Medication vs therapy?

[verityvee]

I have been on prozac for 2 years now. It does help I think.. but i think i'm expecting it to do TOO much. I wonder why im on prozac because i have anxiety? But it also makes me depressed. I got really mentally ill again a month ago and now am going down the therapy route. I dont want to start new drugs or anything because im too scared. DONT suggest swapping drugs. I think im just expecting the drugs to do too much. Im having hypnotherapy and CBT. Will this help? What if it doesn't?
Can i ever come off meds completeley and still be well?

Im only 17 and i dont want to live my whole life on meds and still being anxious.

Please answer anyone
positive

[typical skeleton]

17 seems young for Prozac to me, but you said not to recommend swapping drugs, sooo...

Therapy in combination with medication can actually cure people of their depression and anxiety, without life-long dependence upon the medication. So the answer to your query is "yes."

I can't speak for how well hypnotherapy or CBT will help you, as I've never had either procedure. Do not despair, though, and continue to "shop around" for a treatment that is right and works for you.

[verityvee]

but you say i'm seem too young for prozac? but how does that make any other medications different?
surely if im too young for one SSRI then i'm "too young" for another..

[turbokinetic]

I know things are different for girls with this phobia. But - I never have had any meds and got past the phobia. I think that if you WANT to be done with the anxiety and the medication, you can work with your therapist and make that happen.

Don't feel "resigned" to it. You have so many years ahead of you and there is so much hope.

[asianeko]

I'm a girl who has never used medications for her phobia. I was really scared to leave the house due to my emet for a short time until I finally went to hypnotherapy. I decided against medication because I didn't want to feel like I needed it for my whole life. Am I 100% cured? No. However 3 sessions of hypnotherapy brought me from agoraphobia to being able to see it on TV and film as well as even get through a SV myself with no anxiety. There IS hope for you!

[Andrilla]

Personally, I advocate for therapy. I tried medication, didn't do much for me, but everyone is different. I do have my "emergency drug" which is one of those fast acting anti-anxiety meds, for when things get bad, but they are short term fixes.

CBT has helped me a lot, it took me from not being able to read about it in books to being okay with it on TV (as long as it isn't super graphic). I went from hardly eating a granola bar a day and thinking about it constantly to eating mostly normally and not really thinking about it often.

I haven't tried hypnotherapy, though I am currently talking to a hypnotherapist about starting. Ive heard a lot of good things about it!

I don't know if it ever goes away 100%, but I am convinced that it can be brought down to a manageable level where it no longer interfears with your life.

[ButterfliesInHerEyes]

I don't think there's anything wrong with taking medication if it helps, but from what I've learned about anxiety disorders in general, not just emetophobia, meds, even when they work really well, only mask the symptoms - they don't "cure" anything. So if all you're doing is taking meds, what happens when, for whatever reason, you can't take them anymore? Or you develop a tolerance to them? So it's really important that if you choose to take meds, that's fine, and even necessary sometimes to take the edge off the panic to calm you down enough to do the real work necessary to overcome this thing. But therapy, specifically CBT, is absolutely necessary... in my opinion and based on my own personal experience with emetophobia after having tried EVERYTHING else.

[asianeko]

I think all therapies are different per person. CBT may work for some and not others, same with hypnosis and other forms. It's what you find is best for you personally.

[typical skeleton]

I said you seem too young for Prozac because studies have (if I remember correctly) shown a link between Prozac and, well... major "setbacks", if you will.

In high school I had a girlfriend whose friend was on Prozac, and when it didn't work, they doubled the dose, and this still did not work. My mother has major depression and has used many different medications, and they are not all equal. I would recommend trying something different if you feel you are "stuck" in the current situation.

[verityvee]

studies haven't shown that prozac can make you have major setbacks. Studies have shown that, especially teenagers, are more likely to have suicidal thoughts when first starting prozac. I used prozac to HELP me get through setback a couple of years ago and it really helped... i don't see how it can CAUSE another set back?

[Addy]

I was on paxil for over a year and a half because of my anxiety. I couldn't leave the house, or do anything really. I started going to therapy and two years later, I am now off of my meds and do not see my therapist anymore. I rarely have any anxious/panic feelings (only sometimes--but they do not go into full-blown panic attacks). Over time I think you will get better and you will not be on those meds forever. I was on them when I was around your age..about 18 I believe.

Just be strong and think positive...and always remember you're fine.