Should I Take Medication for Anxiety?

“Anxiety” is one of the most frequent reasons or symptoms that clients list when they reach out to our clinic for support. The question of how best to manage anxiety—including mindfulness practices or medication—is one we often explore with clients, so we’re exploring it here, too!

What Does It Mean “to Have Anxiety”?

The word "anxiety" refers to a range of experiences, including occasional nervousness or worry to chronic conditions like generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Here’s a few important points..

- Everyone can and does experience anxiety, but some may label it stress or worry 
- Labeling an inner experience as anxiety (either from you or your therapist) is not a diagnosis
- Medication is often used to help people who are experiencing anxiety but do not have a GAD diagnosis
- In Ontario, only psychologists, psychiatrists, family doctors and family nurse practitioners can diagnose GAD
- Psychotherapists and social workers can treat anxiety with psychotherapy, but cannot diagnose or prescribe medication

Mindfulness: A Natural Remedy for Anxiety

At our west Ottawa centre, we encounter many clients who express a reticence to ask their primary care physician for anti-anxiety prescriptions either for themselves or their kid. We have many clients who have positive, supportive experiences with medication. We respect everyone’s values and hopes for how they want to approach their treatment.  

Mindfulness, the practice of being fully present and engaged in the moment, is not just a known wellness trend, but an effective strategy to manage anxiety. A recent study found that mindfulness-based interventions can be as effective as traditional anti-anxiety medications when practiced consistently, with support, over 8 weeks. This study compared the efficacy of mindfulness practices to the commonly prescribed anti-anxiety drug escitalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI).

Mindfulness practices help individuals become more aware of their thoughts and feelings without becoming overwhelmed by them, promoting a sense of control by offering greater awareness of internal states and experiences and some more objective distance from experiences.

Medication: A Proven Path to Relief

While mindfulness is an effective tool, anti-anxiety medications remain a cornerstone of treatment for many individuals. According to CAMH, first-line treatments typically involve antidepressants such as SSRIs (e.g., escitalopram) and SNRIs (e.g., venlafaxine XR), which are effective in treating various anxiety disorders. 

• SSRIs: Work by increasing the levels of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that regulates mood, in the brain. Examples include escitalopram and sertraline.

• SNRIs: Work by increasing the levels of both serotonin and norepinephrine, another neurotransmitter involved in mood regulation. Examples include venlafaxine (Effexor) and duloxetine.

Both SSRIs and SNRIs take time to be optimally effective and for those using them to adjust to side effects, which is why they are always taken with monitoring from your primary care provider. 

Making the Right Choice: Mindfulness or Medication?

For parents and individuals seeking to manage anxiety, the decision between mindfulness and medication can be challenging. Both approaches offer significant benefits, but they also come with their own set of considerations.

Deciding whether to use medication should involve a careful assessment of the individual's specific needs and circumstances. How long you’ve been experiencing anxiety and at what intensity need to be considered. You can discuss with your doctor your fears and concerns. It’s common for people to worry about going on a medication and never coming off, but it’s also common for people to use anti-anxiety medication for a relatively short period of time. 

One of the conversations we often have with clients centres on the agreement that yes, there are many lifestyle changes and tools for reducing anxiety, but are you making use of them? Sometimes medication is the support a client needs to bridge the gap between what they know could help and actually doing the helpful things. If a client is already and consistently committing time and energy into managing anxiety and their life is still negatively impacted by their anxiety, that’s good information for speaking with their doctor. 

Also, while incorporating mindfulness practices can offer a bevy of long-term benefits without the risk of dependency, they require ongoing commitment.

Anxiety Management Requires a Toolkit

For some, a combined approach will be the most effective. Medication offers relatively immediate relief while developing a mindfulness practice can provide both short-term and long-term benefits. An integrative approach allows you to quickly diminish symptoms enough that you can do the “helpful things” like mindfulness meditation, which will build resilience and and reduce the likelihood of future anxiety episodes.

You can also discuss this with your therapist! We support the client decision making process by exploring their thoughts and feelings on their anti-anxiety toolkit, including medication, all the time. Even if we can’t diagnose or prescribe, we’re part of the circle of support contributing to your coping and moving through anxiety. 

At our therapy and counseling clinic, we offer a holistic approach to mental health that neither requires adherence to mindfulness practices or discriminates against medication. We encourage our clients to explore mindfulness as a valuable tool in their anxiety management toolkit, whether used alone or in conjunction with medication, and support every client’s autonomy to make the best choices for them. 

If you're interested in learning more about how mindfulness can help manage anxiety or other therapy approaches, please don't hesitate to reach out to our team. We're here to help you navigate your mental health journey with compassion and expertise.