I mean, come on, that’s straight-up illegal! All you really need to be working with people is a basic health clearance to prove you aren't some walking biohazard carrying around infectious diseases...
As far as I can tell, nobody is actually asking for medical records. Like, who even does that anymore? Honestly, I’ve worked a hundred different jobs and not once has anyone ever breathed a word about my history with thrombosis, my knee surgeries, or my F-s...
Honestly guys, why is everyone freaking out about what’s written on the medical record? It’s not like you’re going to be handing it over for inspection to some future husband, your mom, your kids, or anyone else...
I was honestly a zombie from it. I couldn't even wake myself up if I tried. Easily the worst trip of my entire life as an antidepressant user. I couldn't speak, think, look at anything, or even walk... just a complete, total blackout and then crashing straight back into bed. That was my experience.
So, I tried to head out for a weekend getaway without my meds, and let me tell you, nobody in town would even look at me twice. I showed up with all my official paperwork, everything clearly stating that I’m on a permanent prescription and absolutely cannot be without them! They actually looked me in the eye and told me—literally—that they could help if it were for blood pressure or something with my blood sugar, but this? This was a hard no.
I mean, what am I supposed to do? Just push my depression aside until Monday morning and hope for the best??
"Sorry, we can't help you. You aren't an EMERGENCY!"
Maybe you don't even need to bring your dad into this. Honestly, just carving out some personal space might be enough—like, at least tell your brother he needs to stop barging into your room whenever he feels like it.
I don't care if he's the "golden child" of the family; you're a grown man with actual rights, and you deserve some peace and quiet. Don't be afraid to push back on him a little and remind him that he’s an adult now. If he wants to spend all day venting to your mom about whatever nonsense is on his mind, let him... that's her cross to bear, not yours. Just focus on your own life, stay responsible, and act like the adult in the room—and then expect them to do the exact same thing. There has to be some level of respect in a house, right?
Look, if you and your brother aren't exactly best friends, don't feel pressured to force some fake bond right now. It’s perfectly fine to just be civil and demand that he treats you with the same courtesy.
Jason Vaughn482 said:At the end of the day, it all boils down to the same result; three pills are three pills, regardless of how we choose to distribute them.
Look, don't get ahead of yourself—you aren't losing anything here
You just grab some Xanax or Ativan when you actually need it, you know? Like, when the anxiety starts hitting hard. It’s not like some supplement you have to "refill" every single morning just to make it through the day!
Paul Newman5 said:You really encouraged me, thanks for that. I'll figure out my next move after Easter. Clearly, I need to do something, because relying on Misoprostol isn't a long-term solution.
My blood pressure is naturally on the lower side, sitting right around 110/70, and honestly, it hasn't budged an inch... sometimes it even dips a little lower than that.
Paul Newman5 said:That was somewhat comforting. Today has been pretty miserable. Since we're part of the same generation—middle-aged women—😂I'm wondering, while you were cycling through all those antidepressants waiting for them to kick in, were you working? All those meds you listed, including the Effexor XR, take months to settle. It doesn't happen overnight. That's what worries me. Are you dealing with anxiety too, or something else? And how are you managing life now on the meds? Sorry, just curious.
f 33.2, f 41.2 For the most part, I managed to juggle everything alongside my job. It's totally doable. You shouldn't spiral just because of some nasty side effect; it's not like we're going to drop dead from it. I used to see my psychiatrist about every two weeks, though if a specific med was making me feel like garbage, I’d just show up unannounced. I mean, it's literally her job to monitor how I'm doing. She could usually tell how I was feeling better than I could myself, and she'd adjust my meds accordingly based on that. Nowadays, I'm functioning perfectly on my current meds. Honestly? I accept it—and I'd happily take them for the rest of my life. Every once in a while, anxiety tries to creep back in, but the second I feel it coming, I just pop 0.5 mg of Xanax... and there it is, the little lifesaver. I know it'll pass. Sometimes a depressive episode hits me out of nowhere, so I'll take a little extra Xanax or maybe some Ambien to sleep it off, but hey, it passes... I don't have any trouble speaking my mind or disagreeing anymore. I joke around with everyone, I'll strike up a conversation with a complete stranger, and nobody feels "above" me anymore—we're all just people. If something bugs me, I say it. I don't stress or obsess over what other people think of me; I just do my thing. If I mess up, I own it. I’ve become genuinely happy at my core! I'm not some mindless zombie; I still have emotions, and I still have choices. I refuse to stay angry. I don't waste a single second on negative people. At work, I'm polite, social, and I'll even listen to the idiots—you can learn something from anyone if you try. My patience is basically infinite now. And finally, I actually love myself, and I actually like the world... I wish the same for you. Don't give up, keep fighting!
Magdalena, listen, I’ve been through the absolute ringer since back in 2006—starting with Zoloft, then moving through Prozac, Wellbutrin, Prazosin, Lexapro, Celexa, Anafranil, Ludiomil... honestly, I can't even keep track of the whole laundry list anymore. But after all that trial and error, I finally landed on Effexor XR 150 mg, starting with those tiny 37.5 mg doses in the morning, and now? It’s freaking perfect. Don't let it get you down; you're going to find that one specific med that actually lets you function like a normal human being, you just can't give up on the process.
It’s just like when you have a killer headache and you cycle through Advil, Tylenol, Excedrin, Bayer Aspirin, Motrin, etc., etc., until you finally figure out which one actually knocks the pain out, right?
Jason Vaughn482, I’m genuinely curious about this whole fear thing regarding meds. Like, how does that actually play out for you? What goes through your head when you see a pill sitting there, or when you realize you actually need to take it? Are you worried it’s gonna mess with your brain or wreck your body? Or maybe you're just stressed about people judging you for taking something? Did you have some kind of bad experience in the past? What happened?
Personally, I’ve never really dealt with that anxiety. I never sat around obsessively researching side effects or anything; if my doctors prescribed something, I just took it without a second thought, assuming they actually knew what they were doing. I don't spend any time worrying about it damaging an organ—you know, like how everyone loves to bring up liver damage all the time...
I’ve mostly just always wondered why things work the way they do. Like, if I take an Advil for a headache and the pain goes away, why doesn't it just fix every single ache in my body at once? 😁:
Once you hit that point, there's really no turning back. There isn't even an "I'm sorry" that fixes it. Once someone loses all respect in my eyes, I just can't look at them the same way ever again. Honestly, I don't even have the energy to talk to people like that anymore. It’s more like... yeah, you get exactly what's coming to you. Goodbye. Whatever went down, it's buried in the past and I'm done touching it. Like it never even happened...
Just ignore them. Honestly, as long as we’re letting other people's opinions get under our skin, we aren't truly free. It’s only when you realize that you're the only one accountable for your own life—that nobody out there actually holds the leash—that you finally become ready to fight back. Whether it’s all in your head or actually happening, it shouldn't matter. You can't live your life by someone else's yardstick; you have to be your own damn standard. There shouldn't be any emotional or psychological police patrolling your business. Don't stress over things that don't matter; once you wrap your head around that, you're winning...
Clint, look at how great it is to be starting from zero: you aren't dragging around heavy baggage, there’s no trailing weight holding you back; you’ve got this sharp mind that lets you steer exactly where you want to go, fully aware of everything you're leaving behind. I'm basically in the same boat—starting from scratch again at 45. I just moved, everyone here is a total stranger, but honestly? It’s liberating. I get to decide how people perceive me. I can craft a whole new persona, deciding whether I want to be seen as some heavy, depressed soul or just someone bright and smiling. When I'm around people who don't know my history, I'm picking the positive vibes every single time; I'm cutting out the energy vampires immediately. No one gets to steal our spark! Whenever I move to a new city, I find a local coffee shop and make it my regular spot. I'll strike up a conversation with the barista, someone else will jump in, and suddenly all the different personalities start to reveal themselves. That's how it begins... I actually opened a small cafe using an SBA loan, but business hasn't taken off, and after just a month, I already owe the government 25 $0.00. So what?! A job is just a tool. Growing as a person matters way more. And you? You have so much, so much potential. You have options. There's plenty of life left to live.
Look, it’s not even about running to the bathroom with diarrhea; it’s about actually getting your digestion back on track.
As for mixing Probavin with some herbal tea: the tea gets things moving, while the Probavin adds bulk to everything, so you don't end up with a total disaster... instead, you just - well, you just have a nice, productive poop.
I know a few people who fixed their whole situation just by taking a spoonful of olive oil on an empty stomach first thing in the morning.
Sometimes a glass of orange juice does the trick too.
@ Paul Newman5 Seriously, you should probably check in with your doctor about mixing Advil with AD meds or any kind of anti-anxiety stuff. From what I’ve gathered, you really shouldn't be taking them at the same time...
Here’s my routine: just a spoonful or two of Probiotic mixed into some milk or yogurt in the morning, then I finish the day with some herbal tea from the local drugstore. Since I started using Probiotic regularly, honestly, those nasty issues I was dealing with have finally cleared up...
@shadowbear9 You seriously need to loop both your psychiatrist and your primary care doctor in on absolutely everything you’re taking. There might be some crazy contraindications buried in there somewhere, and those are the people who actually know how to manage that stuff and keep you safe. I personally never touch anything—even something basic like an Advil—without checking with them first... To be specific, I felt okay using certain pills alongside my ADHD meds, but honestly, just ask them before you try anything...