Xanax, Panic, and the Sober Human

Funny thing about life is we live in a addicted society, whether it be illegal drugs, prescription drugs, or alcohol. There is always a potential for abuse.I am one of these people that has had panic attacks for over 30 years and used alcohol and pills and other drugs to make me feel normal. The madness has not stopped, the illegal drug use and alcohol have stopped, but I continue with Xanax. I am coming out of the closet today for a reason. I have noticed that I am having more frequent panic episodes and Im on a high dosage of Xanax and have been for years. So if you read this blog I am a recovered alcoholic , but when I sober up nine years ago I was house bound. I could not go outside the house,fear of the marketplace or agoraphobia is what I had . I worked with dr.s on a solution beside Xanax and nothing worked as usual. I am monitored by a psychiatrist and I do not abuse my medication, yet the possibility is there to abuse these. I am fortunate that I am working still and able to get out of the house and do what normal people do.

There is no cure for panic attacks, I have searched for many years and if you don't know what they are , I am not going to explain this to you. Google this because I am sick and tired of having to explain to some people what it is like.To live in constant fear of if I am going to have a attack is stressful, finding help online at a treatment center is rare and most that I have found are trials with other drugs.The few clinics in the USA that help people with anxiety and panic are for the very rich as they don't take insurance and are very costly. However I have not really found one that is long term, just like alcoholism, you can go to treatment but a very low percentage of people ever sober up past treatment. So what do I do? Keep living my life one day at a time and still searching for an answer to my addiction and how to treat panic once I get off the medication. There is no answers to this.

Therefor, if you suffer like I do with these panic attacks and anxiety constantly, please leave me information if useful. a 12 step program for this medication is great but then I need to be able to function in the real world.Just like an alcoholic you might say, but it is not.I have sober up many times with the panic coming right back into my life and making me more miserable than being a alcoholic. This disorder of panic is really a bad deal, and needs attention. There are millions of people in my situation and from what I have read not a one has truly gotten totally off medication for panic.
God bless and please send me information. Thank You Chris

Social Anxiety and staying Sober

I found this article in my email and I found it o be true about anxiety and people's perception and reality about anxiety. I hope you enjoy this article. Chris

The Three Steps to Dealing with Social Anxiety

At this point we established that trying to avoid or get rid of the feeling of social anxiety usually backfires. It leads to more social anxiety in the long run and you end up restricting your life and ridding it of all meaning and fun.

So here are three steps (backed up by decades of studies) that actually work:

STEP 1: ACCEPT YOUR ANXIETY

Social anxiety is not the enemy. It’s a feeling. A primal “warning” signal from your body to keep you from danger. Problem is, it was designed to keep you safe from wild animals and falling rocks, not strangers and pretty girls.

So when you notice anxiety coming up, together with all the negative thoughts, feelings, and sensations, sit with it. Don’t push it away, or change it in any way. Instead, let it be there, and really experience what it’s like to feel the fear.

Observe it like a curious scientist, without putting any judgment on it. You don’t have to like the fear, but you can learn to accept and embrace it as it is.

Notice where in your body you can feel it the most. What happens when you take a deep breath? When you hold eye contact with a stranger, does the fear get stronger? Stand up straight and lift your head up. What happens then?

Don’t try to change what you feel. Simply notice what happens. Instead of pushing the anxiety away, observe what’s going on. This trains your mind that anxiety in social situations is not something that needs to be avoided.

STEP 2: DO WHAT YOU DEEPLY CARE ABOUT

We usually feel the most vulnerable and the most anxious in the areas we value most in life.

I’ve never met a socially anxious person who didn’t care about having friends or connecting with people.

Instead of fighting anxiety, let anxiety be your guide towards what you care about most. There’s a good chance that situations where you get the most nervous, are the ones that matter most to you.

Being aware of this makes it easier to face your fears. One question we often ask our coaching clients is:

What are the things that are so important to you that you’re willing to feel anxious or nervous to experience them?

Think about it like this. When you are on your deathbed, do you want to look back on a life where you haven’t felt any anxiety, you never felt awkward, and you were always comfortable — but you also never really went all in, you missed out on parties, and never talked to the attractive stranger on your way home?

The other option is to look back on a life where you often felt nervous, anxious, and insecure — but it was a life filled with adventures, parties, random encounters with strangers, and deep connections.

So take a minute and really reflect on this:

What is so important to experience that you’re willing to feel a little anxious?

STEP 3: CONFRONT YOUR FEAR

This is the hardest part, but it’s also the most important one.

It might mean walking up to a pretty girl. It might mean talking to people you don’t know at a party. Or it might mean smiling at the cashier, asking your boss for a raise, or speaking up at a meeting.

There’s no easy way around it, and there are definitively no shortcuts. Be willing to feel the fear and do what matters most to you.

However, know that you don’t have to start with the scariest scenario. You can create a fear hierarchy, jotting down what scares you, and then start tackling the least scary item (e.g., saying “Hi” to a stranger) and working your way up to scarier tasks (e.g., asking a girl for her number).

The more often you face your fears, the better you’ll get at it.

Checked out Of Rehab

I checked out of Rehab for Xanax and Adderall on Monday as I could not go through this 30 day program. I got off all my medication but it was too fast of a withdrawal. My ears were ringing very bad in this loud facility and I went home because I needed something for my Panic which was over whelming to me, as a cloud of dust was a fog in my eyes. I went to my regular MD on Monday and he prescribed heart medication and Prozac for me to calm down and this has helped more than anything. I am finally off every pill except for 2 mg. of Xanax in which I put myself on compared to the 6 mg. I was taking for over 8 years. I do not drink anything alcoholic , so I am not at all concerned about any type of relapse, as this tr

eatment program was for alcoholics and drug users that have no experience with the 12 steps of AA. I have over eight years of sobriety and I took this medication as prescribed by a psychiatrist. Therefor I was ask many times why I was getting off Xanax, and I was told by two Doctors that I was taking too much. Inside , I kind of knew that 6 Mg. of Xanax was way too much , but i felt like the Dr. knew what he was talking about. Be careful about these Doctors that prescribe Xanax as it works very good with Panic attacks , but is very addictive in the long haul. I am feeling pretty good, going on a long walk with my puppy this early AM and I had breakfast and took the new medication with the blood pressure medication I have just gotten. I am taking this one day at a time, with the love of my family behind me, I will beat this . God bless Chris