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Mainstream mental health is flawed and I’m pulling back the curtain.
I’m Andrea Clark, a former family therapist, who walked away from the system to expose the truth. After my own journey from medication maze to holistic healing, I’m here to challenge the status quo and reveal the mental health truths most people don’t know.
”The Truth About Mental Health” is your radical roadmap to wellness. Raw stories, expert insights, breakthrough solutions – this is where traditional modalities end and real healing begins.
Andrea Clark (00:00)
Amanda, I'm so excited you're here.
Amanda (00:02)
I'm so happy to be here. Thanks for having me.
Andrea Clark (00:05)
Absolutely. Okay, so I cannot wait to dive into this conversation about just your story about how you even got started on medication. Because I think it's gonna be so powerful for people to hear your story specifically. Because I think that people make an assumption that when their practitioner tells them, hey, you need this med, they don't always feel like they can ask questions. And
meds are usually the first defense, right? And a lot, not a lot of are explored. And so I'd love to just start with, tell us a little bit about your career, because I think probably the stress from your career does contribute to how we even led to, to where you got, right?
Amanda (00:33)
Right.
Yes, absolutely.
Andrea Clark (00:48)
Okay, let's start there. Tell us a little bit about what you do and all of that.
Amanda (00:53)
Okay, so I am a nurse. I've been a nurse for about seven years. I started my career in the ICU. like cardiac ICU, which was like the sickest people go to the unit that I was working on. And I started that it was my first week there and backstory also leading up to that. Throughout college, I started noticing my anxiety was getting really bad, but I was also eating awful. I was drinking all the time.
And then I also was on newly on birth control and apputain, which both can impact your mental health, which they literally give you warnings about these things, but I took them anyway because I was just naive, you know? So I was already feeling my anxiety getting way worse. Then my brother passed away on like unexpectedly in 2015. And then 2017 is when I started
in the ICU and that first week in ICU, I was an absolute mess. Like, so I had told all my friends and family, I'm starting the ICU, like thinking I'm so cool that I'm starting as a brand new nurse in that cool unit. Like I just, I had been a people pleaser my whole life. I hated about myself, but it's something that definitely led to me being put on Lexapro. Started in the ICU, found out that it's actually terrifying.
And I knew I was so scared that I wasn't gonna be able to fill that role of like, kind of like the badass nurse, know, like all the girls around me, they were all doing their jobs so easily. And I was like so terrified that first week. And so I actually, and it was almost kind of like the nurses eating their young a little bit when I first got there because they could tell how anxious I was. Like anybody in the room could tell how anxious I was. You could just see that.
Andrea Clark (02:25)
Mm-hmm.
Amanda (02:45)
Um, so they is part of like one of my exercises. was kind of thrown into this room and the patient behind me was crashing, like not doing well at all. Um, there were doctors, there were nurses or a respiratory therapist and they're like, draw up like the life saving medication for this guy. And they were giving me all these orders. The doctor was yelling orders behind me and I just.
had never happened to me before. I now know it was a panic attack. I stopped being able to hear like what people behind me were saying. It was all muffled. My heart was racing. and it was to the point where people around me knew something was happening, but like, I had no idea what just happened. So then I was sitting in the little orienty room with the educator and she's like, what happened in there? And I was
I was so embarrassed. was so like, you know, that little girl in my head that just like wanted to be perfect because I was always a perfectionist growing up was like, you are so stupid. How could you let yourself do that? Like I was, I was so critical of myself and I was so embarrassed that they had seen me acting that way or looking that way. cause I had always been such a strong person up until that point. So was like, I can't believe I let my guard down and people saw it.
So then that night I went home and I was like bawling, because they were basically telling me like, I don't know if you're going to make it on this unit, which to me, looking back, I'm like, why did I not explore other units or like take that as a sign? Like, this is not where I'm supposed to be. But for some reason, I had to keep proving people wrong. And I'm like, I need to do something about this so that that never happens again. And so that's when I literally went, I'm pretty sure the next day.
to a PCP that I had never been to before. And I told her what had happened. And I kind of went in with the assumption that I was gonna get something. I was like, I need something so that that never happens again. And then that's when I was put on Lexpro in like a five to 10 minute conversation. And I'll never forget what she told me, this PCP, which kind of made me be like, I need this medication. She said,
It sounds like you've been anxious for so long that it's turned into depression. That's what she told me. And I believed it, because I was 22 at that time.
Andrea Clark (05:02)
That's very interesting. A very interesting connection she made. I'd be curious to understand it better. But I mean, I know anxiety and depression can go hand in hand, I don't know if there's anything that you just shared that I would make that connection myself, you know, from my own experience with mental health. But of course,
Amanda (05:07)
Yeah.
Yeah, I had
Yeah.
Andrea Clark (05:24)
hearing something like that is gonna make you think like, maybe I need this, I need this, right?
That's so wild. So a couple of things. First of all, and I don't live in the nursing world at all. I have several good friends who are nurses. And it sounds like you were being hazed a little bit. Like you said, eating your young or whatever, like there's this initiative. It's kind of like, we're gonna toughen you up real fast type of situation. And that's one.
Amanda (05:41)
Mm-hmm.
you
Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Which I guess in a way
is kind of needed in that field. So
Andrea Clark (05:59)
Yes,
but like, I mean, the first couple days, like what? You know what mean? It's pretty intense, like.
Amanda (06:04)
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, yeah, I don't know. I, and then I did get prescribed it and I was able to go into work and kind of like, I felt like superwoman at the time. So I get when people coming to me like, this medication helped me so much. I never would have been able to do this, this and this without it because it did help in the beginning. But it turned on me in the next few years. And that's like a big part of my story is like,
not just trying to come off of this, but the way it changed me in so many negative ways. And I didn't even like realize until now that I'm coming off and I'm like, I can't believe that made me that person. And like, I did not know when I was on it for what six years, like I was so blind to so many things. And that's what these medications can do to you.
Andrea Clark (06:58)
people don't understand like at all. So let's talk about that a little bit because you know, this is this idea of people getting, first of all, nobody's saying for each individual person, if it works for you and you're really happy with being on SSRIs, like nobody's attacking you, cool. There is a whole world of people out there who don't wanna be put on one, who have had a lot of negative experiences with it.
Amanda (07:01)
No.
Andrea Clark (07:26)
who feel that they're not listened to by their practitioners and they're just being offered a pill and they know that that's not gonna get to the root. They know it will like, you know, put some wallpaper over the mold, but that the mold is still there. And so these are the people who we are talking to, right? We're not talking to the person who feels 100 % rock solid, A-okay with being on medication. Like if you do, that's amazing. Like nobody's dissing on you. Nobody's giving you a hard time, right?
Amanda (07:53)
No,
I agree and like like I said, I liked it when I started I thought it really helped me and like
me and a couple of my coworkers, like they're like, which one are you on? I'm on whatever. But I feel like now we've crossed over like wanting to tell somebody that it might be a good idea to like full on glamorizing these medications in a way that's like not safe. And I think it like these influencers I see all over TikTok are they're literally promoting these medications. People with millions of followers are like, I take this or like shaking their little pill bottle.
And I'm like, that's great that it works for you. But also there's like little girls and young girls and boys in this, in these comments that are like, what's that? I feel like I want to try that. And it's like, they don't get the risks when they're looking at that video.
Andrea Clark (08:40)
Yeah, that's actually really insane to me. When you told me that when we were chatting, I was like completely appalled.
Amanda (08:48)
Yeah, and don't even get me started on live Laughlex Pro if I hear that one more time.
Andrea Clark (08:52)
Is that a saying? Live, laugh, luxe, pro? shit, that's really bad.
Amanda (08:56)
Yes.
On
TikTok and then I was just recently in Colorado visiting my best friend. She had a baby and we were in this college store in Boulder and they had stickers of pill bottles all over the store, like not just in one spot. It was like all over the store and they said, live, laugh, Lexapro on the pill bottles. And so they're like making merch and I actually saw some, I forget the account name, but she posted, she makes merch and she made like bags that say,
Huge letters, live, laugh Lexapro.
Andrea Clark (09:27)
my gosh, that's, that's insane to me.
Amanda (09:30)
Yeah, and then people, like I made a video about it on TikTok and I got a lot of comments saying there's a stigma and I'm like, I mean, maybe there used to be, but in my opinion, there is not a stigma anymore around it. I don't think so. I think it's being openly talked about, openly glamorized and it's dangerous.
Andrea Clark (09:42)
I agree. I agree.
I think it's really dangerous too. Because it's already dangerous enough that Big Pharma is allowed to do direct to consumer advertising. And now you have influencers glamorizing this, and that just makes people think that this is the option.
Amanda (10:02)
Mm-hmm.
with me.
Andrea Clark (10:14)
this influencer uses this and they're like pretty or they're fun or they have this amazing life. Like maybe this is gonna give me this amazing life or whatever. You know what I mean? People oversimplify and wow, that's crazy.
Amanda (10:26)
Yeah.
Yeah, they don't see that likely they don't see that person down the road like five, six, seven years later how they're doing because what happens as you know, a lot of people are hitting tolerance with these medications where it works so well in the beginning and then it just stops. And so you start having all these symptoms like me, I started having all these health problems. And I kept going to all these doctors, I was like,
what like it must be me like I'm an unhealthy person is like what I would tell myself. But then I started to taper off and all these symptoms go away. It's like, okay, that was absolutely the medication doing those things to me.
Andrea Clark (11:03)
Yeah, my husband has been on a medication he was put on it when he was like 15 or 16 and he has tried to taper off twice and it's pretty rough. It's really rough. He also and he's his goal is to do that eventually under supervision of somebody and he but he definitely has some challenges from the medication that he knows are
Amanda (11:16)
Yeah.
Andrea Clark (11:29)
is from the medication, but when he tries to taper off, it's like a nightmare. And so he has to like be mentally ready for it. And our family has to be ready for it because we have, you know what I'm saying? And so we're like working towards that, but it's like he's a prisoner to this medication.
Amanda (11:39)
Yeah.
I call myself that all the time. said, I feel like I'm a prisoner to pharma. And I think that's a good point you made about like kind of preparing and being at a good point in your life when you try to do this. Because if you have like a super busy schedule with like kids and work or something like big things coming up, I would not recommend starting a taper off these medications. Cause it's just, takes over so much. I have so many women that reach out to me and they're like,
I stopped taking it when I got pregnant, which is a huge thing that I hear. And like, I just can't imagine, I don't have kids, but I cannot imagine preparing for the most like exciting time of your life and then being thrown into a psych med withdrawal. I can't. And then there's all these symptoms and they're probably, would assume they were like guessing, is this from being pregnant? Are these symptoms from pregnancy? So I'm sure it's like difficult to kind of distinguish.
But then so many of these medications are dangerous to take while you're pregnant. I'm learning now. I've heard a bunch of new research coming out lately.
Andrea Clark (12:48)
Yeah, they are. It's intense. So, okay, it helped at first. Why? Why did it help? Like, were you more detached? Like, tell us how you felt.
Amanda (12:58)
Yeah, definitely just felt like I could go to work without like the dread and anxiety and because a lot of people that came in, they were in like, obviously ICU critical condition. like, I would get like an admission with a really sick person and I'd be able to actually like, think straight and be able because you really cannot be having panic attacks at work when you're trying to take care of patients that are that sick. So
being like a little bit anxious and being like full blown having panic attacks, obviously are two different things. So I definitely did get a little bit of anxiety when someone would come in. Like I still felt that a little bit, but I was way more like centered and able to focus. And at the beginning, I feel like I still had my personality. Like I was still joking with friends and being happy and still doing things I like to do. But then it like turned into
over the course of like probably three years, it was all these things popping up. I got very angry. Like I became the most hateful, mean, frustrated, like irritable. I just, makes me want to cry thinking about how I was then. And you can ask anyone I worked with because it was getting to a point where this probably started in like 2021. So it's like, it wasn't right away when I first started the med. It took years for this to happen.
And I was like, well, I've always kind of had issues trying to regulate my emotions based on my childhood. So I would like blame it on something like that. I never thought it was the medication. but I would like my coworkers, they'd ask like all the time, are you, are you good? Like, because I would just like snap at any little thing. And I was nightshift at the time. I was like,
Is it because I'm not getting enough sleep? Like it's just the amount of times I guess at myself when I had no idea like what was actually doing these things to me. ⁓ But yeah, I don't feel like that anymore. And I'm just so thankful that I don't because it was terrible.
Andrea Clark (14:45)
Mm-hmm.
That's really interesting. Have you figured out what the mechanism was or are you just like, I don't know, it was just a side effect over time?
Amanda (14:56)
Thank
I think
it was just a side effect, but I know now after doing research, another thing I developed was severe ADHD that I never had before in my life. Like to the point where I was on Adderall, what'd you say?
Andrea Clark (15:18)
I wonder if it was like dopamine issues. And I talk about that a lot for him. it's some, and I can't say scientist, like I can't articulate all perfectly in this moment because I'm doing a lot of research on this too, but it seems like there's some, like some issues with dopamine that ended up happening over time.
Amanda (15:20)
It was. It was.
Yes. And that I actually found an article that literally lists that said that, but I have to find it and I'll have to send it to you. But it did show it talked about SSRIs impacting dopamine. And like I make posts about this on my TikTok and I've gotten like comments like you can't just randomly develop ADHD. I'm like, well I did and now I don't have it anymore. so I actually, that leads me to talking about the clinic I went to, cause I feel like
I'm not saying everyone needs to go to this clinic I went to. I'm not even going to name it, but it's a huge part of my story. And if I didn't go to this, I would literally still be on Lex pro 10 milligrams and I wouldn't have tapered. wouldn't have like changed my life. so I went and I knew something was wrong with me. Like, that's why I always tell people, listen to your own intuition. You know, when something is not you and you know, when, like, I would literally shock myself, like saying something. And I'm like, I can't believe I just said that, but
I didn't know how to fix it. So I was in Washington state on a travel assignment. I drove three hours like around, cause I was like all the way at this side of Washington. I drove all the way to the other side by Seattle to go to this clinic. Cause they do a lot of brain health stuff. They did a brain scan. It's called a spec scan. I don't know if you've heard about that. And, it wasn't the spec scan really. Well, the spec scan showed that I was having ton of issues with
motivation and focus. It was so many things. was literally, my brain was highlighted in all these places. It said, you have this issue, you have this issue. So I have literal proof that these things were happening to me and a whole report that talks about it. And the thing that they kept saying to doctors when they were reviewing my stuff, they're like, you're taking Lexapro, which makes your frontal lobe sleepy. They kept saying it. They said it like three times. And I thought about it I was like, huh.
Like I knew it decreased my anxiety, but I didn't know anything about making a part of my brain sleepy. So then I, I kind of ignored that for a few months, ended up going on Adderall. It made me even angrier. It didn't help me with concentration. So I stopped. was like, this is making me feel like not good, like even worse.
Andrea Clark (17:49)
Feeling
and anxiousness are a disaster for people's nervous systems.
Amanda (17:51)
Yeah.
Absolutely. And especially
when I was already having anger, I was already having frustration. It was just fueling the fire. And then, so that didn't work. Then I tried Vyvanse. That didn't work. And then I was on the virtual call with the psychiatrist who actually was at the clinic that I got my brain scan at. He's in California actually. And I was like, how about we just try stopping the Lexapro and seeing if that helps. if they would have never said that to me, Andrea, like
I would still be on it and I would still be so miserable. And I just thank God every day that they said that and that I try, even though it has been a disastrous at some times because of withdrawal journey, I'm still so thankful that I basically woke up out of myself and was like, let's try this. Cause if I didn't, I probably would have been a forever patient and kept going down that spiral.
Andrea Clark (18:34)
Yeah.
Amanda (18:47)
so almost immediately when I started tapering, I noticed differences in like being able to focus and stay on track during a conversation. I would be talking to somebody and I would literally look up at the sky. Like if I was out to lunch with one of my friends in Florida and I will never forget, like I could not focus on her when I was talking to her. And I would always say, what was I saying? Like I lost my train of thought all the time.
I was having memory problems as like a 27, 28 year old female and I have Alzheimer's in my family. So that was freaking me out. That has all stopped since I've started to taper and I'm not even all the way off yet.
Andrea Clark (19:28)
Wow.
Amanda (19:28)
Yeah.
Andrea Clark (19:29)
This is incredible.
So how has this taper journey been for you?
Amanda (19:33)
So when I started it wasn't that bad like 10 down to 7.5 I had symptoms but they were they were doable and then once I got down to like five four milligrams that's when it when I tried dropping from four because I ended up staying at four milligrams for a whole year after I got the liquid which if anyone's listening this you're trying to taper you need to get the liquid if your if your medication comes in it
It makes it so much easier to just be like more patient led where they can do it themselves. If they're not tolerating, they can just easily kind of go up a little bit to see if that feels better. And also people try to cut these pills and it just doesn't work. Like I was taking a pill cutter from the hospital I worked at the time and trying to cut it and you get a different dose every single time. So it's just not, it's not doable. So then I held at four milligrams for a year.
Then I will last July. So it's been almost a year now when I dropped from four to just three point six. That's all I went down like point four. And my body like it hit me a few weeks later. So it wasn't right away. So I didn't know it was coming. And I just like complete nervous system crash. I developed POTS, which people don't know it's a posh.
postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. There's so many symptoms that go with it. Tachycardia is one thing. still to this day, it's been a year, and I can't lay on my left side when I'm trying to sleep at night because my heart is constantly having palpitations. in my opinion, it's a brain injury because I see things that I used to work with in the hospital with patients that have brain injuries and I have a lot of the things like.
Heat and cold sensitivity. In the winter, do not like, I have to have a heater on my feet at all times. And it's not just cause I'm like, I'll be wearing like two pairs of socks and I need a heater. And then in the heat, like I can't handle, makes my pot symptoms 10 times worse. So I'm like constantly changing my thermostat, constantly taking off sweatshirts, putting it back on. I developed auditory hallucinations that one night, I will never forget this. heard like,
screaming that clearly was not there. It was just a made-up sound. For months, I woke up with this like popping noise in my ears and I would just wake up at like three in the morning with that and I live by myself. So like this stuff is like really freaking scary for someone who's living by themselves and I don't even have a dog. I have a cat but he's not very helpful. And a ton of food.
sensitivities and intolerances, I can only handle like four foods. I'm doing keto carnivore right now. And that's, it's been helpful because I was pretty much having to do that anyway, because anything that I previously was able to eat, I would eat and I would develop like this rash around my eyes. And then I would have to like run to the bathroom. I never used to have gut issues like I have now.
So yeah, it's just been, there's so much there. have a whole list of like probably 70 symptoms that I've developed. but every time I hear someone tell me more and more about like what they've experienced, it just like, breaks my heart because I always hear worse symptoms and like, I'm thankful that I'm not bed bound because I could be, but I'm not. I work from home now, so I'm able to like lay on the couch on days that I don't feel well.
Andrea Clark (22:57)
Yeah.
Amanda (23:06)
So yeah, I'm currently right now I'm at 3.29 milligrams and it'll take probably like around 600 days is what my coach told me to get off. So that'll be a total of almost like three between three and four years of tapering, which is just insane. And I'm a nurse and I had no idea that this could ever happen. So.
Andrea Clark (23:34)
Well, what are they telling you? mean, they tell you that you're more likely to have to stay on it. Like, there's all this, but they make you think it because of you, not because of it.
Amanda (23:44)
Right, it's never the medications fall ever
Andrea Clark (23:48)
Yeah, yeah. So, do you know the reason why it might take you another six, like did they explain why?
Amanda (23:57)
so I'm on like a, I switched. like, there's a couple of methods when you're tapering and I was trying so hard to do the thing that's called the drop and hold where like you drop your dose a little bit and then you hold for four to six weeks and then like basically tough out the symptoms until they go away and then you start it again. It's honestly hell. Like it really is. that was not, it was.
Andrea Clark (24:19)
If I
had to do it, that's what I would do. Like that's my personality.
Amanda (24:22)
No, like, I don't know if you can hear that thunder, sorry. But, so no, I couldn't handle it. I would try so hard. So this last April, I tried to go down 0.1, that's it. Like literally that decimal point. And I developed akathisia where I was pacing, like the akathisia is awful. And then what was the other thing? Agoraphobia started to come back. So like, I felt like I couldn't leave my house.
I'm like the most outgoing social person. I never had the fear of leaving my house until I was put on and tried to come off this medication. So I'm now doing something that actually works for me. It's a micro taper, but it's all these calculations. I'm essentially being my own pharmacist. I'm mixing it in a urine cup that like I would give to someone in the hospital. Like that's what I'm having to do.
And just based on the schedule I'm on right now, that's how long it's going to take. But if I end up going a little bit faster, it might take less. it's just some people, takes them years and years and years. It's either that or they just like people I've been asked, like, why don't you just stop and suffer through it? That's not recommended because it can lead to protracted withdrawal where you have those symptoms for years. And that's not something I would wish on my worst enemy.
Andrea Clark (25:37)
So I don't know if you know this about me, but I was on Paxil. I was put on Paxil.
Amanda (25:42)
They call it
Pac's Hell.
Andrea Clark (25:43)
Do they? So I was put on Paxil as a teen and I was on it for several years. And in my freshman year of college, I was like, I don't wanna take this anymore. I don't think it's helping me. Like, I don't know intuitively, but I didn't tell anybody like a dumb dumb, but I didn't tell anybody. I just took myself off.
Amanda (26:02)
my gosh, and I feel like so many people do that though, because they just don't know.
Andrea Clark (26:06)
They don't know and I will say that I had a nightmare of freshman year. I mean it was already hard like I went away from home like there were other things but I remember I literally just slept. I slept and slept and slept and didn't feel good and had migraines which I was already prone to migraines. I had a lot of migraines. There's probably more that I experienced that I just don't remember because it was such
Amanda (26:17)
Yeah.
Andrea Clark (26:34)
I was, you know, this was a long time ago. I'm 42 now. I was 19 and a lot was happening my freshman year, but I literally just would go to class. I'd make it to class, come back and just, I would sleep and have head and migraines and sleep and have migraines. And I gained a bunch of weight and there was so many things. And I will say that I was very emotionally dysregulated those first couple years.
Amanda (27:02)
Mm-hmm.
Andrea Clark (27:02)
And it was really hard. It was really hard. And there's probably more that I experienced, but I didn't know to equate that to that, right? Because I was just doing what... I didn't wanna tell anybody because I had been put on meds as a teen and I didn't want anybody meddling in my...
Amanda (27:13)
Mm-hmm.
Andrea Clark (27:21)
shit anymore, you know what I mean? And I was away from my family. So it's like, I'm just not going to take this anymore. Like, this isn't helping me. I didn't know what I doing.
Amanda (27:30)
But
at least you knew it wasn't helping you because I feel like so many people, they're on it and they just stay on for life and they don't even question it. They're just like, well, must be helping. And that's the thing is every time, I don't know why I didn't try to come off sooner when I realized that if I was late picking up my prescription, I felt so off. Like I felt like my brain was like outside of my body.
And I was like, I don't know what's happening, but I need to get my medication and take it. and as a nurse, I, sorry, keep going.
Andrea Clark (28:01)
It's the same for my S.
No,
I was just saying, it's the same with my husband. It's almost like, it's like a dependency.
Amanda (28:09)
It absolutely is. like, I was so like, I don't know if I was so emotionally blunted because it did do that to me eventually, that like, I just didn't have any drive to kind of explore that further or like what?
Andrea Clark (28:23)
Yeah, I mean,
you never shame yourself for that. Like that's it's it's like how we all have these journeys, right? And there's things in my life too, that I look back on like, I had this inkling or there were clues, but I wasn't paying attention to them. It's like, you'll never know why like it's you know, it's so hard because because there's so many factors that go into these things, right?
Amanda (28:39)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
And I have got
people that message me and they're like, how can I let myself stay on this for so long? Like, like this is this Medicaid. They'll say to me like this medication is poison. Like why did I stay on it for so long? And they're like beating themselves up. And I'm like, I know it's easy to do right now because you're seeing like what it could do to your brain and stuff when you're going through like withdrawal. But we had no idea like that this could have caused this. We were not told like
And it kind of really grinds my gears on my social media when people will comment and they're like, all medications have side effects. There's a leaflet you can read. I'm like, there is nothing that warned me about this. What could happen when you try to come off?
Andrea Clark (29:29)
Because
they don't even know. Because most of the medications are studied for two to four week periods. They were never meant to be taken for freaking years and years and decades and decades. So how are they gonna know that you might develop POTS when you come off? They don't know. They're flying blind.
Amanda (29:33)
They don't.
Right. And I was actually talking
to someone and that I know that actually he was working with me in the hospital at the one I first started at. And now he's like a cardiologist, I'm pretty sure. But he, I was texting him when all this was happening. I was like, have you ever heard of SSRIs causing POTS or whatever? And his immediate immediate response was, it was so disheartening. What did he say? He said, you could have developed POTS.
when you were on SSRI and SSRI was masking it because he's like SSRIs usually help with pods and are prescribed for pods. I'm like, I can't even believe that that it's being prescribed for pods when it caused mine.
Andrea Clark (30:34)
But why would it be prescribed for POTS? Because POTS...
Amanda (30:38)
I... I don't know.
And that's another thing is they're prescribed for so many off-label uses. And now it's like, it's not even just anxious individuals or depressed individuals. It's like, what's the big one? OCD and menopause is a big one I'm hearing lately is like women are being thrown SSRIs during menopause.
Andrea Clark (30:59)
yeah. ⁓
so I used to get chronic migraines and I was on top.
Amanda (31:05)
Yes, that's another one I hear is migraines. And there's one girl I talked to, she's like, I would take my headache back at any point. Like if it meant I didn't have to go through this. And I was like, I'm so sorry. I can't imagine going on one of these for headaches and then experiencing this. I just can't.
Andrea Clark (31:23)
Yeah, and you know what's like a light bulb's going off for me as we're talking because I'm off the topam. I'm completely off the topamax. But I'm like, man, I've been going through a lot of like, because I've probably been off the topamax for six to eight months. And I was on topamax for years.
Amanda (31:41)
Hmm.
Andrea Clark (31:43)
And so I probably am having, I mean, some withdrawal that I don't know is withdrawal. And I didn't even.
Amanda (31:49)
Like,
what? What are your symptoms?
Andrea Clark (31:52)
I mean, I'm also in perimenopause, you know what I'm saying? And so it's hard to know what is what. That's part of the issue.
Amanda (31:58)
Yeah,
and I've had people gaslight me and tell me that.
Andrea Clark (32:01)
I wonder if
sleep has been significant because I've really struggled with sleep off and on over this last year or like.
Amanda (32:10)
That
is huge in my withdrawal. there was, and I hear from so many people is the insomnia. Like, are you waking up throughout the night a lot?
Andrea Clark (32:12)
Yeah.
Yeah, and or like it like, you know, at the four hour mark.
Amanda (32:22)
Yes, like 3, 4 a.m.
Andrea Clark (32:24)
Yes. So, well, but not always, like sometimes it's 2 a.m. because sometimes I go to bed super early and it's easy to think that that's cortisol or like perimen, but my hormones are balanced. So like I'm doing things, working with a practitioner for my hormones and so I can't blame the hormones. Do you know what I'm saying? Like, I'm like, what the F is this? Like why?
Amanda (32:24)
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
That's good.
Yeah.
Andrea Clark (32:48)
I have a very healthy lifestyle and I'm like, what is the freaking problem? So I'm gonna go research some things. But see, I could totally shame myself for not putting two and two together right now. And it's kinda like sometimes we don't have the space to put two and two together because we're busy sorting other things out. And when we're ready, right?
Amanda (33:08)
Mm-hmm.
Andrea Clark (33:10)
to put two and two together than we will so that we can take our next action step. So I really try not to shame myself too much because I'm smart too, you know? And sometimes I'm like, why didn't I think of that? But I'm like, maybe I wasn't ready to process that. Do you know what I mean?
Amanda (33:16)
Yeah, and don't, don't.
Yeah, and you're going through all the health stuff too, so you're worried about like trying to get that in control and you're not even, a lot of people don't even think about that.
Andrea Clark (33:36)
Yeah, and so I just want to say the same for you. And like even the people who come to you, like you're you it comes to light for you when you are ready to deal with it and process it right like trusting our sub trusting our intuition. Sometimes we set aside a piece of information for our own protection in the moment, because we need to get some other things in order first even be able to deal with that piece of information. You know what I mean?
Amanda (33:46)
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, and it's interesting you brought up perimenopause and menopause because that is like one of the top comments that I get on there's this one TikTok I made months ago and it's just me listing every symptom like off that list I was talking about and so many of the comments were like telling me I was in going into menopause I'm like I'm 30 years old and when this all started I was like 28 so it's not that
But like people are just wanting to like make it like what they think it is. But like, like I said, you know your body. Yeah, that's, that's all I'm gonna say about that.
Andrea Clark (34:25)
Right.
It's hard, it's hard because for some reason people take it personal. People take personal. I post about certain things on my platform like over-functioning and my marriage and things in my marriage and women get really upset and so do men like as if I'm personally attacking them and I'm like, if this doesn't resonate with you, it wasn't for you, do you understand? And so.
Amanda (34:41)
Yeah.
Andrea Clark (35:01)
It's understanding too that people are trying to make themselves feel like they're not adjusted enough to understand that, that's somebody else's journey. Like I see stuff all the time that I'm like, that's not for me, but I can put it into a framework of like, that's the journey they're on. And even if I don't maybe fully agree with like whatever their synopsis is, it doesn't matter because that's for them. That's not.
Amanda (35:04)
Mm-hmm.
Andrea Clark (35:28)
for me and people get so triggered, like as if they're not secure enough in their own identity to understand that like, if you feel like that's good for you, then it's good for you. whatever, right? Nobody's going around looking to be like, who can I poke today? Who can I make feel bad about their choices? It's not like that. And, but people feel that way. And it's like, okay, maybe you have some more healing to do.
Amanda (35:41)
Yes.
Absolutely. And that has been so hard for me to like reframe my mindset about like negative comments and stuff. Cause I've only been posting and stuff for like a year. It has not been long. And meanwhile, I'm like going through this taper and I'm just like trying to hold on for dear life and also post my story. And then people say things that it really does like trigger me sometimes, but I've learned to just like, like you said, like you don't know what people are going through and
I was the angriest person. was the person who like just a few years ago when I was on my full dose, like I was talking about how angry I get. I misery loves company and I wanted everyone around me to feel as badly as I felt inside. And so I would like be mean. I would literally be mean. would, especially like in 2020 when all those, like the craziness was going on. I let it just like take over my whole life. And now I'm like, I'm just going to sit back and just
kind of watch it and be happy and like, if you don't agree with me, that's fine. And I've learned to just ignore them and just be like, they must be going through something and nothing I say is gonna change that. So.
Andrea Clark (37:01)
The other, okay,
so this is my little petty comment that I'm gonna add to is this is what say. Thank you for boosting my post in my mind. I'm like, thank you, because every hater, do know what they're doing? They're boosting it out to get to more people who need your story, who need your message. So I'm always like, thank you, thank you. You did lot of what you wanted to accomplish. You just pushed my,
Amanda (37:06)
⁓
Yes.
Thanks for boosting my engagement.
Andrea Clark (37:29)
my message out to more people. And I find it funny because I'm like the thing that you want to happen, which is to kind of shut me down. You're actually amplifying me right now. So I'm like, thank you. Thank you, hater. I really appreciate your for you.
Amanda (37:32)
Yes.
you
Yep.
I wish you could see some of the comments I get on TikTok especially. They're just, they're terrible.
Andrea Clark (37:50)
I'm sure I used to share a lot about my mom rage. I'm past that now, so don't share about that any as much like I've evolved. But some of the stuff people will say to me sharing very vulnerable real stories about things that I had to work through with mom rage, the horrible things that people would say to me about like me or my being a mom or how could I or you know, like I'm
I'm an abuser, all this crazy shit. And I'm just like, all right, man, you just are missing the point of all this, aren't you?
Amanda (38:20)
Yeah, you could be doing the best thing in the whole world and somebody's still gonna have something negative to say.
Andrea Clark (38:25)
Totally and people do like to be mean because they're so unhappy. There's and they like to be mean. It's a real thing and it's really sad and I am just really grateful for you that you share your story so openly because you need to hear this like I can't wait I'm gonna text my husband say you have to listen before it even gets published go into Riverside and he has access to all his go listen to Amanda story like
Amanda (38:29)
Yeah, yes, exactly.
Thank you.
Andrea Clark (38:54)
People need your story, right? People need to hear other people's and to give them hope and like just a starting off roadmap, right? That, okay, I can do this too if I put my mind to it and there is support out there and there are people who are doing what I desire to do. Like we need people like you in the world. And so keep going, sister, like keep going. You are so important and your story is so important for you and for everybody else.
Amanda (38:59)
I agree. ⁓
Thank you.
Thank you. And I feel like a lot of people are on multiple meds and they're like, you're not as damaged as I was when I tried to come off. But I feel like I've had a good amount of damage to my nervous system and I was only on one and I was only on 10 milligrams.
which I think is like an important story, because so many people are like, you're only on one and you're on 10, that's a low dose, but it's really not at all. And I think that's really important for your listeners to hear is it's way stronger than you think, so.
Andrea Clark (39:58)
Well, and I think at the end of the day, like we don't need to be comparing. Okay. So it's like, if somebody wants to get off, we want to get off or they don't. whether they're three or one at what's considered, it's all like, everything's relative. And I think that again, this goes back to people trying to gaslight themselves and gaslight somebody, you know, into, well, I can't because, and it's like, listen,
Amanda (40:03)
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
Andrea Clark (40:25)
you can do anything if you're willing to with the right support. could be living hell for a while, but you can, you know what I mean? And I think that sometimes people don't wanna take responsibility for their choices, even if they made a choice with the information they had at the time and the vulnerability they were in at the time. But at end of the day, nobody's gonna do it for you. And that's some...
Amanda (40:30)
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Andrea Clark (40:51)
that I used to talk with my clients about a lot and now I have coaching clients and it's kind of like, and how I approach my own healing is that I might have made a decision from a victimized place at the time, but now I have different information. I get to decide, do I want to continue or do I want to choose a different path? And even if the path is hard, like it's my responsibility to do X, Y, and Z.
So it's okay to be mad and it's okay to say that happened to me and that wasn't my fault. But now I know and it's my responsibility to make a change if I want my life to look different. You know what I mean?
Amanda (41:27)
Yes, yes.
Andrea Clark (41:29)
And people don't want to do that. Some people
do not want to do that. They just want to be upset or say, can't because it's, and our world allows for a lot of that. Like our world doesn't empower people to ask questions and investigate why and take responsibility for their own wellbeing. That's a huge part of why I do this podcast.
Amanda (41:51)
Yeah, yeah. And I think nowadays everything is about convenience and like, like your life being the easiest it can possibly be. So I think a lot of people, try to make this like change and like, whether it's like their medication is not working, but they're, it's just, they don't want to deal with it. They don't want to go through it, which I get, cause it's so hard, but at the same time, there is a way to do it. It's a safe way. And there's a such a big community that's there to help.
Andrea Clark (41:57)
it's, it's, is.
Amanda (42:18)
if anybody ever does go through this.
Andrea Clark (42:21)
Some you're so this is another piece of it that I mean there have been points in my life where I've made the convenient choice like that's just the truth Listen, I mean and and and so It's we do we live in such a microwave society and it's only getting worse With like AI and all this stuff and hey, I use AI in my business, but like We it's getting worse
Amanda (42:28)
Yeah, me too. And me too.
Andrea Clark (42:45)
and it's very concerning to me. My husband and were talking about it just yesterday. I was like, you or no, my best friend and I, she was visiting and I said, you know, when I needed to know what a word meant, would, my grandma would say, okay, go look it up in the dictionary. And I'd like, go get the dictionary and open it up and we'll have to find it. And then I'd read it out loud and we'd talk about it. And now I'm like, Alexa, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Amanda (42:48)
Yeah.
Or chat GPT.
Andrea Clark (43:12)
And it's so there, we have to actively be our own advocates for certain things and understand that like, what are the pros and cons of these convenient solutions, whatever they are, right? And sometimes we might get the convenient solution, but having the knowledge and asking the questions of like long-term, what are...
the ramifications of me saying yes to this, what we consider convenient thing right now. You know, as opposed to maybe taking the longer road that's more uncomfortable, that might cost more, that might require me to slow my life down or whatever it is, right? And change my lifestyle, these different things. And I think that in our medical system, people aren't given those options. The convenient thing is like the number one thing.
Amanda (43:43)
Mm-hmm.
Andrea Clark (44:04)
You still look at the white coats as gospel, right?
Amanda (44:07)
Yep. And they have all the answers and they really don't have all the answers. Like they don't even know about how bad withdrawal can get. So.
Andrea Clark (44:16)
Listen, I'm going to say and I might actually do a podcast on this. I think I might record a solo episode on this and no diss on my daughter's pediatrician. I mean, I wouldn't have a pediatrician if I didn't have an ex-husband who is like, you know, requiring this of me. I would probably only go to like a holistic, you know, like whatever. But, you know, he and I have very opposing views at this point in time on all sorts of stuff.
when it comes to medical stuff and pharma and vaccines and all sorts of different things. And yeah, it is, you know, but so I have to make compromises that I wouldn't normally make because I share her, right, with him and it is, but we just found out recently that my daughter has the MTHFR, like several mutations. She has the COMS, she has a
Amanda (44:47)
That's very unfortunate.
Okay.
Andrea Clark (45:05)
two mutations with COMT and like some others, but my bigger concerns right now are the MTHFR and COMT. And I was getting these like, I'm like, she started to have some attention issues. I'm like, I'm one, and then she has some other stuff. I'm like, I'm wondering if methylation is a thing for her. And so we got the test, all that. I took the test and I wanted some blood tests because I've been doing crazy research. I I probably have a PhD in this now.
Amanda (45:20)
Okay.
Andrea Clark (45:30)
hear this out, right, for her and for my family
myself. And I was like, I need these couple of blood tests, right? I read this book from this doctor who like treats people and I'm like, okay, let me see if her pediatrician will give me this blood test or these blood tests to find out homocysteine, right? Histamine, like B levels, all this stuff. So I take it in, I take the report in to back me up, all this stuff. She was super amazing about it.
but she had no idea what I was talking about. And in her defense, she's been practicing for a really long time. She's very old school, but, and I was grateful that she was open. Like she took a picture of the book I brought and she's like, I'm gonna read this. She asked me if I could help her come up with a protocol for one of her patients who has autism and is having all these other symptoms.
Now granted, she knows I have a professional background, whatever, right? It's not like I'm some rando off the street, but it really opened my eyes. And I already knew this, but it just validated that I know that doctors are not up on the most innovative or new science, medicine, things that are coming to light, they don't keep themselves
like in the know about these things. They get their, you know, CEUs or whatever they have to get. And even when I was getting CEUs, there were things that I was learning about in my like health coaching world that was not being introduced in my CEU world as a professional, even though it would directly affect mental health. So CEUs and education is even behind. Do you know what I'm saying? And in that, they're not...
You have to personally seek it out as a professional to be more aware of like new research and new data. And you have to be somebody who wants to read that stuff because you can get away with practicing for decades and decades and never being up to date on the majority of that stuff.
Amanda (47:30)
Yeah, you're absolutely right. And even just nursing CEUs, you're able to just like click through and just like scroll through really, really quickly. It's not like mostly you can't even, you don't even have to like go through and read all that stuff.
Andrea Clark (47:43)
Yeah, every year I was required to take, I'm gonna be totally honest with you guys right now, okay? Every year was required to take an ethics CEU. Do you think that I sat through the ethics CEU every single year? No, I let that shit play and then I took my little quiz because I had already done ethics so I just felt like, and maybe that makes me a jerk and it is where it is, but like, honest with you guys. I'm like, I don't need to listen to this again. And if I had that,
Amanda (47:58)
Yeah
No, no.
Andrea Clark (48:09)
disposition about that. How many practitioners have this disposition about these types of things, right? Where it's like, I know what I'm doing. I know what works. I know this, like, I don't need to like dig into new research. I don't need, you know, when I went and saw my neurologist and I don't even see one anymore because I've pretty much almost completely healed my migraines. She didn't know what cranial sacral therapy was and I was kind of shocked.
And I'm not saying that every practitioners have to know everything, but I'm like, this has to do with your brain and your head. I'm like, this is weird. You're a neurologist. How do you not know what that is? In my mind, I'm like, this is weird. Like, what?
Amanda (48:47)
I
feel like anything natural they don't really know about. Like they know what procedures and surgeries and what meds. That's pretty much it.
Andrea Clark (48:55)
Yeah!
Amanda (48:56)
And I'm also learning that keep the doctors I thought like being an ICU nurse, I used to like look up to doctors and like praise them. I thought they were checking interaction of meds when they're prescribing. Like for example, if someone's on lexpro and they're put on like Welbutrin, Prozac and whatever, like they're supposed to be checking the interactions between medications they're putting you on. And I've been told by several people that
they don't check that. And so many of these meds can interact with each other, especially like when it comes to heart stuff, like serotonin syndrome and things like that. And a big one I hear is Lexpro or any other SSRI with hydroxyzine. That's one I hear all the time that people are like paired with, because I was actually put on hydroxyzine with Lexpro. It basically felt like...
a strong benadryl because it's like in that antihistamine property category. But basically those two together are not supposed to be taken together because it increases the risk of like QT prolongation in the heart. like, but it is prescribed like that together all the time. And I'm like, that's just insane to me that doctors are not checking that because that is the most important thing in my opinion.
Andrea Clark (50:14)
they don't understand the interactions or like the compounds or the chemistry, right? They're given a matrix of like, these symptoms, you could have them try this, this and this, right? Like these different medications, whereas a pharmacist understands how things interact. And so, but I know that they have things like a booklet and things they can research a library, right? Or a database that tells them don't pair this with this or don't.
Amanda (50:35)
Mm-hmm.
Andrea Clark (50:40)
but it's like that's not even in their mind because that's not a part of their wheelhouse. ⁓
Amanda (50:45)
No, pharmacists
are not catching that either when they see that patients are on them together.
Andrea Clark (50:50)
Mm-hmm. It's I mean, it's really there has been such a heightened level of negligence. It's it's crazy.
Amanda (50:57)
especially because they're getting busier and busier with just the demand. And I feel like ever since COVID people have gotten sicker and sicker. So they're getting busier and busier and they're having not enough time, especially if you're going to someone who's covered by insurance, they only have a set slot number of minutes they can stay with the patient for.
Andrea Clark (51:16)
Mm-hmm. Yeah. So tell us, okay, for somebody who has been told, you know, it would be a good idea for them to go on an SSR, mood stabilizer, whatever it is, right? And they haven't done it yet because they're still in this contemplation stage. What piece of advice or what maybe a couple questions could they ask to help them make a better informed decision?
Amanda (51:41)
I would say ask about withdrawal, but a lot of doctors don't know like the full story. So I would do research. I would look up Dr. Mark Horowitz work. He's a psychiatrist from the UK who brought a clinic to the US. He went through psych my withdrawal really bad. So he went in and started researching all this stuff. He is like the single most talented up there researcher when it comes to all this. He's made like YouTube videos. He has a book. I actually have it right here.
Called the deep prescribing guidelines. Just do research on your own about that and just know that withdrawal is a possibility. Is it gonna happen? Everybody know, but it's a big possibility. Especially if you're on for a long longish period of time like longer than six months. So I would definitely just do research about that first. And then also ask about interactions if you're on any other medications and then ask
How long do you expect me to be on this? like, try to have like a game plan, because I never had that. And it was almost like I was put on it and the expectation was to just stay on it. Like there was no like check-ins or anything like that. I wasn't required to go to therapy and do other things. So I would just, I don't know, try to have a plan and just know that these meds can impact you long-term.
just know that because I did not know that. But also think of natural things you can try first. And I don't just mean exercise. Like I tell everybody, try acupuncture. If you're having really bad anxiety or depression, or try saffron. can take it to supplement that can really help with depression naturally. I was told these things, but it was too late. I was already like in withdrawal when I was told to like try these things. But acupuncture has literally helped me so much.
point of acupuncture is literally to re-stabilize your central nervous system. And it has helped my symptoms so much. As somebody who literally has a damaged nervous system, it has really helped me. So I can't even imagine how much it would have helped me back then when I was 22 and having so much anxiety. And also looking to diet, because if I would have changed my diet back then, I think it would have helped tremendously. I'm not saying you have to go keto, carnivore.
But it is, that is literally a brain healing diet. So if you want to try that short term, you can try that or just try whole foods, cut out all processed foods. I don't drink, I don't drink caffeine anymore. I literally had to cut out everything and it's, it's really helped me. So I would just try to start at the basics first. And then like, obviously if something else is happening, that's like impacting your everyday life. Like I know some people do need medication, but just have a plan.
on how long you're going to stay on that.
Andrea Clark (54:24)
Yeah, I interviewed somebody, she's a psych nurse practitioner and she's like, know, the way that she uses medication is just almost like a bridge, a very short term bridge at very low dose while they're doing the healing work and making the lifestyle changes if it's even necessary. And,
Amanda (54:45)
That's good.
Andrea Clark (54:48)
I don't know what I think or feel about that, but I do think that people don't understand that we have a body chemistry. I'm not talking about chemical imbalance. I'm talking about a body chemistry that if you are not nourishing your body and your brain the way it was, it's supposed to be nourished, of course you're going to have symptoms of insomnia or anxiety or depression. Like this really...
Amanda (55:11)
Exactly.
Andrea Clark (55:15)
People sometimes think that I oversimplify mental health and I'm not oversimplifying it, but it's like, if you don't have the foundational things in place, you should not be going on medication. That is my very strong opinion. If you don't have the foundational things in place, if you're not getting sunlight, if you're not eating nutrient rich foods, if you're eating processed foods, if you're, you know,
junked up on caffeine all the time. If you don't have like a healthy sleep rhythm and sleep habits, right, for your circadian rhythm, if you haven't gotten your hormone panels, mineral analysis, like toxicity, these are all like foundational things for your body and your brain to function optimally, then don't, all you're doing is putting wallpaper over a root issue that you haven't addressed.
Amanda (56:09)
Yep, that's a perfect way to say it.
Andrea Clark (56:09)
Of course, you like you can't.
Yeah, and I just don't think people should, I just personally do not think people should be offered medication if any, if all of those things haven't been looked into and balanced out. And I don't, I'm not saying you have to live a perfect lifestyle. Like that's really hard to do in the world we live in. But if you at least can live like an 80-20 lifestyle, your mental health will dramatically shift. And that doesn't,
Amanda (56:36)
Mm-hmm.
Andrea Clark (56:37)
like root healing work, things like acupuncture, things like clearing trauma somatically, right? Like even cutting off relationships or putting back, like that doesn't even include that part that will dramatically improve your mental health as well.
Amanda (56:52)
Yeah. Look at all the things you're listing that are not medication.
Andrea Clark (56:56)
I know, there you go, you're welcome you guys. So, but there's so much and people don't understand that they have the power to do a lot of like self healing or kind of getting themselves back into balance with just like some very fundamental life things.
Amanda (56:58)
Ha.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah. Yep. And I did not check any of that stuff before I went on.
Andrea Clark (57:18)
Well, and how would you know, right? You were 22 and you were in the medical field yourself and you had somebody you trust tell you that you need to be on it.
Amanda (57:26)
Yeah, thank you for validating that.
Andrea Clark (57:29)
Absolutely, like how would you know?
You know what I mean? Like really, how would you know? You wouldn't.
Amanda (57:35)
I think
the hardest part, not really withdrawal, that's like its own thing. But like the hardest part for me is thinking back, that's pretty much my whole 20s just gone. And like, I can barely even remember. Like I remember, like it almost feels like it's just blank. Like my whole 20s, I'm like, where did that decade go? And like, I think back and I'm like, I feel like if I wasn't on that, I would be married. I would have kids.
Andrea Clark (57:46)
and
Yeah.
Amanda (58:02)
Who knows where I would be now? And like, that's just so crazy. Like I think back and I'm like, I can't believe that I, that basically ran my life for 10 years, eight, but.
Andrea Clark (58:11)
Yeah,
I imagine that you're having to do a lot of like forgiveness work, right? ⁓
Amanda (58:16)
Yeah,
and like, I'm so proud of like who I am now. But it's almost like, it's just I feel bad. Like I, it's something like every day I'm like looking back like, because you know, on Snapchat, I have like the memories thing. And so I'll every day I like see him like two or four years ago, whatever it'll come up and I'm like, and I just look so different. Like I look different, I sound different. I, I was just not, I'm not proud of like the person I was and it wasn't even like my fault.
really. But I have like shame about all that stuff.
Andrea Clark (58:47)
It's hard and I just want to encourage you, like you couldn't have done or chosen anything different. You chose what you chose with the information you had. know, as soon as you got that intuitive download and you felt like you had enough of the next different information, you made a different choice. And so just give yourself grace, but I get it. We all do that to ourselves.
Amanda (58:55)
Yeah.
Thank you.
Andrea Clark (59:09)
kind of like I should have known or how did I not figure that out or, and it's really like victim blaming ourselves. It's like, listen, how would you have known? You wouldn't have.
Amanda (59:15)
Yeah.
But the positive is I look at life in a totally different lens now. every day I'm like so thankful for the day and I'm like trying all these new hobbies. like basically reinventing myself. Like it's really what it is. It's insane.
Andrea Clark (59:33)
Yeah, that's exciting.
Amanda (59:36)
It is exciting. It is.
Andrea Clark (59:38)
I'm excited for you. You know, I'll have to have you back with like an update in six months. Well, yeah, maybe we'll follow your journey. Like maybe we'll record every six months or something to see where you're at. That would be really cool. think.
Amanda (59:43)
like post taper or something.
and see where I'm at. That
would be awesome. I would love to do that.
Andrea Clark (59:57)
Okay, cool. Any last thoughts for anybody in your position where maybe either they want to taper off or they are in that process and they feel very alone?
Amanda (1:00:09)
Well, first of all, you can follow me on Instagram or TikTok. I feel like I'm pretty good at answering messages. For now, I don't know if that's going to change as like it gets bigger, but that functional nurse is my handle. But also there's so many communities. There's, I highly recommend it's going to sound crazy, but the Facebook groups have been what have gotten me through personally. Like any medication, there's a group about it. There's one about Cymbalta. It's called Cymbalta hurts worse.
There's like 40,000 members. So if you're trying to taper symbol to go there, I actually know the person who runs the group. We like meet on zoom every, every other week. but anyway, there's a bunch of like nonprofits that are coming up that are amazing. I'm actually a part of one it's called anti-depressant antidepressant coalition for education. it's antidepressant info.org. And if you are going through withdrawal, please report,
It's a plug for my nonprofit. You can go to that website and then click report now. If you've gone through SSRI withdrawal or SNRI withdrawal, please report your story to the FDA MedWatch program. We're actually trying to get the labels on the medication bottles changed. It's actually in process right now.
But the more people that submit their reports, it's the petition is more likely to go through so it's not taking away the meds from anyone It's just warning people that protracted or long ongoing withdrawal is possible when you take these medications But also as for like where to go inner compass initiative Laura Delano, she has ran that for years. It's a website
as well as surviving antidepressants.org. Adele Framer has had that for years since she started tapering like several years ago. Those are all great forums because, people are like, why don't you just go talk to your doctor? Like I said before, your doctor most likely does not know what you're going through and don't let them gaslight you. If you are going through this, you know your body, you know what's going on. just.
I recommend going to the people who have been through it who can help coach you because there are people who can help you. There are ways to get through it safely. If you're having awful symptoms, it's most likely because you're going too fast and there are ways to taper much slower that can get you off of the medication safely.
Andrea Clark (1:02:33)
sure they can lead you to some other resources of trusted people who can support you in the process.
Amanda (1:02:38)
Yes.
Yes. And there's a couple of clinics that have opened in the U S outro health is one of them. Dr. Mark Horowitz brought that from the UK. It's only in like eight or nine States right now, but it's rapidly growing and that's remote services. And then taper clinic with Dr. Yosef. He's great and has a, but a team of coaches that can help that.
can be expensive though, but those places can help you get a doctor that'll help you safely taper.
Andrea Clark (1:03:07)
Amazing. You've just given us so many incredible resources. I'm so grateful for this conversation. I can't wait for everybody to hear it.
Amanda (1:03:16)
Thank you for having me.
Andrea Clark (1:03:18)
Absolutely. All right, guys. We'll see you in the next episode.