Does Medication Hinder The Processing Of Traumas In Certain Therapies? (emdr, Somatic Experiencing)

[Lotis]

I believe and know it can go both ways - for example, if someone is suffering from major depression therapy cannot work due to the person being impaired by the incessant sadness, that weighed down feeling, the hopelessness, the never-ending pull to end one's life. In order to get to a place where therapy can start to work, the person's symptoms need to be alleviated; this is when medication would usually come in to help. In the case of depression meds do not hinder the therapeutic process or the person's ability to experience emotions. Also, let's understand why medication is used. Medication is prescribed to level a person out, to even the scales; it is not prescribed to completely annihilate all feelings/emotions. Some people may experience "feeling numb" for a bit but that could be the adjustment from going to extreme overwhelming emotion to having "normal" emotions and feelings which would be less severe than what was previously being experienced.

Let's also understand that many antidepressants do not have any anesthetizing effects. Most antidepressants increase your serotonin levels which in theory should increase your mood, happiness and in some cases even anxiety levels (which may not be so good). Yes it is true that many antidepressants can make you feel drowsy or more sleepy but these side effects usually decrease once the body adjusts to the medication. In addition, antidepressants that cause drowsiness are usually the ones that also help with anxiety and would be taken before bedtime. Lexapro is an SSRI and should increase energy levels but it could make a person drowsy, however if Lexapro makes you feel like a zombie on 5 mg (which is not even the recommended starting dosage, 10mg is) talk to your doctor because it is probably not the right medication for you. There are many different antidepressants out on the market and each one works differently for everyone. It really comes down to the individual and what their needs are for medication. Some depressions are environmental and are not due to a chemical imbalance therefore taking medication will most likely not help but rather dealing with whatever is happening externally is probably the best therapy.

There are medications that will numb a person such as any benzodiazepine - often prescribed for anxiety. These will alter a person's mood and make them drowsy, but when taken as needed and as directed they could help a person who is suffering from Panic Attacks and severe anxiety.
Another class of drugs are the atypical anti-psychotics, (like Seroquel, Abilify,Zyprexa, Latuda...ect) these are the newer antipsychotics and are usually prescribed for people diagnosed with bi-polar as an example OR treatment resistant patients OR PTSD patients. I know many people on Seroquel and Abilify who are doing very well and their diagnosis are all different. This class of drug is definitely more hard core than a regular SSRI with a broader range of side effects. However, when prescribed to the right patient with the right symptoms these drugs can do wonders along with therapy.

With all of that said in my drawn out post (sorry) is that medication does positively coincide with therapy. Personally, I do not believe that antidepressants hinder with the release of traumatic memories or emotions. Meds are another tool to help with coping and dealing with the side effects of trauma, depression, chemical imbalances etc.
This is just my personal opinion :) So take it for what it is worth :rolleyes:

~L

 

[joeylittle]

That second round isn't necessary when it's a lifelong course of meds (say for bipolar disorder), nor if a person goes through therapy completely off-medication... Because in both cases? You're dealing with the baseline.

I mean I am trying to say that there are some people who really need medication in order to stabilize and stay functional so I'm not sure that becoming completely med free would be the way to go.

These points here.

I'm medicated for depression, and it predates my PTSD diagnosis. I don't expect to get med-free. Maybe I will, in which case, I'm sure I'll need support in therapy simply to make that adjustment, and it wouldn't surprise me at all if part of that was dealing with the resurfacing of some trauma/PTSD related issues.

But, I've been doing my trauma processing for a few years while on high doses, and it's certainly not inhibited my ability to access the emotions needed to do the work. If anything, it's just made it a little more possible, because my 'medicated' baseline is way, way more about to bounce back than my med-free baseline was.

I'll add, though, that there's a difference between being on-med and having the emotions show up as more transitory, vs. on-med and knowing that you have blunted affect. When you say 'zombie-like', it makes me think you might have blunted affect, and that you may be able to back your dose down just a little and still get the benefits you need without being in such a fog, @MarriedKoreanGuy. Just a thought.

 

[Klo]

I posted some time ago about getting ready to try some new types of meds, and also about meds I have tried in the past. I can offer my personal experience, for whatever that may be worth.

For myself, I found that I was just abusing meds the way someone would abuse something like alcohol. It was the initial side effects that I turned out to be subconsciously chasing. For many meds, the initial side effects included being very numb, in a stupor and sleeping 14+ hours per day. In these initial stages, I would praise the meds as working wonderfully. Then the initial side effects would wear off, and there I was, right back to my usual problems, only now with side effects like weight gain or stomach cramps. Woooo. So I'd go off of the med, demand to try a new one, rinse and repeat basically. When I started taking lamictal, there were no initial side effects, and I was immediately irritated with the situation, i.e. "this medication is crap." And that's when it finally dawned on me why I was seeking meds in the first place, for the numb&dumb effects!

And what was wholly ironic about this, is that suppressing my emotions throughout my whole freakin life was a big part of what I was supposed to be working on fixing. So, in my case, meds turned out to be a pitfall that I needed to ditch.

However, obviously some people really do benefit from meds for various reasons, but what I experienced could be something to watch out for.