No, I am a pretty open person and open to advice, and anyway, I feel like I know some of you all just from reading all your emails for years...
I really don't see me getting addicted to Xanax, because I take it infrequently and in small doses...only when the going gets a bit too tough, and that luckily that is ever more infrequent...
I also try to get out and do things... work out several times a week, bike a few times a week outside, go out to see music shows as often as I can (I happen to be going to see My Morning Jacket this evening at the Riverside (which is a beautiful old theater)), go out with friends, I have awesomely helpful and understanding parents, go to a therapist, and all these things are helpful, but, at least from my own experience, I don't think that they would have been sufficient alone.
If the Celexa works merely as a placebo, fine and dandy with me....the other placebos I was taking (the therapy, supplements, etc.) didn't seem as placebolically (I made a word up) effective.
I highly doubt that it has merely a placebo effect though. Why didn't the supplements my psychologist said would be effective help me in the same way as a placebo as did the Celexa? And yah, I read about all the possible side effects, but if it is merely placebo, why didn't I have any that I was really worried about (very little to none occurred actually)?
Would I get sick of a homeopathy overdose if I took more Juju water than prescribed by my homeopathic wizard?
I DO worry about a time when I would want to get off the SSRI, because it may be troubling and take a while, but I will deal with that issue when it comes up. From what I have heard, if you very slowly lower the dose over a long time, your chances of bad side effects are minimal.
I am sure that there are legitimate questions about the effectivity of SSRIs and whether the underlying reason or not for their effectivity is understood, and I am sure that the corporate promotion of drugs is not healthy to our society, but I also know our tendency to read into data the answer that we psychologically and sociologically align with.
Bryan
-----Original Message----- From: lbo-talk-bounces at lbo-talk.org [mailto:lbo-talk-bounces at lbo-talk.org] On Behalf Of Chuck Grimes Sent: Thursday, June 16, 2011 16:53 To: lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org Subject: Re: [lbo-talk] The epidemic of mental illness
I had a close rock climber friend who took Xanax. His primary difficulties were anxiety and sleeplessness. Xanax helped him a lot for the first six months to a year. But slowly the noted side effects started to become more prominant, including anxiety about going off the drug. So, be prepared to work your way off Xanax with your doctor some time in the future.
Advice from strangers may not be welcome