Using Xanax to treat Depression

***Before this thread is Locked up, just hear me out***
This thread is in response to a thread that was started by "Stay.Blazed.420" and closed (prematurely IMO) by CanetotheLeft.

I'm sincerely not trying to be a prick by reopening this in a new thread. I had a few questions and comments to add for both Cane and Stay.Blazed in regards to this. Cane - feel free to delete this and reopen the original thread if you feel that's best.


For those of you playing along at home, basically Stay.Blazed commented that he had recently discontinued use of SSRIs and now is feeling overwhelmed by depression, anxiety, and OCD/Bi-polar behavior. He felt the need to use Xanax to treat these symptoms that have become increasingly more intense.

CanetotheLeft recommended against the use of Xanax and instead to see his doctor and be open to their advice. (Which I also agree with 100 percent).

But then Cane mentioned that he is strongly against taking a purely pharmacological approach to Stay.Blazed's problems. This is where I had a few questions....

Where I also recommend using other means to treat psychological/emotional problems (ie exercise, diet, etc), I think drugs definitely have a positive impact and shouldn't be ruled out. I have been in Stay.Blazed's shoes before...I have been so depressed that I didn't feel the desire to do ANYTHING - much less go jogging or do yoga, etc. The problem lies in the motivation - those with severe deep clinical depression have ZERO motivation or desire to seek out a cure for their condition. They feel like shit, don't know why, and just want it to stop.

Cane, you mentioned drugs are only covering up the problem, and making the user dependant. I have to respectfully disagree here. I think SSRIs can have a positive impact in regards to giving the user motivation to seek out help and improve their quality of life. I don't think one should rely solely on drugs as the cure-all, but as a supplement to other treatment methods.

If Stay.Blazed doesn't take a pharmacological approach to his problems, then what is his next move?

I think this may be skirting the rules, re: asking questions for another bluelighter.

Just sayin man...

NeighborhoodThreat said:

I think this may be skirting the rules, re: asking questions for another bluelighter.

Just sayin man...

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It probably is...but I myself have struggled with depression this severe in the past, and I was wondering if not the pharmacological approach...then what? Because when I was in that hole called depression, I.....couldn't.....do......anything. Just sit and stare. Much less look for a solution to my depression.

I have a vested interest in this thread, and I re-open it in all due respect.

Although some say that alprazolam can be used as an adjunctive treatment for anxiety associated with moderate depression, most studies and most benzos, for that matter, end up causing depression in the long term. This is something that is well known and well documented in the medical literature.

Depression and benzodiazepines do not go well together, unless you're using an anti-depressant along with it.

kokaino said:

...most studies and most benzos, for that matter, end up causing depression in the long term. This is something that is well known and well documented in the medical literature.

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Intriguing...


Are there ANY cases where benzos are scripted for the long term (a year or longer)?

Whipped Dream said:

Intriguing...


Are there ANY cases where benzos are scripted for the long term (a year or longer)?

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Well I have been scripted alprazolam for 4 years now. I started low doses, but of course with tolerance I am up to 1 mg 3x a day now. But I get the 0.5 mg pills, so I get 180 of them a month because I take 2 tabs in the morning, 2 tabs afternoon, and 2 tabs evening.

A lot of people get scripted benzos long-term. It's not the best thing to do, but in my case it was what was required to treat my ailments. If I go a day without it now, it's hell. So I'm going to say try to find a better way to treat your anxiety. Long-term benzo use is troublesome, I know from experience.

Taking xanax for depression (even though it works) is like taking an SSRI for anxiety

Treatment resistant depression is indeed a bitch.

Xanax is not the solution tho.

yes, xanax and klonopin help me with depression ALOT even though i take them 1-3times a week...but they aren't therapeutic long term...lyrica is amazing for me if i dont abuse it, it is an excellent anxiolytic ....shiitt im on 1mg xanax 150mg lyrica and a couple bowls of weed and i feel pretty damn good, the high is almost if not as good as opiates for me, but thats subjective...i klonopin and xanax

Personally, if I am not medicated I will kill myself. Plain and simple.
I'm not a fan of SSRIs, but I was on celexa for about a year and it worked great for a while. If blazed has gone off SSRIs and now feels like this, I would suggest finding another medication. Maybe an SNRI, wellbutrin works great for me in combination with 5-htp. I don't experience any withdrawal from it, which is great considering the hell that is SSRI withdrawal.

I've recently been put on Abilify and Celexa for mild depression and anxiety , and while it's too early to notice anything in myself, from what I've seen in other people I've known, when they're depressed, they can't do shit. That doesn't mean you should toss pills at them, then forget about them, but medication can help get to the point where they are both willing and able to help themselves. People who've combined medication with therapy and lifestyles changes (exercise/diet/etc) have seen more success then people with just pills, or just therapy. One of my friends, who was diagnosed with psychosis at 14, and schizophrenia at 15, had never really been depressed to a large extent until he went on medications, at which point he began to say that the pills stopped him from hallucinating, but they destroyed his personality. He became very well liked, but couldn't stand the crushing conformity he saw in himself. He talked to me at least once a week about killing himself, and I tried to do my best to keep him positive, and encouraged him to talk with his therapists/psychiatrist, possibly about a medication change.The last time I saw him was 4 months ago, and he was off his meds, and pumping his body full of every non-prescribed chemical he could get his hands on. 3 months ago, he posted on his face book that he was moving to Miami and never coming back, and I haven't heard from him since. I hope that he's back in the psych hospital, but I'm afraid he may have taken his life.

Here they prescribe Tramadol to drug resistant depression. Also some people get implants inserted to their brains that stimulate the cortex electronically.

xanax can dull you from depression, but i do not think it is a good idea to USE it for depression. actually kind of a bad idea, thats deffly not the road to take. becoming accustomed to a drug in an addicted way, then trying to make yourself feel better? no. maybe it could help, if you want to then try it.

one thing i know for sure, and which happened in my case, is that benzos (xanax) treat anxiety.. but make depression worse

Xanax won't help your depression. You will only be masking it with the drug use... Talk to your doctor and see if they can put you on a ssri. They will put you on a low dose at first and then go from there.

Firstly, I want to say that benzos can help alleviate the symptoms of depression especially when there is considerable co-morbid anxiety or neurosis. Benzos are sedatives and allow for disinhibition of action. They can also worsen depression in certain cases because they are sedatives and "slow you down", but I couldn't imgaine they can worsen depression that much, and would think they'd help more than anything. I do believe traditional anti-depressants (SSRI's, SNRI's, tricyclic, MAOI's etc.) can help as well. Amphetamines and other stimulants alleviate symptoms in the short term, as would opiates. Now they are even advertising anti-psychotics in addition to anti-depressants for depression. I don't believe depression is caused by chemical imbalance in most cases, but drugs that influence these chemicals can certainly help with symptoms which is often what is needed most. Drugs are a good part of treatmant in depression when necessary, but I believe other things could help as well. Holistic treatments, change in lifestyle etc. could help as well.

joezraptor said:

Personally, if I am not medicated I will kill myself. Plain and simple.
I'm not a fan of SSRIs, but I was on celexa for about a year and it worked great for a while. If blazed has gone off SSRIs and now feels like this, I would suggest finding another medication. Maybe an SNRI, wellbutrin works great for me in combination with 5-htp. I don't experience any withdrawal from it, which is great considering the hell that is SSRI withdrawal.

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Wow, I'm EXACTLY like you. That's a trip! Anyways, Xanax DEFINITELY helps me with depression, but its not very good since its addictive and has bad withdrawals which could make your depression worse.

i feel xanax, unlike other benzos, has some anti-depressant qualities to it, only downfall is its very addicting and short acting, it's usually a take 3-4 times a day medication. tolerance will develop over time and physical dependency. take it as prescribed if it helps depression, i was on 1mg three times a day, and it helped, but after doing that everyday, it wasnt being effective, so i had to take 2mg threee times a day. its more problems then good....honestly xanax is really meant for the short term use for anxiety (example: death in family, parent of a troubled kid, etc..) alot of doctors give it out long term, my dad has been on xanax 2mg 4x, for 10yrs now, hell his doctor wrote him a script for taking "two tablets by mouth 4x a day" 16mg xanax daily! of course insurance denied it as excessive...but anyway benzos are GREAT for panic/anxiety/depression, alot of doctors avoid that route as withdrawl and dependency can be life threatening. Me, im 25 yrs old and im on KLONOPIN, 1mg/3x, i was on xanax same dose and all, but told my doc i cant handle it, its too addictive, and it works GREAT, it has a dration of 12 hours, a long half life, nlike xanax a duration of 4-6 hours..and klonopin jst stabilizes my mood and relaxes my body, it doesnt give me that kick buzz xanax does, but it helps great for anxiety. some doctors are advocates for benzos rather SSRI's.

i recommend klonopin instead of xanax for depression for those people who notice a tolerance coming on, or finding a liking to xanax too much...far as doctors, i noticed MD physicians go thru every loophole to prevent benzos for anxiety, unless its cz im in my 20s and they dont wanna give it out, yet my shrink gave me ativan at age 14 four times a day...my doctor is a D.O. Physician, and i noticed all the D.O.s there are advocates for benzos, but do warn you of the risks involved. my D.O is pretty cool. he knows i was an opiate addict, been on suboxone, but still gives me the benefit of the doubt and RXing me klonopin for anxiety, and adderall for studying yet he dont want to give me it, but does and says b careful it dont spark panic. he even gave me bpe pain patches for pain knowing im an opiate addict, i failed my drug test for morphine when i saw him, he basically said "i will only RX u benzos and adderall, nver Opiates since u failed ur test, i reccommend methadone maintence or going back of suboxone, idk every do doc is diff, im ramblin gmy bad

its like using a band aid for a broken leg

Whipped Dream said:

***Before this thread is Locked up, just hear me out***
This thread is in response to a thread that was started by "Stay.Blazed.420" and closed (prematurely IMO) by CanetotheLeft.

I'm sincerely not trying to be a prick by reopening this in a new thread. I had a few questions and comments to add for both Cane and Stay.Blazed in regards to this. Cane - feel free to delete this and reopen the original thread if you feel that's best.


For those of you playing along at home, basically Stay.Blazed commented that he had recently discontinued use of SSRIs and now is feeling overwhelmed by depression, anxiety, and OCD/Bi-polar behavior. He felt the need to use Xanax to treat these symptoms that have become increasingly more intense.

CanetotheLeft recommended against the use of Xanax and instead to see his doctor and be open to their advice. (Which I also agree with 100 percent).

But then Cane mentioned that he is strongly against taking a purely pharmacological approach to Stay.Blazed's problems. This is where I had a few questions....

Where I also recommend using other means to treat psychological/emotional problems (ie exercise, diet, etc), I think drugs definitely have a positive impact and shouldn't be ruled out. I have been in Stay.Blazed's shoes before...I have been so depressed that I didn't feel the desire to do ANYTHING - much less go jogging or do yoga, etc. The problem lies in the motivation - those with severe deep clinical depression have ZERO motivation or desire to seek out a cure for their condition. They feel like shit, don't know why, and just want it to stop.

Cane, you mentioned drugs are only covering up the problem, and making the user dependant. I have to respectfully disagree here. I think SSRIs can have a positive impact in regards to giving the user motivation to seek out help and improve their quality of life. I don't think one should rely solely on drugs as the cure-all, but as a supplement to other treatment methods.

If Stay.Blazed doesn't take a pharmacological approach to his problems, then what is his next move?

Click to expand...

I would say some Klonopin would help this "Stay.Blazed.420"" guy your talkin about.. Klonopin won't really get you high in a sense of it being very 'recreational' and has a long half life and I hear it is good for the symptoms you described this friend of yours have... so i would say Klonopin (Clonazepam) would be his best bet...Xanax would work too in lower dosages 1mg or less... I find xanax is more for severe panic attacks and for people with insomnia or just need a good nights rest... taking more then 2mgs of xanax in the day time is just asking for trouble in that you may doing something stupid (ie: steal stupid shit from stores, not remembering anything, doing stuff you would never do sober, etc...) lol so i only use xanax for night time use in getting a good sleep when my insomnia is bad.