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Do Anti Depressants/ Anti Anxietys Worrk For Pots? Need Help Please


Evergreen

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So here's my story for months I thought I could have mold or candida so I went on a mold diet and the head pressure was better and electric feelings through my body were basically gone. But my brain fog was horrible and everything felt like a dream. So I went back to eating carbs about for about 2 weeks I've felt a lot better. Brain fog was basically gone. I could laugh again, and I started to feel back to myself. Now it's been 3 weeks and my head pressure is so strong it feels like my head is being squeezed constantly. This tingly electric blood flowy feeling is running through my whole body. It's very scary. I don't even know what to eat anymore. I had a spinal tap done at the hospital and still haven't gotten my results back. Does anyone know if the spinal tap results will prove that there's no mold or candida anywhere in my body? I really need help I don't know what to do anymore. I think I may be going to the hospital again but every time I go there's nothing really they can do for me and send me home. Has anyone taking anti depressants for POTS? Has it worked for you? I can't feel any emotions besides hopeless and heartache

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When I was a teenager my mom had me on a bunch of different prescriptions. I don't remember what all they were but I worry that they caused damage to my autonomic system and now the only way to get back to normal is take them again. I read that SSRIs and SNRIs sometimes helps pots. Has any one had any experience with this

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I am so sorry to hear you are feeling this--what I mean is I understand I don't wish this on anyone. I wish there was a magic something that would make all the awfulness go away.

I too would like to know if antidepressants help with POTS symptoms-would love to hear experiences. I recently (finally) saw a good POTS doctor who suggested an antidepressant because he said it sometimes helps with POTS symptoms. I was not ready to start one/add it to the mix as I am starting another med and want to be able to discern the effects and know what is helping/not before I try something else.

Along the way, before my dysautonomia diagnosis I was misdiagnosed with MANY things one of which being depression. I have suffered/fought depression many years ago and know how it feels but I was adamant it was not depression a few years ago-- but told the DR. I would give the med a try. I felt like I was jumping out of my skin and did not last more than a few days. BUT one needs to find the right medication for the right person. I was misdiagnosed at the time and perhaps now a different antidepressant would help my POTS??

I have taken anti anxiety meds for years and now hard to say which came first the anxiety or the dysautonomia? I have been trying to watch, the anti anxiety med doesn't necessarily affect my heart rate but changes how I deal with it emotionally/mentally (OR not deal with it--try to go about my business...).

I have sadly realized the ER is not what I thought it was (for myself and family members) at least in my part of the U.S. They try to treat simple things (ie-Kidney/UTI, dehydration)and/or stabilize conditions and then send you on your way with a referral to see a dr. on Monday or the next day. I had assumed you would see the cardiologist on staff, Urologist, etc. Ofcourse, they can do IVs, EEGs and often I have found helpful nurses but ... Oh, the crazy stories I could tell... Obviously the ER is there when I am at the end of my rope and you must go if you don't have a good doctor yet & to follow up if you have having issues with something like a spinal tap. Sad realization for me though--the ER is not what I thought...

Evergreen, again I am so sorry you are feeling this way. If you are feeling hopeless, I urge you to see a doctor. Maybe medication would help? I often feel

episodes of desperation and sadness; "side-effects" of chronic illness. Maybe a medication has a two-fold benefit for POTS patients if you find one that works for you.

Best wishes,

stellaluna

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Mold and candida are diagnoses that don't really have definitive tests that can tell whether you do or do not have them. Spinal taps can occasionally find evidence of other kinds of fungal infections, but those are usually are only found in people whose immune systems are severely compromised.

Testing for mold is done through urine mycotoxin testing, a panel of specific inflammatory bloodwork (TGF beta, MSH, C4a, and a bunch of others), genetic testing, lung scans that can sometimes show mold deposits in the airways, and sometimes mold cultures done in bloodwork. Testing your house is also usually done. But even with all of those things, it's still a lot of guesswork. Candida is usually a clinical diagnosis, done without a lot of testing, but things like comprehensive digestive stool tests can sometimes be helpful.Testing for mold and candida typically isn't done by most mainstream specialists. You'd need to see either a toxicologist or pulmonologist who has a special interest in mold issues, a biotoxin specialist that is Shoemaker trained, or another environmental medicine doctor.

I haven't personally tried antidepressants yet, but I've found benzodiazepines (anti-anxiety) extremely effective for my POTS. I've taken Klonopin daily for almost two years, and the difference in my POTS (and many of my neurological symptoms) is amazing. I've also had two POTS specialists say they have patients who have benefitted from SSRI antidepressants like Celexa, Paxil, and Lexapro, and SNRIs like Venlafaxine, so one of those might be on the table for me down the road. Makes sense, as serotonin does play a role in regulating autonomic functions, especially blood pressure. I was put on Celexa years ago when I had Lyme, and even though I didn't have dysautonomia then, it helped with many of the Lyme-related symptoms such as electric shocks, brain fog, dizziness, wooziness, panic attacks, and even palpitations for some reason.

My POTS doctor told me if I was ever going to go back on Celexa, I was going to be given a liquid, and take literally like 1 or 2mg per day to start (the usual starting dose is 10-20mg). Dysautonomia patients can be extremely sensitive to antidepressants, and it can make you a little worse before you feel better, so tapering up SUPER SLOWLY Is key, I've been told.

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Personally SSRIs gave me the worst reaction. I have never had a panic attack before and i had my first one after taking the first dose. It felt like I wanted to rip my clothes off, like I wasn't in my own body and that electricity was going through my arms and legs. I then proceeded to shake violently all night long and have multiple panic attacks over and over until the drug left my system. I then needed to mentally get over the fear of more panic attacks because being afraid of them started bringing it on. Needless to say - it was one of the worst reactions I've had to a medication. It could do wonders for you, but it really messed with my chemical balance in a bad way.

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I sometimes wonder if POTS can sometimes be caused from depression/anxiety. Thank you all for you're replies.

Ks42 I've been really worried I could have mold because I get this pressure a lot of times at the back of my head that changes spots like if I lay on the left side of my head for just a couple mins and then sit upright the left side of my head will feel this pressure like it needs to wake up and then after a few mins of sitting upright my head will go back to feeling pressure like in the top of my head or forehead or back of head. My head feels like it's being squeezed really tightly also feels like my brain is swollen but MRI was normal. For the ct they said one ventricular could look bigger than the other but acted like that doesn't matter it's normal. The first time POTS started for me was after over excersizing then eating a big sugary French toast meal and going to bed. Woke up that night with eletric feelings in my chest and my pulse was around 200 and my vision was going black with tingling in right hand and right side of face was numb. I guess that's when my pots actually started or maybe it was slowing starting since I was a teenager.

Then all I had was a sometimes over 100 heart rate for that next month. Drank wine trying because I heard wine was heart healthy and thought it would calm my heart. Well after drinking a little too much one night the head pressure suddenly came has NEVER went away since I drank wine that night. It is constant head pressure that comes and goes in severity. I'm really hoping the head pressure can be from anxiety depression and not mold because for some reason docs think mold is just imaginary and don't seem to care about testing for it. I did have my house tested and they said my air quality was exceptional (which just meant no active spores, they said there was definitely moisture in the walls and floor) And I had a mold antibody blood test that was normal. It was an inhalent allergy test, so I still worry about candida or something. I went on a VERY low carb diet because I was worried it was mold. For months I couldn't think and felt terrible, now I eat more carbs and my cognitive function is better but the eletric feeling through my whole body is back and tingles and numbness. Im not sure if the mold antibody test I had is conclusive enough, or if should I try more mold testing.

I was a vegetarian for years and have eaten a lot of cheese and yogurt. I worry that could have caused a mold problem.

Also I have the MTHFR mutation so I guess my body can't detox properly

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Dear Evergreen,

I've also dealt with depression most of my life. As you can see from my signature, I now have reason to be pretty scared of antidepressants.

That being said, I had the most profound depression of my life emerge as my severe dysautonomic symptoms rolled in last April, and for the past two months I am now on 10mg. of Nortriptyline, as well as 7.5 mg of mirtazipine for sleep. These are "baby doses... I'm not happy taking these and I am still depressed, but my head is above water.

My advice is that your other symptoms will be far easier to address if you treat your depression (which very often accompanies other neurological illnesses).

However, based on your comments about candida and mold, it seems like you are still just beginning your quest to find out why you feel ill. It seems like you also need a good basic physician to help guide you (no easy task to find one I know).

So, I strongly suggest you first find is good counselor, and explore "talk therapy" before taking psych meds, especially be you are diagnosed. This is such an important part of my treatment.

If you are truly suffering from depression, meds may be in order, but note what I and others here have emphasized...you may be hypersensitive to them, so go very slowly. Many, like Paxil and Effexor, are also very difficult to withdraw from. Some are beneficial for POTS and neuropathy, but you must first find out if you have these.

To sum up, I suggest you proceed very cautiously with meds, but make haste in finding a good counselor to see you through this whole ordeal. If you can,I suggest you interview counselors to ensure a good fit. Just ask for short appointment....anyone good will support this idea. If you are short on cash, there are community-based services to tap into....can't really interview in this scenario, but try to do what you can for a good fit.

This is all overwhelming I know....why I think it is an important first step to get a good counselor first! Bring DINET materials to your first appointment!

My best to you,

Sylvie

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I am taking a combination of 5HTP, GABA, and Tyrosine called Neurolink. Actually, I started that in 2012, before I knew I had POTS. Then I stopped taking it in 2014. About a month later I had POTS symptoms like never before. It took me over a year to realize that it could been stopping the med. I started it again in August and am now feeling really well except for when I get a virus or have a Sjogren's flare, either of which cause my POTS to flare.

That said, it also sounds like you are depressed. Please see someone who is concerned about and will treat both your physical symptoms and your depression. Being depressed is often worse than physical illness so take that seriously, too. Hoping for the best for you.

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It's weird how I can forget how bad I once felt until I am reminded by stories like yours. I know all to well what you are going through. It took me months to be able to smile again and at the beginning of this I also had weird head pressures but not as severe as yours. I am not sure if what I did will help you but I will tell you what I did.

I quit eating gluten and anything fortified. If you have the MTHFR gene you might not be able to process the chemically made folic acid that is put in alot of things. My folic acid levels were high so I quit eating them. I mostly eat all natural things. In the beginning I was constantly getting Candida overgrowth on my tongue but that's gotten under control. I also stayed going to the gym and that has helped. I take 10mg propranolol twice a day. Have tried anti depressants and they made done things better but other symptoms worse. I just got a script rust for buspar to try. My iron and copper levels were also low so I eat lots of red meat and the days I don't the nerve pain comes back. I am still searching for better answers but do get some good days. I hope you can find your way back to some good days.

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I've been trying to make sure I eat well balanced meals, but frequently have no appetite. I do try to make sure I get red meat each day. I also just had some leafy greens and dandelion tea and noticed my nerve tingles improved for the first time in a while. Not sure if that's coincidence or not, just something I noticed.

Yesterday I picked up some SAMe. I've been having lots and lots of joint pain so I am hoping it will be helpful in that way, as well as my depression. I also am trying L-Tryptophan as needed. I will be trying to find a doctor who can help with physical symptoms and depression thank you

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