UPDATE FROM DOCTOR

Ok, first you need to listen to your doctor, you and I did not go
to eight years of med school, we have to have a certain amount
of trust in them.
I know nothing about Lexapro but have used Xanax for many years, please stop thinking these meds will hurt you, they will not, they are tools the doctors use to fix your equipment, we are
not all the same, but we are not that much different either, Xanax allowed me to work and fight PAD on my own terms, its
a good medicine, it's not additive unless a person is using it for
recreation, you do not seem like that kind of a person. Being
sent to a specialist is not and indictment, it just means your doctor is trying to get the best help for you that he/she can. Take the meds your doctor prescribed, give your self a few days
then go to a store with a BP monitor and check it, you see the
anxiety alone can and will drive your bp up. Peace
Larry ***

2S.,

Great advice by Larry...I will just add one thing about your remark regarding the possible psychiatrist referral.

Psychiatrists in general, have a must vaster knowledge of meds to treat A/D than your average GP. Your doctor knows this, so she is simply doing the smart thing in anticipating the possible need for someone who specialized in your area of nee.:)

Here's a good example: Let's say you fell, cut yourself and needed stitches. There are two medical doctors on hand...one an emergency doc...and one a psychiatrist. Both can fix you up...they both have the training...but which one would you prefer? Your situation is simialar (but in reverse), no?

I hope that you can find the right med(s) for yourself quickly...you will get the right treatment plan, it just takes time. Hang in there and keep posting!

S.C.