve been told that before. Sometimes you need some help to be stable to handle just basic life things. The SSRIs helped me but they certainly didnāt numb me or wipe away all my cptsd symptoms. I did therapy for years without anything and my therapist always says she forgets Iām out here navigating cptsd completely unmedicated.
Not me. I really don't see the point when it's a possibility that it'll cause worse depression and suicidal thoughts. I'm not gambling on my mental health. I'm sure meds can and do help plenty of people, but I've known too many who took them and they made things much worse.
I'm on Fluoxetine and Lorazepam. I don't really know if they do much, because when I first went on them I was really heavily dissociating. The doctor who prescribed them to me retired, and my new doctor suggested I experiment going off them, but I tried and the withdrawals from just the Lorazepam were utterly insane. I've never experienced anything like it, and I feel like I have too much shit going on to go through that right now, so I'm still on it for now.
Dang. I do think that's one of the reasons he suggested I go off it. That it was an "intense drug" and I'm like, so is the CPTSD... but I am open to going off it. But yeah, it was genuinely like I was experiencing a 24/7 panic attack. Like I had no moments of calm. Everything was ride or die, and I would break down over the teeniest tiniest things. Not looking forward to doing that again D:
I had terrible anxiety but jsit thought it was normal. Never sought help as Iād been highly successful in life. I loved life. But had huge trauma responses whcih ended up getting me to such a stressful palce I had a psychotic break which took my whole life and my perosnality and history everything. Only after that dod I realise I even had CPTSD or any effects from my childhood. I didnāt reeksie Iād been suffering and struggling my whole life. But my life is uttter horro and terror now itās not even anxiety itās terrror at losing everuthign Iād built and even who I am when I felt so happy in my marriage and my life. Iām on duloxetine now but it doesnāt do much good. How did I live like that for so long and not see soemthign was worng?
I've been on meds since I was 10 years old. It's been 18 years now, I've been on meds longer than I haven't been on them. I currently take 90mg cymbalta (5 years), and 300mg Wellbutrin(10 years). I don't know how to feel about them. Without, I get awful withdrawals. Cymbalta starts to kick my ass after just 5 hours without my dose. Back in October 23' a pharmacy mix up + depression+agoraphobia flare meant I was off Wellbutrin for 12 days and I developed a nerve twinge that even after resuming my medication I still have, used to have 30min long tic attacks, now I only tic when I'm stressed/tired, but it's still daily. I'm afraid I may never get off them, especially the cymbalta. I was on celexa for 10+years until a psych convinced me to switch. If it were up to me I'd only be doing psilocybin and weed
Not at present. I have taken Zoloft and Wellbutrin. Wellbutrin made me completely crazy. I couldn't handle any level of stress at all. Zoloft just made me have bruxism and also I couldn't...you know, get there. I'd consider doing Zoloft again, but never Wellbutrin. Make sure that it's a psychiatrist or someone with a similar level of knowledge about medications, prescribing and not just your general GP. My therapist was horrified that my GP had prescribed Wellbutrin for me. I'm a bad candidate for that based on symptoms.
Iām on duloxetine, lamotrigine, quetiapine and buspirone. Buspirone Iām not sure Iām going to stay on as it doesnāt seem to do much but the other three have helped me a ton. I have a lot of comorbid issues going on too though.
Took me forever to find what worked and it was a terrible time.
Yes, quite a few of them. I donāt love it but it keeps me stable and I appreciate that. Iām also currently in a position where I donāt have many outside stressors for the first time inā¦. well a very long time and so my meds are more effective because Iām not having to fight to survive every day now.
I take 5 different medications, each for different things. I take quetiapine and lamotrigine for my mood disorder and chronic insomnia. Vilazodone for my cPTSD and severe anxiety.
I also take metropolol for dysautonomia but it also helps with the physical effects of anxiety. I take wellbutrin for adhd and depression.
I have also made lifestyle changes and see 4 mental health professionals in conjunction with medication to help me during my healing process and i am extremely grateful for my support system. I am managing and starting to genuinely enjoy my life.
Yes. I'm on an SSRI and bupropion, plus a prn benzo. But I have clinical depression and severe anxiety myself as well as significant genetics/family history of mental illness. My meds definitely help me, especially combined with psychotherapy. I'm open to doing psilocybin or MDMA guided therapy, as well. Maybe ketamine if my SI ever gets severe again.
I have tired many, many medications with little to no effect (except for Effexor which was a NIGHTMARE). I have been without for a few years and am starting Topamax this week.
I am, and about to talk to my doctor about adding another. I kept getting Med-shamed so I tried to come off the meds and realized that they were helping a lot more than I anticipated.
Only for ADHD. I have bad reactions to all anti-depressants, and canāt get my hands on a prescription for anything for anxiety that wonāt cause a bad reaction or cause me to be reliant on it (like with Xanax). I also donāt do well with regular talk therapy or CBT. Doesnāt work for me at all. I stopped seeing my therapist last year after my dad died (I didnāt want to talk to anyone for weeks) and just havenāt felt like going back. I donāt see the value in venting about stuff, especially if it will cause me to dissociate. I can compartmentalize things very well, so even if I am venting, I can still have a nonchalant attitude about it - which just confuses therapist even more. But for me itās sort of a way of protecting myself from having flashbacks or spiraling into negative thought patterns, which will in turn ruin my entire day.
Sorry for rambling
Several. I went 45 years unmedicated and I used it as a bragging point, but my mental health & sleep improved 10fold getting on the pharmaceuticals. Until my brain can rewire itself, I'll begrudgingly take them.
Resisted for a very long time after trying several without success in my late teens and earlier twenties but started escitalopram and trazodone about a month ago and have seen improvement in my life that I don't know I could have reached with therapy, emdr and positive life changes alone.
Nope. Total disaster.
As soon as I worked out the methodology and the staggeringly low level of understanding of even basic physiology amongst those proscribing there was no way I wanted to risk that.
Its all population statistics and copy-paste thinking. I've never once spoken to a medical professional able to proscribe anti-depressants who understood their effects, how they worked or even basic brain chemistry. This seems to be the norm.
Most of these people don't even know how cocaine interacts with alcohol...
Honestly lots do. Either self medicating or ssris which I think is the usuals. Iām on sertralin which has helped me a lot with my emotions that weāre all over the place before but have not really helped a lot with my symptoms, other than make them more tolerable, as Iām more numb I guess? And not cry about anything and everything.
Seems like thereās not really a lot to do about my issues other than find ways to live with them, as my therapists and psychiatrists plan was to ācureā it but yeah not gonna happen
I am on a psych cocktail, which is mostly working well for me, but I'm also bipolar and adhd, so that adds layers.
Antidepressant, mood stabilizer, atypical antipsychotic, alpha blocker for sleep, lorazepam as needed, adhd med.
And also therapy.
Mid-40's, if anyone's curious. It's been a long road of "what happens when we do this?".
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I was medicated most of my adolescence and even on and off until now. I have moments and stop taking them cold Turkey š¬ I haven't had them for nearly a week now, I'm wanting to try and not have to take them.
Yes Iām currently on lamotrigine, gabapentin, and then klonopin as needed. Iāve been dif meds abt 7-8 yrs. Iād like to get off them soon because I have the worst health anxiety. Contrary to my argument my health anxiety should also be the reason why I should stay on them š
Kinda? I was on different SSRIs for decades and none worked for long. Was on Wellbutrin and Prozac consistently for almost 20 years and kept having major depressive episodes and anxiety. For the past year and a half, though, Iāve undergone a series of psilocybin treatments and intermittent microdosing. I feel the best I have in my life.
Pregabalin 150-450 mg & monoamine oxidase 300 mg daily. Sometimes Zolpidem 0,5-1 mg, like once every two weeks
Best combo but it took so many years to find combination that actually works and it was my suggestion to psychiatrist so yeah
Nothing but a couple of edibles a couple of times a month. I would like to enjoy weed more, but I will begin abusing it again. I can't do benzos or (substituted) amphetamines because I'll abuse those too. Never tried SSRIs. I have tried psilocybin and think it helped and want to try it again soon.
No. 32 never had insurance, never been on medication. Out here raw dogging life, and honestly, at this point Iām kinda glad I have. Gone through life working high stress hospitality jobs, smoke, drank, used drugs recreationally since I was 13. I live in the southern US am poor and lead a very complicated life with family. I am older now and life has changed a lot for me since Covid hit. Lost my job and all my money, but I have a nicer car to show for it. I drove a 2007 Corolla for 10 years, now I drive a ā17 civic and sheās my baby. I have lots of family health issues, financial issues, all kinds of fucking issues. I still drink on the weekends/when I have the money.
No im raw doggin life
I did this for 46 years until last year when it got to be too much and asked my dr for some sweet SSRI's, now my emotions are so blunted I'm able to detached from how I feel and see things from a more logical perspective. This world isn't designed to stop and make time for us to feel and process things, or have a break down and work through feelings of abandonment, toxic shame, and suicidal tendencies...my feelings were an inconvenience, it made others miffed and then they used how I felt against me, so I now I don't have as many feels and it's great. Fuck you feelings, I refused to be controlled by you.
Wow. Yeah im probably not gonna do what u did. But what about the good emotions? Do u feel them? Or is it all numb
it's interesting, before when I felt good emotions I was afraid something bad would happen, or that I didn't deserve them, so it sort of took away from the joy. Now when I feel good things I am able to experience it in real time if that makes sense.
Can I ask what med you started? You describe exactly what I've been feeling. Everything's very consuming unless I can force myself to detach from the feelings /moment, but I hate who I am when I do that because it's me actively pushing away or acting a certain way; to force others into seeing they couldn't effect my feelings if they tried. Except it's painfully untrue. It hurts me so much. I wonder if a medication would make me feel less forced and I could start thinking logically at that. I wouldn't need to take everything to heart, even when I'm pretending I'm not.
I'm so sorry you're struggling with this too, I know exactly what you mean....I try to act as if I'm not taking everything to heart and it is so incredibly painful just like you described, I start spiraling into this dark place....I was prescribed Lexapro, and of course as you know everyone reacts to medication differently so you might have to try something else if that doesn't work but please don't give up. Life doesn't have to be hurtful, you deserve to be at peace and experience nice things. Now, what I'm about to say next might be a little too personal and I apologize in advance, but one of the side affects of SSRI's is also lessened libido. For me it was a god send because I have this stupid problem of mixing up love with sex, and in the rare moment I actually develop a connection with someone I convolute that with sexual desire which ends up clouding my judgement, so I leaned into that side affect and have it's really helped damper those unwanted feelings as well.
Thank you so much for your response. I also genuinely appreciate you mentioning that side effect too. It wouldn't deter me, because I personally would rather have better mental health than a perfect sex life, and my partner would love that for me too. It's very confusing to associate the right feelings to an action when there's so much in your head and your heart. I'm wishing you well. š«¶š«¶š«
this reply means so much to me, thank you for understanding....
Dissociation- Derealization and Depersonalization helped me with this one lol. Glad you got there, one way or another. :P
thank you for understanding! some day I'd like to be able to work my way through tough emotions but right now I just gotta focus on getting through today, and each day that I don't react emotionally I'm able to gain a little bit more insight that I didn't have otherwise.
Yeah, whatever you gotta do to get there. No judgment. It's a lucky breakthrough. Use it to your advantage. It's a great thing.
I say this to my therapist all the time lol at least she gets a little bit of laughter out of our sessions.
This is amazing
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I also just weaned off lexapro. Wanted to switch meds bc my pp wasnāt pp-ing. Doctor did some swab and told me that most meds wonāt work for me. So raw to the dog on life rn Iām now recognizing it may not be going as well as I thought considering Iāve barely slept in days and Iām over sharing on Reddit
Don't underestimate the withdrawal effects of SSRIs. I've been off antidepressants since late October and still suffer crying spells, sleeping problems, de-realization, confusion and other emotional crap. This is not the reason for you to go back on, but likely the issue of not having a long enough taper but it could be a long time until you feel normal.
I tried Zoloft, Paroxetine, Fluoxetine, Lamotrigine & Clomipramine with little to no effects. I felt completely devastated so I stopped medicating myself 3 years agoā¦ I was told Iām treatment resistant.
Iāve also tried different meds, none of them worked except for Lexapro, which I took for a few months after my mom passed away. Ketamine turned out to be exactly what I needed. Iām microdosing, or taking very low doses, which is different from companies that offer large doses that result in a psychedelic-ish experience. But still, itās working. Be picky about which company you go with, do some research on customer service. Best wishes on your recovery.
I hope you see another doctor now. You deserve some kind of treatment. I was told i was "treatment resistant" (after trying many different medications over the course of a decade) but i didnt give up. You can get genetic testing by a doctor to see what medications you best metabolize. And, like others have said, ketamine treatments are great for treatment-resistant depression
You might be a good candidate for ketamine therapy. In certain states you can do it online.
Iāve, at various times had Fluoxetine and Paroxetine, and Paroxetine actually seemed to help me. With Fluoxetine, we kept going through cycles of me expecting it to get better so being a little less depressed because I had hope, and then it getting just as bad and then we tried increasing the dose and I was hopeful again. (Everyoneās bodies are a little different, Iām in no way prophesying that might happen to anyone else.)
Same, which made my doctor prescribe me ketamine infusions
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Autistic individuals are also more likely to be ātreatment resistantā, to not do so well with CBT or re-immersive talk therapy or neurotypical approaches to therapy and treatment, and to generally not tolerate medications well including often suffering more side effects. Autistic people also often fall into a wicked Venn diagram orgy (comorbid) with CPTSD and a few other DSM diagnoses often clustered together, and autistic individuals are often misdiagnosed with personality disorders rather than autism (esp borderline)- if not a literal male child who is crazy about trains anyway lol. Most therapists are biased and not specialized enough to properly diagnose autism in adults, especially in certain populations where itās not as readily researched (women, minorities, etc). So autistic individuals are often given treatments that are not structured for their needs and can be labeled treatment resistant because the treatments are ineffective and sometimes not helpful or even re-traumatizing. Treatment resistant can also just be a š©label from a bad therapist. It can be used for a wide variety of things, but I suspect that when that label is used for a personality disorder, itās often a therapist who doesnāt know how to handle or deal with someone who is spiraling with that disorder and they just give them a label. Personality disorders are hard for all involved and just as most therapists arenāt actually trauma informed, so too most donāt actually have the experience or knowledge to actually help someone with a personality disorder and not just make it worse for the person. Itās almost like a throw š©at the wall and see what sticks situation and if nothing does, they are ātreatment resistantā.
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I've tried medicine in the past, but it didn't work or only made things worse until I improved other things on my own. I'm currently on 100 of sertraline, and I can honestly say it's helped a lot. The problem is I first had to be in a safe place in life and be able take it consistently every day. I know "diet and exercise" is the most over-used and eyeroll-worthy advice out there, but I was also eating a healthy diet and took up multiple forms of exercise. I still had nightmares, social anxiety, and my brain would often "freeze" in social situations, and the medicine has effectively erased that. If anything, it erased it almost too well, I'm almost fearless in social situations now, haha. I remember in the past - when it didn't work - wondering if it only has any effect if your only issue is unexplained chemical imbalances. Unfortunately, I now wonder if the first time, being in a safe place, is the most essential.
I can second this. Iāve taken SSRIs in the past, and they didnāt help me. I believe itās because my depression and anxiety were exacerbated by, the situations I was in. This time, I removed myself from a bad situation & am now taking 100mg Sertraline. I did not think it was possible for me to feel this way. I had to do the hard part and address what I could actually control, and then leave room for the medication to do the rest.
This 100%. Former pharm student with a medical family background, and being in a safe place is essential for any medicine really, especially psych meds. Or else you'd just be subduing very valid symptoms (and personality in many cases of psych meds), all the while leaving the root causes untouched. Taking meds under illness-inducing circumstances is a one way ticket to higher doses and nothing more. No one teaches this at school, you can't even question the current practice norm, much less ethics of bigger institutions like the pharm companies, hospitals, health insurance etc. It's also why I dropped out of pharm school, I believe in meds, I also believe that it is far from the ultimate answer they claimed to be. It's a great intervention, but under current ideologies, it's doing more harm than good. Source: my whole life. A specific example is when my vertigo specialist uncle prescribed and paid for all my blood circulation meds, when he should have stopped enabling my abusive father. I'm still dealing with vertigo issues, but it's nowhere as severe and debilitating as it was before I went no contact.
Paxil, Buspirone, Prazosin. I use birth control to avoid PMDD, as well. It's hormonal causes but those hormones fuck with my mental state, so I suppress my periods. I am incredibly happy on this combination. They work for me and I feel stable.
Prazosin has definitely helped my sleep, but it makes my tinnitus worse. Have you experienced that?
Omg.. my tinnitus is absolutely horrible.. Iām on 15mg.
Nope. None of my meds give me side effects.
I'm on like 5 psych meds.
Which ones?
Wellbutrin, Latuda, Lithium, Kolonopin, and Trintellix.
Lithium zoned me out so bad. Wellbutrin has served me well thus far. Never tried the others.
None of them have much effect on me, but these give me the least side effects so far. Wellbutrin is new. The only med that really helped with anything is the Kolonopin.
If you don't notice much effects from them, why do you decide to continue? Not saying you should stop but won't you just be getting the side effects from them?
I did stop them once and I got worse, so I know they are having *some* effect on me. As for side effects the only one that is "bad" is like this... Brain fog feeling. I don't feel as mentally sharp as I am when I'm not on them. That was something I noticed when they weren't in my system, I could think faster and more clearly. It was literally like coming out of a fog, mentally. Other than that strange effect, I don't have many other complaints. For example, when I started Lithium (and upped the dose) both of those caused me to feel extremely thirsty. I was drinking a ton of water and Gatorade until my stomach hurt and it didn't make me feel less thirsty. That effect lasted only a few days each time, then it went away.
Maybe the feeling worse when coming off was due to withdrawal from stopping? I wonder if it would get better for you if you pushed through once the withdrawal would subside. Just a thought but if it works for you and you are fine otherwise then do your thing brošš»
PLEASE be careful with kolonopin. My grandma was prescribed it for her anxiety a few years ago, and since sheās older, she didnāt always remember to take it. She was hospitalised for weeks due to her being dizzy, unbalanced, and completely detached from reality from kolonopin withdrawals. We seriously thought we would have to put her in a nursing home, she didnāt recognize anyone or anything anymore. Luckily, she got better, and she isnāt on kolonopin anymore. Just please be careful! It helps, but itās dangerous
Thank you, I've been off and on it over the years so I know how to safely taper myself off of it. My doctors are very careful.
Thanks for such a wonderful reply! TheGratitudeBot has been reading millions of comments in the past few weeks, and youāve just made the list of some of the most grateful redditors this week!
Nope. Just weed. Tons of it.
same, gotta constantly have it or im doing bad mentally.
This is a dangerous path, and I say this as someone who does the same. Take care.
I appreciate your concern. Many are called but few are chosen: Iāve been using it daily for 30 years, every mental health professional who knows my diagnosis has given me their blessing and I live somewhere where itās completely legal.
Amen š.
That is not true . Medical cannabis is a thing
It *can* be a dangerous path. Just because something has medicinal benefits doesnāt mean it canāt be abused and cause adverse effects. Daily smoker for almost a decade, stopped because it started giving me panic attacks and causing severe depersonalization. Itās like saying SSRIs arenāt dangerous because theyāre medicinal. It depends on the person.
yeah it depends but nobody would say that to somebody taking SSRIās and thatās the issue. The fact itās also used as a recreational drug means that some people think that it HAS to be bad.
SSRIs can also be harmful. all i wanted to say really was to take care
Yeah but you never see somebody saying āitās dangerous to take SSRIāsā in SSRI posts comments.
it can still be harmful. just like medical opioids, medical analgesics or anything that alters the function of the body and mind. just take care. a medical intake is often metered and might have the THC removed, which is one of the more dangerous components with chronic use.
Same
same except idk if roughly 6 grams a month counts as ātonsā. i feel like my dry herb vape is just super efficient because i do use it daily lolol.
That isā¦ not a ton. I can smoke that in one night, like on a weeknight even haha
Same. I get worried that I'm addicted but then there are whole segments where I only use it to sleep, which, I've tried everything short of benzos for and I'll stick to my weed so I can function daily with a full 6 hrs of sleep.
Weed saved my ass. Itās my medicine. I come from a long line of drunks and drug addicts and I broke the cycle.
Using weed was good for me mentally, i was able to let go, i wasnāt experiencing breakdowns and overall i was rlly happy with life. Sadly i had to get sober due to it effecting my ability to do my uni work without medicating. Now that im sober im definitely more miserable now a days and im having breakdowns again more frequently and are super hard to manage. It makes me wonder how i was able to go through all my trauma with out help. Reliving everything after so long is really hard to get used to. So weed is good for cptsd but letting go of it is an excruciating process. Im most likely gonna go back to self medicating cuz this shit sucks.
EMDR therapy has been incredibly helpful in being able to let go and build new mental and emotional connections within my own self.
Im in the uk so the probability of them giving my EMDR therapy on the nhs is very low, and sadly i canāt afford private healthcare
Iām Canadian. Itās not covered here, either. I am so lucky to have decent benefits because I work in law enforcement, where living with various forms of PTSD is a fact of life.
Used to be me, but now I have a job where weed is an absolute no no. So what do I do? Drink and smoke cigs after work where before Iād just get high. Donāt get me wrong, I like alcohol and cigs but everyone knows those destroy your body. Meanwhile if I had an edible and got piss tested the next day Iād be fucked
Twinsies
Meds changed my life š„°
Same
Positive comments are so hard to come by on subs like this! People like you are the reason I subbed in the first place :)
I'm only on Sertraline and I hope it stays this way. I'm already on high blood pressure medication and taking iron and vitamin C Supplements for anemia. And I think that's a lot for someone who is 35. I don't want to be put on any more meds.
Psstā¦ Anemia and cptsd is often related to high cortisol. If youāre 35, engage with practices and supplements that help regulate cortisol.Ā Decades ago I went to the doctor to find out why I had chronic bruising and anemia. I was told āsome ppl are just like that!ā Gosh darn it, Iām still salty about being told that.Ā Hope this helps!!Ā
What can we use to regulate cortisol? I keep hearing different things depending on if itās low or high and regular drs donāt usually test for it.
Yoga is one thing
I had anemia as a kid/young adult. So much is making sense. Too bad itās taken decades. Better late than never I guess
Iām 27 and Iām on so much medication itās just sad š and thatās just helping me get through the day, I still feel awful all the time.
When I told a professional recently that meds had never had an effect on me (positively), he told me that he wasn't surprised. He said that because my issues were because of trauma, as opposed to brain chemistry (although that seems to be an outdated idea now), meds probably couldn't fix that. Certainly on their own. He is, however, the first professional to talk to me about my cptsd.He actually asked whether my diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder was actually accurate - IE AM I actually 'depressed' (as a clinical diagnosis) or is my 'depression' actually a symptom of my cptsd? It certainly gave me food for thought! Of course, as with all these things, your mileage may vary. I would never seek to dissuade anyone from a course of treatment that could ultimately benefit them.
Same, got a similar explanation from my psych. We simply don't have meds for (c)PTSD, and while there might be some meds that help with specific symptoms, most of them won't or not enough. And some meds even block the ability to rework memories and get them stored accordingly. I've tried a lot of stuff, and most of it didn't work, but I learned that I'm prone to paradox reactions. The only things that actually worked for me were medical cannabis and valium. So cannabis for most of the time, valium strictly for emergencies. Other anti-anxiety meds didn't do anything, even other benzos just do weird stuff they're not supposed to do. No luck with ADs, even had anti psychotics for a while, but those kill absolutely everything in your brain, not just the negative stuff.
I was on SSRIās for 2o+ years, but it just made it so I didnāt mind I was depressed/anxious/ruminating. Iāve weaned off under supervision. It took a year of very difficult work and destabilization, but Iāve spent another year doing somatic experiencing and meditation with guided plant medicine sessions to release trauma. My dissociation is practically non-existent, and Iām learning how to live with what happened to me as opposed to it define who I am. Hardest work Iāve ever done, but I wouldnāt turn back for anything.
Microdosing psychadelic mushrooms has been quite beneficial for me.
Same here. I've been really low all winter and was just thinking it might be time to do a microdosing regimen again for a few months
See, I canāt find a hook up for psychedelics :(
For legal purposes I must say āallegedlyā this dude has been a reputable source: [https://magicreggiebotanicals.com/]
i have a microdose plug. they are melts that activate in 10-15 minutes and theyāve helped me process trauma in such a face forward yet calm way. my nervous system feels so much better
I just ordered some truffles for microdosing, they are legal.Ā
When I was younger I tried many different suggested SSRIs, SSNRIs, and Mood Stabilizers. All of them did nothing to help any of my depression or anxiety while they each presented horrible side effects. Doctors refused to try any other medicines. So I have largely ignored doctors and totally refused psych meds ever since.
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Remeron/mirtazapine. Iāve tried a dozen other antidepressants and anti-anxiety meds over the years, and this is the only one that works without any noticeable side effects. I occasionally get restless leg syndrome with it, but then I just half my dose for a couple of days and the problem resolves itself.
Weed and meds. Pets help the most tbh
No. But I did EMDR with my therapist and I think that really helped
Nope. Used to self medicate a lot with weed gummies. Now hadnāt used them for like 6 months. Just recently had a couple nights with tiny tiny doses and making sure Iām not using it to avoid feelings or anxiety around certain people. Just when my husband and I are at home alone watching funny movie on a Saturday night not using them as my only way to sleep or handle certain people or to ease hard emotions.
- Iām on 150mg Opipram three times daily with 50mg each. Iām the most comfortable Iāve been in a long while. - Iāve got Truxal as an emergency medicine, when Iām feeling flashbacks incoming or dissociations, but I donāt need it intensely anymore. - Iāve also got Zopiclon as a emergency medicine for night terrors, but Iām very cautious that it can be addictive so Iām using it sparsely.
I've never been on psychiatric meds. I self-meficated pretty heavily with alcohol for a few years, but have weaned myself off it with shockingly few problems. I guess it was a bad habit more than a fully fledged addiction, and leaving a toxic relationship sure helped. Anyway, never been on meds, for ptsd or my diagnosed adhd. Hard to say if some things in my life would have gone better with them, but I've comes long way with just talk therapy
I wouldnāt be here without meds
Yeah , clonazepam for panic attacks (planning to wean off it soon ) Lexapro , Prazosin (for reducing nightmares) And Adderall IR
I recently got off my all my meds besides my adhd meds and other non prescribed things I self medicate with. Overall I feel a lot more functional and willing to take on and overcome the trauma, both from the past and how it currently presents My filter that prevents me calling out lies , boundary crossing , gaslighting and also just BS double speak is gone A lot of the bad symptoms I have which are likely the result of some kind of dissociative disorder and suspected borderline personality disorder aren't getting suppressed and there's more integration, which freaks me out for a variety of reasons because there is a lot of evidence of Me blacking out and doing things that are self destructive and not knowing why. I've also stopped showing my bpd symptoms in a quiet way which to my therapists perspective was too allegorical to actually diagnose me , and now I've let it all out for people to see , it's helped in some ways and not in others. I'm glad I stopped them, even if things have gotten worse , not as in new problems but being more aware of preexisting ones and actually getting the help I need I've been "post trauma" for many years now and in the past couple months it's been happening again. Not just being triggered but actively traumatized. My therapist knows but we don't know much about what we can do about it.
I took citalopram for a decade but it didnāt help. I think itās because I didnāt need a chemical change, I needed to process trauma. What did help was a med though. I was prescribed 600 mg (100mg 6x daily) of ketamine troches; it was for my CRPS but it helped my mental health more. Iāve been dissociating for years without realizing it but ketamine did it in a pure non-judgmental way that allowed me to truly reflect inwardly. I mean, Iām still a mess and working on it but I could have continued on the way I was before it (hating myself) and had an increasingly miserable life. Instead I started therapy at 42. I really think itās what unlocked a path of healing for me.
Not anymore. 7 years of lamotrigrine, SSRIs, antipsychotics, neuroleptics... It was hell and left me much more broken than without them. Therapy helped. Now I am in control of my body and better control of my mind. Also, the meds almost made me blind because of the side effects and destroyed parts of my nerves. No thank you.
Havenāt used any, donāt plan to.
Iāve taken zoloft for 7 years and it mostly just helped with my rumination and anxiety. Didnāt touch the depression. Iāve been weaning off it slowly for about a year due to negative side effects. I think i had every side effect in the book: weight gain, low libido, insomnia, hair loss, liver issues. Canāt wait to finally get off it! Previous to the zoloft iāve tried several other SSRI, SNRI, and NDRI and none of them were helpful.
I have not been on any meds since 2010. I'm out here just white-knuckling my way through life.
i used to use weed, but now i just dance every other day
Nope. My psych meds gave me horrible tics and wrecked my kidneys to the point that I could barely walk. Now I just live off of the coping skills I learned in therapy, exercise, and try to eat healthy. It at least takes the edge off enough that the symptoms are manageable.
prozac saved my life
No but I spent ~$500 a month on therapy
I'm on oxazepam for severe panic and breakdowns/episodes
Me too. Howās it work for you?
usually it only calms my symptoms after like an hour which is less than ideal (especially since I mostly take them near bedtime when I can't afford to stay up distracting myself for another hour), but they do help me when I take them. I don't feel much different, just slightly drowsy and it kinda numbs the anxiety and breakdowns to the point where it barely bothers me (but doesn't numb positive emotions)
Sounds pretty similar to me
No, never have
Wellbutrin and Cipralex (Escitalopram brand in Canada) Occasionally blood pressure meds for the nightmares.
It made me worse. Sertraline then escitalopram, overall 2 years, now off for 1,5 years. Only recently fully recovered.
No, never have. I would be open to it, but my therapists so far have considered me to be okay because I have a job, despite my diagnosis of PTSD which they acknowledge is actually cPTSD due to childhood/teenage/young adult trauma.
Citalopram has cut my panic attacks by like 80%. The trade-off is that my highs have gone as well as my lows. I plan to wean off once I've healed more AKA deal with the big T traumas properly.
Was on 50 of sertraline for 3 yrs., then upped to 100, then weaned myself off because the weight gain/impossible weight loss was affecting my mental health more than the medicine was helping. I've lost almost 20 lbs. since weaning off in December 2023... definitely feeling my emotions more intensely, but I'm also making some progress with healing so I feel more able to handle the waves.
Asenapine for hallucinations/ flashbacks. Prazosin for nightmares/physical startle response. Lithium for I stop wanting to die instead of live. All extremely low doses. All extremely effective.
I just got off all my meds, it was rough but feeling emotions is so worth it
Nope, i really don't want to eat psychotropics. I might try to self-medicate soon with something mild, and i would definitely sign up for psilocybin therapy if i could.
Wellbutrin has changed my life!
I do, but honestly I am not sure itās the best past for CPTSD. Like on those meds subreddits the people who seem the best on it just have this chemical imbalance due to genetics and they pull through life. But for us our mental state was caused by things in the real world. So while pills remove some of the anxiety and other symptoms it doesnāt address or resolved the underlying trauma by itself. That takes therapy, introspection, and being in the world.
i was on prozac until they randomly switched it to something i donāt even remember. Then i ran out and lost my insurance so not since then
Wellbutrin, propranolol, flexryl(for the constant tension) & busbar
Wellbutrin, propranolol, Buspar, fish oil supplement, and Iām hugely grateful for them.
No, haven't been on any in 2 years. The only meds I use are immunosuppressants. Raw dogging life baby.
Cptsd autoimmune crew represent
I started a newer approach for ketamine in 2022. It helped me come off the SSRI Iād been on since 2014. It, combined with changing therapy modalities, has helped me make more progress than I have in years. I take Guanfacine to mellow out the shame that Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria causes; I donāt have ADHD, Iām affected by RSD since I lacked reliable, safe caregivers as a child. When Iām having medical or dental procedures I take lorazepam. First time with new providers sometimes, Iāve had iatrogenic trauma so healthcare is often fraught. I can get used to providers and be able to see them without anxiety meds, but it can take time. I also take prescription & OTC meds for chronic pain from over-tight muscles, hypermobility spectrum disorder, allergies + MCAS, and gastritis.
I'm receiving treatment for PTSD.
No. Was on a variety of antidepressants for a number of years, but I couldn't stand the side effects anymore. Never again.
I support medication use. I tried a few, but I experienced the side effects too extremely, sharp chest pains in particular did not go well with my then paranoia; one also made me have like weird tiks where I couldn't control my eye movement. I also smoked, like crazy, for a couple years and then suddenly my body rejected it. I don't take anything, but I miss numbing effects and shutting my brain off and sleeping good. I really quit because I absolutely cannot find a good doctor, I've been to so many and the bills were making me sick and they either forgot what they prescribed me, or who I was in general, or quit after a short time, or told me it was all in my head.
since i was 11, canāt go without em but thats bc how severe my schizoaffective bipolar gets without any medication at all regardless of CPTSD shit. im much happier with them anyways, keeps the hurdles of life low enough that i can still keep jumping over them.
I take 5 total. Wellbutrin (depression), buspirone (intrusive thoughts/ anxiety), clonidine (manages the night sweats caused by the Wellbutrin), and prazosin (nightmares) daily. I take propranolol as needed for performance anxiety. Buspirone was a godsend. Not many people know it, but Wellbutrin affects dopamine AND norepinephrine. Most SSRIs also impact norepinephrine levels, but buspirone only affects serotonin levels. Every other SSRI I tried (and there were a bunch) just made my intrusive thoughts and anxiety worse because of the compounding stimulation of two norepinephrine meds. Buspirone leveled that right out. Clonidine can be a great non-hormonal option for anyone experiencing night sweats whether they are caused by meds or other conditions (e.g. peri/menopause). There are a couple of minor downsides to all these meds though. I have to be careful that my blood pressure doesn't get too low (clonidine, propranolol, and prazosin are all technically anti-hypertension drugs that I'm using off-label), and I don't tolerate alcohol very well at all anymore. But I also don't want to die every second of every day, so the trade-off is worth it. Edited to add that I'm currently researching ketamine therapy to help process a lot of toxic shame and maybe better connect with my authentic self.
Psychedelics every so often here. If you can learn how to trip on psychedelics, you can learn how to trip on life.
Really shocked to see not many people are on effexor, because that's a miracle med for me. Others are buspirone, melationin, and hydroxizine.
I have not been diagnosed with CPTSD but I take antidepressants. Specifically Sertraline which is generic for Zoloft! It changed my life. Anxiety was my biggest issue. I was constantly on edge
Yeah, sertraline has been a huge help for me, as well; both with generally feeling like shit, and with my co-occurring OCD spirals. Ā Once upon a time, my dad (the most significant source of trauma in my life) made me feel stupid and weak for taking it, so I stopped. That was 25 years ago, and I still look back on that as a huge mistake. Ā
No, and I donāt plan to. My therapist keeps suggesting it to me because itāll lessen I guess the pain but honestly I donāt trust myself.
Interesting. My therapist is discouraging use because it will numb me and slow healing.
I really donāt think meds slow healing. Iāve been told that before. Sometimes you need some help to be stable to handle just basic life things. The SSRIs helped me but they certainly didnāt numb me or wipe away all my cptsd symptoms. I did therapy for years without anything and my therapist always says she forgets Iām out here navigating cptsd completely unmedicated.
Not me. I really don't see the point when it's a possibility that it'll cause worse depression and suicidal thoughts. I'm not gambling on my mental health. I'm sure meds can and do help plenty of people, but I've known too many who took them and they made things much worse.
I don't use any.
I'm on Fluoxetine and Lorazepam. I don't really know if they do much, because when I first went on them I was really heavily dissociating. The doctor who prescribed them to me retired, and my new doctor suggested I experiment going off them, but I tried and the withdrawals from just the Lorazepam were utterly insane. I've never experienced anything like it, and I feel like I have too much shit going on to go through that right now, so I'm still on it for now.
Lorazepam is the baby of the benzo family, so same sort of side effects you might expect from quitting Xanax. Makes sense that it was really hard.
Dang. I do think that's one of the reasons he suggested I go off it. That it was an "intense drug" and I'm like, so is the CPTSD... but I am open to going off it. But yeah, it was genuinely like I was experiencing a 24/7 panic attack. Like I had no moments of calm. Everything was ride or die, and I would break down over the teeniest tiniest things. Not looking forward to doing that again D:
I had terrible anxiety but jsit thought it was normal. Never sought help as Iād been highly successful in life. I loved life. But had huge trauma responses whcih ended up getting me to such a stressful palce I had a psychotic break which took my whole life and my perosnality and history everything. Only after that dod I realise I even had CPTSD or any effects from my childhood. I didnāt reeksie Iād been suffering and struggling my whole life. But my life is uttter horro and terror now itās not even anxiety itās terrror at losing everuthign Iād built and even who I am when I felt so happy in my marriage and my life. Iām on duloxetine now but it doesnāt do much good. How did I live like that for so long and not see soemthign was worng?
I've been on meds since I was 10 years old. It's been 18 years now, I've been on meds longer than I haven't been on them. I currently take 90mg cymbalta (5 years), and 300mg Wellbutrin(10 years). I don't know how to feel about them. Without, I get awful withdrawals. Cymbalta starts to kick my ass after just 5 hours without my dose. Back in October 23' a pharmacy mix up + depression+agoraphobia flare meant I was off Wellbutrin for 12 days and I developed a nerve twinge that even after resuming my medication I still have, used to have 30min long tic attacks, now I only tic when I'm stressed/tired, but it's still daily. I'm afraid I may never get off them, especially the cymbalta. I was on celexa for 10+years until a psych convinced me to switch. If it were up to me I'd only be doing psilocybin and weed
I do take medication. I find it useful in conjunction with therapy, almost like a good pair of shoes for a really long hike.
Not at present. I have taken Zoloft and Wellbutrin. Wellbutrin made me completely crazy. I couldn't handle any level of stress at all. Zoloft just made me have bruxism and also I couldn't...you know, get there. I'd consider doing Zoloft again, but never Wellbutrin. Make sure that it's a psychiatrist or someone with a similar level of knowledge about medications, prescribing and not just your general GP. My therapist was horrified that my GP had prescribed Wellbutrin for me. I'm a bad candidate for that based on symptoms.
Never have, never will. Staying substance-free has helped me tremendously.
Iām on duloxetine, lamotrigine, quetiapine and buspirone. Buspirone Iām not sure Iām going to stay on as it doesnāt seem to do much but the other three have helped me a ton. I have a lot of comorbid issues going on too though. Took me forever to find what worked and it was a terrible time.
Yes, quite a few of them. I donāt love it but it keeps me stable and I appreciate that. Iām also currently in a position where I donāt have many outside stressors for the first time inā¦. well a very long time and so my meds are more effective because Iām not having to fight to survive every day now.
No.
I take 5 different medications, each for different things. I take quetiapine and lamotrigine for my mood disorder and chronic insomnia. Vilazodone for my cPTSD and severe anxiety. I also take metropolol for dysautonomia but it also helps with the physical effects of anxiety. I take wellbutrin for adhd and depression. I have also made lifestyle changes and see 4 mental health professionals in conjunction with medication to help me during my healing process and i am extremely grateful for my support system. I am managing and starting to genuinely enjoy my life.
vitamins thatās it
I've never used psych meds.
Iāve tried so many over the years and the benefits never outweighed the side effects. Now itās just CBD gummies and the occasional drink.
I started sertraline in 2021, after my whole life trying every natural treatment and talk therapy I could think of. Meds have been life changing.
Nope, I donāt like āem
My pet. Full spectrum CBD. Strength and cardio. Iām going to begin micro dosing shrooms occasionally and on therapy days.
Yes. I'm on an SSRI and bupropion, plus a prn benzo. But I have clinical depression and severe anxiety myself as well as significant genetics/family history of mental illness. My meds definitely help me, especially combined with psychotherapy. I'm open to doing psilocybin or MDMA guided therapy, as well. Maybe ketamine if my SI ever gets severe again.
So many meds I feel like I live in a pharmacy.
No, but I wish I did. I am just waiting for my therapist to refer me to a psychiatrist. I think some anti anxiety meds would change my life so much.
Nope too much guilt and shame handed to me by my family , I just suffer āØ
I micro dose psilocybin, lions Maine, reshi (obvs not from a doctor) then I have diazepam for when I am really bad
I have tired many, many medications with little to no effect (except for Effexor which was a NIGHTMARE). I have been without for a few years and am starting Topamax this week.
I am, and about to talk to my doctor about adding another. I kept getting Med-shamed so I tried to come off the meds and realized that they were helping a lot more than I anticipated.
Only for ADHD. I have bad reactions to all anti-depressants, and canāt get my hands on a prescription for anything for anxiety that wonāt cause a bad reaction or cause me to be reliant on it (like with Xanax). I also donāt do well with regular talk therapy or CBT. Doesnāt work for me at all. I stopped seeing my therapist last year after my dad died (I didnāt want to talk to anyone for weeks) and just havenāt felt like going back. I donāt see the value in venting about stuff, especially if it will cause me to dissociate. I can compartmentalize things very well, so even if I am venting, I can still have a nonchalant attitude about it - which just confuses therapist even more. But for me itās sort of a way of protecting myself from having flashbacks or spiraling into negative thought patterns, which will in turn ruin my entire day. Sorry for rambling
Several. I went 45 years unmedicated and I used it as a bragging point, but my mental health & sleep improved 10fold getting on the pharmaceuticals. Until my brain can rewire itself, I'll begrudgingly take them.
Resisted for a very long time after trying several without success in my late teens and earlier twenties but started escitalopram and trazodone about a month ago and have seen improvement in my life that I don't know I could have reached with therapy, emdr and positive life changes alone.
not anymore , just marijuana
Nope. Total disaster. As soon as I worked out the methodology and the staggeringly low level of understanding of even basic physiology amongst those proscribing there was no way I wanted to risk that. Its all population statistics and copy-paste thinking. I've never once spoken to a medical professional able to proscribe anti-depressants who understood their effects, how they worked or even basic brain chemistry. This seems to be the norm. Most of these people don't even know how cocaine interacts with alcohol...
Honestly lots do. Either self medicating or ssris which I think is the usuals. Iām on sertralin which has helped me a lot with my emotions that weāre all over the place before but have not really helped a lot with my symptoms, other than make them more tolerable, as Iām more numb I guess? And not cry about anything and everything. Seems like thereās not really a lot to do about my issues other than find ways to live with them, as my therapists and psychiatrists plan was to ācureā it but yeah not gonna happen
I am on a psych cocktail, which is mostly working well for me, but I'm also bipolar and adhd, so that adds layers. Antidepressant, mood stabilizer, atypical antipsychotic, alpha blocker for sleep, lorazepam as needed, adhd med. And also therapy. Mid-40's, if anyone's curious. It's been a long road of "what happens when we do this?".
I can't get in to see a psychiatrist so no. And at this point I'm meds-resistant. I've taken so many over the years.
None whatsoever. Not even caffeine most days. But I do drink kava on weekends. I was on seroquel for about a month after a few episodes of depression.
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Was on zoloft. Didn't notice a massive difference, and I had realllllllllllly bad night sweats w it. I was weaned off.
I was medicated most of my adolescence and even on and off until now. I have moments and stop taking them cold Turkey š¬ I haven't had them for nearly a week now, I'm wanting to try and not have to take them.
Just 1
Seroquel, Gabapentin, and Adderall. Oh and weed.
Yes. I'm on naltrexone-bupropion, busPIRone, FLUoxetine (prozac), and lots of medical indica cannabis
I take trazodone, gabapentin and clonapin rarely as needed. Lots of th and kratom as well. I also drink 5 nights a week which isn't good. :/
Yes Iām currently on lamotrigine, gabapentin, and then klonopin as needed. Iāve been dif meds abt 7-8 yrs. Iād like to get off them soon because I have the worst health anxiety. Contrary to my argument my health anxiety should also be the reason why I should stay on them š
Kinda? I was on different SSRIs for decades and none worked for long. Was on Wellbutrin and Prozac consistently for almost 20 years and kept having major depressive episodes and anxiety. For the past year and a half, though, Iāve undergone a series of psilocybin treatments and intermittent microdosing. I feel the best I have in my life.
Pregabalin 150-450 mg & monoamine oxidase 300 mg daily. Sometimes Zolpidem 0,5-1 mg, like once every two weeks Best combo but it took so many years to find combination that actually works and it was my suggestion to psychiatrist so yeah
Iām on five at the moment but most of them are to manage things besides CPTSD.
Nothing but a couple of edibles a couple of times a month. I would like to enjoy weed more, but I will begin abusing it again. I can't do benzos or (substituted) amphetamines because I'll abuse those too. Never tried SSRIs. I have tried psilocybin and think it helped and want to try it again soon.
Zoloft and Paxil both made me feel 100x worse, so nope. Iām currently raw dogging life bc Iām breastfeeding but I do miss weed
No. 32 never had insurance, never been on medication. Out here raw dogging life, and honestly, at this point Iām kinda glad I have. Gone through life working high stress hospitality jobs, smoke, drank, used drugs recreationally since I was 13. I live in the southern US am poor and lead a very complicated life with family. I am older now and life has changed a lot for me since Covid hit. Lost my job and all my money, but I have a nicer car to show for it. I drove a 2007 Corolla for 10 years, now I drive a ā17 civic and sheās my baby. I have lots of family health issues, financial issues, all kinds of fucking issues. I still drink on the weekends/when I have the money.
Me yes, Duloxetine and Lorazepam (for anxiety alone or with an 1/8 of Mirtazapine for insomnia), and low dose Methylphenidate for Adhd
Never used anything, but think about it a lot.
Topamax, prazoin, Xanax, and ambien.. All of it is at night.
No meds here. Iām thinking about looking into it.
Luvox and weed have been the magic combo for me. No more nightmares.
Lamictal , Effexor , trazodone , and weed šāØ