Give A Good Thought Before Taking The Anxiety Disorder Medication

Anxiety disorder is debilitating chronic condition, which can be present from the childhood or can start much later because of some unpleasant experience. Such conditions often flare up at times of stress and then symptoms like trembling, shaking, confusion, dizziness, nausea, difficulty in breathing etc begin appear. Although the dictionary meaning of anxiety and fear is very different, anxiety disorder encompasses different phobias as well as psychological disorders like panic disorder and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) etc. It is believed that at least 18% of the American population is suffering from some form anxiety disorder.

When you go to the doctor or physician for the treatment for anxiety attacks, there are chances that you will be put on anxiety disorder medication or panic disorder medication. The doctors will first ask you to take a blood test and check for thyroid and make sure that you are not having a chemical imbalance. Often it is seen that you may experience panic attack like symptoms due to the chemical imbalances in the body. If you are having depression, the doctors may recommend the intake of vitamin b.

Unfortunately, most of the symptoms of anxiety attacks are very similar to that of other physical disorders and so diagnosing the actual illness poses a problem for most of the doctors. Very often, such patients are referred to the cardiac department instead of the psychiatric. It is only after many futile trips to the doctor you are referred to the psychoanalysts. By that time, you have gone through hundreds of medical tests and have had all kind medicines including Vitamin B to strengthen your nerves. It is simply a case of nerves; they had thought and had asked you to “pull up” hundreds of times.

Alprazolam, known under the trade name of Xanax is one such medication belonging to the benzodiazepines group. In the USA, it has been put under schedule IV under the controlled Substance Act. However, this medicine has made its place in the treatment for anxiety attack because of its fast acting quality. If taken with care, this medicine can bring great relief to anxiety attack patients. However, it cannot cure your anxiety attacks; neither should you take it for along term regularly. Of course, your psychiatrist knows all this. He will definitely warn you about the bad effects it can have on your body and your nervous system. Unless the condition is acute, he may not prescribe it at all.

Xanax falls in the first category of anxiety disorder medications. Xanax is merely the brand name; its genetic name is Alprazolam. It acts on the central nervous system to produce a calming effect. If you take one at the onset, it can stop the attack from becoming full blown. Many patients carry this medicine all the time. As such, it should not be taken more than eight weeks on regular basis.

Treating anxiety disorder with medications like Xanax has its adverse effects. As I said, it is habit-forming medicine and one can become addicted to it very quickly. Besides such medicines have many side effects. Euphoria, drowsiness, dizziness, fatigue, impaired coordination, vertigo etc may make carrying on daily activities difficult. You should avoid driving and sports like mountaineering at any cost. Short-term memory loss is not very rare. There can be hordes of other symptoms. If your doctor prescribes such medicines, be sure to ask for a list of side effects you can have. It is best to be mentally prepared.

One more thing to be noted is that you may show tolerance to the anti-anxiety drugs. This means that as time goes by, you will need higher and higher doses of the same medication to get the same results as previously. This has to stop at some place; you cannot go on an on with the same drug. Check out with your doctor for some mild medications that will give you the desired effect with minimum harm to the body.

However, Xanax or any other medicine of benzodiazepines group can never cure your panic attacks; they can at the most keep them under control. Antidepressants like SSRIs, MAOIs, tricyclic too blocs the symptoms only by altering the neurotransmitter configurations, but cannot cure anxiety disorder. The only benefit of the later group is that they can be taken for a longer period without developing drug dependency. If you really want to cure the anxiety disorder, undergo psychotherapy while you continue with the anxiety disorder medicines as directed by the doctor.

About the Author

Beth Kaminski is the co-author of Curing Your Anxiety And Panic Attacks which detailed treating panic disorder as well as tips on the various anxiety disorder medications available at AnxietyDisorderCure.com.

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