Xanax
Xanax is the most popular tranquilizer and is used most often to treat anxiety disorders. If you have nonspecific, generalized anxiety, Xanax will probably be prescribed for you in doses of 0.5-2 mg/ day. If you have panic attacks, your health-care practitioner may prescribe 2-9 mg/day. Xanax is sometimes used temporarily for acute anxiety or agoraphobia.
Xanax, and other anti-anxiety drugs, are central nervous system (eNS) depressants. They affect the neurotransmitter gamma amino butyric acid (GABA) that facilitates communication between brain cells. Because brain cell activity is slowed, they can produce a drowsy or calming effect on those suffering from anxiety. In high doses, CNS depressants can be used as general anesthetics.
At first, Xanax may seem beneficial, but as your body becomes accustomed to the effects of the drug, its calming effects disappear as you develop a tolerance to it. This is when the potential for abuse of the drug occurs, as larger doses are needed to achieve the same initial effects.
While small doses may relieve tension, large doses produce staggering, blurred vision, impaired thinking, slurred speech, impaired perception of time and space, slowed reflexes and reduced sensitivity to pain. Accidental overdoses occur when children swallow pills-always keep all medication out of reach of children or adolescents-or when adults with increased tolerance are unsure of how many to take.
Researchers studying the 24 medical examiners in Florida in 2000 and 2001 concluded that in 939 cases of death (a tripling from 284 cases in 2000), prescription painkillers and benzodiazepine drugs such as Xanax or Valium were found. A U.S. Department of Justice website (www.usdoj.gov/ndidpubs07/717.odd.htm) reported that the number of admissions to South Carolina publicly funded treatment centers for benzodiazepine abuse more than doubled from FY 1998 (43) to FY 2000 (99).
As a parent or individual, if you suspect you or someone else in the family is abusing Xanax, you can get a definitive answer by using a simple, private urine drug-testing kit available at www.home drugtestingkit.corn/zshop.
When prescribed an anti-anxiety drug, always read all the infor-mation provided by the pharmacist and beware of potential interactions with other drugs, foods, and substances such as alcohol.
A major problem with Xanax and other benzodiazepines is that they blunt not only your anxiety but your other feelings as well. If you’re simultaneously trying to work out your feelings in psychotherapy, tranquilizers will interfere with this process, especially if you’re on high doses of the drug. Like many other drugs, Xanax will only take away your anxiety, but it won’t remove the source of your feelings. When taking only tranquilizers, and not examining your lifestyle you may never be able to find out what is causing your anxiety or learn how to prevent or control your reactions.
A few people report becoming more emotional, more hostile, and have difficulty sleeping when taking Xanax. Panic can be doubled and seizures can occur if the dose is reduced too rapidly or if Xanax is abruptly stopped once dependence develops.
Xanax interacts negatively with melatonin, kava, valerian, grapefruit juice, and many other drugs, foods, and herbs. If you have alcoholic liver disease, are obese, or have reduced liver or kidney function, dangerous levels of Xanax may accumulate in your body. If you decide to take Xanax, use it for a short period of time on as “as-needed” basis rather than daily over a long time. Because rapid withdrawal may be life threatening, tapering off the drug should be done only under medical supervision.
Halcion can cause depression and paranoia. It has been banned in England.
Versed can cause behavioral abnormalities, and its emotionally disturbing effects are long-lasting. According to Breggin and Cohen, Versed should be considered a very hazardous drug.
Withdrawal from Klonopin may be easy for some people, although I’ve had clients who were unable to get off the drug completely even after protracted withdrawal. Abrupt withdrawal from these drugs is dangerous and can produce panic attacks, severe anxiety, confusion, muscle tension, irritability, insomnia, paranoid delusions, hallucinations, memory impairment, vomiting, headache, loss of appetite, tremor, voice changes, and even seizures.
In sum, Xanax and the other minor tranquilizers are more helpful for acute anxiety on a short-term basis than for long-lasting conditions such as agoraphobia. If you do take these drugs for more than two years, and especially if you’re over age fifty, you should have an evaluation of your liver function every six months or so.
Margaret, age thirty-three, a computer programmer, suffered from severe anxiety and panic attacks. Her physician prescribed Xanax, at a dosage of 5 mg a day. When Margaret started to develop frequent headaches, loss of appetite, strange dreams, and thoughts about killing herself, she increased her dosage without telling her physician. Luckily, her sister walked in when Margaret was trying to cut her wrists and brought her to the hospital. During her stay, her medications were reevaluated and she was taken off Xanax. She joined a cognitive-behavioral therapy group and learned ways to control her anxiety.
