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By Dr. Cheryl Lane, Wed, December 02, 2015

benzodiazepines

By Dr. Cheryl Lane, PhD

Benzodiazepines are a type of fast-acting medication primarily used to treat anxiety symptoms and insomnia. They are also used in the treatment of muscle spasms, agitation, acute mania, alcohol withdrawal symptoms, and seizures. These sedative-hypnotic drugs are also referred to as anxiolytics and minor tranquilizers.

Popular medications that fall in this category include Xanax, Valium, Ativan, and Klonopin. Because of their high potential for addiction, benzodiazepines are typically prescribed for short term use (usually no longer than 4 weeks).

When taken as prescribed, benzodiazepines quickly produce a sedating, calming effect. They provide relatively fast relief for individuals who suffer from acute anxiety and panic attacks. For individuals with insomnia, benzodiazepines help induce sleepiness.
How Benzodiazepines Work

Benzodiazepines work by targeting the receptors of a neurotransmitter known as GABA (which stands for gamma-aminobutyric acid). GABA helps keep the nerve cells in the brain from becoming overexcited. By enhancing GABA’s function, benzodiazepines bring about a state of clam as they reduce any over-activity in the brain. Because of this effect, they are classified as a “central nervous system depressant”.
Two Types of Benzodiazepines

There are two primary types of benzodiazepines: short-acting and long-acting. This is based on how fast and how long they act, how quickly they are eliminated from the body, and whether or not they accumulate when taken in multiple dosages.
Short-acting benzodiazepines include:

Restoril (temazepam)
Dalmane (flurazepam)
ProSom (estazolam)
Halcion (triazolam)
Versed (midazolam)

Long-acting benzodiazepines include:

Xanax (alprazolam)
Valium (diazepam)
Ativan (lorazepam)
Klonopin (clonazepam)
Librium (chlordiazepoxide)
Paxipam (halazepam)
Centrax (prazepam)
Tranxene (clorazepate)
Serax (oxazepam)
Doral (quazepam)

However, like all medications, there are potential side effects. The most common side effect is sedation or drowsiness, which is why benzodiazepines should never be taken while (or shortly before) driving a vehicle or operating any kind of machinery.
Other common side effects of benzodiazepines include:

Impaired coordination
Dizziness or light-headedness
Muscle weakness
Headache
Fatigue
Changes in appetite
Dry mouth
Abuse and Addiction

All benzodiazepines have a high risk for abuse and addiction. This is largely because they produce such a quick sense of calm and relaxation. If you take these medications for longer than prescribed or at higher or more frequent doses than prescribed, you may develop a tolerance to and dependence upon them. If this occurs it can be dangerous to abruptly stop taking the medication. Gradual tapering of the dose, under the supervision of a physician, is advised in order to prevent withdrawal symptoms which may include seizures, muscle cramps, and nausea.
Related Reading

Some commonly prescribed benzodiazepines

Alprazolam Intensol
Alzapam
Ativan
BuSpar
Centrax
Equanil
Inderal
Inderal-LA
Inderide [CD]
Inderide LA [CD]
Ipran
Klonopin
Lexapro ( Lexaprotm )
Libritabs
Librium
Lipoxide
Loraz
Lorazepam Intensol
Luvox
Meprospan
Miltown
Neuramate
Novo-Alprazol
Romazicon
Paxil
Paxipam
Serax
T-Quil
Tranxene
Tranxene – SD
Tranxene T

Valium
Valrelease
Versed
Xanax

Sensationalist coverage and our brains contribute to misunderstandings about mental health

Several common errors of reasoning make all of us susceptible to certain misconceptions about psychological health. For instance, the availability heuristic is a mental shortcut by which we gauge the frequency of an event by the extent to which it is fresh in our mind. For example, the mistaken belief that most children of divorced parents display poor psychological adjustment probably stems from the fact that when a child experiences serious problems after a divorce, we often hear about it. Conversely, when a child adapts well to a divorce—as most do—his or her resilience is almost never discussed. As a result, we may think of divorce as more closely tied to psychological problems than it actually is [see “Is Divorce Bad for Children?”; March/April 2013].
Another common logical error is post hoc, ergo propter hoc, meaning “after this, therefore because of this.” Our minds are continually on the lookout for connections between incidents, which may lead us to conclude that an event preceding the emergence of a psychological condition caused the condition. For instance, many people continue to believe that childhood vaccines (especially those containing the preservative thimerosal) cause autism because the usual time for vaccinating children—soon after they turn one—comes just before the first signs of autism typically become evident. This connection in time is apparently more persuasive to many than the multiple, large epidemiological studies that have debunked the link [see “Autism: An Epidemic?”; April/May 2007].
In addition, many misconceptions about mental illness contain a kernel of truth that can lead us to false conclusions. For example, just because dogs, horses and some other domesticated animals provide emotional warmth that can temporarily relieve anguish does not mean that animal-assisted therapy alleviates the main symptoms of major mental disorders such as autism, schizophrenia and anorexia nervosa [see “Can Animals Aid Therapy?”; June/July 2008].
MISLED BY THE MESSENGER

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. For more than eight years, we have authored this column on facts and fictions in mental health, an opportunity for which we are profoundly grateful. Nevertheless, because of growing commitments and other pursuits, we have decided that this will be our last column.
We have written these articles for a simple reason: we live in a world in which mental health literacy is more important than ever. According to survey data published in 2010 by psychiatrist Mark Olfson of Columbia University and psychologist Steven Marcus of the University of Pennsylvania, about 3 percent of Americans are in psychotherapy, with most of them also receiving medication. Moreover, as psychiatrist Thomas Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health, observed in a 2014 strategic plan, the incidence of a number of mental health conditions, including autism spectrum disorder and major depression, has soared in recent years, although the significance of these rising rates remains a matter of controversy.
Despite its pervasiveness, many people are woefully misinformed about mental illness. This fact is worrisome because inaccurate notions about mental illness can be harmful. For example, the erroneous belief that people with schizophrenia are prone to violence can lead to unjustified stigma [see “Deranged and Dangerous?”; July/August 2011]. And the unsupported assumption that antidepressants are more effective than cognitive-behavior therapy for the long-term treatment of depression can dissuade individuals from seeking the most beneficial interventions for their illness [see “The Best Medicine?”; October/November 2007].
In this concluding column, we look back at our past contributions and extract some of their most important lessons. We hope to leave readers with a user-friendly kit for sorting fact from fiction about mental health and illness.
A MISUNDERSTANDING MIND

Several common errors of reasoning make all of us susceptible to certain misconceptions about psychological health. For instance, the availability heuristic is a mental shortcut by which we gauge the frequency of an event by the extent to which it is fresh in our mind. For example, the mistaken belief that most children of divorced parents display poor psychological adjustment probably stems from the fact that when a child experiences serious problems after a divorce, we often hear about it. Conversely, when a child adapts well to a divorce—as most do—his or her resilience is almost never discussed. As a result, we may think of divorce as more closely tied to psychological problems than it actually is [see “Is Divorce Bad for Children?”; March/April 2013].
Another common logical error is post hoc, ergo propter hoc, meaning “after this, therefore because of this.” Our minds are continually on the lookout for connections between incidents, which may lead us to conclude that an event preceding the emergence of a psychological condition caused the condition. For instance, many people continue to believe that childhood vaccines (especially those containing the preservative thimerosal) cause autism because the usual time for vaccinating children—soon after they turn one—comes just before the first signs of autism typically become evident. This connection in time is apparently more persuasive to many than the multiple, large epidemiological studies that have debunked the link [see “Autism: An Epidemic?”; April/May 2007].
In addition, many misconceptions about mental illness contain a kernel of truth that can lead us to false conclusions. For example, just because dogs, horses and some other domesticated animals provide emotional warmth that can temporarily relieve anguish does not mean that animal-assisted therapy alleviates the main symptoms of major mental disorders such as autism, schizophrenia and anorexia nervosa [see “Can Animals Aid Therapy?”; June/July 2008].
MISLED BY THE MESSENGER

About 3,500 self-help books appear every year, but few are based on research or are subjected to scientific scrutiny [see “Do Self-Help Books Help?”; October/November 2006]. Likewise, many psychology Web sites are replete with misinformation. In a 2012 survey of the sites of eight national autism associations, special education professor Jennifer Stephenson and her co-authors at Macquarie University in Australia found that most of them provided misleading information about the effectiveness of interventions. For example, of 33 autism treatments suggested on these sites, solid empirical support exists for only three. (Those three are grounded in the principles of behavior modification, a technique that reinforces adaptive activities.)
The mainstream media can also spread distortions, whether because of mistakes rising from deadline pressure, misunderstanding of source material or an overzealous desire to appeal to the public. As psychologist Thomas Gilovich of Cornell University observed in his 1991 book, How We Know What Isn’t So, reporters almost always sharpen the central point of an article and leave out peripheral details. They also routinely exaggerate claims in the service of a good story. On October 7, 2013, the front page of The Sun, a popular British tabloid, trumpeted: “1,200 killed by mental patients.” The headline implied that psychiatric patients had murdered 1,200 people in the U.K. Yet that figure included not only patients in the mental health system but also individuals who were judged retrospectively by researchers to be experiencing symptoms of mental illness, a judgment that is highly subjective.
Even when a story is more nuanced, the headline may still hold sway in people’s minds. Psychologist Ullrich Ecker of the University of Western Australia and his colleagues collected data last year showing that deceptive headlines, such as “Fears of Fluoride in Drinking Water” (which topped an article emphasizing the safety of fluoride in water), can provoke biased inferences about the story, leading to misconceptions. Thus, readers must not only continue past the headline but must also carefully encode any details in a story that contradict or add nuance to its title. We should beware, too, of misguided attempts to create balance in stories. Journalists sometimes feel obligated to present both sides of an issue even when the scientific consensus is clearly on one side.
We hope that this column and the more than 50 that came before it have helped educate readers about psychological health in ways that matter for both individuals and society. The tips and analyses we have offered over the years are hardly panaceas, but they can serve as a guide through the increasingly complicated maze of claims about mental health.

What someone’s eyes can tell you about what they’re thinking.

They’ve existed for 540 million years and most of us have a pair, but aside from giving us sight, what can we tell from looking at someone’s eyes?

People say that the eyes are a “window to the soul” – that they can tell us much about a person just by gazing into them. Given that we cannot, for example, control the size of our pupils, body language experts can deduce much of a person’s state by factors relating to the eyes.

The Pupils
The pupils are a part of our body language that we practically have no control over.

As well as adjusting the amount of light taken in the process of sight (Dilation: pupil size increasing; Contracting: pupil size decreasing), Eckhard Hess (1975) found that the pupil dilates when we are interested in the person we’re talking to or the object we’re looking at.

As an indicator, check a friend’s pupil size when you’re talking to them about something interesting, then change the subject to something less interesting and watch their pupils contract!

Eye Contact
For making contact and communicating with a person, effective eye contact is essential to our every day interaction with people, and also to those who want to be effective communicators in the public arena:

Persistent eye contact

Look, Don’t Stare.
Staring

Look, don’t stare. Over-powering eye contact can make the recipient uncomfortable.

Generally in Western societies and many other cultures, eye contact with a person is expected to be regular but not overly persistent. Constant eye contact is often considered to be an attempt at intimidation, causing the person who’s the object of a person’s gaze to feel overly studied and uncomfortable.

Even between humans and non-humans, persistent eye contact is sometimes unadvisable: the New Zealand Medical Journal reported that one reason so many young children fall victim to attacks by pet dogs is their over-poweringly regular eye contact with pets, which causes them to feel threatened and defensive.

Overly persistent eye contact is also a sign of a person’s over-awareness of the messages they are emmiting. In the case of a person who is try to deceive someone, they may distort their eye contact so that they’re not avoiding it – a widely recognised indicator of lying.

Avoiding Eye Contact

Evasive Eye Contact
Evasive Eye Contact

Evasive eye contact: a sign of discomfort.

Why do we avoid looking at a person? It may be because we feel ashamed to be looking at them if we’re being dishonest of trying to deceive them. However, Scotland’s University of Stirling found that, in a question-and-answer study among children, those who maintained eye contact were less likely to come up with the correct answer to a question than those who looked away to consider their response.

Eye contact, as a socialising device, can take a surprising amount of effort to maintain when this energy could be spend on calculating, as opposed to perceptive, tasks.

Crying
Did You Know?
Humans are believed to be the only species on Earth to cry, though there is emerging evidence of it in elephants and gorillas.1

most cultures around the world, crying is considered to be caused by an extreme experience of emotion; usually, it’s associated with sadness or grief, though often extreme experiences of happiness, and through humor, can cause us to cry. Often, forced crying in order to gain sympathy or deceive others is known as “crocodile tears” – an expression from myths of crocodiles ‘crying’ when catching prey.

Blinking
Aside from our instinctive need to blink, our emotions and feelings towards the person we’re talking to can cause us to subconciously alter our blink rate.

www.healthline.com/health/bipolar-disorder/best-videos-of-the-year?utm_source=Sailthru%20Email&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=bipolar#3

False beliefs about mental illness can cause significant problems. Learn what you can do about stigma.
By Mayo Clinic Staff :

Stigma is when someone views you in a negative way because you have a distinguishing characteristic or personal trait that’s thought to be, or actually is, a disadvantage (a negative stereotype). Unfortunately, negative attitudes and beliefs toward people who have a mental health condition are common.

Stigma can lead to discrimination. Discrimination may be obvious and direct, such as someone making a negative remark about your mental illness or your treatment. Or it may be unintentional or subtle, such as someone avoiding you because the person assumes you could be unstable, violent or dangerous due to your mental health condition. You may even judge yourself.
Some of the harmful effects of stigma can include:
Reluctance to seek help or treatment
Lack of understanding by family, friends, co-workers or others you know
Fewer opportunities for work, school or social activities or trouble finding housing 
Bullying, physical violence or harassment
Health insurance that doesn’t adequately cover your mental illness treatment
The belief that you’ll never be able to succeed at certain challenges or that you can’t improve your situation
Steps to cope with stigma

Here are some ways you can deal with stigma:
Get treatment. You may be reluctant to admit you need treatment. Don’t let the fear of being labeled with a mental illness prevent you from seeking help. Treatment can provide relief by identifying what’s wrong and reducing symptoms that interfere with your work and personal life.
Don’t let stigma create self-doubt and shame. Stigma doesn’t just come from others. You may mistakenly believe that your condition is a sign of personal weakness or that you should be able to control it without help. Seeking psychological counseling, educating yourself about your condition and connecting with others with mental illness can help you gain self-esteem and overcome destructive self-judgment.
Don’t isolate yourself. If you have a mental illness

an illness. So instead of saying “I’m bipolar,” say “I have bipolar disorder.” Instead of calling yourself “a schizophrenic,” say “I have schizophrenia.”
Join a support group. Some local and national groups, such as the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), offer local programs and Internet resources that help reduce stigma by educating people with mental illness, their families and the general public. Some state and federal agencies and programs, such as those that focus on vocational rehabilitation or the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), offer support for people with mental health conditions.
Get help at school. If you or your child has a mental illness that affects learning, find out what plans and programs might help. Discrimination against students because of a mental health condition is against the law, and educators at primary, secondary and college levels are required to accommodate students as best they can. Talk to teachers, professors or administrators about the best approach and resources. If a teacher doesn’t know about a student’s disability, it can lead to discrimination, barriers to learning and poor grades.
Speak out against stigma. Consider expressing your opinions at events, in letters to the editor or on the Internet. It can help instill courage in others facing similar challenges and educate the public about mental illness.

Others’ judgments almost always stem from a lack of understanding rather than information based on the facts. Learning to accept your condition and recognize what you need to do to treat it, seeking support, and helping educate others can make a big difference.

Mayo Clinic