Xanax alprazolam Addiction & Abuse Benzodiazepine Overdose

This chronic drowsiness can also contribute to a person’s inability to focus or concentrate while on Xanax. With XANAX Mobile, keep your XANAX Savings Card on your phone, refill your prescriptions via text, and more. The first and most crucial step is to educate yourself about Xanax addiction and its effects. Understanding the addiction and your loved one’s struggles can help. It will allow you to approach the situation with empathy and patience. The factors causing Xanax addiction are categorized into biological, psychological, and social elements.

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As Xanax use continues, it can interfere with your brain’s ability to produce the necessary chemicals for maintaining stable mental health, further exacerbating depressive symptoms. Overuse can lead to serious mental health issues that change a person’s daily life. In the next sections, we’ll explore the specific mental effects of Xanax abuse and how it affects one’s well-being. Long-term Xanax abuse can lead to physical damage to your kidneys and liver.

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Selling Xanax or giving it away may harm others, and is against the law. Before you start treatment with Xanax, tell your healthcare provider if you have abused or been dependent on alcohol, prescription medicines or street drugs. Regular use of Xanax can lead to tolerance, dependence, addiction, overdose and withdrawal side effects.

• Any co-occurring mental disorders (especially those for which the medication itself may have been prescribed in the first place) must also be assessed and treated along with the addiction.
• To mitigate these, healthcare providers may prescribe longer-acting benzodiazepines like diazepam or clonazepam, which help stabilize the patient while reducing the risk of severe reactions.
• Weigh the potential benefits against the potential risks before taking this medication while breastfeeding.
• Xanax abuse increases the risk of developing a dependence on the drug, along with a higher chance of overdose.
• The first time I popped a Xanax was the first time I felt relief from my anxiety disorder… There was something oddly comforting about Xanax — the way it came in many shapes and colors, like peach and blue.

How Many People in the United States Abuse Xanax?

Carbamazepine is also known to enhance catecholamine function and therefore may improve symptoms of sleep disturbance, anxiety, and mood instability, which are common in withdrawal. This explains its positive effects in general for the treatment of benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome. It is also consistent with open-label reports and a double-blind study supporting the use of carbamazepine in benzodiazepine withdrawal (Björkqvist et al., 1976). Rebound anxiety is common and is often severe with alprazolam discontinuation because of its short half-life and the unique alpha-2 adrenergic effect. Both carbamazepine and clonidine act at the alpha-2 adrenoceptors level and could counteract the hyperadrenergic state that has been reported during discontinuation of alprazolam.

Daily use of benzodiazepines for six weeks or more will result in dependency for four in every 10 users, the Royal College of Psychiatrists states. Although treatment outcomes are comparable to that of other chronic conditions, recovery is an ongoing process that can take time. The detox period for Xanax may be longer than the detox period for other drugs. In both cases, you take less and less of the drug until it’s out of your system. Ask your doctor or another health professional for a recommendation.

You need them to stay open to what you are trying to say, and to do this you need to make it clear that you are coming from a place of love and concern, and not disapproval. A person can quickly become physically dependent on Xanax, so they should only ever take it as a doctor prescribes it. It is important for a person to remember that heroin addiction not every treatment works for everyone. Once a person is ready for treatment, speaking with a doctor can help a person discover what treatments and resources are available to them.

Treatment for co-occurring addictions requires a comprehensive approach, often involving a gradual tapering of both medications to minimize withdrawal symptoms. Cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) and anxiety management techniques are crucial components of the treatment plan. Treatment for Xanax addiction involves a gradual tapering process under medical supervision to avoid dangerous withdrawal symptoms. Detox is followed by behavioral therapies, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), which helps address the root causes of addiction. If you or a loved one are struggling with Xanax misuse or any other substance addiction, American Addiction Centers (AAC) is here to help. We have top-rated facilities located around the country that specialize in treating xanax addiction co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders.

• Detox is usually done in a hospital or rehabilitation facility under medical supervision.
• Once you’ve stopped taking Xanax or other benzodiazepines, there’s no additional medication to take.
• If someone you love is addicted to Xanax, you should encourage them to get help by having a calm, serious discussion about specific behaviors and consequences of their drug use.
• Alprazolam is used to relieve symptoms of anxiety, including anxiety caused by depression.
• Xanax addiction is specifically part of a subcategory of substance use disorder known as sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use disorder.

• Detoxification involves tapering off Xanax to reduce the severity of withdrawal effects like anxiety, insomnia, seizures, and irritability.
• Xanax is not approved for use in individuals under 18, except in rare cases where it is prescribed off-label under strict medical supervision.
• And, as you develop tolerance to the drug (this can happen with any dose), the duration of its therapeutic effects becomes shorter, while the feeling of “comedown” leading to the withdrawal comes quicker.
• In severe cases, withdrawal causes life-threatening seizures and hallucinations, particularly in those with long-term or high-dose usage.
• If a user wishes to stop taking Xanax after dependence on the drug has formed, it is not recommended to quit “cold turkey” or without medical supervision.

If a one on one conversation isn’t effective, you may want to plan a formal intervention. You can prepare and run an intervention on your own, or work with a counselor or https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/drug-detox-process-and-side-effects/ professional interventionist. Many treatment facilities offer intervention services to potential patients.

Over time, this leads to physical dependence, where the body becomes reliant on the drug to function normally. Withdrawal symptoms, including anxiety, seizures, and tremors, occur when use is reduced or stopped, reinforcing the cycle of addiction. Xanax addiction refers to a physical and psychological dependence on the prescription drug Xanax (alprazolam), which is commonly used to treat anxiety and panic disorders. The 2013 National Survey on Drug Use and Health showed that young adults were the most likely to have ever used alprazolam for non-medical purposes. The rate of abuse among those aged (10.3%) was nearly double that of people aged 26 or over (5.7%). People at risk of misusing Xanax include individuals with a history of substance abuse, those suffering from untreated mental health disorders, young adults, and people exposed to high-stress environments.

Who is at Risk of Misusing Xanax?

Xanax detox works by gradually removing the drug from the body while managing withdrawal symptoms to ensure a safe and comfortable recovery. Detoxification involves tapering off Xanax to reduce the severity of withdrawal effects like anxiety, insomnia, seizures, and irritability. While at-home detox is possible for individuals with mild dependency, it is risky without professional guidance. Clinical detox options, such as those offered in medical detox centers, provide a safer environment where healthcare professionals monitor progress, administer medications to ease symptoms, and address potential complications.