Kendra's Favorite Things

Time to get personal! Those of you who know me well, you may know that I have struggled with Anxiety for virtually my entire life and that over the last 8 or so years I've been on and off several medications to help with it. It was never my intention to be over-medicated, mis-medicated, or get stuck in a haze; but that's what ended up happening.

I made a conscious decision about 2 months ago, that I wanted to get off my current medication as I really felt that any of the positive benefits I had seen from it were no longer present. So, I worked a plan out with my Dr. and after a few weeks of withdrawals, I am now Rx free!

If you are asking yourself, "Why would Kendra share something so personal on her very public blog?" The simple answer is this... There are so many people out there that suffer from anxiety at so many different levels, and I don't think it's anything to be embarrassed about for any of us. It is simply a disease and just like any other disease we have no control over who is affected by it. My other two reasons are that I am incredibly proud of myself for being able to make the decision that now is the time I'd like to be medication free, and lastly I'm beyond happy that the results have been amazing thus far.

First things first, to not have to wake up and be summoned to take a pill every day is the first bonus for me. Secondly, I have WAY more energy. And most importantly I feel that my good emotions have made their way back in, and the bad ones have subsided. (Quick explanation... good emotions/feelings are the normal every day, happy, sad, excited, annoyed, determined, frustrated... bad emotions/feelings are the extreme and abnormal racing thoughts, ambiguity, passiveness, fatigue, and inability to control these and other feelings/thoughts).

I feel like I'm back in control and it's clear to me that I was not being treated correctly for the past two years. Instead of being upset about that, I am enjoying the way I feel now and looking forward to continuing to treat my anxiety in other ways. I have been taking a more holistic route and even over a short period of time I have noticed great results. My new regimen consists of regular Yoga, acupuncture, less alcohol consumption and a cleaner and healthier diet. Seems like a no-brainer to feeling great huh?!?

Obviously, this is not something that will ever be cured in my life, but my hope is that by actively taking control and knowing that the results can be great even without medication, that a long term goal can be to keep this as something that only affects my life minimally.

ahhh.... that's a well deserved sigh of relief from yours truly!