Posted by sukarno on July 2, 2010, at 15:46:18
In reply to Re: Switch to Xanax; depression vanishes; QOL up, posted by europerep on July 2, 2010, at 14:47:59
Xanax is one of those medications you have to take extra precautions with. Never let yourself run out (always keep a back-up supply in a separate bottle in case you lose or misplace your medication), take it on time and never taper faster than 0.5mg every three days.
Never, no matter what anyone tells you, quit abruptly ("cold turkey") or quickly.
Slow, long tapers are better. You can get 0.25mg tablets and taper by 0.125mg if you have to. That way you will avoid severe withdrawal symptoms.
I suppose Xanax is like the "Paxil" of the SSRIs or oxycodone of the opioids in terms of withdrawal reactions. You can quit (if you need to, but if you are doing fine on it there is really no need to stop), but always quit slowly over a period of months and you shouldn't have problems, but YMMV. Often times panic disorder is chronic and lifelong, so anxiety upon completion of a slow taper should be expected.
Medication doesn't cure an underlying condition unfortunately. Years ago it was thought that a 6 month course of tricyclic antidepressants or even Xanax could somehow "cure" panic disorder. That's wishful thinking and I used to believe it, but it just doesn't make sense unless one believes that medications can rewire the brain permanently so it will produce appropriate amounts of neurotransmitters when the medication is withdrawn.
I think the brain will always try to maintain homeostasis (pre-drug state), even if that homeostatis is "wrong" or "defective".
There was a study that said that people with panic disorder produce "20% less GABA" or have "20% less GABA activity" than controls. This was in those who had never received medication as far as I can remember.
My psychiatrist in 1997 told me to allow 6 to 18 months for a taper off benzodiazepines as I had been on them for 7 years continuously. Now it is 20 years.
alprazolam (Xanax) 1mg TID
black tea: 3-4 cups/day
GNC Ultra Mega Gold vitamin supplement, BIDDx: panic disorder, MDD (unipolar, melancholia), perfectionist, probable PTSD
poster:sukarno
thread:952889
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100628/msgs/952989.html