Does Anxiety Medication Work?

There are many different kinds of anxiety medication currently being used to treat the symptoms of anxiety. Although they do seem to help with some of the symptoms like racing heart, sweaty palms, and panic attacks, the drugs themselves never actually cure the problem. Anxiety medication was designed to assist someone who is suffering at a severe level. Someone who has panic attacks on a non-regular basis, or social anxiety issues occasionally should absolutely not consider taking the medication, but instead find the cause of the problem.

The Different Types of Anxiety Medication Include:

Benzodiazepines:

Xanax (alprazolam)

Klonopin (clonazepam)

Librium (chlordiazepoxide)

Valium (diazepam)

Ativan (lorazepam)

Antidepressants:

Lexapro (scitalopram)

Celexa (citalopram)

Prozac (fluoxetine)

Paxil (paroxetine)

Zoloft (sertraline)

Beta-blockers:

Sectral (acebutolol)

Zebeta (bisoprolol)

Brevibloc (esmolol)

Inderal (propranolol)

Tenormin (atenolol)

Normodyne (labetalol)

Coreg (carvedilol)

Lopressor (metoprolol)

Bystolic (nebivolol)

Why You Should NOT Take These Drugs Unless Absolutely Necessary:

Anxiety medication, if used, should be followed exactly as prescribed. Try to take the drug at the same time every day and do not miss a dose. The side effects produced by these drugs include the following:

Drowsiness

Slurred speech

Diarrhea

Suicidal thoughts

Dizziness

Memory loss

Blurred vision

Clumsiness

Nausea

Impaired judgment

Mania

Hostility

Aggressive behavior

Hallucinations

As with any medication which is designed to alter mood/ personality, you should ease off the medication very slowly, and not attempt to quit “cold turkey”, or you could experience some horrible withdrawal symptoms. Anyone who takes benzodiazepines can experience very awful/ dangerous side effects, but some people are even more susceptible. Those include; people over 65 years old, those with a history of substance abuse, and pregnant women.

Avoid Them If Possible

The best thing to do when suffering with anxiety is to find out what is causing the disorder. Anxiety medication sounds like an easy way out, but it really is not. It is a temporary fix to one problem, but as you can see from the potential side effects, creates many new ones. To find out what is causing your anxiety you should talk with a professional counselor. You may have a few things in your past you need to sort through mentally and spiritually before you can actually rid yourself of the debilitating disorder.