quick question about medications

I just talked to my medical doctor about it. I had an appointment anyhow, and took a deep breath, told him I was coming out, got all the standard tests, and also mentioned that I was having some depression issues related to it. He gave me a prescription for Citalopram (I think Celexia is another name for it), which takes several weeks to really kick in. It was the lowest possible dosage, too.

I personally found it helpful to just level off my moods a bit. My problem was mostly with the feelings of insecurity and fear that my mood changes were causing, and having them leveled off for a while helped me get my brain into a state where I could think a little more rationally. The prescription had a year's worth of refills but I actually stopped taking them after about 4 months because I felt as though I wanted to see if I was better able to cope, and actually, I was. The meds just gave my emotions a little break from the ups and downs and allowed me to think my way through things more clearly.

From what you've described of your home life, I think you could ask your doctor about meds just based on the other issues and not bring up being gay at all (although long-term finding a more gay-friendly doctor would probably be a good idea).

 

find a psychatrist in your area and make sure they are LGBT friendly.

from my personal extensive experience with psychatric meds, more often than not it can be frustrating because they take (generally) a few weeks to start working and can have unpleaseant effects. it's a lot of trial and error to find what will and what wont work.

General practitioners are sometimes good with psychatric meds (mine is) but sometimes won't touch anything that isn't an SSRI and will just refer you to a psych anyway.

 

I have dealt with a couple bouts of depression for various periods during my adult life, and have found the medication to be invaluable. Typically I have just gotten meds from my family practice/internal medicine doctor. The thought of a psychotherapist and having to talk about my innermost thoughts and feelings was way too overwhelming when I was depressed.

Antidepressants affect different people in different ways. I find that they makes me a little emotionally numb/apathetic, which during a dark time is really helpful and helps me dig out of my hole, but then eventually starts to feel a little cloying and I dislike it.

It's a little scary taking something that broadly screws with your neurotransmitters (hello weird vivid dreams), but if you're finding that your ability to enjoy life is materially impacted by persistent down moods -- like for me I would totally observe changes in my appetite, sleep habits, not wanting to do anything, etc., and just wanted to punch people in the face when they tried to be helpful saying "you should exercise more, you'll feel better!" -- go for it. It's not worth suffering.

 

I've been on antidepressants and Ativan for anxiety for a number of years due to a number of issues...primarily chemical imbalances...there are some side effects...I'm on one now that has no sexual side effects...they've gotten me through some hard times and sort of balance me out...they are far from "happy" pills though...I've an excellent internist who is very non-judgmental and a gay therapist. Get a new doctor and go from there...most will tell you that you need a therapist as well. Good luck.

 

I agree with the advice on here. The only thing I would add is to give yourself time for the medicine to work. I was ready to stop taking my anti-depressant because I didnt feel it was helping. My dr suggested giving it another couple of weeks. Glad I did. I take Efexor and it took about 5 or 6 weeks to help.

 

Well, he sounds like a judgmental dork. Get another one.

You can go to any doctor for meds, or a psychiatrist if you prefer. Both have capability to prescribe.

As others have said, they can take a few weeks to take effect. And it may be a bit hit and miss on the the dosage front.

 

I've been on two different antidepressants this last year. The first, Effexor was not so good for me as just when I wanted to experience just how much men turned me on, that drug made orgasm really hard (no pun intended) to achieve. So I switched to one without that side effect (Buproprion in Canada). It helped me be less despondent but my psychologist and I felt it also 'numbed' me a bit to what I was trying to accomplish.. in other words, without feeling somewhat poorly about my current situation (married, gay and 59!) I might be less likely to move forward. So I stopped it.

But... I want to say this is a very individual experience. In my setting a good family doc (mine is good... she knows what's going on and is hugely supportive of me figuring it out on my own time course) with whom I can share it all is critical. She knew instantly that the orgasm challenges made using Effexor a barrier to my 'figuring things out'.

So... find someone who can prescribe and share it all if you can. The drug is not an instant fix but just might be a great adjunct in your toolbox of supports.

 

As far as the homophobic doctor, you really need to get rid of him. I had a doctor who hadn't shown any signs of being homophobic, but I didn't feel comfortable talking to him about being gay. That's a really bad situation, because we can't get the health care we need if we can't be honest with our doctor, whether it is his fault or as in my case my own fault. So, based on advice I got on EC, I went on google and searched for gay friendly doctors. I found a clinic in the gayborhood of a nearby city, and went there last week for my annual physical. OMG, it was the best annual physical I have ever had. I spoke freely, I felt at ease, and he did more tests and gave me a lot of advice specific to my situation. I can't say enough about what a difference it makes. And he recommended some psych therapists who he thought I would feel comfortable with, and could relate to.
As far as the meds, well, I've been there before. I think that when it's really bad, it's worth taking them. I took them, when I had a really bad depression. But my goal was to get off of them. I think that a regular doctor might just prescribe the meds; whereas a psychiatrist would combine it with talk therapy. I blew it the last time because I was afraid to tell the doctor I was gay, so the elephant just stood there in the middle of the living room. next time will be different.

 

As far as finding a gay friendly doctor, you might actually check with your insurance company. Our insurance, which we get through my employer, actually has a database of doctors which is searchable by a variety of things: distance, specialty, characteristics. I was very surprised to find that "gay friendly" and even "gay" were searchable characteristics. I was surprised how many of the doctors in my area have made a point of identifying themselves as "gay friendly" and/or "gay."

 

Medications are only good for certain conditions. And the Dr prescribing them must know EVERYTHING there is to know about depression and anxiety in order to correctly diagnose and prescribe the right drug.

Most doctors do not even know the slightest thing about the thousands of differing causes and effects of disorders like this.

Some disorders are chemical imbalances in the body. Some are caused by high stress factors. Some are caused by food reactions (yes, you can eat your way to depression).
Some are caused by many other things.

First, you have to find out what EXACTLY is causing your problem(s). If you or the Dr does not know exactly what is causing your disorder, then there is NO way that any medication will work correctly. A lot of doctors just "throw pills at the problem". You need to stay away from doctors like that.

You might need to go see a specialist. You might look up online, the national organization for whatever type of specialist doctor you need, to see if they have any referrals in your area.

Other than that, I don't know what to say......since I don't know your details in full.

 

I need something..
Dr did give me a Load of painkillers, containing morphine! Yummy
Find that I loose my rag at a drop of a hat on them when it gets to much, and end up lashing out, so I try not to take. Ideally need a few more tools in my belt to help, top reversed helps but also helps inward thinking...
Alcahol no good.
Having said that, im here now drinking whiskey and high on morphine! Yeay!!
But did have to be dry and clean for six months last year after getting on the spirits each night for a few months..
But it id valentines weekend, quite one of the most emotional times of the year, and ill take what I can get.
Tweezering the hairs out ofy legs helps, and is big pharma free, and dispells the self harm feelings, tai chi is brilliant, .
Quite worried about my mental health, although is a lot better than 12 months ago.
All the best to all

 

Just makes me show less emotion and care a lot less.

 

I was on Effexor for 8 years. I guess it helped at first, and I'm not sure that it was really what I needed.

Getting off of it was awful. Id exhaust other related drugs first.

And talk therapy has been more effective than anything.

 

This is a good post for the OP to consider.

Looking at the bright side of things, the fact that you don't even need to be seeing a doctor right now for organic issues is good. I have to. I have some scrips I need to get refilled so I go in about 3 times a year. I don't know how my doctor feels about me and what I've let on as to my extracurricular activities. Part of me tells me it's ok because he works with a very diverse patient population and part of me tells me he probably can't relate to my specific situation and really doesn't have the time to think about it. He is aware of the fact that I also see a therapist and that that health provider is more critical to me at this time.

As for my meds, I get the antidepressants from my primary care doctor. The mental health professional is a licensed psychologist, so he can't prescribe them. I've been on my meds for a long time and, frankly, they haven't lifted me up that much but they've prevented some potentially deep(er) troughs and have evened out the cyclicality, which I felt, even though I'm almost sure it's not a manic depressive condition but more of a bouncing around between some midpoint and a trough. If this is what they wind up doing for you, it could be better than not being on an antidepressant. I'm on sertraline (previously Zoloft) and have had no organic side effects that any blood work has picked up. If I have some other issues, it's because of being unable to push away plates with food that is fatty and delicious.

The medication mentioned (in bold) seems to have gone generic, seeing it has two names, which is always a good thing. As for a gay friendly doctor, you need not necessarily have one who is listed on some directory and happens to be someone you don't like because gay friendly doesn't necessarily translate into a good bedside manner. I'd prefer one who is comfortable with a diverse patient population and is true to his or her Hippocratic oath, meaning they are not that judgmental. You should start looking for a new doctor sooner than later. I actually benefited from the fact that the ACA caused my private insurance to shuffle around its provider list and actually force me to get a new one. I like both my doctor and his office staff a LOT more than my previous one.

As said above, you can just state that you are feeling depressed because of what is going on in your household and in your marriage, and reveal what you see fit when you find a doctor you can be more candid with. Good luck!

 

Pete, a very important bit of information about those who can prescribe drugs to deal with depression and anxiety.

Medical doctors such as GPs are often the first place people go to for these drugs. Many will offer basic antidepressants and monitoring but will only use the drugs up to a certain strength. Some drugs have physical side effects such as possible heart damage and some are more potent than many GPs care to use because they really need a psychiatrist's oversight. A psychiatrist can use more powerful drugs which may have more powerful side effects and require management beyond what many GPs are comfortable with. Another avenue worth considering is behavioral counseling of some sort which may not even use drugs. Basically, psychiatrists tend to take a drug-based medical approach and GPs and behavioral therapists tend to be more broad based and are apt to use fewer potent drugs.

You should have a thorough conversation with your primary care provider [GP] as to which course is preferable for you. You may want to try one avenue and then another.

As for your homophobic doctor. Dump him and tell him why in the process. Such a doctor in the 21st century is an unconscionable misfit in the medical profession. No medical professional worth their salt makes such judgments.

These drugs can be very powerful allies in dealing with you difficulties, but it is important to work with the professionals in using them.

 

Just a note about the drugs: It's not so simple as an antibiotic, where you are helping your body kill something, or a blood pressure pill where you are just slowing down your heart beat a little. It takes time for your mind to center itself again when you start these things. Two to four weeks to reach best effect, and you could have some restlessness during that transition.

 

Some doctors and other health professionals can be pricks. They think they're above the fray. Not many people unload on their doctors. More people probably should.

I agree.