Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber’s son, Presley Gerber, is opening up about his mental health medication routine in an act of transparency.
“Here’s some clarity for ya — the truth will set you free (hopefully) haha,” Presley, 26, captioned an Instagram video on Monday, December 1, shedding light on his personal struggles.
“I feel like honesty is the best policy,” Presley began, before breaking down what medications he’s currently taking, including one milligram of Buprenorphine two times a day. (Buprenorphine is meant to treat opioid use disorder and pain.)
“The benzos have been fluctuating up and down depending on what’s been going on in my life,” he said, adding that “unfortunately he’s had a lot of loss in many different forms recently.”
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The model pointed out that it’s “not an excuse,” but explained the losses are “the reason why I am where I’m at now.”
Benzos or Benzodiazepines assist in slowing down “activity in your brain and nervous system” and are used to treat “anxiety and related mental health conditions,” according to Cleveland Clinic.
Presley, who was filming from inside a sauna, told his followers that he has also been taking a small dose of Xanax usually at night or whenever his “panic attacks are really, really bad.”
“I try to take as little of that as possible,” he said, adding that he also takes Valium but the dosage varies.
Presley confessed, “I don’t know if it’s a little bit or a lot, who f***ing knows anymore,” adding that doctors “say a lot of different things so it’s kind of scary.”
Kaia Gerber’s older brother noted that “hopefully between my research and their research and the world and God, we can finally figure this out.”
Presley shared that he is ultimately “trying to stabilize on just Valium so it’s not two different benzos.”
When it comes to antidepressants, he said he just “jumped up from 15 to 22.5 milligrams” of Mirtazapine.
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Presley revealed that he also takes Prazosin, a blood pressure medication, to treat “a lot of night terrors” he experiences regularly.
“The thing that scares me are the things you need to take,” he shared. “So once you start taking them, you don’t take them, something not good happens.”
Presley, who often shares mental health Monday posts via social media, explained that he is on “four classes of medications” at this point: blood pressure, opioid, benzos and antidepressant.
He further explained that he has “comfort meds,” which he tries to save for when he’s lowering doses or making “cuts” to his other prescriptions.
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Amid his mental health journey, Presley said that he’s experienced a lack of “direction” from doctors.
“I’d like doctors to be like, ‘Take this three times a day,’” he said. “But every psychiatrist I’ve had — and I’ve had 15 — are like, ‘Here’s 20 medications and take this if you feel like this, take this as needed.’”
Presley shared that he is trying to find a better community as well to help him get to a healthier level.
“I’m just trying to workout, sauna, take baths,” he said. “I’ve grown up in Hollywood, and there’s a lot of people around that I love to death, but right now, I try not to be around them.”
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Presley concluded by saying “on a good note,” he stopped drinking alcohol after his birthday in July as another act of self-care. “That is no longer serving me,” he revealed.
“I am hoping this reaches people in many ways,” he continued. “A: so you feel like you’re not alone, because that is how I feel most of the time. I have a feeling if I say all of this, a lot of people will at least know that there’s someone else going through it.”
Presley added: “And the second thing is, hopefully I find some people out here and are willing to help or know someone that can help.”
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
