Which is stronger and more effective for anxiety/panic, Xanax or Ativan?
I’m asking because I’ve been taking ativan for years and it didn’t seem very effective for panic attacks/tachycardia and long term anxiety, but was okay for short acute symptoms; however I needed to take stronger doses of it for it to work. It also produced more of a drowsy/tired&weak body syndrome.
Xanax however, seemed to work much much quicker, and for whatever reason its effects lingered more. It seemed to completely stop any panic disorder/anxiety/tachycardia right in its place, and gave me more of a mental calm, and my body wasn’t as affected as much.
Ativan seems to be more of a muscle/whole body relaxant, more so than a mental/mind anxiety/panic treatment,
whereas Xanax seems to be better for being a "chill pill."
Any ideas? Any other drugs in the same class more effective, etc?
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Tags: acute symptoms, amp, anxiety panic treatment, ativan, chill pill, drugs, mental calm, Panic Attacks, panic disorder, tachycardia, xanax
Xanax is the best benzodiazapine in my opinion for panic attacks. It is very calming and sedating and it provides a euphoric feeling that helps combat overwhelming anxiety. Contrary to what some psychiatrists prescribe, no benzodiazapine is meant for long-term use. After about a week of daily doses of Xanax, I didn’t even notice any effects after taking it. In between doses I would oftentimes get rebound anxiety, too.
I think Paxil, Effexor, and Buspar are all better option for long-term management of anxiety. Benzodiazapines are best reserved for sudden panic attacks or short-term management of anxiety.
If for some reason you are convinced you must have a benzodiazapine, then Klonopin is usually the one most psychiatrists prescribe long-term because it is a long-acting benzodiazapine. Because of that you only have to take it twice a day and there remains a much more stable concentration in your blood in comparison to short-acting benzodiazapines like Xanax and Ativan. I disagree with the above answerer suggesting Serax. Serax is essentially a benzodiazapine and has no real advantage.
Both are for short acute symptoms. Try asking for an ssri medication. They are to be taken daily and do really well
Xanax is typically a stronger tranquilizer than Ativan, but you could take a higher dosage of Ativan and get similar effects (I’m not suggesting you do this).
You ask: "Any ideas?" Yeah, I got some "ideas" for you:
Xanax and other tranquilizers do not specifically "stop" a panic attack or tachycardia. It blunts your thinking and creates a type of cognitive impairment. You can get over having panic attacks once you understand what they are and learn how to prevent them. The cognitive approach helps you to understand the "vicious cycle" model and then use it to break the cycle of getting to full blown tachycardia. The longer you rely on tranquilizers the longer you will stay not only physiologically addicted (you do know that tranquilizers are physically addictive, yes?) but also psychologically dependant on them. If you decide to stop them you need to be weened off. Don’t let a psychiatrist tell you to just stop taking them (as almost a trap to get you to believe you have a chemical imbalance and "need" to take tranquilizers indefinately)because when you get withdrawal it will be misinterpreted as a relapse.
Xanax is probably the more popular of the two drugs and people tend to remember the name more easily. Hence, it’s become the more desireable of the two drugs most people who want a tranquilizer will ask for. Did you know that drug expectations can affect how a drug works? If you create the cognitive set that Xanax is the "better" drug it will create psychological expectations so that when you take it you will believe it’s working "better" despite the fact that several tranquilizers would have the same basic effect on you: mind numbing.
‘Hope you can truly get over having panic attacks. You won’t die from it either way. In fact, if that could really sink in you’d probably be on your way to getting rid of them!
as a nurse I will tell you that Klonopin/ clonazepam works well but is very easy to OD on so you have to take it as directed…down side is it can make you extremely tired…
others you can talk to you doctor about are:
oxazepam (Serax)
you have to be very careful with any of these those as you should just very abruptly stop them but should be weaned off slowly