In_A_Cocoon_Now, there are two kinds of anti depressants; the type that work on the brain long term which you take every day and those that are immediate and that you take only when needed. My doctors have tried to put me on long term anti depressants a few times because of Lyme and I have fought them back every time as I know that I don't need them.
However, I am a big believer in immediate anti depressants such as benzos. I carry Xanax (.25mg) with me every where I go. When I first got infected and was not being treated they really helped a lot!
Because of my symptoms when first infected and not knowing what was going on with me, I honestly felt like I was going to die. This would cause me to have a panic attack and made symptoms worse. When I could not take it no more, I would take one Xanax and it calmed me down. Since I started treatment 5 months ago I have only had to take it once.
For me, they are like a safety net and knowing that I have it there in case of an emergency has helped me deal with stressful situations and panic episodes much easier than if I didn't have them. It is hard to explain, but just knowing that if the situation gets out of control I can take a Xanax is enough for me to calm down and deal with it without actually taking one.
There are two sides to benzos. There are those like me who use them or have used them without abusing them, and those who don't like them because they (benzos) have a reputation for being addictive.
I believe that if you are honest with yourself and have a doctor who will watch over you and not prescribe them like candy (I get mine 10 pills per refill) then I think they can be taken safely.
Oops! I almost forgot about
the depression question
I have been depressed. Sometimes severely. How can I not be? With every part of my body in pain and knowing that there is bacteria, malaria, protozoans, viruses and who knows what else inside me growing every day...who wouldn't be right?
On top of that I have found that certain medications make me depressed. Take Azythromycin; my doctor prescribed it and each time I take one pill i begin to feel depressed. I have started three times and all three times I felt depressed. I may probably get used to it once my body gets used to it but geez!
Same thing happened with Clarithromycin..I took it for 4 months and felt depressed. I thought it was the infection. So my doctor changed meds on me and as soon as I stopped taking the old meds guess what? yup, within two days my depression lifted! So on a hunch I went back to it and sure enough, my depression came back.
Now, for some people depression can mean something different. For me depression is the feeling of loneliness, feeling like you don't care what you do. Feeling like you don't even want to get out of bed. Not laughing, getting a kiss and a touch from the wife and not feeling anything because you just don't feel emotion...you just want to go back to bed or to be alone. For me that is depression.
As soon as I am not depressed I goof around, I will whistle to a song, laugh, make jokes with the wife and kids, and just be the opposite of what I wrote above.
Post Edited (Healing98) : 12/18/2013 9:14:26 PM (GMT-7)