Re: after diagnosis, then what

Yes, the benzo and the SSRI is potentially one of the reasons you ended up down this road, one of our forum members Ring, ended up in the same position after years of Zoloft use...it always brings the question, of what is anxiety ? It sure as hell isnt a lack of 'serotonin' !

I think St Johns Wart is probably a good thing, but be real careful if you are on an SSRI, ive neer heard any 'ND' claim they could be taken together, the literature, even from the natural people say dont do it. The taper is a great idea, but dont go to fast I wish I knew about tapering when my doctor made me cold turkey.

The medical field wont help unfortunately...their drugs will merely mask the problem. However they can be used to help things be a little more comfortable along the way, but remember that they are masking problems that are there, so dont over do it becayse you MAY feel much better on a stronger dose SSRI - they stimulate the adrenals to produce cortisol - one report showed that LExapro, which isnt as stimulating as Zoloft, doubled the cortisol output from the adrenals half an hour after taking it. Its like having cocaine everyday for breakfast! No wonder peeps feel better.

Yes average healoing time, once youve found the right programme for you is 6 months to 2 years, but can go on as long as 6. Its not an overnight transition unfortunately...and cancer can be recovered from quicker than AF, its crazy!