Lexapro for intrusive thoughts
Common Questions and Answers about Lexapro for intrusive thoughts
lexapro
I have been getting intrusive thoughts for about 7 months now finding it quite hard to deal with but i'm beginning to understand the science behind how it all works but, i have the most horrific thoughts ever and am finding the GUILT extremeley difficult to cope with do you have any methods or mind excerises i can do to help reduce that awful guilty feeling.
I was switched to lexapro and am now starting week 4. I still get intrusive thoughts about my relationship to the point I want to run but I know deep down I love him so much. I constantly seek reassurance .. anyway beginning week four I am crying at the drop of a hat, doubting everything, feel no connection with anyone or anything which makes this whole relationship OCD even worse, and I am constantly exhausted wanting to sleep.
I was switched to lexapro and am now starting week 4. I still get intrusive thoughts about my relationship to the point I want to run but I know deep down I love him so much. I constantly seek reassurance .. anyway beginning week four I am crying at the drop of a hat, doubting everything, feel no connection with anyone or anything which makes this whole relationship OCD even worse, and I am constantly exhausted wanting to sleep.
Hello Ken,
I have been suffering from intrusive thoughts about harming my children for the last month. It's unbearable and I cause myself anxiety, guilt, and depression for feeling these thoughts. I don't know where these thoughts are coming from since I have a supportive family unit and never have had thoughts like this before. I get a little anxiety when I have to take care of them myself for fear of driving myself crazy! I love them more than anything in the world!
I think it would be best to tell your doctor. Just my opinion. I think once in a great while some people think of suicide knowing they will never do it. (I have). When it becomes a reoccurring thought that is probably something to worry about more. I'm sorry i can't be more help.
I am currently taking 10mg lexapro for anxiety, slight ocd, and slight intrusive thoughts.
I have heard that taking SSRI's will cause some weight gain in many people. I know that SSRI's are most commonly prescribed as well; I guess because they work best? However, are there any other classes of drugs that i can talk to my doctor about that are very similar that are "healthier" with less side effects (specifically weight gain and sexual)?
I took Lexapro 10mg on and off for three years and recently was upped to 15mg for two weeks and then 20mg for 5 weeks. It helped so much before, my symptoms were almost gone! Now it's losing its effectiveness, I think. I felt fine for a week on the new dosage, thought I was improving, only to feel horrible again... I'm going to wait another week (6 weeks in total) but I doubt much difference will be made in that time.
Exposure therapy is used depending on what types of thoughts you are having. For example when I had the thoughts of harming people, I would go into a dark room, close my eyes and actually picture myself carrying out the thought. It helped me to realize that I was not a person that would ever do the things I thought. So for me, that was kind of an exposure therapy. Another one as sitting in an AIDS clinic to alleviate the fear of HIV.
Seratonin inhibitors, Paxil, Zoloft, Lexapro.... I reccomend 50 mil per day of Zoloft for 1 week then up to 100 mil for 1 week then 100 mil continuing for 3 months. This will allow your panic to subside allowing the thoughts to bounce off you like rubber hence the thoughts will not need come around anymore.
Please take care and now this is a chemical imbalance caused by stress. Once you change and rethink and reprogram what you percieve as stress then you can be free.
Every mental illness of any kind is manifested by intrusive thoughts. Without anxious thoughts, no anxiety. Without depressed thoughts, no depression. A form of therapy that attempts to treat this is CBT, which actually tries to teach you to think differently. Don't know if it'll work for you, it is hard to do, but it's worth a try.
The compulsions and intrusive thoughts haven’t gone away. But The panic attacks are minimal. The medication has helped me to this point. But I feel like I’m at a dead end. I know ocd will never be cured but I want to live my life without these thoughts being the only thing I can think about. I have an appointment on he 11th and I’m wondering if I should just stop medication. I just can’t remember who I am without it. I feel as if I’m just the thoughts and not a human being.
Which of the SSRIs have you tried? Lexapro and Celexa? Have you tried the others? It is different for everyone and just because a side effect is listed, it doesn't mean you will get it. I have to admit that Zoloft was the best for anxiety and intrusive thoughts, but it totally nixed the sexual abilities.
I experience intrusive thoughts and have done for quite some time of the more violent and sexual nature which always left me very depressed and distressed but those have calmed down as of late. However recently something else has been distressing me which I'm not sure if it's actually OCD or not. I've been experiencing unwanted thoughts about me attention seeking.
I have read and read and read all about OCD and intrusive thoughts, mostly about when you fear that you will harm someone else. But I have these awful intrusive thoughts about my spouse hurting children (but I know he never would in a million years). For whatever reason, hurting children has always been somehting my OCD has focused on and worried about. So my intrusive thoughts aren't about me doing the harm but about my loved one doing harm. Has anyone else experienced that?
Hi there and welcome to the OCD forum. I'm glad you have sought treatment for your irrational thoughts. As far as the SSRI goes, it really takes a good 4 to 6 weeks to really see the full benefits of the medication so you need to give it more time.
As for the irrational thoughts you are having, I had very similar ones.
Intrusive thoughts can take on many forms. The cleanliness intrusive thoughts really are not different than someone irrationally thinking they are going to hurt someone. The person with the cleanliness intrusive thought may develop compulsions such as constant handwashing in order to make themselves feel better though while the person with "Pure O" is just kind of going around and around in their mind with the "what-if" scenarios.
Hello I had a problem with some violent intrusive thoughts for a litte over a month now. I was driving to work when it hit me what if i shot my girls family and these terrible things and It made my actually ill went to work and threw up. Than On at home i thought it again about my family and such and it makes me sick to my stomach.
So I read the book brain lock and it helped a ton and seemed to be on the right track. But yesterday I had the thought about my girlfriend. And its makes me so mad!
Glad to hear you made your appt! Hopefully they can find something to help...
I just assumed you were bipolar because this is the bipolar community...
It would be a good idea to talk with a counselor, the way a person should over any intrusive thoughts that keep them from a normal happy life. In the DNA/Paternity community we see all the time that women with guilty consciences over sex with the wrong guy often settle on obsessing over dates (even in the face of all facts and evidence), because it is easier to brood over that, than it is to accept that one did something that is against one's values.
As I reread your mail, what you have is NOT intrusive or racing thoughts which are also popular among BP patients and happen to all of us. Intrusive thoughts are usually peaceful thoughts but confusing and overlap with your thinking so that you can't move forward and can - as truly ILADVOCATE - mentioned mask sometimes psychotic thoughts.
Rather, I believe what you feel is what we call mixed states and occurs to me all the times when i reduce my antipsychotics.
I hear ya. Intrusive thoughts are the WORST ever. I have felt for a very long time that I have brought these thoughts on myself. I know the doctor's say it isn't your fault. It is the OCD talking and your supposed to let the thoughts come and try not to pay attention to them. Well that's easy to say, but try living in our shoes day by day and having to deal with this junk all of the time. I hope they come up with a cure some day soon.
Needless to say, I was very surprise with the diagnosis. So I did alot of research and found a OCD on intrusive thoughts. However my intrusisve thoughts are not typical of what I found during my research. I seem to be at my worse after a social situation or dealing with a difficult situation at work. Even when life is good, I will reflect on a memory from years ago (going back even 20 + years), and out comes the f-bomb. Most of my verbal outburst are self degrading.
I agree. I suffered from intrusive thoughts for a long time and am now doing a lot better. You're right that things get worse before they get better while taking medication but when things finally start to get better, it's a great feeling. My thought were greater than me at one point and now I'm greater than my thoughts. It's easier to control my thoughts now. And ur therapist is right. We obsess over thoughts that are not of our control.
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