Benzodiazepines
“Mother’s little helpers” lack the glamour of other pills and denote dullness, forever associated as they are with the two largely invisible populations to which they are most heavily prescribed: the elderly poor and older housewives - Lily Lynch
image by: Shawn Michelle
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Benzodiazepines: A Perspective
The question of the risk of prescribing a benzodiazepine and inadvertently inducing a substance use disorder is a complicated issue. The older literature on the addiction propensity of benzodiazepines seemed reassuring in suggesting that these drugs were not strong reinforcers and were less likely than others to be the preferred drug of misuse. The voice of the substance use disorder community strongly counters this notion, citing the high rates of benzodiazepine misuse, especially in the substance-using population, and, recently and most alarmingly, given the adverse synergistic risk with overdose, compounding the opioid use epidemic. Although benzodiazepine overdoses are of a lower lethality…
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The Common Drug That May Make Opioid Overdose Five Times As Likely
Opioid overdoses continue to increase, accounting for nearly two-thirds of all overdose deaths in the US, and a high percentage of those overdoses also include other drugs. A new study shows that the combination of opioids with one common class of drugs in particular is especially risky in the first 90 days of concurrent use. Those drugs are benzodiazepines (often called "benzos"), the class that includes alprazolam (Xanax), diazepam (Valium), and clonazepam (Klonopin), meds frequently prescribed to alleviate anxiety.
‘Benzo-dope’ may be replacing fentanyl: Dangerous substance turning up in unregulated opioids
The increasing availability of benzo-dope is cause for concern given that when taken together, the combined effects of benzodiazepines and opioids can result in overdose and death.
Anxiety Meds Valium, Xanax And Ativan May Not Lead To Dementia After All
The connection between benzodiazepines and dementia has not been especially clear in recent years. Last year, a widely publicized study again found that benzodiazepines--Ativan, Valium, and Xanax--which are often used to treat anxiety and sleep problems, were linked to increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease in elderly people. This week, another study was published, finding that in the highest doses the same meds are not linked to any increased risk for dementia.
Benzo Withdrawal: A Scattered and Anxious Account
After a few terrifying experiences, I recognized that benzos were no longer treating my anxiety but had instead become an unhealthy habit.
Legal anti-anxiety drugs like Xanax are killing thousands of Americans every year
You may have heard of the opioid painkiller epidemic over the past few years. As the story goes, doctors, driven by a misleading campaign from big pharma, prescribed a ridiculous amount of painkillers to Americans, getting patients hooked on the drugs. And overdoses have spiked as a result. Now it looks like something similar may have happened with yet another legal drug: benzodiazepines, such as Xanax and Valium.
Sleep And Anxiety Drugs May Increase Risk For Alzheimer's
Users of sleep and anxiety drugs may unknowingly be increasing their risk for developing Alzheimer's disease. A study published in the British Medical Journal says long-term use of benzodiazepines could result in up to a 50 percent increased risk of developing the memory-robbing disease. Benzodiazepines are prescribed for their anxiolytic and sedative properties and include well-known drugs such as Xanax, Ativan, and Valium.
Teens Who Abuse Anxiety Or Sleep Meds Often Had A Prescription First
More than 2,000 teens begin abusing prescription pills each day, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health -- making prescription pills the most common drugs teens use to get high after marijuana. According to new research, anti-anxiety and sleeping pills may carry an especially high risk of abuse, particularly among teens who have been prescribed these medications.
The Condition Many Recovering Addicts And Alcoholics Don't Know About
No one said recovery would be easy. And for the majority of addicts and alcoholics, detox is just the beginning.
Benzodiazepines: America's 'Other Prescription Drug Problem'
The problem with benzos, as they're also known, is that they're highly addictive medications, both physically and psychologically. Abruptly stopping them can lead to withdrawal symptoms...
A Quiet Drug Problem Among the Elderly
Despite warnings from experts, older people are using more anti-anxiety and sleep medications, putting them at risk of serious side effects and even overdoses.
America's Most Popular Mind Medicines
When Xanax hit the U.S. market in 1981, it wasn't clear it would be a hit. It was a me-too successor to Valium, the anxiety drug that was the most popular drug in America for most of the 1970s. Maker Upjohn figured out a clever way to market its drug: by testing it to treat panic attacks as well as anxiety.
Benzodiazepines and Opioids
Taking opioids in combination with other central nervous system depressants—like benzodiazepines, alcohol, or xylazine—increases the risk of life-threatening overdose.
Benzodiazepines: America's 'Other Prescription Drug Problem'
With so much of our attention now understandably directed at the nation's insatiable appetite for those other controlled substances — opioids — it's no wonder that the dangers of benzodiazepine overuse haven't drawn as much scrutiny.
F.D.A. Requires Stronger Warning Label for Xanax and Similar Drugs
Benzodiazepines — commonly prescribed for anxiety, insomnia, seizures and panic disorders — are highly addictive and come with health risks, especially when combined with other drugs.
More People Are Taking Drugs for Anxiety and Insomnia, and Doctors Are Worried
As coronavirus health concerns, social isolation and job-loss stress take a toll, people turn to medications; ‘It can very quickly become a habit’
Risks Of Popular Anxiety Drugs Often Overshadowed
The drugs first burst onto the scene in the 1950s and '60s and quickly became known as "mother's little helper," the mild tranquilizer that could soothe frazzled housewives' nerves. More than four decades later, benzos — including Valium, Xanax, Klonopin and Ativan — are used to treat anxiety, mood disorders and insomnia.
Should Pregnant Women Take Anti-Anxiety Medication? Some Have No Choice.
The relentless focus on fetal purity was one of the hardest things I faced during my already tough pregnancy.
Steep Climb In Benzodiazepine Prescribing By Primary Care Doctors
While benzodiazepines are mostly prescribed for anxiety, insomnia and seizures, the study found that the biggest rise in prescriptions during this time period was for back pain and other types of chronic pain.
The history of benzodiazepines
After more than 50 years of experience with benzodiazepines, the American health care system has a love-hate relationship with them. In 1955, Hoffmann-La Roche chemist Leo Sternbach serendipitously identified the first benzodiazepine, chlordiazepoxide (Librium). By 1960, Hoffmann-La Roche marketed it as Librium, and it pursued molecular modifications for enhanced activity. Valium (diazepam) followed in 1963. Hoffmann-La Roche's competitors also began looking for analogues.
Two types of drugs you may want to avoid for the sake of your brain
A team of researchers from France and Canada linked benzodiazepine use to an increased risk of being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. In the study, the greater people's cumulative dose of benzodiazepines, the higher their risk.
Benzodiazepines: A Perspective
I confess that some of the most gratifying memories in my career had to do with benzodiazepines. This commentary is not meant to be a call for a benzodiazepine renaissance but rather an attempt to offer a perspective.
Benzo.org.uk
The resource site for involuntary tranquilliser addiction, withdrawal & recovery.
BenzoBuddies
BenzoBuddies: an inclusive, nonjudgmental mutual-support environment for those who wish to withdraw from benzodiazepines. Members of the BenzoBuddies community are encouraged to exchange ideas, information and support during the process of withdrawal and recovery. Although outside of the immediate scope of BenzoBuddies, members are free to discuss their wider medical problems and needs as they relate to benzodiazepine use and withdrawal.
BenzoSupport.org
Welcome to the Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Support Site. The benzodiazepine (benzos) drugs may be associated with side effects, tolerance, dependency, addiction, withdrawal symptoms and a protracted withdrawal syndrome. This site is a place to learn about these issues.
Social Anxiety Support
To provide support for those who suffer from social anxiety disorder (social phobia).
Benzo Information Coalition
We seek to break the stigma and raise awareness around prescribed benzodiazepine injury; provide a voice to the patients who are suffering, and facilitate research and access to competent, evidence-based medical care for those impacted by benzodiazepine-induced disability.
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