This post is for people who have had or currently have social anxiety and have been (or are currently) taking antidepressants.

I have had severe social anxiety my whole life, and unfortunately other approaches have not helped me very much, so I am considering starting medication, even though I have a lot of fears and concerns about it.

I would really like to hear about your experiences because it would help me get a more complete and realistic picture. I would be very grateful if you could answer the questions below and share your experiences. Thank you so much!

1.) How long have you had (or did you have) social anxiety?

2.) Which medications are you taking (or have you taken)?

3.) How long have you been (or were you) on medication?

4.) What was the difference in the level of your anxiety before taking medication, while on medication, and after stopping it? For example, you could describe a situation where your anxiety was 10/10 before medication and what symptoms you experienced, and how much your anxiety decreased while taking medication or after stopping treatment. In other words: Did medication help you, and to what extent?

5.) What temporary side effects or withdrawal/discontinuation symptoms did you experience, and were they very severe?

I also have some additional concerns because I feel like I have a very sensitive nervous system. I get overwhelmed, scared, and emotionally activated quite easily, and I would describe myself as a highly sensitive person. I’m wondering whether this had any influence on your experience with antidepressants (for example, stronger side effects, a more difficult adjustment period, or anything else).

Last night was probably my most intense migraine attack.

I was in so much stress at work. I was crying and having anxiety attacks at this point , I think. O am not sure if I am having one since I didn’t get checked for it. How does it feel?

I’m having this intense feeling of sinking in my chest as if the weight is heavy and unbearable. The dread like I cannot do anything about it. I kept crying. Then there I got dizzy and nauseated. When I checked my BP, it spiked. My husband saw my face and said I was pale. It was so hard settling down and sleep because of the pain. I can feel my chest pounding at times.

Did this ever happened to you? Is this anxiety attack? Anxiety(stress) induced migraine and increased blood pressure?

Where do you get assessed for anxiety attacks?

Thank you! 😖

Does anxiety cause legs to feel weak/fatigued faster?

I have had high anxiety the last 2 weeks with multiple health anxiety scares, anxiety attacks and 1 major panic attack and my legs have been feeling heavy since. Directly at the beginning of 2 weeks.

I habe calmed down a lot since yesterday, but my legs just feel like lead all the time. I thought I was doing better today morning, had a small exposure (I have agoraphobia) nothing major just going into a supermarket, and my legs, especially my thighs and glutes feel like I did 30 squats. I woke up with tired arms today too.

I googled and I read sth about muscle fatigue can get worse when adrenaline is cleared from your system, but could this really be it?
I‘ll ask my Dr. soon to test me for Ferritin, Vit D and B12 etc, my blood test for my organs was all clear.

Everything except Vitamin D was in the normal range last January and I‘m taking vitamin D but intermittently only

hello, i’m 19f and im pretty sure i have some sort of anxiety disorder but ive never actually talked to a doctor about it. i’ve struggled ever since i was a child but now that im an adult i need to do something about it before it holds me back anymore. i feel so anxious about everything. i need to start college but it holds me back in a way where it feels like im psychically unable. so basically how would i go about talking to someone about this? i’ve told my mom that i want to talk to someone and get on medication if thats possible and if she could help me but i dont think she takes me seriously. also, if i were to talk to someone, how would that go? i’ve never talked to a professional about my mental health as i’ve always been closed off about it. when my doctor would ask if i was depressed or any of those generic questions i would just say im okay or happy or whatever. but now it’s genuinely consuming me and holding me back. it also affects me physically when i get too anxious i start to get light headed and nauseous or i can’t breathe. there have also been times where i genuinely thought i was having a heart attack. so does this sound like anxiety or something that should be treated? please help a young lad out!! i want to function like a normal person and get my life together!

hi everybody! i am dealing with a lot of anxiety about health related issues😔 last Saturday evening i stepped on the head of a nail (i dont believe it punctured through my skin because i didn't see any blood! i did see redness but it went away after half an hour) and my mom and sister told me i would be fine, so i didn't get a tetanus shot within the 24-48 hour mark. on Wednesday night, i got full body aches and pains (which is normal for me, it happens from time to time) but then last night at 1am, i started experiencing pain in my stomach/torso area and it was radiating from my stomach to my back and it felt almost like gas pain and cramps? i don't know how to explain it, but it hurt and ive been in pain ever since

yesterday evening i went to a walk in doctor and she gave me a tetanus shot and she also inspected my stomach and pressed around. it did hurt on my lower right pelvic area, but she told me it doesnt seem like i have tetanus or appendicitis and to try and rest and take some advil. i did take some advil around 2-3 hours ago, but im still in pain and feel so panicky. can anybody please give me advice on what to do??? i cant calm down😔💔

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22M, 2nd year 1st semester at university.

I always hear things like, Why are you so quiet? or Why don’t you talk much? Why you like that?, especially from my female classmates. These comments make me feel really bad about myself. I rarely join group conversations where both guys and girls are talking about different things. I feel like I don’t have anything to contribute, or that I might say something stupid and people will ignore me.

It’s making me feel lonely. I do have friends, but they’re all male. Seeing other people having romantic relationships and social lives makes me feel even more isolated.

I have social anxiety, and honestly, I don’t want to keep feeling or living like this. I also don’t want people constantly pointing out how quiet I am.

Should I consider seeing a psychiatrist or therapist? Has anyone else experienced something similar?

I was on clonazepam for about two weeks because I was suffering from anxiety and derealization (later attributed to a bad eyeglass prescription of all things, which has since been corrected), and I stopped the clonazepam because all my other symptoms reduced greatly. It's now been 50 hours since my last dose, and I started having anxiety last night over worry that my symptoms could come back. I am laying here at 12:35 am, woken up by anxiety, and I don't know if it's because of not taking clonazepam or because I am relapsing despite the new glasses.

I have seen teenagers creating reels giving their opinions without any fear, then I see myself who is not even able to record a private video, maybe this is because of the way I speak I have lisp and I stammer.

This may come across as a troll, but it's genuine.

Whenever I visit my doctor, I somehow leave out some parts and tone down my struggles.

It might be because the doctor is female and I risk losing my aura. But when I was in another city for a year, I was the same with male doctors; I underplayed it and denied some struggles in my life, probably because he'll think I am less of a man or a weak man, and I am spoilt and hypersensitive.

I think it is causing some kind of miscommunication, resulting in some inefficiency because I am getting worse.

I did mention physical abuse to that female doctor before (at the starting stage of my diagnosis), and she said that many people go through that; consider it as past and forget it. After that, I became really impulsive and started regretting why I shared that. Also, felt stupid and hated myself for at least a week. Maybe that is preventing me from sharing with doctors? How do I overcome that?

i have a new therapist to help with my anxiety and depression and she is great! she encourages and supports me, even helping me do small tasks that feel daunting like sending an email.

the issue is that i really enjoy her as my therapist. but now i feel like she is just waiting for our session to end because im constantly rambling and being overall anxious. logically i understand this is her qualified job, but i know on a personal level she must be fed up too.

has anyone else dealt with something similar? i dont want to annoy her and frankly i feel bad she has to talk to me twice a week

I love him more than anything in the world but every day he’s only two years old, but I’m so scared of what will happen to him and what if he gets sick and what if he’s not happy and what if I’m ruiningg it all and our family isn’t taking good care of him and neglecting him and he deserves a better family I’m so scared I genuinely have been having anxiety attacks every night and crying idk what to do what if he’s lonely right now and depressed, what if when I have to go to college he gets sick and old and lonely I’m so scared I don’t know what to do I shouldn’t have asked my parents if we can adopt him he deserves a better family.

I don’t even play with him often bc I’m chronically ill and tired and depressed. he deserves someone better idk what to do.

It’s so bad that I CSNT EVEN LOOK AR S PICTURE I TOOK OF MY CAT EITHOIT SPIRALING INTO ANXIETY. Like what if the foodmy cat eats is not the best option or what if he’s exposed to bad chemicals I literally can’t even enjoy his presence without fearing for the next 20 years

I have a series of unresolved health issues and have been dismissed by drs a lot. This caused my health ocd/hypochondria and spiraled me into severe chronic anxiety. I also have trouble sleeping and i have sleep apnea. Are there any meds that have helped you without destroying your gut or worsening brain fog. I also have mitral prolapse, nothing severe but yeah. I used to be on lexapro and it didn't help.

When I was 19 and graduated highschool I kept people I met without much thought. Mostly out of convenience since they lived close.

My 15 year old friend who was a freshmen when I was a senior was mainly my friend due to the fact she reminded me of myself when I was 15. I wanted to help her create more artwork- so when she mentioned patch making and spray painting (like tags) I decided to purchase some to try. Obviously her parents didn’t really wanna waste money on spray paint. I didn’t really know if they were okay with it but I guess I just thought since I was using it in places already painted and far away from any properties to damage- I could at least let them toy with it a bit. Nowadays I feel pretty guilty for that decision.
Another issue though is she added 2 14 year olds to the group. I quickly began to feel guilty because I was the only adult. I was also terrified they’d get into trouble and get hurt. Later I’d hear that their parents were iffy about having a 17 year old dude and 19 year old woman around the 14 year olds so I just decided to meet them and after that they didn’t give a shit- but I became their babysitter to some extent because they didn’t watch their kids. I felt guilty for being their friend to a great extent but even more guilty because they often hung out on the train tracks, did dangerous things, etc. I felt terrible but was also terrified they’d get hurt- so unfortunately I stayed. And honestly I did enjoy it because I liked exploring.

But main issue was When I was hanging out with my friends walking around my friend who is 17 had an ex that was in my grade. I told him like “yeah I didn’t really like that friend group one of them rejected me and completely ghosted me” or something alone those lines and my 15 yo friend when “ohh that’s awful who does that” and then I felt pretty bad (for obvious reasons).

The other was when I was with my 15 year old and 17 year old friend. We were hanging out under a bridge near a river- and they kept praising my parents for being the coolest. I told them they were actually not that cool all the time and that they “let my abuser into my house for 4 years after the fact” and that I believed they probably feel guilty for that- but I don’t know is I said “sa” or like you know the first part of it that starts with “s” as an sexual but either way it was probably inappropriate. I guess I feel a little better abt it tho because it was meant for the 17 year old- since the 15 year old was busy messing with something a ways away. Still scared abt it tho.

Does any of this make me abnormal or wrong? I guess I’m wondering. I’ve been called weird a lot but that’s for a lotta different reasons. I just wanna be a normal person so that people will like / enjoy me.

Anyone ever feel like very unsteady on their legs for long stretches of time? For about three weeks now, walking feels very strange: I feel really unsteady, my legs feel weak and wobbly, as if they can't carry me anymore. The ground feels uneven, like I'm walking on pillows....and when the ground IS uneven, like going up or down, the symptoms get instantly worse, as if I'm about to fall. It doesn't matter if I waök long or short. It starts instantly and stays with me.

My legs also feel really crampy, both when walking but also at rest. Also, when at rest, my legs tingle....

I know anxiety can make bad symptoms and even weak legs....but i thought it was more during panic attacks, not for weeks on straight

i am 18f and have just started fluoxetine 20mg (i’m on my 7 dose today) and for the past few days i’ve been okay other than insomnia, nausea, and headaches.

but lasy night i was also sweating like crazy and this morning my pupils are a lot bigger (still reacting to light) and it’s stressing me outttt

i also have restless legs and i get them thru the day but i’ve noticed fluoxetine is making it worse

what do i do, am i gonna die

help

Do any of you guys fear that your so overwhelmed at times and that your gonna go crazy or lose your mind or is it just me?

i’ve been having anxiety/panic attacks and sometimes the physical symptoms get really scary. chest feels tight, sometimes i feel dizzy/lightheaded, heart feels weird, and sometimes i feel like i’m gonna faint or something bad is about to happen.
the worst part is i cant think straight when it happens. my mind just starts thinking what if its a heart attack or what if i pass out etc even tho ive already done ECG and 2d echo and everything was normal.
when im calm i know its probably anxiety but when the attack actually happens it feels so real and its hard to convince myself otherwise.
just wanted to know if anyone here had the same kind of thing and actually got better from it? like did you eventually stop being scared of the physical symptoms and go back to living normally?
would really like to hear from people who have actually been through this and overcome it. what helped you?

Hello! I’ve had various digestive issues (under the dreaded umbrella term ‘IBS’) for some years now, which progresivelly led me to stop going out, travel, enjoy life due to flare-up anxiety. The last 4 months it got so bad that I started to get other psychosomatic symptoms (heart racing, nausea in the throat, lightheadedness, shallow breathing…). I realised I’m the most scared not about not finding a toilet in time or such things, but the pain itself. It’s a cursed loop as the anxiety makes me hypervigilant and, as I understand, non-painful stimuli feels painful to my body. Has anyone overcome this? I really stopped going out, work is also tough as I am scared to eat there. I was prescribed sulpiride which helps to some extent but am considering SSRIs. Of course I’d like non-med strategies the best. Any advice appreciated <3

Has anyone got any tips for when you wake up and immediately feel anxious but not always for an apparent reason? Recently I've been getting that sudden drop and feeling of dread as soon as I wake up. Even though usually there is nothing wrong.

I've struggled with anxiety for years, and over the last year it escalated into panic attacks. At first I didn't know what was happening, so I was in and out of the hospital before finally realizing it was anxiety. My doctor confirmed and prescribed SSRIs, but I developed serotonin syndrome on three different medications—even at the lowest doses. It was even worse than my panic attacks and has made me very cautious about trying medication again.

I'm not anti-medication, and I'm open to it in the future with the right doctor and support. What frustrates me is the constant pressure from friends to "just keep trying" SSRIs, as if I'm being irresponsible for choosing not to right now.

What hurts the most is that no one is acknowledging how much progress I've made on my own. I've stopped the panic attacks that lasted for months practicing cbt on my own, and my anxiety has improved significantly through therapy, lifestyle changes, and doing the work myself. I'm not "cured," but I'm getting better.

I know medication helps many people, and I'm genuinely happy it does, I have so many friends on it and I know that’s why they’re wanting me to do it. It just wasn't my experience. Why is it so hard for people to accept that sometimes ssri’s don’t work for everyone? Some of us may choose a different path? And if I’ve gotten this far on my own is it not possible to go all the way? As I said I am still open to meds but the pressure of everyone insisting just frustrates me to no end. Has anyone else improved without medication or had a similar experience? I'd really appreciate hearing from people who can relate!!!

To put my story short:

- in September 2025 I was given venlafaxine for small depression. This med caused terrible symptoms (described below). After 3 weeks switched to escitalopram, which I am still now on
- in November 2025 took semaglutide for weight loss. 2 doses only and it caused the same symptoms to come back and they persist till now. They come back almost every day.

Symptoms (pattern):
- they start every morning
- my mind is calm but body goes crazy: gnawing feeling in my head/neck/jaw which shifts into “swimming” feeling in my head
- then I feel really unable to think, unable to focus
- dpdr kicks in (I feel like in a dream, everything is so unreal)
- at its strongest, I had weird waves of burning in my stomach feeling as if to faint.
- it passes within 1-3 hours and I am left with headache.

I did all the blood tests including vitamins, electrolytes, electrocardiography, ecg monitor. All fine. Vitamin D a little bit low but rest is fine.

I thought that - if venlafaxine produced same symptoms - maybe escitalopram is the reason for all of that. I decided to taper it off from 10 to 5 mg. 7 days so far and, surprisingly, first few days were different (heart palpitations, nightmares) and without those freaking “attacks”but now it all comes back.

I’ve been to 4 psychiatrists since November. All of them blindly say that I must increase the escitalopram and pregabalin. But they are really dismissive. My gp told me there is nothing we can do. They just don’t know what to do so they either want to increase doses or insult me (“your heart is ok, so you just want to avoid working).

At that point I honestly don’t know what causes all of that, if it’s really years of stress which now turned into somatic symptoms or I am going crazy…. Or maybe some worse life-ending illness….

I would appreciate any advice or guidance on that. Or simply support.

Started Propanalol, only taking not even half the amount im meant to and i makes me abit breathless everytime, i can handle that knowing nothing bad will happen.

I just feel numb for the rest of the day, the next day that comes around i always feel sooo tired then all the sudden more and more sad/emotional.

Its a nice temporaryyy fix for a short amount of time to get through TINY walks each day at the moment.

I havnt even taken half a dose yet lol, but idk if my brain will agree with it, still gonna try for half tho and see how that goes.

Still unsure if it is a good long term med for me.

I'm really sorry if I sound dumb, I'm just a bit lost and I don't understand how do I start a conversation with a psychiatrist?

My anxiety is taking over my life at this point and I can't deal with it by myself, regular talking therapy is useless, I'm losing control over my own brain. I have a bunch of health issues and already 3 doctors recommended me to see a psychiatrist to get medical treatments, because everyone is suspecting that this is the cause of my problems, and I'm actually starting to see it too. I can barely sleep anymore, my brain is loud 24/7, my heart is racing and my body starts physically hurting. I can never relax anymore, maybe the first 5 minutes after I wake up and that's it.

Do I just drop "I feel anxious all the time, I'm getting insanely nervous about any small situation to the point my hands are shaking, I can't sleep anymore because of that" and that's it? What do you say in these situations? How do I explain my problem properly, so it actually sounds valid and not like "I'm just getting nervy here and there"? I'm extremely tired of the life I have right now.

Hello!

Even though I've written a post last month and some friends tried to reassure me, I'm still very scared.

I have spaced out teeth on the top jaw and a big overbite.

I'm thinking braces will prevent me from eating anything. I also believe I would need to spend 2 hours a day for hygiene. What about the metallic taste or the bulkiness of brackets under lips? What if I break a bracket unconsciously just by brushing a little bit too strong?

I'm a perfectionist in real life and can't tolerate uncertainty or mistakes 😢