Date: Fri Jul 7, 2000 3:48 am

Subject: Re: Carolann...

Zach, NO,NO,NO, We have not met anyone who if they stay drug free(Psychotropic drugs) who hasn't in time recovered. You see our body and brain chemistry are all affected by these drugs and even people who were originally put on them for anxiety or depression find in a while that their anxiety/depression is getting worse than the original problem. This is because their body is now tolerant to the dosage and on top of that whilst on these drugs and coming off all our stress coping mechanisms and sleep producing and feel good hormones are being depleted until they no longer work for us and the drug tries to do the same job.

Of course it can't so we then produce too much stress hormones like adrenalin and cortisol and we can actually have up to 6 times normal levels. It's no wonder we feel anxious, panicky, depressed and afraid as well as having many other physical symptoms as these stress hormones are whizzing around without us having our natural anti-stress calming hormones to counteract them as they have already been depleted by the drugs.

This is where time the main and only healer comes in, we have to wait for our nervous system and all these depleted chemicals to produce again, and they will but it can take quite a while which is of course different for us all because we are all different and we can help it to some extent by firstly avoiding other mood altering pills as our body and livers are trying to get rid of powerful chemicals already so the last thing it needs is others going in, these can also prolong withdrawal as well as having their own side effects and withdrawal syndromes.

We can eat a sensible diet and try to take some form of exercise to use up some of this excess adrenalin. You are doing well, get back on track, none of this is you but the drug effects and in time you will recover.

Hang on in there,

love Carol.