I've gone through this a lot. Your body just gets used to the medication and builds a tolerance or something. Sounds like you had a good run with the Prozac, though. Six years is a long time. I wouldn't be scared to try something new, since you obviously do well on SSRI's, there's a lot of them to choose from.

I guess I'd ask what you are doing besides medication to resolve the anxiety. You have anxiety for a reason: the way you are living needs something tweaked so that you don't get buildups of stress, but only have to deal with current stress, which you then limit by I guess learning the way to operate in your context that reduces problems.

I don't know how I would have done all that without counselling. Half of what I learned in counselling I had never heard of, and didn't know I needed to learn.

I see medication as a short term stop-gap to give you breathing space while you deal with the stuff.

I agree with LittleSadie that 6 years is a good run with a med and they usually have to be changed after that long because they do eventually stop working.

There are many other SSRI's out there to try. I have had good experiences with Wellbutrin and Lexapro as well.

Don't be afraid to see your psychiatrist, tell then it's not working any more and ask for something new. They can give it to you and then you can feel better again. Not all meds have side effects for every person. You usually have to try a few before you end up on the right ones.

Thank you guys. I remember trying to get adjusted to meds while in college and feeling a lot more anxious and hopeless. I would shake like I had Parkinson too. Nausea. I am going to therapy but to be honest, I have a masters in psychology and have the coping skills (which makes me even more mad!) It's those darn intrusive thoughts and random rise in panic when everything is going great. Intrusive thoughts are a pain and dont make sense at all!!

Intrusive thoughts are there for a reason and you have to go on an internal, metaphysical adventure to find out what that reason is.

I imagine having a masters in psychology will be a hindrance to you rather than a help because you could run the risk of rationalising and analysing those things you actually have to experience to resolve. You have to be not-knowing to discover the cure; if you already have a theory, your mind is closed to new ideas.

Problem is that Psychology cannot use psychology to heal itself. That's a paradox. It has to use other things that it doesn't believe in. :D

But if you can figure yourself out, you will unlock some new learning for your field.

Imagine the cow in the paddock. Why does the cow not have obsessive thoughts? When you can figure that out, you can fix yourself. :)

I may have suggested this before, but you may want to get your folate (B6) levels checked as well as getting the MTHFR gene mutation test. Your doctor may say this is silly. It's somewhat controversial though the test has been around for some time now and the Mayo Clinic is beginning to use it with greater frequency.

If you have the gene mutation (like me and 30% of the population), you can't properly convert the folic acid in food into folate your body can use. Symptoms include depression, anxiety, stomach troubles and later on, heart disease and some cancers, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and a slew of other issues.

The really great news is that if you have the mutation, the treatment is an inexpensive but incredibly effective methyl folate. It treats the CAUSE - not the symptoms.

Here's more information if you're interested: http://www.balancingbrainchemistry.co.uk/peter-smith/35/MTHFR-Gene-Mutation-and-Treatment-Resistant-Depression.html

And if you do have the mutation and you still need some meds, they'll work much better.

I had a great run with Lexapro, it controlled my anxiety for over 10 years, and then stopped working. I have since tried Brintellix, that didn't work. I am now trying Fetzima which is a SNRI not a SSRI. I've been on it for 2 weeks and it has reduced my anxiety but not eliminated it totally. The good thing about Fetzima is that it is available in 20, 40, 80 and 120mg tablets. I am currently on the 80mg dosage. You may want to ask your doctor about both Brintellix and Fetzima they are relatively new anti-depressants, only been around since 2013. The bad news is there is no generic so they are very expensive.