? Has anyone had to go on "meds" during this process?

[panda]

Wait til you can blow raspberries at them, it feels really good.

[IamOld]

Doing it right now!

[panda]

Keep it up, that helps with the stress as well. You are just in the middle of it right now, which really feels like it will never end, which makes getting on the other side even sweeter. Actually the first relief was filing and the creditor calls stopping, then the waiting for the discharge and close felt like it took forever waiting, but when it was finally done I finally felt like I could breath again.

Best wishes, take care of yourself, a heart attack or similar should not be an option.

[IamOld]

Thanks Panda!!!!!

Keep it up, that helps with the stress as well. You are just in the middle of it right now, which really feels like it will never end, which makes getting on the other side even sweeter. Actually the first relief was filing and the creditor calls stopping, then the waiting for the discharge and close felt like it took forever waiting, but when it was finally done I finally felt like I could breath again.

Best wishes, take care of yourself, a heart attack or similar should not be an option.

[confusedinok]

I actually started taking anxiety meds shortly after my mother was diagnosed with brain cancer almost 2 years ago. I had just had my 7th baby (3 days before) and was her main caretaker too. Oh..and I'm a homeschooling mom. It was a little much for me all at once. I've continued to take them off and on as we ride this cancer rollercoaster. I think that experience has helped me with the BK tremendously. I'd have been a basketcase about BK before the other stuff. Now, BK is actually one of the easier things I've done lately. BTW, I'll keep my meds in the cupboard, right where I know they are when I need one.

[IamOld]

Thank you confusedinok - you certainly put my problems in great perspective!

I wish you all the best as well!!!!!!!!

I actually started taking anxiety meds shortly after my mother was diagnosed with brain cancer almost 2 years ago. I had just had my 7th baby (3 days before) and was her main caretaker too. Oh..and I'm a homeschooling mom. It was a little much for me all at once. I've continued to take them off and on as we ride this cancer rollercoaster. I think that experience has helped me with the BK tremendously. I'd have been a basketcase about BK before the other stuff. Now, BK is actually one of the easier things I've done lately. BTW, I'll keep my meds in the cupboard, right where I know they are when I need one.

[Pandora]

if meds are needed, then by all means, take them; nothing wrong with that. However.... you know what another GREAT stress / anxiety reliever is? Exercise Even if you cant do much - a simple walk will do wonders. Leave all "modern technology" at home and just walk for a bit.

Another technique that we used was hubby and I decided that we could only think about the "scaries" of BK for 1 hour a day - that was it. We could break it up into whatever minutes we wanted to, but it could be no more than 1 hour a day. The "what if's" will drive you mad not to mention getting the mind spins (damn..hate those!) and throw TMJ into the mix; you're a migraine / dental case waiting to happen.

Life happens - crap happens - but ya know - life will go on...with or without you worrying non-stop, getting anxious or causing dental injuries . It's hard not to worry - trust me, been there, done that - but vow to devote only XX amount a day to it, then use the rest to appreciate your spouse, kids, parents, friends, animals, plants, etc etc etc and let the trials, tribulations, and "what if's" sit on the back shelf for a bit.

Remember, that old saying of "it could be worse..." is true. Could be in Japan right now, could be in Tuskaloosa, Joplin, etc.... there's always a bigger fish out there.

[lillymarlene]

I have a very addictive personality, and though I think it's O.K. sometimes for other people, I try to stay away from mood altering drugs. I quit drinking alcohol over 30 years ago, and cigarettes over 7 years ago.

Then last summer as I found that my finances were truly going to h*ll, I was told I had COPD and should be using a certain daily medication for it. At first I refused, since these days I hate to become dependent on anything for life, even something that is supposed to be beneficial. (I've had to quit so much, including credit cards, I'm so much more skeptical of everything.)

But I started with all these symptoms, like shortness of breath, and I wasn't sure if it was just the anxiety over all the s*&t happening in my life or the emphysema. So, I started with a daily inhaler, and well at least I can breathe, if nothing else.

[Billssuck]

I only have 10 months left on my ch13 and I started taking Cymbalta 2 months ago. It has helped alot! I felt like everything was a chore/burden and no matter what I did, someone always wanted more from me. I have a 3 year old at home and am going through menapause and this bankruptcy with a pending foreclosure looming. I've honestly struggled for years with depression but refused medication thinking that only weak people use them as a crutch. But now, after two months, I'm a much better mother/wife/friend and someone the other day told me that they hadn't seen me laugh like I did that night in years. So...if you need it, get it.

Pandora...I exercise regularly (ran a 1/2 marathon last year) and it helped some. But then it too became another chore for me in addition to everything else in life. I just needed some extra help to not be so anxious and critical of everything around me.

[IamOld]

I think I may be a Cymbalta candidate...we'll see - maybe one day, we ought to have a huge convention of all of us on this forum somewhere!!!

Thank you all for your advice, and billsuck and lillymarlene, thank you!!!

[AbbeyA]

I realized that I needed to start on an antidepressant when I broke down in front of our lawyer on the streets of Chicago after having our section 2004 exam. Our bk had been filed 7 months before that and we were really put through the ringer with a particular creditor who delayed our discharge 3 times and kept "legally harassing" us. They would file motions to extend the time to object to discharge on the last day -- they did this 3 times and I think I almost had a nervous breakdown.

I am a very strong person and I do not like asking for help. I had resisted it for months, even though I made sure my husband started on them at the beginning of our ordeal (business failure and dh's personal guarantees of business debt). It was on the sidewalk in front of the creditor's attorney office that my entire "spirit" fell out of me and I realized that I needed help. I hadn't considered starting anything prior to that b/c I was 7 months pregnant when the business failed and everything started .. then I was breastfeeding and didn't want to start anything at that time either. The baby was now one year old and I called my doctor when we got home and saw her the next morning. I started zoloft that day.

It took the edge off of things for me. I was less irritible and on edge and much more able to cope with the anxiety and stress of the situation. We have now been discharged for a full year and I am still on it now. I'm not sure when I'll go off of it, but I know I am not ready right now.

The hardest things for me were accepting the help I needed, and, admitting that I needed the help. It has allowed me to be a better mother to my kids (they are young and very energetic ) and a better wife and friend.

Good luck to you ... my 2 cents is that if you are going to talk to the psychiatrist about it, you have probably already decided to give it a try. Would you turn down insulin if you were diabetic? Would you turn down blood pressure medication if you had hypertension? Why would you turn down antidepressants/antianxiety medications if you need them?

I'm sorry you are having such a difficult time. I hope it gets a little easier for you very soon!

[IamOld]

Thanks so much Abbey!!! I am going to get something...even if it's because my spouse's favorite game is to pound me into the ground when I'm already down :-) but that's another pity party :-)

THANK YOU abbey!

[Lisa68]

I'm already medicated, but if I hadn't been I would be now. My dr has increased how much of the tranquilizer I take. This is a *very* stressful process. I've been through fertility treatments, and this is far more stressful (at least the fertility treatments had a start/stop time, this just seems to be never ending).

[IamOld]

Lisa, that's what I feel sometimes...that it never ends...but it will. As Lincoln said, "this too shall pass..." But then again, we think today that he was clinically depressed.

[discouraged]

Actually, Lincoln was diagnosed with a mental illness, can't remember which but think it was either bi-polar or depression.

Many, many, people who we look up to have been diagnosed with MI. This is not something to be ashamed of and, in fact, many of our great leaders would not have been able to do what they did/do without that extra 'mania'.

Sorry guys, but my son is bi-polar and I have studied this subject a lot. IamOld, this is a controllable situation. You CAN win this fight. And I know you will. Just see your dr. But, be careful of that cimbralta. Jeez - sure seems like a lot of side effects if you ask me.