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28 Posts
Hi all,
Apologies if this rambles on a bit as it is my first post.
I suffer from discrete SA, varying from mild symptoms when having to speak up at a work meeting to extreme physical symptoms (shaking, racing heart etc.) when giving a work presentation where I am the centre of attention. I take 40 – 60 mg of propranolol 1.5hours before the dreaded events and have done for several years and have afforded me immense relief from the physical symptoms.
I wonder if anyone agrees, it is easy to forget how effective a drug can be when taken for such events. When taken over time, it is easy to expect more from it and even easier to forget how effective it is when you are taken by surprise and have the extreme physical symptoms. It has allowed me to pursue the career I have at the moment, god bless the chap that invented it!
So, for the majority of situations barring presentations, it does the trick, I certainly don’t feel comfortable, far from it, but I make it through. However, for presentations, the mental persecution / self evaluation / anxiety is becoming more difficult to cope with. They are all I think about for weeks and during it is mental torture.
I began to research other options when I came across benzo’s. In the UK, they have a bad reputation, so when I went to my doc I was expecting a running battle. After much debate, he eventually gave me a script for 0.25 mg Xanax which I now have in my possession. I plan to take the Xanax and propranolol in combination before a future presentation, propranolol for the physical symptoms, and Xanax to ease the mental.
So ... does anyone have any experience of taking these two meds in combo? How many mg Xanax and how long before the presentation (propranolol ~ 1.5 hrs) should I take the Xanax?
What I will say is that due to the nature of the presentations, and knowing Xanax can cause some mental blunting, it’s really not going to be a good idea to come across as un-coordinated / thick-headed during these presentations, pretty disastrous really. My stage fright is a guilty secret, although others may perceive me to looking uncomfortable onstage (or is that my SA kicking in?!hehe) I certainly couldn’t admit to taking meds for this, as I am sure is the case for lots of people. Sign of weakness I guess.
I will of course try the combo at home beforehand, but I am sure that when not in an anxiety situation, the sedating effects are probably more pronounced than when sh*ting it onstage. Any advice on dosage would be really appreciated. I have no previous with taking Benzo’s and the hastle I went through to get Xanax, there is no way my doc will prescribe another benzo.
Thanks for reading,
Matt
Apologies if this rambles on a bit as it is my first post.
I suffer from discrete SA, varying from mild symptoms when having to speak up at a work meeting to extreme physical symptoms (shaking, racing heart etc.) when giving a work presentation where I am the centre of attention. I take 40 – 60 mg of propranolol 1.5hours before the dreaded events and have done for several years and have afforded me immense relief from the physical symptoms.
I wonder if anyone agrees, it is easy to forget how effective a drug can be when taken for such events. When taken over time, it is easy to expect more from it and even easier to forget how effective it is when you are taken by surprise and have the extreme physical symptoms. It has allowed me to pursue the career I have at the moment, god bless the chap that invented it!
So, for the majority of situations barring presentations, it does the trick, I certainly don’t feel comfortable, far from it, but I make it through. However, for presentations, the mental persecution / self evaluation / anxiety is becoming more difficult to cope with. They are all I think about for weeks and during it is mental torture.
I began to research other options when I came across benzo’s. In the UK, they have a bad reputation, so when I went to my doc I was expecting a running battle. After much debate, he eventually gave me a script for 0.25 mg Xanax which I now have in my possession. I plan to take the Xanax and propranolol in combination before a future presentation, propranolol for the physical symptoms, and Xanax to ease the mental.
So ... does anyone have any experience of taking these two meds in combo? How many mg Xanax and how long before the presentation (propranolol ~ 1.5 hrs) should I take the Xanax?
What I will say is that due to the nature of the presentations, and knowing Xanax can cause some mental blunting, it’s really not going to be a good idea to come across as un-coordinated / thick-headed during these presentations, pretty disastrous really. My stage fright is a guilty secret, although others may perceive me to looking uncomfortable onstage (or is that my SA kicking in?!hehe) I certainly couldn’t admit to taking meds for this, as I am sure is the case for lots of people. Sign of weakness I guess.
I will of course try the combo at home beforehand, but I am sure that when not in an anxiety situation, the sedating effects are probably more pronounced than when sh*ting it onstage. Any advice on dosage would be really appreciated. I have no previous with taking Benzo’s and the hastle I went through to get Xanax, there is no way my doc will prescribe another benzo.
Thanks for reading,
Matt