having terrible anxiety about starting new med

As many of you may know from my previous post I have terrible medication anxiety. I am supposed to start taking saphris and I am just in a panic attack about it. I have had lots of reactions to meds some real and some psych enduced. My first response is my mouth starts tingling and I get short of breath. I know this Med will make your mouth feel numb for about 30 min to an hour. I am worried I will freak out even though I know this will happen. I am also worried how I will feel the next day or so. Any advice on how to calm myself enough to take it. I so hate being like this. I think part of my anxiety is because it is a newer drug without a lot of clinical data. Thanks for any thoughts, or experiences with this Med.

turtle,

Is this new med Saphris? Kind of sounds like it, with the numb mouth. If so, I know friends who have had very good success with this med. It works great and has very few side effects. I tried it myself, but my cardiologist didn't like it, because it can react with some cardio meds. But I had no troubles when I was on it.

I understand being afraid to try new meds. It is always such a guessing game, will it work? will I have a negative reaction? will it take effect right away or will I have to suffer for weeks to get the right effect?

Hang in there, please, and stick with it. We need you healthy and happy and this might be the way to get there. Post your experiences and let us know.

I'm taking saphris, its been about a month or so and I love it. I feel better, I"m not sleepy all day like I was on seroquel, I actually can get up around 8 or 9am and get myself together for the day. I haven't done this in ages, I thought it was normal to sleep 12 hours everyday even when not depressed.

Make sure you get the black cherry flavor, and yes it does make your mouth numb, kind of like when you get a filling and you swallow the stuff from the swab they use before giving the shot. I sort of stick my tongue through my teeth a little and just sit still and swallow the spit til the pills dissolve, I take two at once. It goes away though. At first I had to eat and drink after the 10 minute waiting period to get the taste out of my mouth but now its no big deal. I let it dissolve then just go to bed and believe me, I zonk out in about 15 minutes after I take it.

I'm happy with it so far.

I have the same issues with meds. I have had bad reactions to a lot of them and none of them have been that helpful. I am supposed to go on lithium. One minute it seems like a great idea and the next moment I am worried about the effects. Just remember that these meds can be helpful and you are trying it for the sake of your health. Most side effects will go away after you quit taking the meds. So if you do have bad effects they probably won't last forever. When it comes to anxiety it can help to face it and try to reason with it. It doesn't always work but at least we can try. Take care of yourself and take it easy on yourself. Take good care of yourself.

Thanks for the replies. I have been a big chicken and have not taken it yet but I am thinking very seriously about trying it Friday night since I work during the week and will have the weekend to adjust.

@ rjm and Amy it is good to know you both have taken it and had good results and few side effects.

@ squirlbrain you are right it is true facing and reasoning with it is the best thing because when you do like I did and gave into the anxiety it only makes me feel worse about myself. When I have faced a fear and gone through it it seems to make me stronger and ready to face the next fear. Sometimes my anxiety is high for no reason and sometimes it is a situation. I would like to try the new Med when my anxiety is not so high like it has been for a few weeks now. I feel that if I am calmer to begin with I am less likely to freak out....if that makes sense.

I believe my pdoc said the saphris would help with anxiety, I know its worse when I am in an episode. I have generalized anxiety disorder too so I have klonopin for those times when things are very anxious. Do you perhaps have something like that for the high anxious times? If not, maybe ask about it and ask if the pdoc has an opinion about maybe you also having gad. I think anxious goes along with the territory in general with us bp'ers.
I hope when you do take the saphris you find it helps. I am happy with it.

I also have medication anxiety. I have even cried before taking my meds. It's because I'm prone to so many side effects. However, in the end I have to take them. Amy is right though if you have something for those high anxious times you could take it before taking your meds. I did that several times until I was calm enough to do without it. I also talk myself into taking them as well. I'll tell myself how I need them to stay healthy and that I'll be okay taking them. A little self talk can go a long way.