# Complete list of SA meds



## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

These are all from wikipedia, so please help me correct/finish it.
*Please post what you have tried, which are effective for you, and which are not. Also note that those on the list with underline have been prescribed for at least one person, and those in bold are proven to be effective at least by one person. Those in italic are not FDA approved.*

*GABA receptor agonists
+Benzodiazepine
-brotizolam(Lendormin) 
-estazolam(ProSom) 
-flunitrazepam(Rohypnol; Hypnodorm) 
-flurazepam(Dalmane) 
-loprazolam(Dormonoct) 
-lormetazepam(Loramet) 
-midazolam(Dormicum; Versed) 
-nimetazepam(Ermin) 
-nitrazepam(Mogadon; Alodorm) 
-temazepam(Restoril; Normison) 
-triazolam(Halcion) 
-*alprazolam(Xanax, Xanax XR)*
-bromazepam(Lexotan; Lexotanil) 
-chlordiazepoxide(Librium) 
-*clonazepam(Rivotril;Klonopin)*
-clorazepate(Tranxene) 
-*diazepam(Valium)*
-*lorazepam(Ativan; Temesta; Tavor) *
-oxazepam(Serax; Serepax) 
-prazepam(Centrax; Lysanxia)

+Nonbenzodiazepine
-zolpidem(Ambien)
-alpidem 
-saripidem 
-necopidem 
-Pyrazolopyrimidines 
-zaleplon(Sonata) 
-indiplon 
-ocinaplon 
-Cyclopyrrolones 
-eszopiclone(Lunesta)
-zopiclone(Imovane) 
-pagoclone 
-suriclone 
-pazinaclone 
-suproclone

+Others
-*Alcohol*
-Gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid(GHB)
-Gamma-Butyrolactone(GBL)
-Kava(Kava Kava)
-Barbiturates

*Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor(SSRI)
-citalopram(Celexa, Cipramil, Emocal, Sepram, Seropram)
-_dapoxetine_
-escitalopram(Lexapro, Cipralex, Esertia)
-fluoxetine(Prozac, Fontex, Seromex, Seronil, Sarafem, Fluctin (EUR), Fluox (NZ))
-fluvoxamine(Luvox, Faverin, Dumyrox) 
-*paroxetine(Paxil, Seroxat, Aropax, Deroxat, Rexetin, Xetanor, Paroxat) *
-sertraline(Zoloft, Lustral, Serlain)
-zimelidine(Zelmid, Normud)

*Selective serotonin reuptake enhancer(SSRE)
-Tianeptine(INN)(Stablon, Coaxil, Tatinol)

*Serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor(SNRI)
-*venlafaxine(Effexor XR, Effexor)*
-desvenlafaxine(Pristiq)
-sibutramine(Meridia, Reductil)
-nefazodone(Serzone)
-milnacipran(Dalcipran/ Portugal; Ixel/ France)
-desipramine(Norpramine, Pertofraneis)
-duloxetine(Cymbalta)
-bicifadine

*Monoamine oxidase inhibitor(MAOI)
-Isocarboxazid (Marplan) 
-Moclobemide (Aurorix, Manerix, Moclodura) 
-*Phenelzine(Nardil)*
-Tranylcypromine (Parnate contents 5 mg, Jatrosom contents 10 mg) 
-Selegiline(Selegiline, Eldepryl, Emsam)
-Rasagiline(Azilect) 
-Nialamide 
-Iproniazid(Marsilid, Iprozid, Ipronid, Rivivol, Propilniazida) 
-Iproclozide 
-Toloxatone 
-Linezolid(Zyvox, Zyvoxid)
-Dienolide kavapyrone desmethoxyyangonin (MAOI-B)
-Dextroamphetamine

*Tricyclic Antidepressant(TCA)
-amitriptyline & butriptyline(Elavil, Endep, Tryptanol, Trepiline, Amyzol)
-amoxapine(Asendin, Asendis, Defanyl, Demolox, Moxadil)
-clomipramine(Anafranil)
-desipramine(Norpramin, Pertofrane) 
-dosulepin hydrochloride(dothiepin hydrochloride)(Prothiaden, Thaden) 
-doxepin(Adapin, Sinequan)
-imipramine & dibenzepin(Tofranil, Janimine)
-iprindole
-lofepramine(Gamanil)
-nortriptyline(Aventyl, Pamelor)
-opipramol(Opipramol-neuraxpharm, Insidon)
-protriptyline(Vivactil, Rhotrimine)
-trimipramine(Surmontil)

*Tetracyclic antidepressant
-*Trazodone*

*Dopamine reuptake inhibitor
-Amineptine(Maneon, Survector) 
-Bupropion(Wellbutrin SL, Wellbutrin XR, Zyban) 
-_Cocaine(an alkaloid)_
-CFT(WIN-35428) 
-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone(MDPV) 
-Methamphetamine(Desoxyn)
-Methylphenidate(Ritalin SL, Rubifen, Concerta) 
-Phenmetrazine(Preludin) 
-Troparil(CPT) 
-Vanoxerine(GBR-12909)

*Serotonin receptor agonist
+Empathogen-Entactogen
-Alpha-ethyltryptamine(AET)
-_Methylenedioxymethamphetamine(MDMA/Ecstasy)_
-3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine(MDA/Tenamfetamine)
-3,4-methylenedioxy-N-ethylamphetamine(MDE/MDEA)
-3,4-methylenedioxy-alpha-ethyl-N-methylphenethylamine(MBDB)
-methylone(bk-MDMA, MDMCat)
-butylone(bk-MBDB)
-3-methoxy-4,5-methylenedioxyamphetamine(MMDA)
-3,4,5-trimethoxyphenethylamine(Mescaline)
-3-methoxy-4,5-methylendioxyphenethylamine(Lophophine, homomyristicylamine)
+Others
-Buspirone(Ansial, Ansiced, Anxiron, Axoren, Bespar, BuSpar, Buspimen, Buspinol, Buspisal, Narol, Spitomin, Sorbon)

*Antihistamine
-Hydroxyzine

*Herbal/supplement
-Valerian
-German Chamomile
-Blue lotus
-Sceletium tortuosum
-Bacopa monnieri
-*L-Theanine*
-St. John's Wort
-Fish oil
-Multivitamin
-Calcium/magnesium/zinc
-Sulfur
-5-HTP (5-hydroxytryptamine)
-tryptan (tryptophan)
-*Tobacco*

*Beta blockers
-Propranolol(Inderal, Inderal LA, Avlocardyl, Avlocardyl, Deralin, Dociton, Inderalici, InnoPran XL, Sumial)

*Anticonvulsant
-carbamazepine(Tegretol)
-clobazam(Frisium)
-clonazepam(Klonopin/Rivotril)
-diazepam(Valium)
-divalproex sodium(Depakote)
-ethosuximide(Zarontin)
-ethotoin(Peganone)
-felbamate(Felbatol)
-fosphenytoin(Cerebyx)
-*gabapentin(Neurontin)*
-lamotrigine(Lamictal)
-levetiracetam(Keppra)
-mephenytoin(Mesantoin)
-metharbital(Gemonil)
-methsuximide(Celontin)
-methazolamide(Neptazane)
-oxcarbazepine(Trileptal)
-phenobarbital
-phenytoin(Dilantin/Epanutin)
-phensuximide(Milontin) 
-pregabalin(Lyrica)
-primidone(Mysoline)
-sodium valproate(Epilim)
-stiripentol(Diacomit)
-tiagabine(Gabitril)
-topiramate(Topamax)
-trimethadione(Tridione)
-valproic acid(Depakene/Convulex)
-vigabatrin(Sabril)
-zonisamide(Zonegran)

*Antipsychotic
+1st gen.
Butyrophenones
-Haloperidol(Haldol)

Phenothiazines
-Chlorpromazine(Thorazine) 
-Fluphenazine (Prolixin)-Perphenazine(Trilafon) 
-Prochlorperazine(Compazine) 
-Thioridazine(Mellaril) 
-Trifluoperazine(Stelazine) 
-Mesoridazine 
-Promazine 
-Triflupromazine(Vesprin) 
-Levomepromazine(Nozinan) 
-Promethazine(Phenergan)

Thioxanthenes
-Chlorprothixene 
-Flupenthixol(Depixol and Fluanxol) 
-Thiothixene(Navane) 
-Zuclopenthixol(Clopixol and Acuphase)

+2nd gen.
-Clozapine(Clozaril)
-Olanzapine(Zyprexa)
-Risperidone(Risperdal)
-*Quetiapine (Seroquel)*
-Ziprasidone(Geodon)
-Amisulpride(Solian)
-Dopamine partial agonists:
-Under clinical development - Bifeprunox; norclozapine (ACP-104).

+3rd gen.
-Aripiprazole(Abilify)

*Opioid
-Oxymorphone(Opana, Numorphan, Numorphone)
-*Hydrocodone(dihydrocodeinone)*
-oxycodone
-morphine
-heroin(diacetylmorphine)

*Meprobamate(Miltown, Equanil, and Meprospan)

*Hormones
-_Oxytocin_

*Nootropic
-*Phenibut*
-*Piracetam(Nootropil, Qropi, Myocalm, Dinagen, Synaptine)*

*Alpha-2 adrenergic agonist
-*Clonidine(Catapres)*

*NMDA receptor antagonist
-*Dextromethorphan (DXM)*

*?
-modafinil(Provigil)
-adrafinil
-*Adderall XR(levo/dextro-amphetamine mixture)*
-Dexedrine(dextroamphetamine)


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

So far I've tried:
*Xanax*, *Xanax XR*, Klonopin, *Ativan*, Valium, Paxil, Zoloft, Celexa, Lexapro, Zyprexa(I have no idea why I was given this). Meds in bold were effective.


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## UltraShy (Nov 8, 2003)

akstylish said:


> *Monoamine oxidase inhibitor(MAOI)
> -Isocarboxazid (Marplan)
> -Moclobemide (Aurorix, Manerix, Moclodura)
> -Phenelzine (Nardil)
> ...


Dextroamphetamine isn't an MAOI. As the name suggests, it's an amphetamine and is one of the drugs you're not supposed to take with MAOIs.


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## Foh_Teej (May 5, 2004)

theres only about a half dozen of those benzos Id consider useful in the treament of SA.


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## korey (Apr 25, 2006)

UltraShy said:


> akstylish said:
> 
> 
> > *Monoamine oxidase inhibitor(MAOI)
> ...


This is splitting hairs, I know, but amphetamines have noted slight yet fairly certain MAO inhibitive properties during metabolism. My guess for the reasoning behind this is because amphetamines and actual MAOIs (Nardil and Parnate, at least) are a few atoms away from being exactly the same chemical compounds. Maybe just as MAOIs are known to have amphetamine metabolites, amphetamines could have MAOI metabolites (which sounds strange, I know, but it makes sense in a weird sort of way).


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

Added antipsychotic. When I was prescibed Zyprexa by one of my psychologists, I thought she was ignorant. But then another psychologist recommended Seroquel, so I guess antipsychotics are actually prescribed for social anxiety.


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## X33 (Feb 13, 2005)

Korey what's the blood vessel in your avatar?

I have read of promising new anxiolytics currently in development. I will post them here when I get a chance. Hopefully, it should be useful.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adipiplon

Adipiplon (NG2-73) is an anxiolytic drug developed by Neurogen Corporation. It has similar effects to benzodiazepine drugs, but is structurally distinct and so is classed as a nonbenzodiazepine anxiolytic.

Adipiplon is a subtype selective GABAA partial agonist, which binds preferentially to the ?3 subtype. This is significant as while several previous nonbenzodiazepine drugs have been developed that are selective for ?2/3 over the other subtypes, adipiplon is one of the first drugs selected for clinical development which is able to discriminate between ?2 and ?3, as well as showing little affinity for the ?1 or ?5 subtypes - alpidem is selective for ?3 over ?2, but still has moderate affinity to ?1, whereas adipiplon is highly ?3-selective with little affinity for either ?1, ?2 or ?5.

Adipiplon is being researched as a potential medication for the treatment of anxiety and insomnia, and is currently (as of 2008) in Phase IIb trials.[1][2][3]

CGS-9896 is an anxiolytic drug used in scientific research. It has similar effects to benzodiazepine drugs, but is structurally distinct and so is classed as a nonbenzodiazepine anxiolytic.[1]

CGS-9896 is a benzodiazepine receptor partial agonist, which produces long-lasting anxiolytic and anticonvulsant effects in animal studies, but does not produce sedative effects.[2][3] It also increases appetite,[4] and reduces the development of gastrointestinal ulcers following chronic stress.[5]

CGS-20625 is an anxiolytic drug used in scientific research. It has similar effects to, and binds to the same target as benzodiazepine drugs,[1] but is structurally distinct and so is classed as a nonbenzodiazepine anxiolytic.[2][3]

CGS-20625 produces anxiolytic and anticonvulsant effects, but with no sedative effects even at high doses, and no significant muscle relaxant effects.[4] It is orally active in humans, but with relatively low bioavailability.[5]

Etifoxine (or etafenoxine) is an anxiolytic and anticonvulsant drug.[1] It has similar effects to benzodiazepine drugs, but is structurally distinct and so is classed as a nonbenzodiazepine anxiolytic.[2] It is more effective than lorazepam as an anxiolytic, but has less side effects.[3]

Unlike benzodiazepines, etifoxine appears to produce its anxiolytic effects by binding to ?2 and ?3 subunits of the GABAA receptor complex, and so is acting at a different target site to benzodiazepines, although the physiological effect that is produced is similar to that of benzodiazepines.[4] This difference in binding means that etifoxine can be used alongside benzodiazepines to potentiate their effects without competing for binding sites,[5] however it also means that the effects of etifoxine are not reversed by the benzodiazepine antagonist flumazenil.[6]

Pagoclone is an anxiolytic drug from the cyclopyrrolone family, which is related to other more well known drugs such as the sleeping medication zopiclone. It is one of a relatively recently developed class of medicines known as the nonbenzodiazepines, which have similar effects to the older benzodiazepine group, but with quite different chemical structures.

Pagoclone was originally developed as an anti-anxiety drug, but never commercialised. It is a partial agonist acting at GABAA receptors in the brain. In contrast to zopiclone, pagoclone produces anxiolytic effects with little or no sedative or amnestic actions at low doses.[1] ..............

etc.


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

Thanks for a helpful post -_-

I see you edited your post.


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## X33 (Feb 13, 2005)

anytime


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

For a second there I thought you tried all those meds lol.


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

Noca said:


> For a second there I thought you tried all those meds lol.


I wish I did.
Why not tell us which ones you have tried and which were effective?


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

so far ive tried... take a deep breath!

Ativan - great first time, after that I never got an adequate dose.
Klonopin - Best drug ive tried for SA
Xanax - Only had a small dose, didnt notice any changes
Valium - only had a small dose, didnt notice any changes
Prozac - worked okay for depression, sucked for SA
Lexapro - Worked okay for depression and okay for SA then it crapped out
Paxil - Worked great for SA and sucked for depression
Cymbalta - Works okay for depression, little for SA
Zyprexa - Works great for my appetite stimulant, does nothing else
Seroquel - worked great for a sleep aid for 2 months then pooped out
Wellbutrin SR - worked okay as an augment for depression, did nothing else
Wellbutrin XL - unknown effects
Ritalin SR - Works awesome for depression and SA
Adderall XR - Works great for depression and SA
Dexedrine - Did nothing, was a sugar pill
Concerta - Was great for my depression, nothing for SA
Gabapentin - Did nothing but make me drowsy
Lyrica - Did little for my pain and nothing else
Trazodone - worked for 2 weeks as a sleep aid, worked okay for depression as an augment
Metoclopramide - works uniquely to combat nausea
Prochloazine - works okay for nausea
Zofran - Works AMAZING for nausea
Hydromorphone - Works great for breakthru pain with minimal side effects
Hydromorph-contin - Works great for breakthru pain with minimal side effects
Morphine(Statex) - Sucked, too many side effects
MS-contin - same as above
Percocet - pills too big to swallow most of the time
Oxycontin - Worked AWESOME for depression, okay for pain and did nothing for anxiety
Codeine Contin - worked great for depression and anxiety, worked okay for pain
Fentanyl - Worked AMAZING for my pain, too many side effects
Celebrex - Works okay for inflammation
Depakene - cured my epilepsy
Nexium - conquers my heartburn
Pariet - unknown effects
Starnoc - sugar pill
Zopiclone - AMAZING sleep aid for 6 months then it pooped out
Naproxen - unknown effects on pain or headaches
Tramadol - good for headaches
Tylenol 1 - sucks for pain
Tylenol 2 - sucks for pain
Tylenol 3 - sucks for pain
Dicetel - gave me more stomach problems than i had to begin with
Atovent - stops nose from running
Symbicort - helps asthma but gave adverse drug reactions(hallucinations)
Pulmicort - worked good for asthma

the rest I cant remember or are OTC meds.


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

bump


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

I meant just the SA meds so I can update the list.


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

akstylish said:


> I meant just the SA meds so I can update the list.


many of my meds have treated more than one illness, even though they arent necessarily an SA med.


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## UltraShy (Nov 8, 2003)

akstylish said:


> Added antipsychotic. When I was prescibed Zyprexa by one of my psychologists, I thought she was ignorant. But then another psychologist recommended Seroquel, so I guess antipsychotics are actually prescribed for social anxiety.


Using antipsychotics for SA is f***ing stupid. They are only justified for patients who are psychotic or to treat bipolar mania. They're used in SA by doctors who are sissy little p***ies too afraid to prescribe a controlled substance (benzos). They're part of the "anything but a benzo program" in which a doc throws every drug in the whole damn pharmacy at an anxiety patient before daring to try the most likely to work choice: a benzo!


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## korey (Apr 25, 2006)

AdrianG said:


> Korey what's the blood vessel in your avatar?


I'm not sure. I found that picture on Google and I thought it looked neat. It's not an image of my brain. I think I was searching for information about aneurysms ( :eek ) when I came across it.


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

UltraShy said:


> akstylish said:
> 
> 
> > Added antipsychotic. When I was prescibed Zyprexa by one of my psychologists, I thought she was ignorant. But then another psychologist recommended Seroquel, so I guess antipsychotics are actually prescribed for social anxiety.
> ...


I thought antipsychotics were more dangerous though. I went to a neurologist for twtichy neck and she told me to stop taking Zyprexa immediately. And both psychologists prescribed me benzos before an antipsychotic.


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## UltraShy (Nov 8, 2003)

akstylish said:


> *I thought antipsychotics were more dangerous* though. I went to a neurologist for twtichy neck and she told me to stop taking Zyprexa immediately. And both psychologists prescribed me benzos before an antipsychotic.


Zyprexa is infamous for causing weight gain. In fact, it's so effective at this that Noca takes Zyprexa exclusively to help him gain weight. Other than Marinol (pot in a pill) I doubt there is any other drug that could come close to the weight gain caused by Zyprexa.

I gained 25# in 6 weeks on Zyprexa (about 10% from my already obese 246 start). I thought that was stunning till a female SAS member reported a 40# gain within months -- and her weight started not much over 100 pounds, so a truly stunning gain in percentage terms.

Zyprexa is also know to increase the risk of diabetes (more so than can be accounted for be the extra risk patients get from the weight gain so typical of this drug).

As for twitching, the old anti-psychotics can cause tardive diskenesia (sp?), which is uncontrolled twitching & movements that never go away even after the drug is stopped. This is why such drugs are only given to the truly psychotic where the risk of a twitch might be acceptable if the drug helps bring you back to reality and stop having delusions that your dog is talking to you and warning you to kill the neighbor who's really a CIA agent out to kill you.

The TD warning is put on the newer antipsychotics as well, presumably to provide legal cover to the drug makers just in case they ever happened to cause the same problem, though I've never heard of the newer ones causing TD.


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## mserychic (Oct 2, 2004)

I've heard of people starting to get twitchy on the newer antipsychs.. me included.. but not full blown TD. Who knows whether they don't cause it or if drs are just more aware of it so get people off the meds quick enough. but yea.. antipsychs for sa = total madness.


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## Formerly Artie (Jun 26, 2007)

The only medications that have helped me with SA are benzos (in particular Klonopin), Nardil, and Phenibut (in that order). I would even throw L-Theanine in there as a close fourth.

Unfortunately, I've become tolerant more or less to the first three, so I see no reason to keep increasing the dosage and/or taking many various meds at a time. I am languishing here because of this, but would I be better off if I was on 100 meds for a dollar a day? Without naming names, I know a few people here are on many meds, even as much as a dozen or more, with disability paying most of the costs, and believe me, it's going to come to bite those people in the future. There's a right way, and a wrong way of taking meds, but a dozen or more is the wrong way. The reason being is that the abudance of extra neurotransmitters being constantly attached to synaptic nerve receptors cause the brain to become accustomed to it over time, even if it isn't obvious to the person on the surface. When people get older, and they keep relying on those same meds, they're going to be in for one hell of a future if they ever have to come off them, particularly if they're unable to even become independent in life now being on all those meds.

You just have love doctors who hand out any and all medications like candy because such publicly-financed healthcare systems pay psychiatrists or GPs for doing that. Some people may see it as compassionate, but I see otherwise.

With that said, I do work when I'm able to, and I do pay for all my klonopin and supplements - I refuse to let anybody else pay for them out of self-respect, and the fact that it would be unfair to my relatives or the system. As disabled as I feel, I'll be ****ed if I ever have part of my income financing other people's meds if they're not even making any decent effort to improve, and just living life fat, dumb and happy; not to mention going across state lines to meet up with teenage girls.


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## danielk (Jun 4, 2008)

Uhm, I was prescribed Seroquel years after I had been on a benzo. I still take Klonopin and before bed I take Seroquel. The Seroquel definitely helps me sleep with less anxiety (less bruxism). At "homeopathic" doses, some APs are quite effective in managing anxiety.


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

danielk said:


> The Seroquel definitely helps me sleep with less anxiety (less bruxism). At "homeopathic" doses, some APs are quite effective in managing anxiety.


Does it work during the day though? I'm not sure if it should be listed as effective for SA.


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## yeah_yeah_yeah (Mar 27, 2007)

Noca :nw

Thats one ****en kick *** meds post. It reminds me of my "therapy types Ive tried" post .. 

I tried *Effexor XR* and it always worked for me. Tried it on and off for a few years and I think it started to poop though.

I was weird. Overall I always felt slightly 'jumpy', but I found no anxiety in social situs. It was cool.

Ross


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## danielk (Jun 4, 2008)

akstylish said:


> danielk said:
> 
> 
> > The Seroquel definitely helps me sleep with less anxiety (less bruxism). At "homeopathic" doses, some APs are quite effective in managing anxiety.
> ...


I know that I wouldn't fare too well during the day having had a nasty night's sleep!  I had to use it during the day once during a hypomanic stretch; no psychosis or anything, just an unmanageable amount of anxiety.

As I said, though, it is becoming more common to use atypical APs for managing anxiety overall - any type of anxiety. It can be used PRN but, to that end, it'll knock you on your butt. I think it should be on the list as at least _some_ appear to be being prescribed it for SAD.

Whether or not any particular med is "effective" is really quite subjective in psychiatry. I wish it weren't so, but it is. There are so many variables involved that I don't think any single list is going to contain the right list/possible combo of meds for consumers. What works for some won't work for all. As has been the acronym for this phenomenon as long as Usenet has been around - YMMV!


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

yeah_yeah_yeah said:


> Noca :nw
> 
> Thats one ****en kick *** meds post. It reminds me of my "therapy types Ive tried" post ..
> 
> ...


heh yeah 45 meds


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

Thanx for the bump. 

Can anyone identify what category the meds at the bottom fall in?


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

-Adderall XR - is an Amphetamine
-Phenibut - Supplement
-L-Theanine - Supplement
-Trazodone - Tetracyclic anti-depressant
-Barbiturate - Barbiturate
-Meprobamate - some benzo derivative


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## yeah_yeah_yeah (Mar 27, 2007)

L-theanine is an amino acid, but yeah - supplement


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

yeah_yeah_yeah said:


> L-theanine is an amino acid


thankx


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## Dagon (Jun 28, 2008)

You might want to add anticonvulsants to the list notably NEURONTIN and LYRICA although I have not tried these myself they supposedly are used off lable for SA plus many other things and they boost GABA.


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## Formerly Artie (Jun 26, 2007)

I'd have to agree with dagon01. Even though those two medications have developed a negative reputation over the years due to its highly off-label usage, it has in fact helped many people with SA, and I'd even try it myself if they didn't cost so much.

I also noticed Gabitril wasn't mentioned. It's an SGRI (Selective GABA Reuptake Inhibitor), and the only one of it's kind actually. Again, I've never tried it because of the cost, but if it does what it claims it does, with certain double-blind studies showing it to be much more beneficial than placebos, then one can argue that tolerance or relapse won't occur for benzo-users if also taking Gabitril. Just a theory of mine though. But if anybody here has taken it, I would be very curious on the results.


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

dagon01 said:


> You might want to add anticonvulsants to the list notably NEURONTIN and LYRICA although I have not tried these myself they supposedly are used off lable for SA plus many other things and they boost GABA.


i tried both, they did nothing.


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

Come on people...I took a lot of time...eh...copying and pasting all the meds from wiki.  Please tell us what you've tried and what worked for you.


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## tubelad (Jul 23, 2008)

If someone tried to feed me drugs for SA, I'd push them into a vat of radioative water.


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## korey (Apr 25, 2006)

I've only been taking it for two days, but so far, *Catapres (clonidine)* has been doing wonders for my anxiety. It's an "?2 adrenergic agonist" that somehow tricks the body (well, the sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the fight-or-flight response) and reduces the physical grip that anxiety has on me. It's another heart medication, but it's been prescribed off-label to treat AD/HD, so it seems to be psychoactive to some extent.


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## UltraShy (Nov 8, 2003)

Dagon said:


> You might want to add anticonvulsants to the list notably NEURONTIN and LYRICA although I have not tried these myself they supposedly are used off lable for SA plus many other things and they boost GABA.


Neurontin is a true sugar pill with no noticeable effects positive or negative. I've never tried Lyrica, which I'm pretty sure is just the sequel to Neurontin that magically popped up when the Neurontin patent was about to expire.


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## Akane (Jan 2, 2008)

This could be quite a list. I'll group them together...

Benzos:
alprazolam, clonazepam, diazepam, and lorazepam- most helpful but everything except tiny doses of alprazolam were too strong for me. Left me drugged all the time and there's 2 weeks on a moderate dose of clonazepam that I don't remember. I definitely didn't feel bad during that time but I didn't really feel anything at all. I quit all of them except to take tiny chips of alprazolam as needed. Last time it was needed was over a year ago when I started martial arts classes.

SSRIs:
paroxetine, sertraline- made my anxiety worse. panick attacks, worse insomnia (if that's possible), shaking, and this desire to do something but nothing to do or any energy to do it so it drove me kinda insane. Paroxetine was much worse and I stopped it cold cause I couldn't handle it anymore leading to the worst withdrawal I've had on any med.

SNRIs
nefazodone, duloxetine- similar to ssri's. Didn't take them long enough to really result in anything but headaches, less sleep, and more anxiety.

TCAs:
amitriptyline, desipramine, doxepin, imipramine, protriptyline- didn't do much of anything. A couple might have been slightly sedating but not a really noticeable amount. Most ended up giving me headaches within a week or 2 and that was it.

Trazodone- more helpful than TCAs. Somewhat sedating. Helped a little with anxiety. Gave me headaches after 2 months and wasn't helpful enough to be worth continuing to take it. It did help me sleep enough to realize insomnia was a major contributor to my problems.

Diazepam- don't remember, taken during that time of clonazepam that is somewhat missing from my memory. I believe it had similar effect to trazodone.

Risperidone- nothing.

Neurontin- Actually somewhat useful. Mildly sedating. Helped alot with insomnia and a little directly with SA. Very few side effects. It's worth trying once. Quit working after 4months. May be difficult to get from a doctor despite the fact it is quite mild and one of the safest meds on this list of things I've taken.

hydrocodone- was somewhat useful. Sedating, muscle relaxer, improved sleep, and did help a little with anxiety but a highly addictive pain killer. I don't suggest it at all for trying to treat anything other than short term pain issues and you will not find a doctor that will give it to you for any other reason. Exception being the messed up psychiatrist I had that handed out pills like candy and eventually lost his license.

I'm sure I'm missing some but let's get to the prescription meds I'm taking now:

Seroquel: highly sedating. Most useful antidepressent I've tried. Very good for sleeping problems and somewhat helpful for anxiety and depression. Fairly low side effect rate when the minimum amount needed is taken. However many doctors try to bring people up to the standard 200mg. I have no idea why this is the standard amount since I've yet to talk to anyone who actually takes that amount. I started with half a 25mg and then moved up to 25mg for a year before increasing it again. Too high of dose of seroquel will kill any motivation you have and make you just want to lay around sleeping all day.

Ambien- sleep medication. Probably not useful for anxiety unless anxiety is keeping you awake. Kinda like a benzo except targetted more towars sleep. Works fast, wears off fast.

Lunesta- Same as above concerning sleep and anxiety. Better long term sleep med than ambien. Less side effects. Milder feeling but more effective and deeper sleep. Works slowly (almost unnoticeable) wears off slowly (no crash). May linger during the day.

Ramelteon- increases sensitivity to melatonin. Mostly used as a sleeping medication. Probably doesn't have much impact on anxiety. Will help regulate the sleep/wake cycle and increase any benefits you might find from taking extra melatonin supplements.

This concludes the prescription anxiety/depression/sleep meds... That I can remember...

Antihistamines:
Taken plenty of those, both otc and prescription, and it's not worth mentioning individual ones. I had allergy issues that seem to have gone away with my SA and insomnia. Definitely not helpful for SA and only slightly helpful for sleep. Caused other problems like dry mouth, dizziness, etc.. that made them not worth taking.

Supplements.. I don't even know where to start. At one point my doctor had me taking a multivitamin/mineral, b12, b complex, vit e, vit c, fish oil-changed to flax oil because it upset my stomach, l-theanine, and I forget the rest of the vitamin/minerals I've taken. Improved my energy level but that's it. Now I mostly just take a multivitamin and I feel really crappy if I miss that. Every other vitamin/mineral I've tried has only given a bit of short term effect and then been worthless or even caused bad side effects.

Not under suggestion of a doctor and not a basic vitamin mineral:

melatonin- great for sleep and I use it every night but not really helpful for sa

st john's wort- worthless

SAMe- mildly helpful for concentration did not improve sleep or sa after 3 months of taking it

GABA- mostly useless. Slight increase in concentration that was short lived.

nootropics:
phenibut- about the same as SAMe. Slightly increased energy and concentration. Did not impact insomnia or sa.

Piracetam- absolutely love this stuff. Improved mood, more energy, more outgoing, 100times better concentration, more motivation to do things, etc... It really improved about everything I could want it to. Unfortunately it started to make me cough after awhile. I'm looking into another racetam to try.

I'm sure I'll think of something else in a day or 2....


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## X33 (Feb 13, 2005)

Piracetam looks worth a try.


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

Seroquel isnt an anti-depressant.


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## X33 (Feb 13, 2005)

korey said:


> I've only been taking it for two days, but so far, *Catapres (clonidine)* has been doing wonders for my anxiety. It's an "?2 adrenergic agonist" that somehow tricks the body (well, the sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the fight-or-flight response) and reduces the physical grip that anxiety has on me. It's another heart medication, but it's been prescribed off-label to treat AD/HD, so it seems to be psychoactive to some extent.


How is it compared to beta blockers?


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## Akane (Jan 2, 2008)

Seroquel is frequently used an antidepressant and that's what my psychiatrist and doctor label it as. Most online sites also place it amongst the antidepressants.


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

Akane said:


> Seroquel is frequently used an antidepressant and that's what my psychiatrist and doctor label it as. Most online sites also place it amongst the antidepressants.


its an atypical anti-psychotic along with Zyprexa, Geodon, Abilify, Risperdal


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## korey (Apr 25, 2006)

AdrianG said:


> korey said:
> 
> 
> > I've only been taking it for two days, but so far, *Catapres (clonidine)* has been doing wonders for my anxiety. It's an "?2 adrenergic agonist" that somehow tricks the body (well, the sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the fight-or-flight response) and reduces the physical grip that anxiety has on me. It's another heart medication, but it's been prescribed off-label to treat AD/HD, so it seems to be psychoactive to some extent.
> ...


Much better. Beta blockers screw with asthmatics, but clonidine doesn't. Also, clonidine seems to exhibit some sort of behavioral impulse control that makes it easier for the mind to control the body's excited states (maybe that's why it's prescribed off-label for AD/HD?). Clonidine does tend to knock me out for a couple of hours after taking each dose, but I enjoy sleeping :yes


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## korey (Apr 25, 2006)

rocknroll714 said:


> The other *amphetamines*, like ecstasy, can also be categorized as "dopamine/serotonin/norepinephrine *reuptake inhibitors*", and also cause the brain to release hefty amounts of dopamine/serotonin/norepinephrine as well, each with a varying level of release. Ecstasy (methylenedioxymethamphetamine) for example focuses on serotonin release, whereas methamphetamine focuses on dopamine and norepinephrine release. Most other amphetamines do not have any action at the 5-HT1A serotonin receptor by the way. Mostly must the methylenedioxylated onces and a few other exceptions.
> 
> ............
> 
> ...


 :wtf :afr :no :no :no Maybe that was just a poor choice of wording, but the pharmacokinetics of amphetamines are _nothing_ like those of a reuptake inhibitor. The only thing that amphetamines inhibit is the enzyme that tries to metabolize them (monoamine oxidase, and only weakly at that).


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## korey (Apr 25, 2006)

rocknroll714 said:


> Boy are you contradictory. It seems like you're following me around thread to thread to argue with me.
> 
> Lets take a look at say.. methamphetamine and its dopamine release. Methamphetamine forces dopamine-containing neuron synapses to release dopamine in high quantities. What makes amphetamines so effective however, is that they have a dual-nature by also inhibiting the natural reuptake of the neurotransmitters they release back into the synapse.
> 
> ...


I'm not specifically following you around - you're just the only person who seems to be actively posting in the med forum right now, so I'm responding to the threads we both seem to be posting in at the moment. And I am a bit crabby because I've gone without sleep for almost two days, so you'll have to ignore any of my commentary that sounds aggressive right now.

I understand well enough how reuptake inhibition works, but trying to classify amphetamines as reuptake inhibitors is not going to stick too well at all. And you said it yourself - amphetamines cause a huge release of neurochemicals from storage in the brain. _That's_ their trademark therapeutic characteristic. Most of the reuptake inhibitors on the market inhibit the reuptake of the neurochemical(s) already naturally present in the brain; if they all flooded the brain with happiness (or at least an unusually high level of contentment) the way amphetamines do, then they'd all probably be right under the DEA's thumb just like amphetamines.


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

Argh, information overload...I finally messed up the list(which was prolly bound to happen)  So many class overlaps and I don't know what to put where. Listing one drug in several classes will solve the problem but that would make the list ridiculously long.

rocknroll, you should make the same thread with your list. You know much better than I do.


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## CopadoMexicano (Aug 21, 2004)

Well ive tried paxil and made me feel a little happier
Zoloft makes me want to eat 
clonazepam makes me feel drowsy
geodon doesnt help with my hallucinations
risperdal helped me feel more calm and stable
zyprexa didnt do squat for me
cymbalta didnt do anything for my depression or anxiety
abilify couldnt tell any difference


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

...any more suggestions/comments/recommendations?


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

Oh sorry for the late reply. Course I am.


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## brealair (Aug 31, 2008)

I was going to post a thread on natural medication but I see some already on this list. I have tried St John's wort and Stress Assist( A combination of L-theanine and couple of others).

Here's a list of things I posted on another:

Anti-anxiety: Valerin, Passion Flower, L-theanine/Suntheanine 

Anti-depressant: hpyeforin(St. John's Wort), 5-HTP, Rhodiola Rosea, SAM-e 400 

Vitamins/Minerals: B6, B12, Folate, Selenium, D3, Niacinamide, Magnesuim Taurinate


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## quat (Sep 27, 2006)

-ediazepam(Valium)
-escitalopram(Lexapro)
-fluoxetine(Prozac)
-paroxetine(Paxil,Aropax)
-venlafaxine(Effexor)
-Moclobemide (Aurorix)
-Phenelzine(Nardil)
-Tranylcypromine (Parnate)
-amitriptyline & butriptyline(Endepl)
-dosulepin (Prothiaden)
-Olanzapine(Zyprexa)


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## styler5 (Oct 7, 2006)

Eh..don't bother posting here. rocknroll's gonna make a better thread.


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## Arisa1536 (Dec 8, 2009)

UltraShy said:


> Using antipsychotics for SA is f***ing stupid. They are only justified for patients who are psychotic or to treat bipolar mania. They're used in SA by doctors who are sissy little p***ies too afraid to prescribe a controlled substance (benzos). They're part of the "anything but a benzo program" in which a doc throws every drug in the whole damn pharmacy at an anxiety patient before daring to try the most likely to work choice: a benzo!


What he said 
Its like taking Gabitril for psychosis. Gabitril is a strong anti epileptic drug so by using it for psychosis it would not make anything better, in fact the side effects may be pretty bad, like antipsychotics are for SA. there is no way that seroquel and all the other antipsychotic drugs work for social anxiety, anxiety or even depression, they make you feel groggy, dazed and hungry ALL THE TIME and you are unable to get out of bed because they knock you out.

It pisses me off when doctors prescribe these lethal drugs to people with any type of anxiety or even depression because they are not a stimulant, if anything they make you more depressed due to the increased lethargy and sleeping, oh and the weight gain which comes from lying around eating, that is basically all you can do, you cannot seriously work or function on a moderate dose of haldol or Seroquel, i have tried and i almost fainted.


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## jerst (Aug 28, 2010)

*Serzone*

Hi to the group, I am new here

_I have heard Celexa/ Lexapro may help with social anxiety But I have never been prescribed those drugs_

_I take Xanax for panic, very effective, Serzone for social anxety, and Buspar for generalized anxiety_

_To try to get to the point, I used to take 300mg of nefazodone a day_

_My moms physician gave buspirone to all his patients, my mom was taking Xanax, and he had her on 60 mg of buspirone a day in the hospital_

_So anyway went to my family Doc, told him about other Doc' opinion , and he put me on buspirone 10mg 2x a day, and cut my nefazodone to 150mg a day_

_I do not think Buspar helps people who take Valium like drugs except in very high doses like my mom got_

_Their is a clean /dirty serontonin receptor theory All SSRis prevent reuptake at both receptors possibly leading to their anxiety and sexual side effects Serzone only prevents reuptake at one receptor Less side effects, less effective for majotr depression, but almost like an anti anxiety anti social phobia drug Since my Doc does not want to try me on Lexapro/Celexa I am going to ask him to increase my dose of Serzone and decrease the Buspar_

_Someone posted somewhere that no one had a favorable response to Serzone and I guess if you were expecting it to lift you out of a deep depression that is true but if you are high strung, socially phobic I have found it to be very useful_

_Sincerely,_

_Jerst_


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