# Medication has nearly ELIMINATED SAD for me!



## KPK (Jan 8, 2010)

I've been taking Sertraline (Zoloft generic) for a couple of months right now and I am so glad to say that it is 100% possible to eliminate SAD. I don't even want to type a huge long post about it because I'm done with SAD, that was my past. I used to have extreme social anxiety and OCD and one of the toughest issues for me was knowing if it was possible to eliminate SAD for good. I am living breathing proof that it CAN be eliminated through medication. It took about a week until the medication settled in (during that time, I kind of freaked out because I was at the point where I couldn't stand it anymore) but I'm so much better now. I'm more social and while social situations still confuse me sometimes, on medication, you won't even care. That's how well it works. I'm 15 and it was extremely difficult finally getting to the step of telling my parents to schedule an appointment with a psychiatric center. I finally did that by going to a friends house or some kind of special event in a different environment which in turn, allowed me to say things I wouldn't normally say. My father is the type of person who thinks depression doesn't even exist, so as you can imagine, it's extremely difficult to talk about things. But I finally saw a psychiatric center and I finally got medication. I think I'll be able to look back on life and say I only suffered with SAD for a few years. I'm able to look back on it now and be grateful that I had SAD because it made me who I am. Suffering makes us who we are, just remember that. 

Also, I'm a Christian and when I suffered, I was dazed and confused. I questioned God and my faith. I was angry with God most of the time, so so angry. But I kept praying and kept trying to have faith. I never stopped praying and I never gave up on my faith. My prayers have been answered as things have happened in my life which have been sure signs of God. I have come to terms with science and faith and I even believe believing in God is a more likely, more reasonable assertion than atheism or agnosticism. I will continue to pray for SAD sufferers, for depression sufferers, and for all sufferers of mental disorders. 

I hope everyone can get rid of this terrible disorder. God bless.

EDIT: 

Also something that confuses me is that medication isn't working for a lot of people. I find this so odd because I personally believe I had extremely high levels of social anxiety disorder. I honestly couldn't imagine it getting worse for me or for anyone. Even the psychiatrist described my levels constantly using the word "extreme". But it was the medication and simply talking to a counselor/psychiatrist that really helped. However I want to note that everything that the counselor said, any advice, any coping methods people put online, I already knew and practiced long before I even did research on it. I discovered them all through observation and I tried them all. Right before I started taking medication, I was at the lowest of low. I didn't even care if I died! I wasn't exactly suicidal but I didn't particularly care what happened to my own well-being! I honestly don't understand how much worse it could've been! So to come on here and look at all these people who aren't reporting very positively about medication is extremely unsettling.


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## P312 (Apr 17, 2010)

What impresses me from your story is that you're really young. You still have your all your life ahead of you. You even had finished your high school. So you can still make up for the time lost. Be sure to seize the time you have.

I was taking Zoloft for a time but I never liked to take medication. Maybe Im too proud to acept the fact that I need it. Or maybe I was afraid that all the thing I would accomplish were due to the medication instead of me. My theraphist suggest that I should go back to the medication and perhaps consider an anxiolityc. Reading about your history make whant to try. It could work


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## Whitney (Oct 2, 2008)

I'm really glad that the medication is working for you, but you must understand that it is not a cure. You have not eliminated your SAD, you have only suppressed it. You need to actively work to change the way your brain works. The best way to do this is to get into Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. If you don't do that, then as soon as you stop taking the medication all your old symptoms will return. And you do not want to be dependent on medication for the rest of your life.

I like this quote from Dr. Richard's Overcoming Society Anxiety program:


> Contrary to popular belief, medication does not permanently change "brain chemistry." It may help temporarily and can be a positive thing if people realize that the drug is not "curing" them. The only way to permanently change neural pathways in the brain is by reconditioning your brain to think, believe, and act differently.


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## KPK (Jan 8, 2010)

Whitney said:


> I'm really glad that the medication is working for you, but you must understand that it is not a cure. You have not eliminated your SAD, you have only suppressed it. You need to actively work to change the way your brain works. The best way to do this is to get into Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. If you don't do that, then as soon as you stop taking the medication all your old symptoms will return. And you do not want to be dependent on medication for the rest of your life.
> 
> I like this quote from Dr. Richard's Overcoming Society Anxiety program:


Yes I do understand that. That is something I thought well ahead of before I started taking medication. I know of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and it's benefits and I'm planning on pursuing that. I predict that down the line, the medication's effectiveness will be decrease but most of the SAD for me was the anxiety part of it. The feeling you get in social situations was unbearable and THAT is mostly "cured" as of now. I'm still awkward and social situations still confuse me so I'm sure CBT will help that but SAD barely exists in my eyes now. I even did a speech in spanish class (did better than most that went up there!) and I never ever EVER would've been able to do that without medication. I'm also glad the medication is working  Maybe I can just see medication as a temporary thing to help me before CBT fully works.

In reality, the medication isn't a permanent treatment but my exaggerated words in my original post would've given me great hope as someone who was struggling badly before taking meds. Going online and simply viewing the truth, reality was off-putting to me and it just made things worse. Hope was something I could've needed more of, that's all  Going online and reading that CBT was the permanent treatment and it would take MONTHS certainly prolonged my pursuing of medication and fixing things. Hearing of medication to help me is what sealed the deal, because it's something tangible and not too far-off. So many people go undiagnosed and go untreated with SAD. In my own experience, giving hope like that, even if it's stretching the truth, motivates SADers to go out and get help.


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## millenniumman75 (Feb 4, 2005)

Good for you, KPK! :boogie :boogie :boogie


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## elex smith (Jun 16, 2010)

Use Canestan. You can get it in a pharmacy and dont need a prescription. For vaginal thrust you should get the pessary type or Canestan duo that has the pessary and cream. You dont need to go to a docotr unless it doesnt clear up.


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## sherbert (Jun 24, 2005)

I started to take medication when I was around fourteen. It worked tremendously, but the underlying problems were still there. So while I experience considerably less symptoms I still avoid many social situations. And I still struggle with my inner monologue. 


I think this is an excellent jumping off point and you should go with it, but there's a reason why we are warning you. SA is part of the personality as much as anything else. So you have to work deeply at it to effectively learn different ways of reacting to social situations. That is very difficult to do. 


It's not that the medication doesn't work, but it is only part of the equation.


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