Antihistamines are used primarily to counter the effects of histamine, a neurochemical involved in allergic reactions. They also can reduce anxiety through their sedative effects and are sometimes used to treat insomnia. If you’ve ever taken a Benadryl (diphenhydramine), you know what I mean. Although not FDA-approved for insomnia, antihistamines promote drowsiness which in turn [...]
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning regarding possible severe allergic reactions to the second-generation antipsychotic Saphris. According to this FDA warning, reported signs and symptoms include anaphylaxis, angioedema (swelling below the surface of the skin), hypotension, tachycardia, swollen tongue, difficulty breathing and rash. The FDA also indicates that the drug’s [...]
In 1996, the three second-generation antipsychotics FDA approved at that time – Clozaril, Risperdal and Zyprexa – were prescribed for patients with anxiety disorders in 10 percent of office visits. The bulk of the prescribing for anxiety was with Risperdal and Zyprexa because Clozaril was not (and still isn’t) considered a first-line agent of choice [...]
Social phobia is an irrational fear of social or performance situations. Those with social phobia – also known as social anxiety disorder – suffer from an intense fear of doing or saying something that will embarrass them in social settings such as eating in public, attending parties, dating, taking exams, and public speaking. Fear of [...]
Beta-blockers, which include Inderal (propranolol), Toprol (metoprolol) and Tenormin (atenolol) among others, have been used in general medicine since 1965. These drugs block beta- receptors in the heart, and by doing so, blood pressure, heart rate and cardiac output are decreased. This led to beta-blocker use in the treatment of hypertension, angina and cardiac arrhythmias. [...]
These medications are used to treat anxiety, insomnia and panic attacks. They also have anticonvulsant properties, relax skeletal muscle, treat alcohol withdrawal, and sometimes treat the side effects of antipsychotics. Benzodiazepines are more similar than they are different. They differ only in their onset of action and their duration of action.
Here’s a breakdown of the role that gender plays in psychotropic medication response:
When treating a bipolar disordered client, do you their take nutritional intake into account? New research presented at the 17th Annual British Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy Research Conference this past May reveals that there is a connection between diet and bipolar disorder, with sugar, caffeine and poor overall eating habits increasing the mood swings [...]
The need for viable augmentation strategies to assist in the pharmacological management of treatment-resistant depression has become so dire that clinicians seem to perk up to any option nowadays – regardless of how fly-by-night, “here today gone tomorrow” it may be. This is happening, at least in part, due to the ever-growing problem of suboptimum [...]
Antipsychotics developed after 1990 are referred to as second-generation agents because they act on different neuroreceptor sites compared to their first-generation (Thorazine, Haldol, Stelazine, Navane, Mellaril, etc.) counterparts. Specifically, the SGAs block both dopamine and serotonin receptors and are more different from each other than they are alike. SGAs have fewer movement-related side effects. They [...]