Question: "Call someone, talk with someone, meet with someone. Go for a walk. Listen to music. Take a shower. Go for a run. Exercise. You need to stay engaged."

Okay, done all that yesterday, except go for a run. Avoided alcohol. My prescibing psychiatrist is responding to me more often to see how I am doing. I told her that I think I am improving, and that I hope to continue improving.


Question: As prescribed, I now have a licensed online therapist working with me, one who is also a RN with considerable past experience with people like me. She tends to focus on what's happened in my life a long time ago. But as you have noted, generalized anxiety doesn't need a trigger based on specific worries or fears. Shouldn't she spend more time teaching me CBT techniques on how to manage my anxiety spells, like how you have been?

Bless her soul, she's working hard to convince me that I don't actualy have brain damage. At times, I feel like I've yet to be convinced.

Okay, I know that I'm asking another question right now before the other one has been answered, but for some reason, I seem to be experiencing much more feeling of dizziness and disorientation than I had been in days before, even yesterday. I have not been taking anything else except the 10 mg Lexapro this morning. I've heard that this can be a side effect of Lexapro. How long will I have to put up with this? I increased my dosage from 5 mg to 10 mg last Tuesday, and it seems like every day since is different. This question is much more important than my previous one, as it has a very direct impact on my daily living. It's noon, and I'm still feeling it.

Seriously, you are the only with with expertise that I can talk to you about what's happening to me. My prescribing psychiatrist is probably not going to respond until Monday or after. I am committed to staying on Lexapro, because I do not see any realistic alternative. I do believe Lexapro is working for me, although not so quickly or brilliantly. I'll wait. But the feeling I have is persistent, like feeling drunk all the time, even though I have not been drinking. This has lasted all day so far, and it's driving me batty. Maybe it's just another manifestation of anxiety, I don't know, but I thought anxiety kind of comes and goes. The usual methods of quelling it doens't seem to work now. Yesterday had been pretty good, last night I felt calm and even normal, like my old self. Now I have this, and have no idea at all how to handle this. This is a tough, tough situation for me, it's discouraging and demoralizing. Please talk to me about this.

Well, keep talking sense to me. Some people that are close to me are saying I should maybe cut my dose back to 5 mg. If I feel again feel better this evening, then I'll stay on 10 mg and keep putting up with this. I'm trying to fight this, but I need to know who or what to believe, and that can be hard when I'm distrressed. Desperate people do desperate things. This is a very confusing, bewildering time for me. I am hoping this is all part of the adjustment period.

Yes, you're right, this is anxiety. At least that's what it is right now. Is there a question here? Well, why do you keep strongly recommend that I stay on Lexapro at prescribed dosages, instead of suggesting that I cut back or switch medications? Not that I really want to be switching medications anyway, just trying to understand why I am having such a hard time. I want to believe that this is going to pay off. All right, I really must avoid taking that shot of alcohol now. I'll just sit tight in my chair and wait it out and hope I can call some friends.

Oh god I'm really going bananas now. Why does it have to be this hard? Okay, that was the 4th question, I'll close and rate after this one. Man, I just cannot believe this! I feel like I'm going insane.