The reality is many drugs have long term effects, we just can't see them yet. But if you are close to someone who is a user, over the long run you will notice differences. Sometimes its just that they don't have the same spark. Regardless, 100 years down the line we will look back in horror at the state of pharmaceutical drugs. All it takes is going to a doctor, saying you have anxiety, and the doctor pops out a scri…
SSRI-like drugs and drugs like buspirone are considered the gold standard for anxiety disorders now. They do not act like benzodiazepines at all in the brain.
The reality is that many doctors these days will not prescribe large amounts of benzos, certainly not just willy nilly.
I'm not just talking about benzos, but also anti psychotics, amphetamines, statins, and basically the whole gamut. My brother is a pharmacist, and is constantly shocked by the prescriptions that healthy people bring in to get filled. The medical field has been unjustly given too much prestige.
Daily use of benzos is extremely bad in general - the physical addiction is not pleasant to withdraw from, and it significantly increases the risk of dementia in old age.
Had some anxiety issues in France and a doctor that I met with (who I had trouble speaking to) prescribed daily benzos for a month. Towards the end of the month it felt like my body NEEDED the pills. It was scary.
The reality is that many doctors these days will not prescribe large amounts of benzos, certainly not just willy nilly.
I'm not just talking about benzos, but also anti psychotics, amphetamines, statins, and basically the whole gamut. My brother is a pharmacist, and is constantly shocked by the prescriptions that healthy people bring in to get filled. The medical field has been unjustly given too much prestige.
> My brother is a pharmacist, and is constantly shocked by the prescriptions that healthy people bring in to get filled.
While I definitely agree with your general point, how does your brother know that they’re healthy or don’t need to take the medication? I’ve never had any discussion with a pharmacist (in the US or Canada) where I’ve revealed this information.
The reality is many drugs have long term effects, we just can't see them yet. But if you are close to someone who is a user, over the long run you will notice differences. Sometimes its just that they don't have the same spark. Regardless, 100 years down the line we will look back in horror at the state of pharmaceutical drugs. All it takes is going to a doctor, saying you have anxiety, and the doctor pops out a scri…
SSRI-like drugs and drugs like buspirone are considered the gold standard for anxiety disorders now. They do not act like benzodiazepines at all in the brain.
The reality is that many doctors these days will not prescribe large amounts of benzos, certainly not just willy nilly.
I'm not just talking about benzos, but also anti psychotics, amphetamines, statins, and basically the whole gamut. My brother is a pharmacist, and is constantly shocked by the prescriptions that healthy people bring in to get filled. The medical field has been unjustly given too much prestige.
Your brother is not a clinician, definitely not those people's clinician.
The reality is many drugs have long term effects, we just can't see them yet. But if you are close to someone who is a user, over the long run you will notice differences. Sometimes its just that they don't have the same spark. Regardless, 100 years down the line we will look back in horror at the state of pharmaceutical drugs. All it takes is going to a doctor, saying you have anxiety, and the doctor pops out a scri…
You're taking a very specific article about benzos and making unsubstantiated leaps about medicine in general.
I'm not just talking about benzos, but also anti psychotics, amphetamines, statins, and basically the whole gamut. My brother is a pharmacist, and is constantly shocked by the prescriptions that healthy people bring in to get filled. The medical field has been unjustly given too much prestige.
> My brother is a pharmacist, and is constantly shocked by the prescriptions that healthy people bring in to get filled. While I definitely agree with your general point, how does your brother know that they’re healthy or don’t need to take the medication? I’ve never had any discussion with a pharmacist (in the US or Canada) where I’ve revealed this information.
What I mean is a mother of 4, with no medical history, is feeling stressed and worn out. Maybe she has trouble focussing. All of a sudden she comes in with an amphetamine prescription. A year later, she's a full blown dependent on a serious drug. She was actually just burned out and probably just needed a break from her kids and a vacation. Very common. There's no transparency, no public understanding of doctors who are prescribing like this. It's only in a pharmacy do you get a birds eye view.
Benzos are pretty terrible drugs in general. The physical addiction potential and withdrawal people are going through are enough to dissuade me from touching them.
For folks dealing with anxiety, I recommend trying propranolol. It is not as powerful, but sometimes it is enough to achieve the desired effect and the side effects are way less severe.
I'm not just talking about benzos, but also anti psychotics, amphetamines, statins, and basically the whole gamut. My brother is a pharmacist, and is constantly shocked by the prescriptions that healthy people bring in to get filled. The medical field has been unjustly given too much prestige.
> My brother is a pharmacist, and is constantly shocked by the prescriptions that healthy people bring in to get filled. While I definitely agree with your general point, how does your brother know that they’re healthy or don’t need to take the medication? I’ve never had any discussion with a pharmacist (in the US or Canada) where I’ve revealed this information.
15-ish years ago, when I was twenty, I was foolish enough to see a psychiatrist. I walked away with a prescription for an SSRI, a typical antipsychotic, a mood stabilizer and some Xanax to take as needed.
What I really needed was my father not being dead when it mattered.