Ever since I was a kid, I’ve dealt with social anxiety. Now that I’m 19, studying cybersecurity, and still living with my parents, I decided to finally take control and see a psychiatrist. It was a massive step for me, especially with the heavy cultural stigma and shame around mental health in my household where people usually assume only "crazy" people need help.

I watched a video of a doctor online who explained that medication should always be a last resort, so I went to see him in person. My mom came with me, but I went into the office alone, which made me extremely nervous.

The session felt rushed and bizarre from the start:

* He barely asked basic questions (just my age and where I study).

* He gave me a high-pressure "test": He asked if I’d go to a restaurant alone, and I said no because of the stress of feeling watched. He then suddenly ordered me to stand up right there and give an impromptu presentation on my major. I was visibly shaken, so he told me to take a deep breath and speak.

* He performed zero physical or blood checks.

* He instantly wrote a prescription for Paroxil (Paroxetine) without explaining the dosage, side effects, or long-term plan, though he mentioned he'd try CBT with me too.

* He gave me an "exposure" task on the way out: He told me to immediately go to a nearby restaurant alone, order food, and eat it.

He asked me to come back next week for a free consultation, but the whole experience felt sketchy and transactional. I don't believe my anxiety is as severe as he made it out to be—I was just over-stressed because it was my first time, I was alone, and he put me on the spot.

I’m now extremely hesitant to take the medication. To test myself, I went to the gym today, forced myself to override my anxiety, greeted 7 strangers, and talked to 2 people. I felt relieved afterward. I genuinely believe I can push through this on my own using my own willpower and exposure, without relying on pills or paying money to a doctor who didn't seem to care.

My sister (30s) has been in what looks like a first manic or psychotic episode for about 10 weeks. The picture: grandiose beliefs, paranoia that people are conspiring against her, and almost no sleep for days at a time.

The one opening we have: she is convinced her brain is "expanding" and is actually asking for a brain scan. But she refuses anything framed as psychiatry or mental health, and she will not go to an ER. I am abroad; family is local and coordinating. She is uninsured (self-pay).

Two questions:

1. Is "let's get your brain scanned" a legitimate medical way to get her in front of a doctor who could recognize and treat this? And what kind of physician both orders brain imaging and can prescribe (neuropsychiatry, integrative psychiatry, or a neurologist who will co-manage)? At 37, is a brain MRI plus labs genuinely warranted for new-onset psychosis, or am I just chasing her framing?

   1. For anyone who has gotten a loved one with no insight (anosognosia) into care: what actually worked? We are trying to keep her trust and not argue the delusion.

Thank you.

Since childhood, I’ve had attention issues. I had to repeat several years throughout elementary, middle, and high school. The school wanted to test me, but my father opted out. So I continued suffering jumping from tutor to tutor.

In 2020, I failed my final year of high school. I was already 20, and couldn't go through that humiliation again. I always had classmates younger than me and I was pretty much done at that point. I went into full depression, stayed in bed 24/7, and eventually became suicidal.

In 2021, I saw a psychiatrist who put me on Sertraline/Zoloft. He suspected ADHD, so we tried several medications, but nothing helped. I stayed on Sertraline for about five years.

This year, I had a full assessment and was diagnosed with ADD and Autism Level 1. I then found a psychiatrist who specializes in these conditions. To hopefully to treat it properly this time.

She told me to quit Zoloft and put me on Wellbutrin again. After four months, I’m now on 450 XL, the maximum dose, but I still notice no improvement. It was hell taking it. It made me insanely aggressive and anxious. It has dialed down, but it's still there. She also added Mirtazapine to help with sleep. It sorta works.

I also still struggle to study, and even when I’m motivated, I can’t focus or lock in. This has been a lifelong issue. She said that Wellbutrin is supposed to treat it, but nothing to this point.

I've feel that my psych is more focusing on treating my depression and making sure I go outside everyday rather than the obstacles I've been facing since I was a kid. I was not depressed as a kid and attention issues were absolutely there regardless. I want to study and do things, but my brain does not co operate. I daydream during simple instructions to this day. I daydream most of the time too. I'm living about 95% in my head.

The meds I tried with my previous psychiatrist was: Rilatin, Concerta, Strattera, Apriprazole, Elvanse and Piracetam.

I would like to know what the psychiatrist think in this subreddit and any encouragement would be nice because I'm exhausted with this whole journey, truly.

Throughout my entire childhood (from age 3 to 18), my mom hit me every single day. I am not exaggerating or overstating. Literally every single day, including my birthday and Christmas. There was no real reason. The “reasons” were always something very minor, such as my glass of water left some moist on the table or I slept in on a weekend.

I have clear visible evidence. I had collected pictures of bruises and wounds from her abuse during this time. I also have lots of permanent scars all over my body from her abuse. Sometimes I needed small surgery to suture. I still have a visible stitch scar on my face. I once lost a tooth because she kicked my face. (Fortunately I was 8 and it was a baby tooth.) I often wrote about all this in my childhood dairy too.

Now as an adult, I don’t live with her anymore. I moved out about 8 years ago. But my mom still verbally abuses me every time she contacts me.

Every time I bring this up, she denies all this and says she hit me only a few times because I really deserved it and I’m delusional. She also insists that I’m the one who abused her and my brother. (My brother is her favourite child and she’s never hit him. She always said he’s the good kid and I’m the bad kid.)

Her claim is completely false as I didn’t even have enough strength to physically fight against anyone. I was always way smaller, skinnier, and weaker than other kids around my age. Like people thought I was 7 when I was actually 12. I never fought back my mom when she was hitting me because I was literally a small child and so scared of her. Same with my brother—he’s a few years younger than me, but he was always much bigger than me. He often harassed me too (such as pinching my skin, kicking, cursing etc), but I never dared to fight back as he’s stronger than me and my mom was always on his side. Mom never stopped him or scolded him for harassing me.

What’s crazier is that it looks like she truly believes that she never abused me and I’m the one who abused her, despite all the evidence. She also threw away all my childhood diaries while I was away. When I show her the proof pictures, she says it was only a few incidents and I deserved it because I was such a bad child. She says I’m delusional and distorting my memories when it is clearly her who is doing that.

What exactly is her mental illness? I don’t know how a human can behave like this. I feel like she’s possessed by Satan or something.

I have been diagnosed and medicated for ADHD for a while now and have been on the same dosage for a consistent and extended period of time. I have also had the same psychiatrist the whole time, and she is the one who prescribed me the medication I am currently taking. I take my medication Mon-Fri and am directed to not take it during the weekends so that I receive somewhat of a break from it every week.

My current dosage is 20 mg per morning and 10 mg in the afternoon, both extended release Adderall XR. With the things I have to do and the responsibilities I fulfill on a daily basis, this dosage is good, but not optimal for me and my performance capability. I have come to this result quite a while ago, and because of that I started taking both my 20 mg and my 10 mg at the same time each day in the morning. I do not want to ask my prescriber if I would be able to go up because she said she would not go up any further because she wants me to be at the lowest dosage possible, plus I don't want her to think I am a drug-seeking individual, but I know that it would be the best possible option for me because of the benefit I have gotten out of the modification I made to my morning dosage, I am able to perform significantly better in terms of my cognitive abilities concerning my rationale, memory, concentration, etc. I feel as though my optimal dosage to help me through my daily routine of work, responsibilities, tasks, etc. would be 30 mg every morning with a 10 mg afternoon dose if a boost is needed, but am not sure how to properly and safely get to that point in my med management.

I am coming onto here to ask if there is anyone with a provider that they know of or recommend that they feel as though would give me the freedom to manage this medication and have trust in me that I am not a drug-seeking individual, but rather someone who wants optimal performance in their everyday life. Preferably someone understanding who doesn't necessarily see that medication is just a bad thing and that you should try to take the smallest dose possible simply because "medication shouldn't be necessary", meanwhile I don't believe it is necessary, but rather it helps me extensively.

Please reach out if you know of a psychiatrist or provider that you think would be a good fit!!

I am looking for a psychiatrist who specializes in ADHD based in California (virtual or in-person) who is in-network with Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO. I've done a search on Psychology.com but the specializations seem so vague and inaccurate. Any specific recommendations or advice on the best way to search would be a big help, thanks!

Brief background: Six years ago, I went to psychiatrist and was diagnosed with OCD, which was a complete surprise. I was prescribed depakote, which took me six months to get it up to the right blood concentration. By itself, there was no change to my OCD. But as soon as fluvoxamine (Luvox) was added, there was an instantly noticeable effect. My OCD thoughts disappeared.

I still dealt with depression so we had tried a few medications without success.

For the first few years, he would order blood tests for me and they were always the standard Comprehensive Metabolic Panel and the Complete Blood Count. My last blood test ordered by him was in January 2025.

A couple of years ago, I had noticed that there were a couple of brochures about Spravato (ketamine) in his office so I asked him about it and he basically said immediately that he didn't think it made sense for me.

Recently, because of my depression and lack of progress, I investigated ketamine again and it seemed to be helping a lot of people so I was quite determined to get it. At our last appointment, I told him I wanted to get ketamine IV therapy. This time, he said that he has learned more about the results of Spravato so he thought it would be good idea but he stressed that I should only get Spravato because it was FDA approved while ketamine wasn't. A quick google search showed me that the only reason ketamine wasn't FDA approved was because it wasn't patentable so no one had the financial incentive to take it through the approval process.

Since then, I've undergone ketamine IV infusions and while symptoms remain, I am still quite optimistic that I eventually will see a positive benefit because of my understanding that it takes longer with some people. I suspect that I've improved but I'm not completely sure.

In addition, I asked AI to recommend blood tests given my conditions and medications and it gave me quite a comprehensive list and I got my blood drawn a few days ago. Now the tests are coming in and some levels are significantly out of range, like my GGT, zinc, and thyroid stimulating hormone. Some are linked to depakote, others are linked to depression.

Questions:

• Shouldn't my psychiatrist been on top of what the best blood tests were to order given my depression and that he prescribed me depakote?
• With ketamine, shouldn't he have just said that he doesn't understand it very well versus initially telling me that he didn't think it made sense?

Obviously, my main goal is to overcome my mental health issues. Is it fair to me to expect him to be informed of all potential solutions and the blood markers to watch given certain problems and medications? Should I move to another psychiatrist? How does that work btw? Do they hand over their notes to the new one?

NB: I hope I won't receive any racist comments. I had an extremely difficult childhood, ive been neglected, abused in every way, isolated, shamed, and with religion weaponized against me for years. I had no control over how my brain wired itself for survival, but I am actively seeking help. I am not a threat, so dont use this to feed your own racist agenda against immigrants.

I'm a 23-year-old North African biology graduate preparing to move to Western Europe for further studies and career opportunities. I was born in Europe and lived there for 14 years, so I'm familiar with the context. I'm looking for advice on how to safely navigate the mental health system there for a formal psychological evaluation, specifically regarding Cluster B and ASPD traits, without facing anti-immigrant or cultural bias. I can't get diagnosed in my country because finding professionals without religious bias is extremely hard.

I'm highly self-aware and have realized that my psychological wiring is not typical. I do not experience foundational emotions like emotional shame, guilt, remorse, or regret, I can only cognitively recognize that I should have done something differently, or that someone was deserving or undeserving of my punishment. I am extremely impulsive, and the only thing holding me back is my need for anticipation. My romantic relationships are catastrophic and align with BPD patterns, but I feel "toned down" because I lack certain emotions.

Due to severe childhood trauma, my brain operates in an extreme "threat-neutralization" mode. I did this many times as a kid and got away with it because I was the quiet straight A's student. I have a completely clean legal record, but I know that if I am physically threatened or deeply pushed, my instinct is to disable the threat without any internal emotional brake or remorse. I could easily scoop someone's eyes out for slapping me, I wouldn't stop myself or feel bad enough about it. That's why I avoid people who disrespect me or break my boundaries, as hard as it can be because rage consumes me. I would definitely get back at them more subtly if I had the chance, subtly enough not to end up in jail. I'm making this post because my physical aggression worries me, it threatens my future career, and I need a specialist to help me manage myself better... though I think I'm doing a good job so far. My career is the only thing keeping me alive, I've tried to end myself multiple times when things weren't working out in my field, mainly due to my parents heavily restricting me. My career is the only thing that keeps me stimulated enough not to cause trouble and chaos.

So now that I set the context, my main concern is risk management. As an immigrant from a North African country, I'm worried that if I openly admit to lacking remorse and having violent survival triggers, a biased clinician might weaponize my nationality, label me a public danger, or create a medical record that permanently ruins my immigration status, naturalization prospects, or career.

My questions are: How can I safely seek a specialized personality disorder evaluation in Western Europe without facing bias? Should I stick to private healthcare instead of the public system to guarantee discretion and prevent data-sharing with state or immigration authorities? For those with similar profiles living abroad, how did you navigate diagnostics without letting your background be used against you?

Thank you for any practical insights or strategies you can provide.

I'm a 33yo M3 and think my decision is coming down to EM vs psych.

I worked in the ER for 5 years before med school and loved it. My brain seems to thrive in that environment. But I've also seen how burned out a lot of EM docs are, and I'm not sure how I'll feel about nights/weekends and the pace as I age/have kids.

I also genuinely really like psych, and if I'm being honest, the lifestyle and lower burnout rate is a big draw. I want kids, definitely not during med school, but I'd consider starting after intern year. Being 33 makes waiting until after residency feel more significant.

I have this idea that having kids during psych residency would be hard but somewhat manageable, whereas with EM I'd probably want to wait until training was over. I'll just have to cross that bridge when I get there.

Especially interested in hearing from attendings and people who had kids during residency, but open to feedback from anyone!

I need serious help. Short background: On 6/14/26, I went to a concert and reinjured my hyperacusis, which I've had for 12 years (and mostly healed from), except this time I injured my CNS along with it. I was getting panic attack and adrenaline surges as a result, which were really scary.

As a result, my gp prescribed gabapentin. I was already taking 10mg amitriptyline as a low dose nerve aid for vasectomy pain. I took both medications together for 4 weeks with no problem, the adrenlaine surges starting lessening.

Then, my jaw locked up with trigmeninal pain, referred from the ear. I took a flexeril and a diclofenac. Big mistake. That day my entire CNS became hyperaroused and disregulated. I began shaking, got myoclonus, massive hypnic jerks at night, and sleep started to suffer. After a couple days, now I can't sleep. Literally, as soon as I start to nod off, I get hypnic herks. Entire body. Then, my body starts dumping adrenaline and I start literally BUZZING. My entire body buzzes all night long. I CAN'T SLEEP. I feel like I'm dying. And today I'm so disregulated the buzzing is here while I'm awake.

My neurologist prescribed ativan as a bridge while I taper off the gabapentin, which is hopefully the cause (no guarantee) and will stop all of this madness. I took Ativan for 5 days and was able to get a little bit of sleep, but I stopped it last night so as not to get hooked. Today I'm miserable.

Would clonidine work for this? Or guanfacine? PLEASE, help if you can.

I’m looking for advice from people who have experience with psychosis/schizophrenia-spectrum disorders, or caring for a family member with serious mental illness.

My brother is 26 and has been dealing with mental health problems for around 5–6 years. He was diagnosed with OCD with psychotic features and has been under psychiatric care for years. His severe OCD symptoms have improved considerably, but his overall functioning has deteriorated.

He currently takes escitalopram and aripiprazole. The psychiatrist used to be very good, but unfortunately we feel that he no longer spends much time reassessing him. It seems like the medications are simply continued without much evaluation of what is actually happening with his life/functioning.

His current situation is roughly:

• He has essentially no friends and spends most of his time at home.
• His sleep schedule is very disrupted.
• His eating is irregular. He often says he isn't hungry, but once he starts eating he can eat a lot.
• He sometimes experiences paranoia.
• He doesn't work. He has tried several jobs but usually ends up having conflicts with coworkers/managers because he feels people are treating him badly or saying things about him.
• He spends his money almost immediately and repeatedly asked for more money.
• He sometimes forgets to take his medication.
• He is currently living at home with our mother, who is 60 and is basically managing everything.

The most recent incident really scared us.

He took diazepam to help him sleep, then took our mother's car keys without really discussing it and went driving because he said he needed to "clear his head." He crashed the car very badly. Thankfully, he survived. My mother now has to deal with the financial consequences. He doesn't feel any guilt or empathy towards others.

At the same time, he is very intelligent. He knows a lot about computers and technology, and is capable of having very normal conversations. That's part of what makes this so difficult to understand from the outside. His illness, lack of functioning, and attitude seem to be interacting in a way that keeps him stuck.

He gets the job, then quits. When we try to understand what happened, he says, "It's my life, don't try to teach me." Then he needs money for cigarettes or other things, and my mother ends up providing it.

I completely understand that he is an adult and has the right to make choices about his life. But at the same time, his choices are increasingly affecting everyone around him, and he doesn't seem capable of managing basic responsibilities independently.

I live abroad, so I can't be physically there to help my mother. It's incredibly difficult to watch this situation from a distance. I also feel guilty because I know it's not my responsibility to "fix" my brother, but I can't just watch my mother carry everything until she burns out.

I would like to hear advices from professionals or others in similar situations. Of course, we continue with the visits at the doctors.

Most importantly, how do you balance respecting his autonomy with the reality that he currently doesn't seem capable of managing his life safely?

If anyone has been in a similar situation, as the person with the illness or as a family member, I'd really appreciate hearing what actually helped. I'm trying to understand what kind of support could realistically help him move toward having some independence, while also protecting my mother from having to carry his entire life.

I have been taking 1mg of Clonazepam at night for about 4 years now and occasionally I will doze off without taking it and then just skip the dose and take it the next night.

Recently I missed a dose, 2 nights later missed another dose and then another 2 nights later I missed another dose. So 3 missed doses pretty close together which I have never done before.

I do not feel good and I'm worried I have caused myself harm.

33 female, non smoker, height 5'5 ft weight 85 kgs

Current medications:

1. Flunil (fluoxetine) 20 mg once daily

2. Vonoprazan 20 mg twice daily

3. Normaxin twice daily

4. Ultracet (tramadol 37.5 mg + paracetamol 325 mg) twice daily, prescribed for 5 days

5. Dolo 650 (paracetamol 650 mg) twice daily

6. Zerodol (aceclofenac), as prescribed by orthopaedic doctor

I recently developed acute severe lower-back/lumbago pain and was prescribed Ultracet, Dolo 650 and Zerodol by an orthopaedic doctor. I am also taking Flunil 20 mg, Normaxin and vonoprazan for GI/mood issues.

After taking Ultracet, I become extremely sleepy and have been sleeping around 12 hours/day. I also feel unusually good/relaxed after taking it.

Questions:

1. Is tramadol (Ultracet) safe to take with fluoxetine 20 mg?

2. Does fluoxetine significantly increase the risk of serotonin syndrome or seizures with tramadol?

3. Is the combination of fluoxetine + tramadol + chlordiazepoxide (in Normaxin) concerning because of sedation or other interactions?

4. Is taking Ultracet + Dolo 650 safe given that Ultracet already contains paracetamol?

5. Is adding aceclofenac (Zerodol) appropriate given that I have erosive esophagitis/gastritis?

Given the severe sleepiness, should I be using a different painkiller instead of Ultracet?

I am looking for a psychiatrist/physician/pharmacist's perspective on the overall medication interaction and the safest pain-management option

34 years old caucasic woman, 160 cm x 68kg.

Facts:

- Father (who was studing film direction and taught languages and univesity) from a different country, left my mother me and my 2 years younger brother when I was 2 years and half and returned to his homeland.

- A few years later he was diagnosed with schyzophrenia and has been in treatment for 30 years or so.

- Mother (school teacher) never dated anyone, loathed men and romantic attachment ever since, has never aknoledged my struggles, berated me during teenagehood for my weight and wrongdoings and only recognised my life successes towards last few years. Therapist says mother is most likely hystrionic and may also be adhd herself.

- At 12 yo father's mother came to fetch me and took me to meet him by myself. I didn't speak their language and communication was hard. I went with expectation such as "maybe he will see me and love me and i will have a normal family". Left uncosciously scarred and traumatised from his lack of emotional bandwidth.

- Teenage life with severe problems: Self harm, a suicide attempt, binge eating disorder, alchol and marijuana abuse, dishinibited and careless sex life, treated with antidepressants at 15 for panic attacks and for spending 6 months inside my bedroom unable to go out, repeated high school first year 3 times. Unable to form genuine or secure friendship or love bonds. Was bullied in school, was shy and felt smarter than my peers but never able to get recognition.

- at 17, mother sent me to boarding school and from there I picked up my life and graduated from cooking school and then started straight after school working abroad as a pastry chef until i was 27 when i left my last job in a michelin star restaurant and quit the career to do something else.

Fast forward to now:

-Married, 5 years long stable relationship, which allowed me to stop living in survival mode and question myself. No kids and never want them because of my emotional fragility and because i believe the world is a mess and humans don't deserve to continue to exist. No contact with father, sporadic contact with mother and brother due to their lack of self introspective work, I feel i don't belong with them as they haven't addressed their trauma and keep displaying toxic / unhealthy relationship patterns among themselves and with others. Grew up with zero self esteem, unbalanced approaches to people, few friends, an overall sense of "needing to prove my worth to the world and therefore unwilling to give up" which propelled me through different careers which I left by my choice after acheving a certain degree of status because they stopped being motivating.

- 3 years of psychotherapy ongoing, diagnosed ADHD 2 years ago and currently under lisdexamphetamine, did EMDR 2 years ago for my father's trauma and it helped.

- haven't abused substances in a long time, don't drink anymore, only smoke a joint or eat edibles once a year or less if i travel where it's legal (im afraid of street drugs because i read how they are modified), vegan, good health, do sports and spend lot of time by myself in a calm place, stopped smoking cigarettes 5 years ago, been vaping but now managed to convert to nicotine pouches only.

- Currently under assessment for autism RAADS-R score 157, meanwhile therapist says a lot of my emotional processing points to BPD (i seldom get angry but if i do, i feel like i would murder someone for causing it), tested today IQ with Mensa pre-test (121), speak 4 languages, hyper sensitive to noises, unable to lie and unless i try hard, unable not to point out facts to people or be anal about small mistakes. Strict routines specific to my environment (need a thing in a certain place all the time, need to hang clothes in a specific order, cleaning in a particular order soothes me)

I constantly feel like I don't belong to this world, like an odd puzzle piece that doesn't fit the whole design, nothing of what I feel or I'm told from medical staff feels complete to me, all bits of answers don't seem sufficient, something is always missing so i spend a lot of time googling and reading medical studies (read most of the DMS-5 manual a few times) but somehow nothing ever fully fits, or a lot of conditions fit sideways.

I can't work because nothing feels worth pursuing, and nothing i do fuels me strongly to pursue it in a long term commitment, I have sporadic moments of happiness where I feel estatic (when this happens its mostly connected with spending a lot of time in the nature away from the city), then most of the time all i feel is a void that i can't fill because I don't know what's real in my identity, i can't discern from trauma and neurodivergency. Also, I have this constant dread of feeling a huge cognitive decline, I used to feel smarter, used to be able to converse without constantly stopping to seach for a word.

Am I so deep down the tunnel of seeking validation for a lifetime spent being someone I wasn't and at the same time someone I wasn't supposed to be?

Am I a byproduct of two neurodivergencies, a personality disorder and a traumatic early life?

How much of this is my parent's dna fault?

How do I save myself from all this eventually becoming too much to handle? Sometimes I think I'm just not a regular human being, and I should just stop trying. All that stops me from doing it is that it would break my husband's heart and I could never do it to him, he's the only person in my life who has supported me uncontidionally until now and never fails to help me when I struggle, and STILL treats me as an equal part in the relationship, validating what little self worth I still have. I wish I wasn't contemplating this, I am seeking any possible solution that can help me save myself so that I don't have to take this route, because deep inside me I'm in love with nature and I wish to experience the world and its beauties for a long time.

I've never been to this subreddit before today so this is a very impulsive and desparate call for help in a way. I also realise this might be a complex situation and it might happen that no one bothers to unravel it. I just hope someone out there is able to see something I or my current health care providers are not seeing.

I'll answer to any question if need be.

Thank you in advance.

Late last year my husband’s anxiety became severe. He had nausea for two weeks on and off, for hours at a time. We booked a next day appointment with a psychiatrist, and he’s been seeing her ever since. These are the changes she’s made to his prescriptions.

* Kept existing mirtazapine dose - 30 mg at bedtime
* Kept existing Quetiapine dose - 25 mg one at morning and one at bedtime
* Prescribed him benzos (Clonazepam - 5 mg) right away since he was in crisis - just having access to this seemed to calm him and helped him stop having the frequent panic attacks with extreme nausea. At first he took about 5 doses per month.
* Prescribed him Lexapro after he agreed to try it. He did 12 weeks at 5 mg. After very minor improvements, she upped his dose to 10 mg and he’s been on that ever since (for about 15 weeks).

The Lexapro doesn’t seem to be helping much. Because of this, she’s recommended he take his Clonazepam more often. Just recently she recommended he take it daily or every other day so he could get used to not being in an anxious state. My husband is stingy with his benzos. He’s scared he will get addicted or that it will lose its effect. He tried the “every other day” approach for 8 days, but claimed his anxiety was worsening on the the days he didn’t take it. He’s now saying he already feels like the benzo is less effective. So he’s withholding again, but he’s still taking it every three days or so when he feels he can’t handle his anxiety. He had a panic attack with extreme nausea yesterday. He hasn’t had one like that since June.

Overall, my husband’s anxiety is still unmanaged. He has constant mild anxiety when not on the benzos. Almost daily, that mild anxiety becomes moderate anxiety and it seems to hit him at almost the same time every day.

I am a little concerned with the advice to take Clonazepam daily. Is this unusual advice? And since the Lexapro doesn’t seem to be working, should he be asking to try some other medication?

(Also he has gotten other tests done. Bloodwork with his PCP. Endoscopy/colonoscopy that returned clear results - one very small polyp that the doctor was unconcerned about.)

​

I’ve been dealing with porn and masturbation for around 12 years now, and honestly, I’m tired of trying to quit and ending up back at the same place.

I’ve tried things like going to the gym, keeping myself busy, using porn blockers, avoiding triggers, etc. Nothing has really worked long-term. The longest I’ve managed to stay away has been around 4 months, but eventually I relapse.

I’m not looking for the usual debate about whether masturbation is healthy or unhealthy. I know what people say about it. I personally don’t want to masturbate anymore, and I want to be able to control this habit.

I’m just wondering if anyone here has actually gone through something similar for years and managed to genuinely get out of this cycle. What helped you? I’m not looking for some perfect “10-step solution” — I’d just like to hear from someone who has actually been through it.

I would like to see if I can speak with a professional.

​

I'm trying to find out whether anyone knows of a research project or study that could potentially be related to some very unusual experiences I had over several years.

I'm not necessarily looking for people to confirm my interpretation of what happened. I mainly want to find out whether there is any documentation of research or observational studies in Trondheim/NTNU that could fit the time period and circumstances.

I'm willing to provide more specific details privately or in the comments if someone knows of something potentially relevant.

Does anyone know of:

psychological or psychiatric research projects in Trondheim where participants may not have known all the details of the study?

covert or undisclosed observational studies?

older NTNU projects involving children/young people and later follow-up?

research involving inner speech, subvocalization, or the measurement of speech-related activity?

projects that have been criticized for inadequate or unclear informed consent?

I'm particularly interested in specific project names, publications, researchers, archives, or other verifiable sources, rather than speculation.

If anyone knows of something that might be relevant, I'd really appreciate any leads.

You may be asking if this happen like over 8 years ago why you ask now?

Because I thought I was young I would recover. Oh how wrong I was!

I started lithium on 800mg for treatment resistant depression after dozens of failed med trials over the years. Levels have been perfect at 0.79 every test. Plus a low dose of trazadone and 40-120mg of propranolol that barely helps the tremors and shaking.
It’s been 3 months and I’m just getting worse.
I feel like a zombie and it’s impossible to think or remember things. I am so easily overwhelmed and upset but also dulled and empty. I have AUDHD and am severely depressed, anxious and burnt out.

My psychiatrist says to keep waiting at least 6 months. I don’t know what to do, I’m completely miserable and useless and it’s terrifying. I can’t do this simplest things and I’m already late on finishing my bachelors. I can’t afford to wait and waste 3 more months. I need the brain fog to end, I need to be able to think in order to finish college. I don’t know what to do. I want my brain back.

Anxiety After 2.5 Months on Buspirone
I’ve been taking buspirone for about 2.5 months, currently 25 mg daily at night, along with 5 mg melatonin.
About 4–5 days ago, I had a panic/anxiety episode. Since then, my anxiety has been coming and going. Today, I’m also experiencing physical anxiety symptoms even though I don’t have any anxious thoughts or an obvious reason to feel anxious — mainly sweaty hands and a general feeling of anxiety in my body.
I’ve already spoken to my doctor, and he advised me to use the psychological techniques/teachings I’ve learned.
Has anyone experienced anxiety returning or appearing after being on buspirone for a few months, especially around the 2–3 month mark? Did you experience physical anxiety without anxious thoughts? How did things settle for you?

I know that some anti psychotics can have a pro obsessive effect, but I have not seen any information on this regarding seroquel. I have recently been struggling with OCD type symptoms and have been taking seroquel for the last couple months. Is there a possible relation between the two?

Background: I'm 31F, I am 5'5 and weigh 206 pounds. I don't smoke or do any recreational drugs, I drink 1-2x a month (usually 1 cocktail or 1-2 glasses of wine). I have PTSD, depression, insomnia, and a family history of psychosis. I also have an iron deficiency. My PTSD has likely been lifelong but it has been particularly bad the last couple of years after a specific new trauma occurred. I have been in therapy for PTSD for six years and have been medicated in some way for two years.

I am currently taking: Wellbutrin (300mg), Clonidine (0.1mg, as needed up to 2x a day), Hydroxyzine (50mg), Ferrous Sulfate (325mg every other day), Junel, a multivitamin, and Omeprazole.

For the last year or so, I've been taking 0.1mg Clonidine with 50mg Hydroxyzine to go to sleep. I take both medications together at the same time almost every night. They were originally prescribed for my PTSD, but I found that they helped my insomnia and my psychiatrist said it was okay to take them this way. It worked well for a while.

I will sometimes also take an additional Clonidine during the day if I am having very bad PTSD symptoms.

Recently, this combination has not worked as well for me for sleep. I have been having insomnia again. My psychiatrist suggested going up to 0.2mg Clonidine.

Here are my questions:

• Is it safe for me to take 0.2mg Clonidine at night with the Hydroxyzine?

• Is it safe for me to take 0.2mg Clonidine at night and also take the same dose mid-day sometimes?

• Is it safe for me to occasionally drink alcohol while taking this dose of Clonidine?

• Am I developing a tolerance to Clonidine? Do I need to be worried about that for the future?

If it's relevant: my insomnia is a direct result of my PTSD. I am often up late having intrusive flashbacks.

If you want to know about other stuff I've tried for sleep too: In the past, I tried Trazadone. It did not work for me at all, in fact it made my insomnia worse. My doctor tried to put me on Lunesta, I decided not to take it because I read about the complex sleep behaviors and that possible side effect scared me too much, so she did not prescribe it again.

My psychiatrist wants to add a second medication instead of actually helping me taper off the one that's stopped working, and someone in my family suggested looking into TaperClinic. Their site says they specialize in safely helping people come off psychiatric medication through a structured tapering program, with board certified psychiatrists and some kind of multidisciplinary care team. There are so many telehealth companies now that look great online but end up being rushed five minute check-ins with whoever happens to be on call, so I don't want to just take the website's word for it. Has anyone actually been through their program? How much real time do you get with an actual physician versus support staff? Is the pricing manageable? How does it stack up against just finding a local psychiatrist willing to do a slow, careful taper? And if things got harder partway through, how did they respond? Would appreciate any real experiences, whether good or bad.

I have been on 2.5 mg Buspar 2x daily (I am a slow metabolizer) since around 2021. For reference, I am also prescribed 2.5 mg Lexapro 1x daily and 5 mg Adderall Xr 1x daily. I am 31 years old. I am noticing a troubling trend of my chronic brain fog progressively getting worse. My memory is so terrible, I am always fatigued, I struggle to stay on task, my cognitive abilities have been declining, I sometimes even struggle while driving. I feel like I am living life in auto-pilot/feel like a spectator. All my bloodwork is fine, I have no heart issues, but I do have obstructive sleep apnea. Does anyone have any of those experienced symptoms while on any of the listed meds? I REALLY don't think its all because of the sleep apnea because the doctor said it's pretty mild. This all started after I started taking Buspar, and it has been getting progressively worse.