You Gotta Find What Works For You
WAIT…DECEMBER?!?! ALREADY?!?! Wow, for such a dumpster fire of a year, at least 2020 is having the decency of not dragging its feet on the way out. 😜
So there have been some changes since my last blog. While Lexapro took the edge off of my anxiety symptoms at first (and got rid of my hot-flashes, bonus! 🙌🏻), the symptoms started getting worse again after about a month. In October, my GYN and I decided to up my dose to 10mg and my anxiety symptoms once again improved, but after a couple of weeks my husband and I noticed that I wasn’t eating very much. After a short Google search, I discovered that loss of appetite is one of the possible side effects of Lexapro. And while this is a side effect that some may jokingly welcome, those who know me know I’ve ALWAYS been on the thin side, so a few weeks of not being able to eat caused an unwelcome weight drop. I had another appointment with my GYN in November and we decided to go back to 5mg. My appetite returned but I began noticing that I was feeling really hyper, like I just downed 4 Cuban coffees hyper. Well guess what! Yep, that’s another possible side effect. So I’ve been working on weening off of the Lexapro (and caffeine). I’m on week 1 of no meds and the “brain zaps” have decided to kick in (for those who don’t know, it’s the occasional feeling of your brain “stuttering” along with some vertigo…fun! 😜).
To continue managing my anxiety symptoms, along with not drinking alcohol (and switching from coffee to tea), I’ve been working on meditation, restorative yoga, pranayama (breathing exercises), and energy medicine. I have also been researching alternative treatments and decided to try CBD and medical marijuana to manage the spikes in anxiety. I am fortunate enough to live in a MMJ state and have a card for osteoarthritis that is in my hands, elbows, and neck (x-rays showed NONE in my hips, knees, and ankles for all my “you’ll ruin your knees with all that running” friends 😉). It’s so much safer than tramadol and easier on the stomach than NSAIDs and ibuprofen.
So I’ve been trying different strains to find what works for me. So far it has been especially helpful in the wee hours of the night when the room is really quiet and my brain is VERY LOUD! And for those who are thinking that I’m running around “high” all the time now, there are many MMJ strains that are low in THC and high in CBD so they don’t get you “high”, plus they don’t send you into “I don’t care” land like Xanax and Valium. It’s also quite helpful when one of your anxiety symptoms is trouble eating…especially when you’re a self professed foodie! 😉
A big part of working through this season of life for me is listening to my body, my feelings, and my brain…and full disclosure of my symptoms, what I’ve tried, what’s worked for me, what hasn’t…some of you might think it’s great and it may even encourage you to do more research for your own reasons……and others of you won’t like it, but that’s OK…there are things that you all do that I don’t like either, but I still love you. 😘 #PeaceLoveAndJesus✌🏻❤️🙏🏻 #SearchingForStillness #BeStill #Peri-Menopause #Anxiety #MMJ #Arthritis
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