YOU ARE NOT ALONE - A companion online community discussion board for The Mental Illness Happy Hour podcast with Paul Gilmartin

I have been on meds for depression and a mood disorders for 5+ yearsand have never asked a dr for any specific medication but I think I want to ask for something for anxiety/stress.

A friend gave me a handful of Xanax. I was gonna try them for recreational purposes but noticed the intended benefit of releasing my mental/ emotional strain. So I am going to ask for a Xanax script. Is this a good idea? Any tips? I am going to admit to trying some. My psychiatrist will be worried about the habitual possibilities which I understand but I want to be smoothed out for more then a few hours.

Most of the medications for anxiety like Xanax and Ativan (lorazepam) are benzodiazepines and have potential for addiction. You might want to try prescription Vistiril (Hydroxyzine), which is an antihistamine prescribed for anxiety that doesn't have as bad a sedative effect as the over-the-counter Benadryl. If that doesn't work you could ask your doctor about atypical antipsychotics like Seroquel, as they also work on histamine receptors, and can be helpful with depression+severe anxiety.

I'm a Board Certified Pharmacy Technician, so I know a lot about what types of medications are out there, if you have any more questions.

I was on Klonopin for almost 6 years and although I took it as prescribed for most of that time, this last year I found myself more and more addicted. I would watch out for those types of medicines. I have found that Seroquil works nicely when it's used with my bi-polar medication. Also Buspar worked for me and as far as I know is not addictive. BELIEVE me when I say that nothing is worse than having an anxiety disorder and then also having withdrawals from anxiety medication.