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Medicine to Treat Acute Anxiety

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 40 million Americans 18 years and older in any given year have anxiety disorders. Anxiety disorders include panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, social phobia, post-traumatic stress disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. In many cases, treatment includes medication.

  1. Anti-anxiety Medications

    • Anti-anxiety medications are specifically prescribed to treat anxiety. The main category of these is benzodiazepines. They include Clonazepam (Klonopin) which is especially used for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and social phobia. Another from the benzodiazepine group is lorazepam (Ativan) which is primarily prescribed for panic disorders. Alprazolam (Xanax) is used for generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder. An atypical anti-anxiety medication is buspirone (Buspar) and it differs from the others in that it's not fully effective until the patient has been taking it for at least two weeks. It is prescribed for GAD.

    Antidepressants for anxiety

    • While antidepressants are intended to treat depression, they can help alleviate anxiety symptoms as well, and many people suffer from both conditions. Among these, citalopram (Celexa,) escitalopram (Lexapro,) fluoxitine (Prozac,) paroxetine (Paxil,) and sertraline (Zoloft) are used for obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and social phobia. Venlafaxine (Effexor) is prescribed for GAD, as is bupropion (Wellbutrin.) Another class of drugs used for anxiety disorders is tricyclics. Among them, imipramine (Tofranil) is used for GAD and panic disorder. Clomipramine (Anafranil) is used for OCD. MAOIs (monoamine oxidase inhibitors) are also useful for anxiety disorders. Isocarboxazid (Marplan,) phenelzine (Nardil) and tranylcypromine (Parnate) are prescribed, but with great care. Patients taking MAOIs must be careful to watch out for dangerous combinations with other medications and even certain foods which may raise blood pressure.

    Beta Blockers for Anxiety

    • Propranolol (Inderal) is a medication used to treat heart conditions and high blood pressure. It can relieve physical anxiety symptoms such as trembling and sweating. It is often used to help with those physical symptoms on a short-term basis, such as right before a speech or a presentation.

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