Posted by:
Gay Philosopher
(
)
Date: November 28, 2012 10:48PM
Hi All,
For those who suffer from an anxiety disorder, I thought I'd update you with my own experiences on a low dose of the newest SSRI, Viibryd. I've been taking 10 mg/d for the past six weeks. (The normal dose is 40 mg/d, though from what I've read, a lot of people take 20 mg/d, and 40 mg/d seems to be too much.)
On the first day, there was a noticeable anti-anxiety effect, and I felt myself breaking out into a smile, inexplicably. It definitely had a mood lifting effect (though I don't suffer from depression). This dissipated after two days. Also, for the first two or three days, I had softer than normal stools and some bloating, but it was mild.
Each night, no matter when I went to bed, I'd only sleep for four or five hours before awakening, and not be able to get back to sleep. I would always awaken in the same pattern--turning from one side to the other, again and again, until I was fully awake. I had wondered, after five weeks, if this might be a consequence of a side-effect called restless legs syndrome, but now I don't think so. The turning in bed behavior has stopped. I'm still probably only sleeping five hours each night, or a little longer, but my normal average is about six hours. I hope that within two weeks, I'll be able to get at least six hours of sleep in each night. I should add that despite the five hours of sleep, I haven't felt tired during the day. Rarely, the Viibryd has made me a bit sleepy, but at 10 mg/d, it doesn't happen very often, and it's mild. (This is one of the reasons that I've hesitated to move to 20 mg/d. For me, it's not needed, and the last time that I tried this experiment at 20 mg/d, it produced significant daytime sleepiness. Unless I was moving around, I could sleep all day--and night! That caused more anxiety than it helped.)
Anyway, here's the good news about Viibryd: there haven't been any sexual side-effects, nor has there been any obvious effect on appetite. It seems to be a weight- (i.e. fat-) neutral drug.
In my particular case, it's alleviated the pathological anxiety that I'd had a very hard time coping with. It's not that I'm a new person. I'm the person that I've always been, minus the pathological anxiety. It doesn't completely erase anxiety, but it makes it so that I can deal with it, rather than being its prisoner.
For example, before Viibryd, every day was difficult to get through. A friend who suffers similar symptoms said that before taking his meds, he was a cowering bundle of fear that avoided everything and everyone. I can really relate to that. After the meds, my friend was fine. In my case, hypochondria is a prominent feature of my anxiety. The thought of getting an annual physical was harrowing. Before Viibryd, forcing myself to set up an appointment involved an incredible internal battle. After Viibryd, I went through with a physical, and everything was fine, and I was greatly relieved. The drug didn't take away my apprehension, but turned down the volume to keep me from freaking out, so that I could do what I needed to do.
Before Viibryd, the prospect of getting a physical seemed--from the standpoint of anxiety--like standing in front of a firing squad. Afterward, I could deal with it.
The real difference between someone with generalized anxiety disorder and someone without it is that our freakout threshold is a lot, lot, LOT lower than a normal person's freakout threshold, and the intensity of what we experience when we freak out is a LOT, LOT higher than what an ordinary person experiences. The volume is always turned all the way up, and--on our own, through sheer willpower--there's no way to turn it down.
So, in summary, a lower than normal dose of Viibryd has, for me, made a significant improvement in the quality of my life. It has even made me more outgoing. (I'm a slight introvert by nature.) It's easier to get through life when you're not freaking out over small (and large) things at the drop of a hat.
When I say freaking out, I don't mean that it would be visible (i.e. noticeable) to outside observers. With me, it meant sweaty palms, obsessive thoughts about something bad happening, hypochondria, hyper-vigilance, avoidance of situations and people--such as that annual physical, etc.
Taking Viibryd has basically calmed my amygdala down, which was always the goal, because the amygdala is the center of the fireworks in the brain associated with any anxiety disorder.
I have no idea if Viibryd will keep working for me. A lot of people say that after months or years, whichever drug they use stops working for reasons that no one understands yet. Hopefully that won't happen in my case. At this point, I don't have any desire whatsoever to stop taking Viibryd. It really has made a significant improvement in the quality of my life, even at the very low dose that I'm taking (which is a strong indicator of either a placebo effect--which I seriously doubt--or that my neurochemistry really was screwed up, and Viibryd basically fixed, or at least drastically improved, it). I'm very grateful that it works.
One question that people interested in starting Viibryd might have is: How long does it take to work? For me, it began working right away. Within a month, there was a definite improvement. The effect isn't dramatic. It's somewhat subtle, but definitely noticeable. For me not to avoid strangers, but occasionally approach and interact with them, as an extravert might, is a not-so-minor miracle. I've read of other people who have said that you need to give it eight weeks before it truly begins to work. If, by then, it hasn't helped, it's not going to.
I felt really good today. When I compare that with my pre-Viibryd, highly neurotic, fearful self, it's been a night-and-day difference.
If anyone is struggling with the question: Should I take an SSRI? I strongly recommend that you give it a try, and not worry. Don't be discouraged if you don't find the right SSRI right away. There are a lot in the parmacological armory, so keep at it. The results will truly be worth it, once you find one that works, and doesn't give you intolerable side-effects.
Finally, in battling generalized anxiety disorder, at various times, I've used Paxil, and tried Prozac, Effexor, Lexapro, and Zoloft. Paxil made me gain massive amounts of fat (which I've subsequently lost, thankfully.) Prozac made me constantly and substantially sleepy. Effexor had that same effect, to a lesser degree, and I wasn't on it for very long. Lexapro was good, except that I was allergic to it; I developed hives and had to stop taking it. Viibryd is the only one I've been on that has basically worked for me without any notable side-effects to speak of, and I've got my fingers crossed that it'll continue to work.
If there are any questions that I can answer for anyone about my own experiences, or just offer moral support, please feel free to follow up on this post, or to e-mail me at gayphilospher at gmail dot com.
Best Wishes to My Fellow Mental Wellness Athletes (which is what we really are--athletes in training, surmounting obstacles, getting better and better, one day at a time),
Steve