I'm a graphic designer/art director for an ad agency and i recently went to see my dr. about anxiety due to the high stress nature of the business I am in. He put me on Lexapro and i had to get off because i felt like a zombie at work and i couldn't think clear or hold a creative thought to save my life. i actually had to write every single little thing down to remember it when i usually have no problem. So i go back say this is not working well he gives me paxil and says i may have trouble achieving orgasm. Damn if he wasn't right. The first week it took an act of congress to cum. I literally jerked off for over an hour i think i was so frustrated. It has gotten better, i guess the medicine is planing out. My anxiety is way down but damnit if it isn't frustrating to cum sometimes. Have any of you taken paxil and had the same problems and if so does it get back to normal after a while?
I took paxil for I think like 6 months-a year. I did not have sex the entire time and I was seeing somone I had been seeing for years. I just had no desire what's so ever. I loved how paxil made me feel though but I didn't care about anything I flunked all my classes that year just did not care. It was hard to get off of too. I had to ween myself off for about 3 months and still had a hard time.
This probably won't help, but what the hell.... I was prescribed Prozac (Fluoxetine actually) for depression, and it did the same thing. It made me a zombie. I went from depressed to feeling...nothing! I just didn't care about anything. I was not interested in sex at all, which wasn't a huge problem at the time because I was single. Still, it took every bit of focus I had just to maintain an erection, let alone acheive orgasm. Finally, I just said fuck this and stopped taking it. I'd much rather be able to cum and be depressed, y'know? Doctors...sometimes I wonder. "Oh, you have this condition? Well, take this. You might have 14 side effects that will make life miserable, but I can say I 'cured" you."
I'm a girl but I understand exactly what you mean about these drugs. I took paxil for 3 or 4 years. I had absolutely no emotions at all. I hated it. I couldnt cry at my grandfather's funeral. It was like, I wasnt even that sad... but I wanted to be sad. I couldnt feel happiness... I couldnt laugh. I was just living. I didnt care about anything at all. I quit school, but luckily my parents decided to homeschool me so I wouldnt fail out. As far as the sexual side of it, I had no desire at all and if I did have sex, I didnt havent an orgasm. It was so weird. So I stopped taking it and my body started acting really weird. I was shaking all the time and twitching horribly. I wanted to kill myself at one point so I had to get back on it... finally my doc switched me to lexapro... which didnt help as far as the sex went, but getting off lexapro was very easy... I was off in two weeks and havent taken any now for a good while. The whole experience has made me hate anti-depressants.
Ardia, I can definitely relate. For me it was zoloft and effexor. Honestly I havent ever really been the same after all those drugs.
I've tried so many "head" medicines and all of them had the same end result. They suck! I have found an alternative route. I take St. John's Wort, Flaxseed oil, and Fish oil. I don't have the best of diets and I know diet plays a huge roll in our health. Taking the Omega 3's helps tremendously. Plus I also take a good multi-vitamin. It sucks to have depression. There are alternative ways of managing it without having to give up our sex lives or emotions.
Peanuts, I took st johns wort and almost killed myself. It definitely did not react well with my mind. My personal cure for depression is eating right, exercise, and smoking quality pot. The pharmaceutical companies can disappear for all I care.
Each person has their own tolerance levels for things. The way one thing works for one person may not work for another, but yes, there are many great ways of curing depression and anxiety w/o using drugs. The drugs just seem to be the quickest or easiest way at the time, but we come to realize, that it wasnt the best for us. Dieting has a lot to do w/our mental health as well as our physical health... it is very important that we eat healthy and take care of our personal bodily needs every day in order to maintain a healthy mental and physical state.
May I ask? How much were you taking? I know people who smoke to help their depression. That would be great if there wasn't the illegal thing involved and the blood shot eyes. J/K If it's helped you then you've found what works for you.
That is exactly where I want to get. Right now I'm doing those three things, but am still on Welbutrin too. I'd like to drop the drugs all together and do ConcealedCulture's trio instead. I was on paxil for 6-8 months, by the end I had no intrest in sex what so ever, which was good cuz nuthin down there was working right anyway. I am 100% sick of anti-depressants
I'm not sure what the dosage was, it was a bottle that I picked up at the grocery store. Many people have reported that st johns helped them, but for some reason it made me worse. Yeah the legality factor is a major concern. I just make sure that the worst charge that could result from smoking is a midemeanor. I know the laws and keep myself at a level that wouldnt totally destroy my life. Hopefully soon there will be major changes. People are starting to realize its wrong to imprison someone for consuming a plant peacefully, especially people who benefit therapeutically/medically.
Dont give up bro, it took me awhile to stabilize after going off them. It may or may not be easy when you stop, just try to ween the dosage as low as you can. Either way, with paxil like drugs, there is usually a relapse period 2-3 weeks after you stop. It happened to me and was bad. I was at florida state and left. Good luck with it man
get the hell out of the postmillenium medsweb. go climb a high peak and converse with the sky. if you are depressed it mean you "WANT MORE OUT OF LIFE THAN YOU ARE CURRENTLY GETTING" Depression is your mind/souls way of saying, 'HEY...freak'n start living better so your happy.' For the dude whow is so anxious because of his job...hmmm this is your life so chaneg careers and be happy. when people on headmeds watch Garden State don't ya have like a bell go off that says...yeah, its time to get my ass off that shit and into real life?
I like your thinking. Seems simple and yet to the point. Sometimes it comes harder for some people though to see through the clouds this clearly. Next time I'm in a funk I'll look back on this post. Maybe I'll be able to get off my ass a lot sooner and so something about it instead of wallow in my pity. Thanks for the post.
That is what I have. I was taking 2 in the morning and 2 in the evening with dinner. Honestly it really helps me around pms time. That week before I'm a bear but since I've been taking this my husband even says I've gotten a lot better. Sometimes he doesn't even know it's "that" time. I wish it helped me though with other areas that are more challenging to work through.
I was on paxil and it did the SAME thing to me.. Didn't fix its self.. I was switched to several other anxiety meds, and they all gave me a lack of orgasm.. I would get try to find another way to relieve your stress, because these meds are addicting, and THEY ALL give sexual side effects.
Yeah just remember that personal achievement and accomplishment is the greatest drug of all. Make a list of things to do for yourself when things really start to plummit: learn how to fly a plane; run down the street naked; ride a bicycle to work; etc. depression seeks to disable us. if we can realize that 'we' have the power to do good things for ourselves then depression can't really assume control. of course it can be impossoble to see through the clouds sometimes...but if you have a list in a journal that you can go to it can help you overide it. trust me once you lift off because you respond with dong something good for you the easier it gets to see through the fog.
I think MeMilesAway's narowminded optimism is unfortunate.... Athough I believe your perspective holds truth in my life, I do not believe that this is a reasonable expectaion for people who suffer from mental ilness to have to accept at least not without a lot of hard work and help. There needs to be a balance of understanding. We live our lives, there is free will, we have the power to be happy and optimistic, and lead healthy lives. However, we also live in a world filled with hate, stress, and expectation, as well as poor education, low living standards and wages, debt, crisis, war, and struggle. People are trying to cope with the stress of the new milenium and most people resort to giving in to the phamasutical companies and the doctors who endorse them. People need more support. I am a huge advocate for holistic healing, change of diet and routine, and in therapy (talking can make a big difference). However, one of the MAJOR symptoms of depression is the inability to care for your physical, as well. A lot of people decide thay need more help, and for many this is a hard decision. Many people feel the effects of depression because they feel that the things you describe are unattainable. Telling people what they need (in that manner) doesn't give people enough credit. Its like saying "Stop Whining". I believe it is the nature of our culture right now to "feed pills" to the population of the moderately- environmentally- depressed people searching for answers and happiness. This is one of the solutions we (or our government depending on how you look at it) have created as a society, to combat the poor-living standard of our times. People suffer, in so many ways... I commend the people who have posted on this site for chosing, In whatever manner they decide/ed, to be more functioning in our world today. It is not easy... for anyone. Not these days.
