Panic and Anxiety Attack Medication can cause as many problems as they solve. It is important that you ask your doctor about the side effects of the Panic and Anxiety Attack medication being prescribed.
Tell your doctor about any alternative therapies or over-the-counter medications you are using. Ask when and how the medication will be stopped. Some Panic and Anxiety Attack Medication can't be stopped suddenly; they have to be tapered off slowly under supervision and sometimes over a long period of time.
Some Panic and Anxiety Attack medications are effective in anxiety disorders only as long as they are taken regularly, and symptoms may occur again when the Panic and Anxiety Attack medications are stopped. In fact with some there is the possibility of the problem coming back worse than before if the correct steps to come off the drugs are not followed. Work with your doctor to find the correct dosage of the right Panic and Anxiety Attack medication to treat your problem.
And, give it time, neither Rome nor your cure was or is going to be built in a day or even a week or month. Be sure of one thing. You WILL come out of this. Just keep the faith.
Panic and Anxiety Attack Medication falls into several general groupings.
Beta blockers
Are not going to cure Panic or Anxiety but are used to help to control symptons such as rapid heartbeat, shaking, trembling and blushing. The Contra effects can be less than other Panic and Anxiety Attack Medication but can cause light-headedness, sleepiness, short-term memory loss, slow heart rate, insomnia, diarrhea, frozen fingures and toes, depression and nightmares. Atenolol and Propranolol are possibly the best known.
Benzodiazepines
Known in the UK years ago under the derogatory title of Mothers little helpers. Unfortunately these were handed out like sweets when they were first discovered some forty or fifty years ago. This led to people (many women) being dependant for decades! The misery is still remembered. These days Doctors looking for Panic and Anxiety Attack Medication only use them for a couple of weeks before moving on. Contras include drowsiness, decreased mental sharpness, slurred speech, clumsiness, less occupational efficiency, sexual side effects, low moods, irritability, agitation and increased susceptibility to the effects of alcohol. Valium is the best known in the UK with Klonopin, Serax and Alprazolam better know in the US.
Monamine oxidase inhibitors
Are the oldest of antidepressant medications. The most often used is phenelzine. They are almost never used these days due to there interaction with common foods such as cheese and other drugs such as SSRIs. These inter reactions have known to be fatal.
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs)
Citalopram, Fluoxetine, Fluvoxamine, Paroxetine, Paroxetine, and Sertraline, are among the SSRIs most used as Panic and Anxiety Attack Medication. These Panic and Anxiety Attack Medications act on one of the brain's chemical messengers called serotonin. Starting on a low dose and increasing untill they are effective SSRIs have far fewer Contras than older Panic and Anxiety Attack Medications.
Tricyclic antidepressants
Similar to SSRIs Tricyclics are started at low doses and gradually increased. Tricyclics are older and probably have been more widely studied for panic attack treatment. Not as much use as in the past due to the Contras which include Dizziness, Drowsiness, Dry mouth, Weight gain and sleepiness.
All Panic and Anxiety Attack Medication can cause unfortunate side effects, some can even endanger your life. Talk at length with your doctor and get him to explain the ins and outs of the treatment he is recommending. Most importantly of all - Keep the faith.
Philip Jubb
Philip has suffered, as have those around him! He has the tee shirt, has walked the walk and can talk the talk. Help is only a click away at http://www.anxietypanicfear.com
Remember there is more than one way to skin a cat and we will be taking a look at more on anxiety and panic attacks in our next article. Until then http://www.anxietypanicfear.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Philip_Jubb