Is there any anti-anxiety meds out there that aren't addictive?

anxiety sufferers are usually too sensible and trustworthy to become addicted to valium type meds but sadly many docs are now being indoctrinated to refuse them and insist on an antidepressant med only

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Are there any anti-depressants that are not addictive?

Prozac would probably be the best AD choice if you are prone to withdrawal and addiction problems because prozac has such a long a half life, I believe a half life of 5 or 6 days. Paxil or Zoloft can be very addictive and would not be a wise choise because of the such short half life. Another AD med that is not in the SSRI family that you could try out is Remeron as it is supposed to be easy to come off of as well, I believe Prozac, and Remeron are about the easiest AD's to come off of, but everybody is different.

Take care

- Wild Strawberry

I think anti-depressants are all addictive in that your body gets used to having them in your body every day so when you quit you experience withdrawals. That is why I decided to discontinue AD's and just use benzos. The Ad's don't work unless you take them every day, which is how your body gets addicted, but benzos can just be taken as needed (regardless of what your dr might prescribe - my prescription says up to three times daily - don't think so!!!), so the chances of getting addicted aren't as absolute.

Nathan there is none that I heard of just my oppion There is natural stuff out there.But they have some side effects to. Go see a holistic doctor I do and they do things totaly different then western doctor's do. Please check it out they won't give you or perscribe Meds WOW western medicine Im Sorry only knows how to perscribe medications and do surgery scary HUH .go ask doctor no more pills give me another better way healthier a Holistic doctor will do that just my oppion im not a doctor and don't claim to be I just lived the drug way its aweful and it never really worked just covered what was really wrong with me Bye

So can somebody please explain how this half life stuff works please? I always thought the ones with a SHORT half life have less withdrawal issues. Or maybe that explains it better....it runs out of your body fast, so your body needs it and craves it faster???

If you're on an a med for a very long time, how long would the withdrawal period last after weaning off the med usually?

I don't understand what the half life means either. Can someone please explain.

Half life, when used about meds (not nuclear physics LOL), generally refers to how long the drug is in your system before blood levels of it start to decrease.

I take small doses of Risperdal for anxiety. It's a relatively new use of the drug, which is used in larger doses for schizophrenia. It's probably the most effective of all the psychiatric meds I'm taking.

So why is a drug with a smaller half life more likely to have withdrawal issues?

And how long are withdrawal effects usually supposed to last? I know they can be nasty, but how long would they normally last before you're back to normal after the weaning off period?

So why is a drug with a smaller half life more likely to have withdrawal issues?

It leaves your system faster...That's why people should wean instead of Cold Turkey.

Okay, so I get that now. But no one seems to be answering the real question here. Even when people do wean off...certain drugs, like Paxil, still make people go nuts with withdrawals even AFTER they have weaned off slowly. I don't know why this is. My question is, how long do THOSE withdrawal effects last after the weaning off period.

Okay, so I get that now. But no one seems to be answering the real question here. Even when people do wean off...certain drugs, like Paxil, still make people go nuts with withdrawals even AFTER they have weaned off slowly. I don't know why this is. My question is, how long do THOSE withdrawal effects last after the weaning off period.

At that point It's not really withdrawal, I believe the mental issues are simply returning that made the person go on an SSRI in the first place. Albeit Anxiety, Depression, OCD, etc. An SSRI is just a band-aid...It will mask the problem, but not necessarily fix it alone. Although some people do get better, but there are many more that need to stay on these Med's long term.

okay that makes sense. I hope that's true.