Medication for Panic Attacks

[This is a transcript of an audio presentation]

Given that anxiety disorders, including panic disorder, are the most common mental health issue in America, you've got to know that there are going to be a lot of pharmaceutical companies trying to come up with a profitable and quick fix. AND THERE ARE. I'm not even going to try and name them all.

Now, prescription medication can be a viable option for some anxiety sufferers. But in the end, that decision is yours alone - and can only be discussed with a qualified doctor. I'm not a doctor, and nothing I say here is intended as medical advice. However, as a former and recovered panic disorder sufferer myself, I do have some personal insight and opinions on the matter... And hopefully your doctor will make you aware of these considerations as well.

So again, I'm mentioning some potential issues with panic attack medication simply so that you can raise the topics with your doctor - just in case he or she doesn't.

First, be aware that medication can effectively suppress anxiety by numbing the sensations and symptoms. But without taking action to resolve the underlying source of your anxiety or panic, there's a very high chance that the feelings will reappear once the medication is discontinued. The problem is that drugs that dull anxiety may also dull the motivation that anxiety provides for taking such action. I'm not saying that will definitely be the case with you and your particular medication, but it's something to keep in mind.

Second, ask yourself these questions: Are the emotions that you're feeling normal human emotions? Is something about your life not right at the moment? Is your body trying to tell you something? Is this anxiety motivation something you should be trying to suppress? In most cases that I'm aware of, anxiety and panic disorder are not due to a chemical imbalance, but rather much more tangible and resolvable issues. If you can't see that underlying cause now, is a medication's mental fog going to help? Ask your doctor.

I'm reminded of when my own father was diagnosed with a terminal illness, and my mother was naturally extremely distraught. Her doctor prescribed her [trademark name], a popular anti-anxiety and anti-depression drug. Anyway, I didn't know about this at the time, but months later she told me a story: One night, after starting on that medication, she was sitting alone in her room thinking about how she was losing my father, her companion of thirty years... She knew she should feel sad, but she could not cry a single tear. She knew she should, and she wanted to, but she couldn't. I mean really, do you want to numb yourself to the feelings that make us human?

So question whether what you're feeling is normal for the situation, and whether there might be a better way of learning how to manage this emotional overwhelm. It's hard, and I'm not going to pretend that I understand the severity of what you're going through. I understand that a quick fix looks appealing. But for your own long term well being, discuss this factor with your doctor.

A third issue to keep in mind is that the human brain can sometimes develop tolerance for certain prescription drugs. This means that, over time, there's a chance that you'll need to increase your medication, or change medications, to maintain the same effect. More problematic is the fact that if you should choose to discontinue your medication at some point, you may find yourself facing an amount of anxiety equal to, or even greater than, what you were experiencing before.

I believe most anxiety medications are advertised and being non addictive, but this could conceptually make it difficult to discontinue use. Ask your doctor.

The next thing I want to mention is to not ignore the side effects of the medication you're considering. You can usually educate yourself about these issues by reading the literature that's provided with the medication that you're taking (usually in small print), or by reading through user forums on the Internet. In some cases, side effects are quite undesirable - sleep disorder, sexual dysfunction, weight gain, etc.

Sidenote: In 2010 I attended a memorial service for a childhood friend of mine, a family friend, who committed suicide. She had been on medication for years due to a serious mental health issue (way beyond simple anxiety or panic attacks). Shortly before her death she had been given some extremely bad news from her doctor related to health consequences (known side effects) of the medication she had been taking. So those drugs that temporarily made her life easier, may also very well have contributed to her death. Again, her situation was not as simple as an anxiety disorder. But my point here is that some side effects are truly serious. So ask your doctor, "is medication really necessary for my condition?" And get a second opinion if necessary, because some doctors are simply not as familiar with psychological issues, or alternative therapies, as you might hope. They're busy people, and writing a prescription is easy... so sometimes you just have to take it upon yourself to educate yourself, talk to multiple people, read the warnings, ask other anxiety sufferers online, weigh the options, and then you can make a truly informed decision.

Once again: I am not a doctor. So please don't let my opinions here do anything more than raise your awareness of some issues to discuss with a true medical professional.

But at the same time, I am someone who made it through anxiety, wasted a lot of money on over a year of therapy, got discouraged when my doctor mentioned medication, and then found my own non-drug solution. So there is one thing I'm qualified to say, which is this: Get a second opinion if you don't like the first.

Stop Panic Attacks without Medication