Did you take anything that made you feel normal?

[Lone Dog]

If so, please share it here. I am at the point where I need to get on medication, so any recommendations would be good.

[Mr. Nobody]

magic mushrooms made me feel VERY normal for a short time,
I think most humans are actually abnormal,
to be normal is quite an achievement I think, in this day & age anyway.

[mrjynx]

you cannot be recommended medication since everybody reacts differently given their brain chemistry. but im sure people will try.
normal isn't a feeling its a perception. a perception of yourself and how you fit into the world. you need psychotherapy to change that. in my opinion.

[Lone Dog]

Originally Posted by Vasco Da Gama

I think most humans are actually abnormal,
to be normal is quite an achievement I think, in this day & age anyway.

When I say normal, I'm meaning without SA, so most of the population would fall into that category. I'd usually be more specific but I just went for a gut feel and description when posting.

Originally Posted by mrjynx

a perception of yourself and how you fit into the world. you need psychotherapy to change that. in my opinion.

I do believe therapy is a useful part of treatment. Not sure about CBT, but talk therapy, definitely.

Originally Posted by Johnny88

Hi Lone Dog, yep it seems finding the appropriate medication can be difficult but sometimes not so difficult. It can often be a matter of trial and error but not always. I don't take meds but I have known a lot of people who swear by it. Definitely ring up your GP and discuss it with them.

The first port of call seems to be SSRIs, they appear to be 'indicated' for PTSD, panic disorder and SA. I wouldn't want benzos, and it's hard to get MAOIs and I'm not sure I'm brave enough to try them anyway. I haven't seen a doctor for a while, but it may be that I'm gravitating towards that now.

Originally Posted by mutedsoul

No, why do you need to feel normal? Isn't it better to accept yourself? You are not your social anxiety. Your social anxiety represses who you are.

I think most people would swap their SA for normal, i.e. SA-free, I know I would. I accepted the SA, but as the years go by without having much of a life it's a bit wearing. I know we can intellectually say we are not our SA, but that doesn't amount to much when you are in public and feel panicky and feel like you are a few seconds away from a panic attack, and the SA stops you from doing and having what normal people do and have. Also, yes it does repress who I am, that's the point.

[A Whimsical Stranger]

I take an SNRI (Venlafaxine) but my issues are a lot more complicated than clinical depression, even though that's what it's prescribed for. It makes me much calmer and able to handle my emotions better, I feel emotions very intensely so it stops me from feeling overcome by them, if that makes sense. I wouldn't say it makes me feel normal (what does that mean, anyway?) but it definitely helps me.

[BritishPeace]

For me escitalopram and propranolol have absolutely changed my life, I think.

[Mr. Nobody]

Originally Posted by Lone Dog

When I say normal, I'm meaning without SA, so most of the population would fall into that category. I'd usually be more specific but I just went for a gut feel and description when posting.

I think that's where a lot of us go wrong, we think everyone else is fine,
whereas pretty much everyone out there has varying degrees of neurosis, varying degrees of social anxiety, but they just haven't focused on it possibly, or labelled it as such,
it's part of recovery to see that everyone is imperfect and has things like SA going on too,
it can be a bit of a relief to see and process this fact.

[Sarah81]

Hello. I was on a high dose of fluoxetine which really helped with the day to say SA such as casual conversation in the office but it didn’t do much to relieve situations where I was highly stressed such as formal meetings/workshops/presentations. I took beta blockers once for a workshop and it stopped my voice from shaking so I eventually was able to relax but it didn’t stop me from being a nervous mess beforehand. I am now trying sertraline in combination with CBT which so far has not helped massively but it’s early days. I’d give anything for a magic pill that would completely sort me out ☺️

[Dougella]

^ I wish gin worked like that on me but it doesn't!

[Moksha]

Psychiatrists say that drug addicts are often trying to re-balance their brain. In fact, many addicts (I suspect) begin with wonky brain chemistry. The anxiety, depression, fear, low self-esteem, and so on, is unbearable, and so they experiment with drugs. I once heard a therapist say that many addicts are in fact behaving perfectly rationally. They are in pain, no one understands, no one can help, and so they try and self-medicate (usually with disastrous consequences).

[Aelwyn]

Originally Posted by Sarah81

I took beta blockers once for a workshop and it stopped my voice from shaking so I eventually was able to relax but it didn’t stop me from being a nervous mess beforehand.

Slow release beta blockers have also helped me a lot, shakiness has been one of my big problems, and they help with that. As Sarah says, they don't take away the anxiety, however I found that knowing I wouldn't be shaky actually did calm my anxiety to some extent.

For a couple of upcoming big social events, I've been prescribed a few Diazepam - they worked on the one occasion I took them before, many years ago, but sadly they are extremely addictive, so best keep away from them for any long term medication.

[MissKatie]

I found 5htp made a huge difference to my mood. But like as someone mentioned, what works for me, might not work for you