Help Needed Severe Panick Attacks

[temp]

Hoping someone can help. I was in a severe car accident a couple months ago I was at a dead stand still and hit by someone going 65 mph on the interstate. Please note my job is home inspections I am on the road driving 8 to 10 hours a day. I am having severe panick attacks when it comes to interstate driving. My doctor prescribed me .25mg of xanax but would only give me a 30 day supply. Unfortunately the .25mg did nothing if I took 2 pills .50mg I was ok. I would do this about 20 min prior to having to be on the interstate. My doctor also prescribed zoloft which is an anti depresant. I take .50mg on a daily basis but this does not help my panick attack the only thing that has helped so far is the .50mg of xanax which he only prescribed me 30 pills that were .25mg and now will not offer me any refills. I did order a 2mg xanax bar 30 of them and have been breaking the up in four pieces but they dont seem to have the same effect they somehow seem to maybe be time released. Can anyone recomend either and alternative to the xanax or steer me in the right direction as to where I can get the xanax that is equivelent to what I get from the pharmacy here in the US. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[poocheroo]

@temp, I don't have any info on where to get the xanax and I am not sure if I did I would be allowed to say it in the open forum. My suggestion is to see a therapist or a psychiatrist to help you cope with the post traumatic experience you seem to be having especially if you were fine before the accident. Did you have prior anxiety disorder before the accident? I believe xanax and other drugs are suppose to be used short term due to the dependency factor that is why your doc only gave you a 30 day script. (I could be wrong on that and welcome correction if that is the case). Tell your doc that what he gave you is not working and see what he thinks. If you are panicking due to the car accident I would say that it is normal for you to feel this way and since you NEED to be on the road for your job, seeking therapy is a great way to go since a benzo addiction down the line would really be crippling.

[LolaBelle]

@temp I had a VERY similar situation as you. I could not get into a vehicle, let alone drive a vehicle. I had anxiety issues prior to this and my panic attacks afterwards felt very different from my panic attacks afterward. I talked to a doctor that explained to me that anxiety attacks are different that post traumatic stress and would be treated differently. It may be helpful to talk to someone about PTSD or do some research on it. Hope things improve for you soon, I know how hard it is.

[temp]

I have to do someting it is affecting my work and we all know how the economy is now and I cannot afford to be out of work I have to find some way to keep it together and function on a day to day basis.

[Dankstar]

Low doses of xanax

[IGoeOn]

Hey @temp - I have some real concerns about you driving on Xanex. Especially since you said you drive a lot and the current dose isn't working. I absolutely think you should manage your anxiety but I would be frightened to know that someone who took more than that was on the road.

I realize the job market isn't great and whatnot - but my fear is that you will end up in another accident. With someone else.

[afcmcp]

Hey, where did you get your Xanax?? I just got rip from an online shop medstore-online SCAM!!!

[Utopiate]

Can anyone recomend either and alternative to the xanax or steer me in the right direction

It seems pretty simple to me . . . check the reputation of some local psychiatrists, pick one out, go see him/her and lay it all out, don't hold back. Your regular physician is obviously not competent to help you with this very severe problem. I've had similar circumstances. A good psychiatrist will work to figure out how much medicine you need and which one and how long and so forth.

It may be that the first psych isn't the right one. If you feel like you're getting the run around (a bunch of worthless testing and sleep apnea equipment) then just ask the psychiatrist for a referral. S/he will know of a colleague who will get you the medicine and s/he won't take it personally. It's important to do something about this kind of condition. The chances of it getting better on it's own are not great.

Give yourself the chance for some good luck to come your way, take that first step.

[billyboy1965]

My doctor prescribed me .25mg of xanax but would only give me a 30 day supply. Unfortunately the .25mg did nothing if I took 2 pills .50mg I was ok. I would do this about 20 min prior to having to be on the interstate. My doctor also prescribed zoloft which is an anti depresant.

Thank the doctor for taking care of your physical injuries and ask him for a referral to a qualified psychiatrist to take care of your mental injuries.

General practitioners should not be treating mental aches and pains. He doesn't know Zoloft from a hole in his head.

Please read and consider but do not take the advice of members responding (no offense) for what and how much to take; they have no idea how old you are, how much you weigh, and if you can handle medication while on the road (do not drive or operate machinery is disclosed for a reason) since that's what you do for a living.

EDIT looks like you have a lot of advice to seek therapy while I was responding. We're all on the same track.

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Hey, where did you get your Xanax?? I just got rip from an online shop medstore-online SCAM!!!

Buddy this person is asking for serious advice. If you want Xanax ask your doctor but don't ask in this person's thread. Show some respect.

[Quaalude]

@temp - I've had panic attacks strike me out of nowhere behind the wheel of a car before where I've had to pull off the Interstate. Just my opinion here but 0.25mg Xanax (and 30 at that) seems pretty tame. I mean for just general anxiety, the manufacturer recommends 0.5mg tid (three times daily) and that's in the literature---and we're not even talking panic attack dosages here. If you're having them that bad, you need treatment cause I've been there. A short course of a benzo until an SSRI indicated for panic (Paxil, Zoloft) kicks into your system in a couple of weeks sounds reasonable. Klonopin is indicated to prevent panic attacks but most doctor's don't want to keep patients on benzos regularly for extended periods. I'm NOT doling out specific medical advice by any means as I AM NOT A PHYSICIAN but IMO, you're dosage/treatment seems somewhat questionable and you're prescriber way too conservative. Ever try asking your physician point blank, face-to-face if they've experienced the terror in an panic attack first hand and not just read about one in a medical text? I have and the resounding answer is, "No, I've never experienced one myself, but...". They've no idea. Find someone you're comfortable with and lay it out on the line. I'm not abdicating the sole use of benzos or controlled drugs but help is out there and it can pretty well bring your life to a complete standstill. I wish you the best hope you'll not give up on finding effective treatment. As always, use good judgment with any meds you take and take care. Empower yourself---you're your best health advocate!

All The Best!

Q

[audacity]

Dose is too low. It needs to be titrated higher by your doctor till symptoms resolve. 0.25, even 0.5 mg is a starting dose of Xanax for panic disorder. Control of panic before SSRI's kick in is a perfect example of short-term use of benzos. Take what you need to control your panic attacks, but only then.

Low long have you been on Zoloft? SSRI's can take several weeks to have an effect, and may make you more anxious in the meantime. If it starts working for you, consider yourself lucky; you can probably be weaned off the Xanax or at least not have to take it daily.

[Good Apollo]

@temp word of caution if somehow you decided to up dose yourself on any benzo, but especially xanax, AND are not very experienced with them- and I am not at all recommending that you mess with your doses without docs advice- but I know we do strange things when we are desperate-

So the word of caution and apologies if you know this: a large dose of Xanax can cause very rapid sleepyness. Such that if you were not at home, maybe you were driving and took double the dose you had before... Black out at the wheel.... Benzos can pack a very sudden punch... When I first started them, I was warned by some of our kind members on here about that- I'm mostly self medicating at this point - but didn't believe it. Took 1 mg of Xanax, was still aware enough of back pain that I was freakin out, couldn't sit... Took 2nd 1 mg dose... Woke up on couch 11 hours later, middle of the day, didn't know what happened previous day... Very frightening experience. My wife said she tried waking me up a few times but figured I was super exhausted so she threw a blanket on me and left me there. Point being please be careful with benzos, specially xanax... Specially if you're adjusting doses and self medicating somewhat.

Not judging at all, agree economy means lose job is no option.

Another drug I have had experience with is klonopin... It is not for emergency panic attack, but provides a kinda more sustained mellowness. Might be better to be on low dose of that under doc supervising as the effect is longer lasting and it doesn't (for me) seem to suddenly where off. @billyboy1965 made a good point though that your GP might not be the best doc to do this through... And with the kpin advice I am no expert, that's just how it feels to me when I take it, mellow, sustained, I take benzos at night so I can sleep, got tired of taking opiates for my back...

Resistance got too high to the PKs just at night, was still in pain... Just high and in pain. Now what works well for me is 2mg klonopin an hour before bed, mellows me out... I don't know if that's the best thing if your having a panic attack when you get in driver seat but it might help reduce the onset, if dosed correctly, again hopefully under doc superivsion- good luck.

[Chancer]

I know this isn't really in line with the usual answers but, my friend had the most awful panic attacks and really struggled with the medication and she went to a hynotherapist and swears it worked, I have never had hynotherapy and don't even know how much was just the sheer suggestion or if it did actually hypnotize her and work but, do look at other alternatives because sometimes their are better things out their than drugs for certain things...its just my 10 pence worth based on someone I knows experience. a good psychiatrist should look at a number of different tequniques including drug therapy to help.

[512Loyalty]

I posted something a little while ago that you may want to talk to your physician/psychiatrist about and seeing if it's right for you:

http://www.pharmacyreviewer.com/foru...tml#post261903

I hope this helps you in some way!

[MrClean]

@temp, the best advice you've received in this thread is to seek help from a psychiatrist as soon as possible.. There can be a big difference between having panic attacks and severe panic disorder. Only a qualified psychiatrist will be able to distinguish between the two. Once the diagnosis is determined, most likely a good psychiatrist will prescribe the appropriate medication for the condition.

From your post I can feel your sense of urgency and fear. This is normal for panic attacks or panic disorder. Left untreated could have a severe impact on your life. I suffer from severe panic disorder, without any indication of cause and with sudden onset. I remember very clearly it began on Monday and the frequency of the panic attacks increased quickly and by that Friday was afraid to leave the house. I'm generally an outgoing person and my job requires some public speaking. I literally thought I was losing my mind and my career over.

Got a recommendation from a friend who was seeing a psychiatrist and called that Friday. The doctor could tell the sense of urgency and fear I was in and scheduled me to come in on his lunch break that Monday. That was about four years ago. I believe that psychiatrist saved my career, family, perhaps my life. The first appointment he gave me some sample packs and asked me to take one dose within about 5 minutes into the session. I have not had a panic attack since that first session. I still see him once a month primarily to monitor the medications. He is a good doctor and it is obvious he is a genuine person that cares for his patients.

MrClean

[izerrr]

I used to deal with sort of thing, to be honest psychiatrists and psychologists both tried to say I was bi-polar and stuff me all full of pills. I was on seroquel and become a zombie when i took it, way too much sleep. I eventually dealt with it on my own, but try to avoid the pill feeding medical practitioners if you really wan help.

[Bungalobill]

Thank the doctor for taking care of your physical injuries and ask him for a referral to a qualified psychiatrist to take care of your mental injuries.

General practitioners should not be treating mental aches and pains. He doesn't know Zoloft from a hole in his head.

Please read and consider but do not take the advice of members responding (no offense) for what and how much to take; they have no idea how old you are, how much you weigh, and if you can handle medication while on the road (do not drive or operate machinery is disclosed for a reason) since that's what you do for a living.

EDIT looks like you have a lot of advice to seek therapy while I was responding. We're all on the same track.

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Buddy this person is asking for serious advice. If you want Xanax ask your doctor but don't ask in this person's thread. Show some respect.

+1 to the above. You need a long term solution - meds may be a part of it. If one doc isn't helping you out, see another, There's lots of them. See a psychiatrist. They know the spectrum of meds quite well and what might work best for you. It's been my experience they help people who genuinely need it and are interested in helping themselves. Its been my observation of people who worked through a situation (myself included) that meds are only part of the answer.

If you don't have insurance, ask for a cash price .. a lot of docs have one since the insurance companies only pay a very small percentage of actual charges anymore.

It's a little odd sitting in a psychiatrists office for the first time .. people sitting around trying to act 'normal' and appear like they're waiting for their grandmother who is in seeing the doc. Have fun with it. I stroke and imaginary cat sitting on my lap sometimes while waiting. But I'm just there waiting on my grandmother .. and for my 90 day supply of adhd cocktail.

Lastly, I do know something of the type of accident you describe. 10 years ago I was stopped when a very large truck behind me turned my 6 foot short bed pickup into a 3 foot short bed pickup. I have a neck MRI that looks something like a mangled slinky. Unfortunately for that kind of thing, the best option is doing nothing. i spoke with a highly regarded neurosurgeon - he agreed the MRI was nasty but until I had really BAD symptoms - not pain symptoms but muscle weakness - I should AVOID surgery. He used the analogy of what Woody Hayes - ex Ohio State football coach said about a passing offense - 3 things can happen when you throw the football - two are bad. I guess with neck surgery there are a lot more bad options.

I wish you well.

[BaseballMommy]

I used to suffer panic attacks realated to a serious illness and multiple surgeries. I could not pass a hospital without losing it and started to divert my route of travel to avoid triggers. Then I found EMDR therapy. Is is specifically for trauma/PTSD survivors and is a short-term (6 mos) protocol. Saved my life. I can even walk into a hospital unfazed now! You need to find someone licensed to do it correctly. I have talked with many other trauma survivors, from rape to car accidents to military service, that have gone though this therapy and have yet to find one person that did not have healing from it. Just my 2 cents. Good luck and I'm sorry this happened to you.

[gstone]

Xanax or alprazolam is such a short acting benzo and will cause seizures upon any detox usualy. Valium has the longest half life, 2nd to clonzapam, most likely your best bet is to go on Ativan. I had seizures from running out of xanax, the hopsital gave me ativan as well as a presciption for 1mg 3x a day. Only problem is ativan is much more expensive even the generic and the generic will not work as well as the brand. Clonzapam 1mg 3x a day is the best way to get of xanax. Over time youll need to detox off clonzapam which phenobarbital or tegretol ect will be givin as you wean slowly off clonzapam if you may choose to.

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Hoping someone can help. I was in a severe car accident a couple months ago I was at a dead stand still and hit by someone going 65 mph on the interstate. Please note my job is home inspections I am on the road driving 8 to 10 hours a day. I am having severe panick attacks when it comes to interstate driving. My doctor prescribed me .25mg of xanax but would only give me a 30 day supply. Unfortunately the .25mg did nothing if I took 2 pills .50mg I was ok. I would do this about 20 min prior to having to be on the interstate. My doctor also prescribed zoloft which is an anti depresant. I take .50mg on a daily basis but this does not help my panick attack the only thing that has helped so far is the .50mg of xanax which he only prescribed me 30 pills that were .25mg and now will not offer me any refills. I did order a 2mg xanax bar 30 of them and have been breaking the up in four pieces but they dont seem to have the same effect they somehow seem to maybe be time released. Can anyone recomend either and alternative to the xanax or steer me in the right direction as to where I can get the xanax that is equivelent to what I get from the pharmacy here in the US. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

BTW I crashed 3 cars on xanax, 1 car the sameday the pysch put me on 100 .5 xanax to start and zoloft as well. Xanax is the most impairing benzo available and the problem is you don't know your slurring your speech as well as driving terrible. Now doctors prefer to stay away from xanax due to all the bad publicity and stories not to mention the short acting heroin like addiction that comes along with it. Try valium or clonopin, clonopin will take like 2 weeks till you feel it kicking it but it doesnt impaire you or your motor skills as much. Im sure alot of people on here can vouch for that as I read some replys. Good luck

[temp]

I have had axiety issues in the past when I have used xanax in the past I was prescribed 1mg to use as needed for sleep and axiety, and I know 1) only take when I feel a panick or anxiety attack coming on and I never take more tha .50 mg when I am driving. Actually I have never taked over the .50 mg dose. I have been able to get my insomnia under control with an all natural supliment called Super Snooze made by puritans pride, I take that along with a time released melatonin pill. I take those two pills when I get into bed and start reading a book and am out within 30 to 45 minutes. I have also been taking the zoloft at night ( i am worried about taking it in the morning as I dont want it making me sleepy, I need to be alert when driving) I know my tolerance and know that the .50mg of xanax is enough to stop the panick attack and does not impair my ability to drive. I also know enough about this drug that it is highly addictive and should only be used short term. I have never taken this drug on a daily basis just on an as needed basis due to the fear of becoming addicted to it. Problem is around here the doctors have gotten to the point where the word xanax is taboo they do not want to prescribe it. I had on doctor recently prescribe me trazadone for my panick attacks this put my head in a fog and was unable to function on it much less want to take that and drive. I have been taking the zoloft for three weeks not and it seems to have helped very little, not sure if I have given it long enough to get in my system. The other day I had a panick attack that was so bad I had to pull off the interstate. Shaking sweating could not get my breath heart racing. And the nice police officer that pulled behind me shortly after informed me it was illegal to pull off the side of the interstate and proceeded to write me a ticket. I ended up haveing to get off at the next exit and check into a motel room to pull myself back together.

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@gstone I was thinking of trying valium. I have taken this drug once my friend gave me one it was 10mg and it made me kind of loopy and put me to sleep so little leary about taking this and driving. I have never tried the clonopin is that a drug similar to the zoloft which I know is an antidepresant and also used for anxiety or is clonopin geared more towards axiety disorder and panick attacks?