Xanax Vs. Buspar (Page 4)

Yes-what is the major difference between these 2 meds? I have taken xanax for several years. I'm thinking abt. changing to Buspar. Can you switch meds like these without tapering off the xanax. Does Buspar help w/ Panic attacks?

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Re: Post # 161 ...

Hi Rosa and others,
Good question. Long-term, severe anxiety is miserable to endure! First and foremost, to specify, psychiatrists are doctors that use drug therapy to address mental, emotional, and other maladies strictly affecting your conscious/subconscious aspects of life, while psychologists and "therapists" rely on what's referred to, "talk therapy" to improve "mental health".

Most psychiatrists will first attempt to treat recurring anxiety (whether panic attacks, severe anxiety, or general anxiety) with an SSRI/SNRI such as Pristiq (desvenlafaxine), Zoloft (sertraline), Prozac (fluoxetine), Paxil (paroxetine), or one of many others, some of which you have probably tried using unsuccessfully that comprise a very long, and very profitable for the makers thereof, list of drugs designed to treat both depression and anxiety.

This is the first line of treatment preferred by psychiatrists for several reasons. Why? These latest antidepressants are safer than benzodiazapenes (Xanax, Klonopin, Ativan et al.) in that they are virtually impossible to overdose on especially compared to the benzos. The latest antidepressants do not use the GABA-ergic pathways in the brain (whereas the benzo's do use them) to slow and lessen brain activity. Therefore, the patient is much less likely to suffer respiratory failure (stop breathing) or cardiac arrest (heart stopping) from an overdose, as a patient would be from an overdose of a benzodiazapene or a barbiturate drug.

This "pathway" is one of the brain's *primary, effective, and often used* method of keeping anxiety"and neural (brain) activity in general in check and at normal levels. It's by taking advantage of this pathway by which benzo's can so effectively"and quickly"abort panic attacks in patients and reduce anxiety, seizures, and other ailments that are caused by hyperactivity or misfiring of neural systems in the brain"say, for example, seizures (valium is still often used in hospitals to treat sudden onset seizures).

The main problem is that by benzo's so heavily using and relying on this one, powerful mechanism to reduce neural activity and anxiety, a process called downregulation, which is the deactivation and decoupling of GABA receptors at the cellular level in, and throughout, the brain, occurs which lessens the overall effect of the drug per dose and renders part of the natural functioning of this pathway inactive. So, now, if you were to suddenly stop taking the medication, say"¦Xanax (alprazolam), not only would you feel the anxiety level were experiencing before starting the medication, but also you would additionally experience anxiety caused by the portion of GABA-ergic pathways rendered inactive by the benzodiazapene drug.

For example, Klonopin (clonazepam) may work very well for you at first when taking 1 mg twice daily for the first 2 weeks or so of treatment. But a month later, you're finding that the anxiety is creeping back and that even right after taking the drug"when it's effect should be strongest"you're still feeling anxious. This usually leads to the patient reporting to the psychiatrist something to the effect of, "it just isn't working like it used to!" and an increase in the dosage of the medication by said psychiatrist.

With this type of medication, this "stepping up" will eventually repeat over and over until not only are you again feeling an uncomfortable level of anxiousness, but also if you were to stop taking the drug, you would be thrown into what I would confidently describe as an intolerable level of anxiety, frequent panic attacks, be at high risk for seizures, and also may experience delirium tremens which can be fatal and is the same life-threatening condition experienced by severe, chronic alcoholics who suddenly stop drinking alcohol.

*My core points are these:
-Benzo's carry a heavy risk of rapid tolerance and physical dependence not to mention addiction.
-Cessation of taking the drug is not only unpleasant, but also in some cases fatal.
-Ergo, a responsible psychiatrist will usually try an alternative method of treatment for anxiety before relying on this class "benzodiazapenes" of medication. Or, the psychiatrist will first confirm that an alternative treatment method for the anxiety has already been attempted and failed.

What is the second most effective method of treatment medication? There is strong, reliable evidence that the new antidepressants"the SSRI/SNRI class of drugs"have been found to be effective at treating anxiety disorders while not causing the quick rise in tolerance, dependence, risk of addiction, and lethal danger if the patient suddenly stops taking the drug. HOWEVER, some patients suffering from anxiety disorders can and do experience a sudden increase in both number AND severity of panic attacks and anxiety in general when beginning treatment with this type of medication. If this does happen"and it is NOT uncommon"you need to contact your psychiatrist ASAP and go to your nearest ER. The bottom line here is that there is a significant level of uncertainty as to how you would, or will, respond to taking one of these drugs for anxiety; though it SHOULD not, it CAN make your anxiety much worse.

Buspar (buspirone) decreases anxiety in a similar way as do these antidepressants (or so it is suspected), rather than by the way benzo's do"the clinical evidence of the way in which this drug works to achieve its effects is still uncertain. Buspar will work for some people in treating their anxiety while NOT posing the health risks that do benzodiazapenes like Xanax, Klonopin, et al. However, the bottom line is that it is NOT as effective in reducing anxiety as benzo's, and a much greater portion of psychiatric patients will not benefit from this medication. For the vast majority of cases, you should not expect a drug like Buspar to be as effective as a benzodiazapene in treating anxiety.

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The human body will develop a tolerance to any mental health medication, at which point its usefulness is compromised. If you aren't meditating, you shouldn't be medicating. 30 minutes of meditation a day can do more for you than any drug. The Buspar I'm on seems to have lost its effectiveness (after a year or so). I made a doctor's appointment to acquire some Xanax in place of the Buspar, but I cancelled the appointment and am trying meditation first. Perhaps I won't need anything! Don't give up on your body's ability to heal. Best of luck to all of you!

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YOU MUST TAPER OFF OF XANAX SLOWLY! YOU COULD HAVE SEIZURES IF YOU DON'T! BUSPAR NEVER DID A THING FOR ME. HAVE YOUR DOC CHANGE YOU TO: ativan, klonopin, or something in that class of drugs. If you truly suffer with panic attacks, severe social anxiety or GAD (generalized anxiety disorder) then you NEED then you need the medicine, and there is no shame in that!

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I'm going thru same thing right now. I have done many drugs in my life and have been fortunate I have never been an addict. Xanax works like a charm for me but I have to buy from friends. Went to doc the other day he gave me celexa that made things worse. Went back today told him that and years ago I was on alprazolam generic Xanax and he out me on buspar. So here we go to see if it works. But doubt it

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kherrel, You are right in that buspar is not, by itself effective for depression. However it can aid with depression when taken with an SSRI. People with Major Depression can have a lot of anxiety and, being in that situation myself, I find that it the combination of the two (buspar 45 mg/day and zoloft 100mg/day) really helps me.
Be well.

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I always took alprazoll n it works good n gives me a great nite sleep. i was prescribed buspar but dont work too well alone so take both n it foes wrk great together.

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Forgot to say i dnt take xanax everyday i only take it as needed n i do take buspar twice a day shen i dnt forget...by taking it as needed it will help u not get ur body uses to it...even if u take ot 3 times a wk just to reinforce ur panic or anxiety.it is wrking well for me...

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Just take buspar as prescribed and xanax as needed even if u take it 3 times a wk...do not take it everyday cuz ur body will get use to it...

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A short reply to Jeff whose post I copied and pasted below in quotations:

66
Jeff Says:
Thursday, 11/1/2012 12:24:18 PM

"I'm going thru same thing right now. I have done many drugs in my life and have been fortunate I have never been an addict. Xanax works like a charm for me but I have to buy from friends. Went to doc the other day he gave me celexa that made things worse. Went back today told him that and years ago I was on alprazolam generic Xanax and he out me on buspar. So here we go to see if it works. But doubt it"

Hi Jeff,
Xanax and other benzodiazepines are NOT (and should NOT be) the first line of treatment for anxiety; many psychiatrists and physicians in general are now aware of this fact. Benzodiazepines like Xanax have been proven to be just too habit forming, dangerous, and conducive to diversion to people other than to the patients for whom the drug(s) were originally provided; you made an excellent example of this since, as you said (quoted above), you had been buying them "from friends". Friends that are fully aware of the potential medical (and legal!!) repercussions of taking this drug would never provide them to someone else.

Concerning changing rates of drug abuse, overdose, and death in Florida for example , benzodiazepines like Xanax--since 2003--have now been found to be responsible for the #2, HIGHEST, GREATEST, increase in drug overdose DEATHS.

Please refer to the following reputable source to confirm this if you like; it's provided by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) on its “whitehouse.gov†website.

Yes, the truth is Xanax is one of the MOST EFFECTIVE AND POTENT chemical remedies for treating general anxiety, SEVERE anxiety, and panic attacks. Yes, Xanax and the benzodiazepine class of drugs are extremely effective at reducing anxiety compared to other drugs currently available (especially Buspar—generic name: buspirone).
That last statement should answer the question about Buspar vs. Xanax for a lot of you.

Buspar at its maximum therapeutic dose of 15 mg twice daily will have little to NO effect on your anxiety if you have been taking somewhere in the range of 1 – 2 mg of Xanax (generic name: alprazolam) once or twice daily as needed for panic attacks or chronic anxiety. However, if you've taken Xanax yourself, you know from personal experience how short-acting the drug is. You also know how quickly (literally 2 - 3 days for some people) the strength of dose you started on just is NOT working as well as it used to. And this is where it’s very easy to slip up and start a downward spiral into misuse of the drug, or worse—addiction, or even worse. Why? Because at this point when the drug feels much weaker and your mind is yelling, “I need more!â€, the average patient tends to tell his/her doctor that the medication isn’t working like it used to and that, “I need more!†Often in this situation, the doctor will not (and if he’s a responsible doctor, he won’t; I know it sucks, but this is the truth) increase the quantity or the dose. When this happens, it is NOT uncommon for anxiety patients to seek more of the drug through other means (internet pharmacies, foreign 3rd world countries, friends, family, and even the drug peddler at the street corner).

And, most of all, you are aware of how strongly you feel you WANT and NEED this medication; you will be willing to do many things to get it, behaviors and actions that you would normally never allow yourself to do just so you can, “feel OK again, like my normal self.†If you get to this point in, yes—addiction, you need to find help ASAP, because you are at a point where you almost physically and mentally CANNOT resolve your situation on your own.

Going back to alternatives to the benzodiazepines… Yes, there are the SSRI/SNRI drugs like CELEXA—as I think Jeff said (generic: citalopram). These drugs however are known to cause severe panic attacks, manic episodes, and much worse anxiety in SOME patients ESPECIALLY in those who have more of an anxiety issue than a depression issue.
Regardless, doctors like to try this category (SSRI/SNRI) of medication first because it’s virtually impossible to overdose on, you will not develop the INTENSE SEVERITY of DEPENDENCE on it, and the potential RISKS associated with suddenly being cut off (or ripped off) the drug with no gradual tapering are neither nearly as torture-like, nor as life-threatening, as being forced into withdrawal from a benzodiazepine like Xanax.

Now, about Buspar (buspirone):
This drug does decrease anxiety by using the same “controls†in the brain as do Xanax and the benzodiazepine family of drugs. The truth of the matter is, doctors and researchers (even those that came across the discovery of this substance), are NOT exactly sure how it works. It is THOUGHT to reduce anxiety by manipulating the serotonin and/or norepinephrine pathways in the brain IN A SIMILAR MANNER AS DO THE NEWER ANTIDEPRESSANTS.

However, there is one resounding, unfortunate truth about Buspar, and this is that the drug is virtually ALWAYS much weaker in effect than a benzodiazepine. It is still worth giving it a shot though. It is also a much safer alternative to the benzodiazepine class of drugs.

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One thing I did not mention in my reply to Jeff (and other posts too) is another tool in the toolbox that just might work for you while not having the disadvantages that the benzodiazepines do. Still, they do carry their own risks and side effects of course.

First, the older class of antidepressants which are referred to as the tri-cyclic antidepressants (TCA’s), can help with not only depression issues, but also calm you down and reduce anxiety without having to experience the stimulant-like effects of the newer SSRI/SNRI drugs like, say, Prozac, Lexapro, or Celexa. One very successful example of the TCA’s for reducing anxiety is a drug called, Anafranil (generic: clomipramine). It’s designated as an excellent tool for treatment-resistant (what we call, refractory) depression AND behaviors that fall under the category of obsessive-compulsive disorder. It tends to have a more sedating effect on patients that take it (which is why it is usually taken at night), whereas the new line of antidepressants (Prozac and newer) tend to have a more stimulating effect on patients—which naturally leads to increased anxiety, or even panic.

SO! If you are having a hard, frustrating time finding a medication that is both safe AND not so quickly causing tolerance and dependence like the benzodiazepines, in addition to your having already tried one of the newer antidepressants like Celexa, Zoloft, Paxil, Prozac, Wellbutrin, Lexapro (and so on…), one of the TCA medications—like Anafranil—may be that one, ideal medication that will work very, very well for you!

Second, you and your doctor may also try using a low-potency, very low dose of one of the newer (also referred to as 2nd generation, or “atypicalâ€) antipsychotics such as Seroquel (generic: quetiapine). This specific drug is known for being one of the lowest potency antipsychotics (which would be a big plus if you’re only trying to address anxiety), while at the same time being known for being one of the most sedating drugs in its class, thereby making it an excellent candidate for treatment-resistant anxiety. This medication is also a relatively safer alternative compared to a benzodiazepine in treating anxiety for the long-term.

Well that’s all I’ve got! I hope this helps!!

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well...I to have been threw the mill....started with group therapy..then one on one...Now I took the advice of so called (no disrespect)..Dr...or therapist the medication...I grew up without help..and was taught if you saw a therapist or took pills....it is called a weakness.now that I'm either pr meno..or meno active...If I miss a dose of any of my meds...I freak out....almost postal...I have a 12 year old that starts my moods swings...Applied for disability because now I can't even keep a so called job....now a waiting game...All I have to say is don't nock it till you try it...peace

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Medicinal marijuana helps for anxiety.

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Never stop taking Xanax just cold turkey as you will go through very bad withdrawles.You should cut back about 1/2 pill every 3 or 4 days.Take it slow as the side effects are pretty bad,trust me as i have done this with Xanax more times than enough.You can go on Buspar even though you take Xanax,just do it slowly and with the help of a professional.And for all the women out there Buspar does help (at least me) with hot flashes

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Kolonopin would be a much better alternative for a daily long term anxiety controller.

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I am 33 years old and have been taking Wellbutrin for about 3 months now for depression. Prior to taking them I was angry everyday and all the time and most of the time I didnt know why. My therapist had recommended me taking an anti-depressant to cope with my anger cause apparently that is how I deal with my depression "anger" Anyway recently I found out that my HEP C is reactive and am scared now not only for what is to become of the Hep C but because I have not felt this good in a long time, since taking the wellbutrin. To give you an example as to why I am scared not only does it affect the liver and I will probably have to stop taking it but I am afraid to take anything else because my day starts at 4:30 in the morning and ends at 10pm, i drive about 90 miles a day and work with dual diagnosis and go to school. I need to function and dont have time to adjust to a medication. As I am reading about Buspar I am finding that there are chances that it will cause sleepiness and I cant take Xanax because I am an addict and that also causes increased tiredness. Please someone give me some suggestions before I go see the PSYC because knowing the doctor he will put me on something that causes me to be tired all the time.

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I know it sounds bad, but insufflated buspar will kick any xanax's ass. It is quite potent that way. only one at a time though!

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I, myself am doing through the SAME thing. Exept my GAD has been with me since I can remember. It is hard getting treated as an addict or a "seeker" when the people who actually NEED it have difficulty or no success in recieving proper treatment due to the stereo type others have placed on this one particular drug. Luckily I am married to a physician and don't have the problems obtaining my medications like I used to, but if I can give you any useful information at all it would be to keep searching until you find a dr who will actually listen to you. Be as honest with them as you are here. Let them know that you have tried everything and the one thing that does work for you is the drug that has "seeker" attatched to its name. But you are in fact just looking for a doctor who understands anxiety and the effect it ha on someone's life. Like a dr once told me, "it's to the dr's descretion rather or not the benefits of the drug outweigh the risks", (addictive). I told him that that should be MY choice. If I chose to take the risk of being on an addictive medication then that, in my opinion beats the alternative which would be me coming into the dr a year or so from now complaining of anxiety AND aquired heart problems due to the trauma that anxiety has placed on my heart and overall health. One drug, and only one other drug, besides Xanax has helped me tremendously. To the point where I don't even want Xanax anymore (due to the side effects, and this drug has none in my case), is Lorazapam/Atavan. That's the brad and generic names for. If you have not tried this and no dr will help you in your desperate search for help, then let them know you are willing to try this and hopefully, like me, your anxiety will be gone along with your one army fight against the machine. Keep me posted on your situation and I hope this helps!

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Thanks for the suggestion but I think I will stay away from insufflation.

Thanks for sharing what has worked for you. The real problem is that I need to find a medication that will help me be able to do my day to day things like wellbutrin has for me without passing through my liver. I am HEP C positive and my levels are high.

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I can head Panic and anxiety attacks for years
I have seen several MDs and no one has been able to tell me why. I found something on the Internet that finally compared to the way I felt . And they call that adrenaline .. i talked to my new Doctors PA
Who is also completing his psychiatry
Degree . He agreed that it was the adrenaline that when my body comes under stress it overproduces adrenaline
My body just kept over producing adrenaline over and over and over for years.
He prescribed Celexa 40 mg .. It was a miracle come true.. I no longer had to take Xanax off & on all day . The most important Knowlege i finally I receivedy i know what has caused my attacks for all these years !!!
It saved & changed my life forever. It did put a few pounds on me, but I watch what I eat & now feel like I can have control over my life, instead of it controling me

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Someone recommended Klonopin over Xanax~ Getting off Klonopin is a NIGHTMARE I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy~ They're both highly addictive and have horrendous withdrawals at clinically significant dosages~ I've been in medicine for 20 years and although I give no advice that's considered professional, I have taken Klonopin without first investigating and regret it~

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