Posted by Lao Tzu on February 25, 2011, at 13:44:12
In reply to for lao..., posted by Christ_empowered on February 25, 2011, at 9:39:58
Hi. My diagnosis is schizophrenia with generalized anxiety disorder and some depression. Since I've been adding vitamins to my medication, the depression and anxiety have gone way down, but I still have this hypervigilance thing. I guess it is related to the schizophrenia, where you are keenly aware of your environment and the people in it. I, at times, get anxious over innocuous noises. It used to be an exaggerated startle response years ago before the medication. Now it's just a little anxiety and hightened arousal. I know it is a symptom of the schizophrenia, so when it happens I just tell myself to relax and think rationally. Once I'm out of the situation, it takes me a little while to relax, but I know I can do it. That's why I have problems being around strangers. Somehow I fear them even though there is no logical reason to. Since I've been using higher dosages of zinc picolinate and B6, the hypervigilance is better but not completely extinct. I just have to realize that it's a fabrication of my own mind, and that I can gain control if I try hard. So you are correct. Certain supplements used for schizophrenia, such as B3, B6, C, and zinc are very helpful. I don't feel exactly normal, but at least the anxiety is better and I seem to behave more rationally. Someday, scientists will figure out the etiology of schizophrenia and I will be in better shape. Lately, I have been relying on some Cognitive Behavioral Techniques which seem to help. I read a lot on the subject of modifying negative cognitions, and this seems to help somewhat. I've often thought that maybe it's just neurotransmitters, but I think it is much more than that. Several years ago, before my Risperdal injections, I was prescribed Ativan for severe anxiety. It really helped me, but it didn't solve the schizophrenia. I sometimes wish I had some Ativan on hand, but then I think that I can learn to adapt without it. And I was right, though it takes more effort on my part to relax rather than relying on a drug to mellow me. I think the Risperdal helps as far as thinking rationally, not so much as a sedative, which I used to rely on heavily for years. There is something to benzodiazepine use that makes you feel normal, but more research needs to be done on GABA receptors. The answer doesn't really lie with benzodiazepines. They are antiquated drugs started in the 1960s. We have to look forward and beyond this class of medication. Risperdal is a godsend for me, but I still have symptoms of schizophrenia which are not exactly cured with Risperdal. Hopefully, the new glutamate drugs coming out in the next 5 years or so will shine some light on further development into the causes of schizophrenia. Then I think, perhaps, the schizophrenia is only one area that I am being treated for. Technically, I no longer have psychosis, but maybe the residual anxiety and depression can be worked out with other therapies. Maybe genes are involved, and perhaps you can't correct that, but you can correct the symptoms with medication and to a small extent, certain supplements. However, it is a mystery to me that I still have certain symptoms. Individual therapy or group therapy theoretically may help me cope with these residual symptoms where the meds fail to do so. I always believed psychology and your environment had something to do with schizophrenia. Some people like myself are just extremely sensitive to our environment, whereas other people thrive on stress and stimulating environments. Is that a form of natural selection? I think it could be. If I were born a hundred years ago, I probably would have ended up in an institution for the rest of my days, and my life would be poor, and I probably would be forgotten because nobody knew how to treat this illness. I thank God that I have been so fortunate to have been born in an era where science is slowly unlocking the mystery of mental illness. I am very lucky in a lot of ways. Some people are more sympathetic nowadays and fight for patients' right to live normal lives just like everybody else.
Lao
poster:Lao Tzu
thread:979641
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20110214/msgs/979768.html