[HopingCat36]

I’m wondering how do people get addicted to Xanax. Is it that they take more than what their doctors tells them too to get high? Right now I have been taking 0.25mg of Xanax 3 times a day for about 4 weeks. My psychiatrist actually wanted me to take two 0.25mg three times a day and I said no! Xanax does help for sure with this Dp/dr hell but I am also on Effexor. So I’m thinking the combination is helping. I just don’t want my body to get use to the Xanax. I never had to take any type of medications before and I don’t even drink! So I don’t want to get addicted or something

 

[Alan]

I think you're absolutely right to be cautious with regards to Xanax.

In the UK, benzodiazepines are generally only used as a short term treatment, and doctors are generally hesitant to prescribe them. American healthcare overprescribes them in my opinion (maybe because money is involved, but I'm a cynic, I'm guessing you're in the US)

Continuous use results in tolerance, where larger doses are needed to achieve the same effect, and larger doses tend to result in dependence and withdrawal symptoms, over time. Nobody sets out to get addicted, but it can be a natural progression as a result of how benzos act on your body if use isn't carefully monitored and managed.

I see it as risk/reward situation -- if benzos allow you to function and the benefits outweigh the potential dependence and withdrawal that you might experience, they're obviously the right choice for you, but only you can ultimately make the choice. I'd be inclined to discuss this some more with your psychiatrist.

Hope this helps somewhat

 

[eddy1886]

Simply because after a while they stop having the same effect unless you start increasing the dose....

So as soon as you reach the point of having to increase the dose to get the same effect you gave stepped into addiction territory....

This is why other drugs are a much better long term treatment...You find a drug and dose that works and basically the dose never changes from that point...

 

[Grindelwald]

Same way you get addicted to any other drugs. Your body gets used to the chemicals you're putting in, and chemical changes are made in the brain as a result. .25 mg is so small of a dose that the risk of dependence is very low after only a month. When I smoked weed regularly one of the guys I bought from came by one night completely barred out. He took 3 xanax bars in a span of a few hours (that's 6 mg for those keeping track). I don't think he ever became dependent on them and he did cut down on the xanax if not quit completely. Be cautious but don't flip out. You'll be fine.