PERIMENOPAUSE AND FREE-FLOATING ANXIETY
Dr. Steven R. Goldstein, a trusted perimenopause specialist NYC, has helped thousands of women navigate this complex stage of life. Understanding what is happening in your body during perimenopause can help you make informed decisions about your health and reduce unnecessary anxiety or discomfort. Free floating anxiety is one of the most annoying symptoms women suffering from the effects of fluctuating cycles of unopposed estrogen (which occurs during Perimenopause) face. It is also a problem for women in Menopause. One new finding is that stable estrogen levels prevent anxiety, and that women who stop making estrogen undergo withdrawal from a natural tranquilizer. Though Xanax, a mild tranquilizer, and Paxil, an antidepressant, are no more natural remedies than Loestrin, they are widely prescribed, and my patients often ask about them.
Let’s take a look at how these drugs can be useful, their limitations, and what you should consider if they are prescribed for you. The Differences Between Xanax, Librium, Klonopin, Ativan, and Valium All of these drugs fall into a category called benzodiazepines. Valium, Librium and Klonpin are long acting; Xanax and Ativan are short acting. The long acting benzodiazepines remain in the body days after the pill is swallowed. The short acting ones are out of the body a few hours after they are consumed. A long acting tranquilizer may give you a tranquilizing effect throughout the day. The short acting ones wear off in several hours. None of these drugs in small doses will give you the zombie like effect you may have seen in movies. Generally, they gently dispel the jitters, usually within an hour. Some women do report drowsiness as a side effect, however. That sleepy feeling may go away after several weeks on the drug, but count on an adjustment period during which you may find yourself yawing throughout the day and in bed by eight o’clock in the evening. Although these drugs ameliorate anxiety, they do not remove the source of anxiety, which is one reason many patients find it is difficult to go off of them. Some experience months of success and relief while taking them, but become anxious or sleepless when they try to go without tranquilizers. This is known as “withdrawal”. For people taking low doses, this isn’t the acute medical condition of withdrawal from substance abuse portrayed in movies. Some patients describe it as the type of moodiness you get when you try to cut out coffee when your body craves it. Others have a rebound of the anxiety they first took the drugs to dispel. It is important to avoid stopping this medication abruptly and instead taper off over several weeks. Much depends on the dose you’ve been taking and the drug you’ve been described. What can I do that’s entirely natural to calm myself when I am feeling anxious?
As a perimenopause specialist NYC , Dr Goldstein says what you tell yourself when you begin to experience anxiety due to Perimenopause is crucial. You can throw yourself into a state of even higher anxiety by telling yourself that you’re losing control or worse. Doctors who specialize in panic often hear patients say “I feel like I’m going to lose it”. Some doctors encourage them. “Go ahead. You’re safe here. Lose it. Give into your anxiety”. But the patients can’t. Perhaps it’s the permission that allays the anxiety. But the fear of “losing one’s mind” is often more anxiety provoking than the likelihood that this would ever happen or the probability that it could. Anxiety is uncomfortable, but people do not die from it. Repeat to yourself: It’s only anxiety. I can handle this. It will pass. It’s not that dangerous. I’ve gotten through this before. The progressive relaxation technique you can read about in detail in The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook is one many psychotherapists recommend to patients. With a little practice it can help you to reduce anxiety in less than three minutes. It is also important to note that walking is a better exercise than running when you’re feeling anxious. Sometimes the deep breathing or the out of breath feeling and the rapid heartbeat runners get, can cause anxiety. Easy does it with the aerobics too on days when you’re feeling jittery. A long walk at a decent pace is still terrific exercise. This article does not constitute medical advice for those suffering from anxiety. A proper therapist should be sought out for your treatment. This article is meant to alert women to the fact that Perimenopause can bring on free floating anxiety, describe what it feels like, and what are the possibilities for treatment. Dr Steven R. Goldstein is a Certified Menopause Practitioner and a past President of both The Menopause Society and the International Menopause Society, and a practicing Menopause Specialist NYC.