Topic

... that l NEED to take medicine to help control my anxiety and l will probably be on it for the rest of my life regardless of how much he hates it and disapproves.

My form of anxiety seems to attack the things l love the most:
Meeting with groups of people (religiously and secularly), traveling, driving, playing video games.It does not matter how **relaxed** l am, BOOM- adrenaline surge after adrenaline surge hits me (l feel it in my face)... even though I am not concerned about them any more because I've lived with them so long and KNOW what they are- they still progress.At their worst, I will be stricken by 6 or more every minute for hours on end.
After awhile l start having a hard time ''breathing''.Again, that does not concern me.Whenever l find myself forcing yawns to get full lungfuls of air, l realize it is just another manifestation of my anxiety and l roll my eyes at myself.
When I am behind the wheel of a car l know that- after the surges and after the forced yawning- eventually l will feel thoroughly exhausted and l will start seeing two ''realities''- a dream will be foremost in my vision and the road will be behind it... almost as if seeing someone walking behind a screen.
After that, catepexia strikes and l lose control of my muscles, my speech will slur and l will fall asleep completely (pass out?) until one of the surges l hate so much strikes me to my senses and l come to.
Then the cycle repeats itself.
From there, my chest will become so tight that l can actually pop it as if it was one of my fingers.

And that is just the ''anxiety''.l have PMDD so badly l can not even walk the first couple days of my period because l feel as if I'd been repeatedly kneed and my cervix dilated beyond what is needed even for birth.

When I am on my meds, the worst of those are eliminated!!!!
And the real kick in the seat is that my hubby is an Ophthalmologist.He regularly prescribes meds and even operates on people.
Why does he have such a hard time with psychiatry and psychiatric meds?

How can l make my hubby understand how much these meds help and how much his riding me about them does NOT help.
I've been with my hubby for 10 years (married 8) and I've been seeing my Psychiatrist for about 7 years every single month.
l could not ignore the problems any longer when l fell asleep while driving our 40 foot long RV (not counting the 20 foot long car trailer) through the heart of Atlanta city during rush hour!

I've been taking Lexapro, Strattera and Provigil for several years now but I've stopped so l can have a sleep study done.My pdoc also wants me to have an EEG done to rule out seizures because my anxiety/panic does not make a lot of sense- but the meds work regardless.

My husband *can be* such a jerk about my treatment that I've stopped in the past and to keep that from happening again, my pdoc gives me samples when he has them.Hubby does not tend to give me a hard time if l do not talk about the problems or ask for extra money to buy them (out of sight out of mind).
l just do not understand why hubby does not understand how much this effects me?
And l will NEVER be able to convince him to go to counseling.My pdoc has offered to speak with him several times, but hubby wont.

 

How can I make my husband understand... (long)

Dear sister, men can indeed be real pigs sometimes. I suffer panic disorder & my attacks a very much like what u describe. While panic attacks most generally ( yeah, right! ) resolve or peak with in 20 minutes or so, there is a very small percentage of us who DO suffer prolonged attacks. it does happen.
My hubby was (WAS) the same way until there was a very drastic change in my behavior. I ended up in the MHU at the hospital as a result. At one point, we had argued about the ''all in ur head vs. real'' thing & I wished it on him to feel just half of what we go through.
*** And yes, before anyone says it was wrong for me to do that, I know, but he deserved it***
He finally saw the results of my pain (which landed me in the MHU); I had lost control & did some major cutting. It freaked him out! In addition, some months later, he did indeed experience a panic attack, although mild. After that, he understood, cried to me & said he was sorry for acting the way he did. Even though I told him I was sorry for wishing it on him, he said that without it happening to him, he probably never would have understood. I have been SI free for several months now & proud of it. I still have my days, & some r unbearable, but Jehovah sustains me ;)

All of this being said, I do NOT recommend cutting or wishing this on ones un-understanding spouse. Try printing off some material from the APA is or NIH is websites. Ask u p-doc to copy the info about ur disorders & the risks involved from his DSM IV & find a way to make ur hubby read it, or read it to him. Somewhere, somethings gotta give.
For those who have never been in our shoes, living with a spouse that does not want to understand only exacerbates our symptoms in so many ways. Hang in there & pray & lean on Jehovah to get u through this, to find a way to get ur hubby to understand & to bring some peace into ur life & marriage.

Agape

 

How can I make my husband understand... (long)

Maybe your husband is from the old male school thinking that being married to a nutcase reflects on him. Mental illness and the stigma of it. Or maybe he feels helpless because he is of the medical community and here he can not help you. But you've only mentioned psychological treatment, have you been tested for other medical causes for what you've described?

 

How can I make my husband understand... (long)

I say, forget about him and what he wants. You do what is right for you. Those are horrible symptoms. I would do exactly what you are doing. He has no right to interfere with your medical problems.

 

How can I make my husband understand... (long)

I do not know but have u searched for some natural treatment?

http://waisays.com
http://freeacnebook.com

The links above were recommended by someone with the same problem on Cure Zone at http://curezone.com/forums/fm.asp?i=1056763#i

You might also want to consider indium sulfate (any other form of indium is unsafe) which is reported to be effective for any glandular problem. http://indiumease.net/book.htm
A trace element supplement may also help such as Concentrace, but may take up to 90 days to get results.

I am not a doctor or practitioner of any kind. I just read a lot about natural & alternative medicine & supplements etc. These might be worth the try. I do not really know.

Edit:
Use ur present medication of course but do not give up looking for healthier alternatives.

 

How can I make my husband understand... (long)

I did not know what catepexia meant so I googled it & it has something to do with narcolepsy which is a sleep disorder. So
how do u know about this & why do u think u have it?

It is obvious u have some mental health issues & need to
see a qualified licensed psychiatrist who can prescribe something
to help you. Would ur husband approve of that or does he
just have a problem prescribing non-eye condition prescriptions?

He should have a problem with that because the DEA will get
all over him for prescribing drugs just because he has a license,
but not to do with his field. I know because I knew a dentist who
tried to help a friend with problems that were non-dental & got
into problems & almost lost his license.

So get yourself some professional help & u will be a lot
better.

I have linked to a site about narcolepsy since u mentioned
catepexia.

Best regards,

Limo

 

How can I make my husband understand... (long)

Unfortunately, people have a very hard time accepting illness such as anxiety, depression or bipolar. Most people believe that illnesses such as that r ''all in ur head'' & can be fixed if u just ''snap out of it''. I have explained my bipolar disorder to people as if I have diabetes. If I was diabetic, I would have to take medication everyday in order to live & be healthy.

I am very surprised that he has trouble understanding this, as he is a medical professional. Try explaining it that way & see if he gets it. If not, I would suggest getting some counselling for both of you.

Best of Luck to u both!

 

How can I make my husband understand... (long)

How long have you been married? Could he be stressed about other issues and taking out on this issue? Or is he just being a big jerk?

If he is riding you about this issue, then, perhaps he needs to go with you to a counseling session. It is hard to drag his butt to one of these. However, he sounds as though he is being really insensitive. Hammer this issue with him now!

You can not ''make'' him understand. However, if he wants a good marriage, he needs to try.

 

How can I make my husband understand... (long)

The solution is to let go of ur compulsion to get him to understand. When & if he is ready, he will accept it. As an individual with medical training, he certainly has the intellectual capacity to do so. However, regardless of whether or not ur husband approves, u need to continue ur medication.

That is the bottom line.

Hang in there,
~M~

p.s. Your description of these episodes is such that I would strongly suspect neurological involvement. If u have not yet seen a neurologist for a complete evaluation, I strongly recommend that u do so.