The Stigma of Anxiety Medication
After my daughter Sylvia was born I struggled to sleep. Lack of sleep for me and for many others can result in added feelings of stress and anxiety and I found myself visiting the doctor for the first time and being prescribed medication to help keep my anxiety in check.
However with anxiety medication came a stigma of being labeled “mentally ill” or unable to cope, when in reality I was just a mother with sleep deprivation struggling with a stressful situation.
Prescribed Anxiety Medication
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The first time I was prescribed anxiety medication from a doctor I didn’t know how to feel. I was hopeful my life would feel better, that the worries in my head and stresses would calm down and that I’d be less wired and alert especially at night time.
Whilst anxiety medication can help and it helped me a little, I soon discovered that the best solution for me was self help, mindfulness, doing breathing techniques and speaking with a therapist.
Anxiety Therapy and Medication
I think a combination of anxiety medication and therapy was and is best for myself. As I learn techniques to remain calm, to stay focussed and to talk to calm about my worries I am able to do more and function better. In fact, I think therapy for me or anxiety counselling is far better than taking a tablet.
There is a stigma around taking medication especially for anxiety and when I was first prescribed this I was ashamed, embarrassed and worried what people would think. Now I just take my tablet each day, it helps somewhat but I focus more on what I can do to be calm when my thoughts get ahead of me and I find myself stressed out.
I’m not so worried what people think of me, I’m more concerned about being able to feel in control and relaxed and being able to use self help techniques that my counsellor taught me in the past.
Finding an Anxiety Therapist
From time to time people relapse or anxiety may get so out of control that someone needs counselling or therapy and when you are anxious that compounds things and makes it worse as you are anxious to begin therapy.
When this happens you may need to find a good counsellor or anxiety therapist and may start looking online. Better help have an article all about how to find a good anxiety therapist, it also lists the symptoms of anxiety. I love the idea of an online therapist for anxiety as many people with this condition may struggle to leave the home or make it to an counsellors office. Click here to find out more about finding the right therapist for you.
When considering a new therapist you may want to look at the credentials or speciality of the counsellor. For example you don’t want to go to a marriage therapist for a personal issue and you wouldn’t want to go to an anxiety specialist if you needed help with another problem. Finding someone who has experience with your condition is super important and can really help.
