Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => All things menopause => Topic started by: Anna67 on October 28, 2016, 09:47:58 AM
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Hi ladies, I was wondering if anyone takes anxiety tablets along side their hrt ? And does it help with the anxiety or am I just being fobbed off with more medication? :)
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HRT can help over-all symptoms. Anti-depressant medication can ease anxiety surges as can beta-blockas. I have an emergency drug when anxiety over-takes me.
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I'm on Citalopram for anxiety. Used to be 10mg daily, now every second day. It has helped.
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I was on hrt and also on my regular anxiety tabs and they worked well together. No interaction and gave great relief. i have complex ptsd and anxiety plays a huge part of that so when I became menopausal my anxiety became worse! Im on propranolol and trazadone. Life is short so if your offered help then take it and live your life without anxiety....youve probably put up with menopausal symptoms so why put up with anxiety too. Hope you feel better soon 💟
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Thank you for your replies ladies, my doctor gave me some setraline 50mgs to help with the anxiety as all my other symptoms eased off with the Premarin, the thing is I didn't suffer with anxiety until peri menopause kicked in, so I don't know whether to just keep on taking the hrt for a while longer to see if the anxiety gets better ( been on Premarin for 3 1/2 weeks ) or to start taking the anxiety meds as well, I'm just worried in case I start to feel worse, I think I'm hoping for some positive feed back here :-\
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Anna i wouldnt stop the hrt....take both and give the sertraline a few weeks anyway to get into your system. im sure your doctor would have told you that sometimes the anxiety can get a bitty worse when initially started these meds but that will pass. if it does then think of a way to take time for yourself....some quiet time etc. its coming up to Christmas etc a busy time for most women so give yourself the help you need and take your medication xx
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does it really get worse ? That's put me right off :'( I don't think I could handle the anxiety worsening it's bad enough now, how long before you start to feel better ? I don't want to end up a nervous wreck xx
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Ana67 I have been on 50mg sertraline just over two weeks now and my anxiety hasn't got worse. However it's affected my sleep badly , however I'm hoping this will pass.
Dont be afraid to try them you can always stop them if you want
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Have they helped your anxiety walking the dog ? Or are you still suffering, do you also take hrt ? I carntvwait to get this menopausal crap under control :)
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Not yet but I think they take 4/6 weeks ? I'm primarily on them for my severe pms symptoms but also have anxiety.
I'm on hrt I had the mirena in just over three weeks ago and I use estradot patch , I have tried other hrt but none of them help my anxiety or PMS, I have also had other ADs in the past which haven't helped either, I'm re trying sertraline out of sheer desperation!
Good luck 😊
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Apologies Anna..Im not saying your anxiety will definetly get worse for a short period of time whilst first starting Sertraline but it was something my Doctor told me. Its all for the better in the long run so take the help your offered as you WILL feel better soon xxx
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Thank you it's the thought of my anxiety getting worse that's freaks me out, do you think if I took half a tablet it would be better ? Just incase they do get worse :-\ my brain is slowly dying over this, I don't get a racing heart just a really bad anxious feeling like I want to run and disappear... I wish I was a menopause doctor xx
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I DREADED - for years++ it was food/eating , in case my nausea got worse :'( whereas my body was probably hungry.
I DREADED taking new meds in case they made me feel worse :'(. However! Try the medication over-night but don't lay awake waiting for side effects ::) - done that myself. I take 5mg in the morning and 10 at night of AD plus Propranolol at night ……… works for me!
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Hi Anna67
I'm going to give a different perspective!
Personally I would not even think of starting the ADs at the moment! You have only been taking HRT for a few weeks and it can take several months for all the emotional symptoms to settle after starting HRT. Also - you said you did not suffer from anxiety before starting peri-menopause so that indicates a hormonal cause, for which a hormonal solution should be the answer.
I can't remember where you are in menopause and if you have a Mirena or have had a hysterectomy so you don't really know?
What exactly do you mean by anxiety anyway? I mean I would only contemplate taking medication for this if my mental state was such that it greatly interfered with my being able to lead a normal life, and prevented me doing things I would otherwise want or need to do. If it is simply worrying about things or mild feelings or surges, then there may be better mental strategies for learning to cope with them than taking more medication as you say. If you have only experienced them at peri-menopause then they will eventually calm down anyway but you don't want to have to take ADs for the rest of your life if there are other ways of coping.
Women who have had life-long anxiety or depression or other issues in their life are in a different category from women who become like this for the first time in menopause and without serious underlying reasons to feel like this.
I would wait a while, let the oestrogen do what it's going to, look up websites about dealing with anxiety ( eg nomorepanic) and if you can cope, reassess how you feel in two or three months time, if you can.
I hope you feel better soon anyway whatever you decide :)
Hurdity x
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Anna
I totally sympathise with your dilemma. Many women find the anxiety inflicted by menopause very very difficult to cope with. The waking anxiety really is the pits and the feelings that something is threatening you and you need to get away. I think it is to do with the adrenal function but I wish more research would solve this one for us! Like you I have heard that initially antidepressants can make things worse for some and I personally am afraid that I could not cope with that. I hope that others may be able to offer further advice It is a big dilemma but maybe someone will be along with their experience. Sorry I cant be of more help in this.
Meg
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Anna,
You don't say how bad your anxiety is but if it is interfering with your life and you are unable to function, then I say take the ADs. A slight increase in anxiety is one of the side effects of most ADs but even if that does happen, and it does not happen for everyone, it will only last for a few days. Would that not be worth it if they were to help you in the long term? Give yourself 3 months or more on both and then review it. You may then stop the ADs and continue on HRT only depending on how you feel. Quality of life is more important than the number of pills we take. When I was in the throes of it I would literally have taken anything to make me feel better (even contemplated waccy-baccy at one stage, that was how desperate I felt!). In the end it was a combination of HRT and ADs that got me through some very tough years.
Bramble
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Some ADs made me a lot worse so it was difficult finding something that eased my depression. Regardless of what is causing the anxiety if it's controlling everything you do, then why not try medication?
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I suppose the reason I'm a bit worried about the ads is because 20 yrs ago I started getting panic attacks ( because I had my drink spiked with a ecstasy tablet ) and it was a very time for me and doctor put me on ads for then but I had a bad reaction to them and they made me worse, i couldn't even go out alone and was panicking all day it was just awful, and I don't want to go back down that road, I think hurdity is right by saying I'm not giving the hrt time to work and level out my hormones, so I think I'm gonna wait a few more weeks to see if I see a difference with the anxiety... I'll try and explain how I feel, light headed, sometimes foggy headed, and like something is tightening my chest, I havnt had a panic attack ( and I don't want one ) sometimes I feel like I'm on the outside looking in if that makes sense ? My hrt is Premarin 1:25mgs and I have the marina coil so the doc said I don't need progesterone, I'm also taking vitamin b complex and vitamin d3, is there anything else I can take with the hrt to calm the anxiety ? I was thinking of Bach flower rescue remedy but I know you have to be careful taking other tablets whilst on the hrt, it's just all confusing for me at the minute because I'm new to all of this I feel like a 49 year old toddler :-\
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Oh I've used Rescue Remedy mouth spray for years, whether it works/not doesn't bother me: if I am calm after use then I get on with stuff. I believe there are tablets too.
Maybe keep a mood/food/symptom diary …….. and let us know how you get on!
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I used the rescue remedy mouth spray too, not sure if it works but I like to think it does! It makes me feel like there's something I can do if anxiety starts.
My 13 year old daughter always has one her bag as she started to get some anxiety when she started senior school. She feels it helps get her breathing in control if she gets panicky.
X
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I used it years ago and it did help me then so I'm hoping it might work now, I've started a mood diary now so I can look back on it when I get an anxiety episode creeping in to see if there's a pattern to them, do certain foods cause this too ? Like I said I'd try anything to ease them, really do love the support on here :-*
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Not eating properly can cause a drop in blood sugar = anxiety surges.
A mixed, healthy diet with gentle exercise can help. Deep breathing. Some people find Yoga helpful.
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Omg ! CLKD you've just hit the nail right on the head, I was having really bad anxiety on Friday literally all day could not shake it off, by the evening I was thinking it must be something else... I didn't eat all day as I felt a bit sick, now I know it must of been the lack of food that made the anxiety worse, you are a god send :-* now I know I must eat even if I feel off, thank you ma'am ;)
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Might be worth trying hypnotherapy? You can buy CDs from places like Amazon for around a tenner.
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Does anyone think that hrt can cause anxiety? Or is it just the hormones ?
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I had my first panic attack at age 3 ……. and when anxious I am un-able to eat, be around food, watch food programmes on TV, enter the kitchen ……….
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That's very sad at such a young age :'( my granddaughter as them too she's 9 we have no idea why she started getting them, she's very sensitive too and emotional.... we're hoping she's gonna grow out of it :-\ just like I'm hoping these hrt tablets will lesson the anxiety attacks :'(
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So nice to feel I'm not on my own. I've been going through hell since July with anxiety. It's ruining my life. I'm on beta blockers 3 times a day plus 20mg Escitalopram and Promazine if I'm really bad.
Doctor feels by starting HRT will help as she feels Along with flushes, constant UTIs, dryness. I'm on menopause.
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Anna - she will NOT grow out of panic attacks. Will send you a PM …..
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Thank you CLKD. I just replied to your message :)
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……. and back to you ::)
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Anna67 yes of course she can grow out of panic attacks!!!! She certainly doesn't want to be classed as a depressive for example and come under the wing of certain types of medical services and thus be labelled from a young age - could it just be a passing thing, or due to someone/events which you later learn to cope with as you grow and mature but can seem overwhelming at a particular point in your life? Feeling anxious about all sorts of things is quite natural amongst the young - I certainly was - (won't go into it all here). My daughter was too. Of course I don't know the circumstances and without in anyway minimising the worry about what she is going through, would be concerned about labelling whatever is happening to her as panic attacks unless it is obviously extreme?.... :-\ - is this wise at such an early age?
Burchers - you should have been given HRT before any of those meds!! The NICE Guidelines are clear in this respect. Provided there are no contra-indications, menopause should be treated first and foremost with HRT not ADs, beta blockers, and all of those things!!! You should also have local oestrogen for dryness/UTIs which will help your symptoms so much! Do start another thread if you want some help here with this....
Hurdity x
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Burchers I'm sorry your feeling this way too it's horrible along side all the other symptoms we menopausal ladies have to endure, I know some ladies go down the AD route along side the hrt but I just want to stick to the hrt for know to see if I can cope, iv been told hrt can take up to 3 months to get in your system and level out the hormones, so iv still got another 6 weeks left, if I'm not getting any better than I will consider the ADS, I hope things pick up for you soon :)
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Thank you hurdity, her mum is on this with her and helping her through, so hopefully it can be nipped in the bud sooner rather than later :)
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Hurdity thanks I've been given a vaginal moisturiser and oestrogen cream.
I guess I've just got to wait for it all start to kick in.
Weekends are my nightmare I end up in bed with panic. I'm not giving up