Drugs that sedate or relax a person are called downers for short. Downers are also referred to as depressants, sedatives and tranquilizers. Downers are broken up into three categories. The three categories are benzodiazapines, barbiturates and alcohol.
All downers affect the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA in the same way. GABA is responsible for calming the central nervous system, slowing heart rate, breathing, and inducing sleep. GABA acts in counterpoint to the effects of the neurotransmitter norepinephrine. GABA and norepinephrine work together to control the heart rate and level of alertness of a person. Too much norepinephrine can lead to a number of anxiety disorders and can be responsible for 'panic attacks', and so downers are often prescribed to treat these conditions. Although painkillers are thought of as downers, they do not act on GABA as real downers do. This difference prompts their exclusion from the downers drug group.
The most commonly prescribed downers today are the benzodiazapines, sometimes called benzos. The more popular benzodiazapines include diazepam (Valium), chlordiazepoxide (Librium), alprazolam (Xanax), lorazepam (Ativan), and clonazepam (Klonopin). These drugs are most commonly prescribed for anxiety disorders and are also used in preventing seizures. They also function as muscle relaxants.
Prior to benzodiazepines, barbiturates were commonly used in medicine. Barbiturates are a derivation of barbituric acid. The most common barbiturates include phenobarbital, pentobarbital, secobarbital, butalbital, butabarbital and sodium thiopental. Barbiturates are considerably more toxic than benzodiazapines, and have a much lower therapeutic index. A therapeutic index is the range between the minimally effective therapeutic dose and the lethal dose of the substance. A narrow index means that a lethal dose of the drug is not much more than the recommended dosage, and the drug is therefore risky. For these reasons, benzodiazapines have largely replaced barbiturates for use as medications. Barbiturates are still found in several pain medications, and find use as general anesthetics.
Downers are insidiously addictive. An abrupt end to use of downers may cause withdrawal symptoms. Because of their medicinal nature, those on prescription may find themselves unable to function without a dose of downers. These drugs can give a false sense of peace and security because of the fact that they act to relax the body. Because of these effects, downers become addictive to the people who allow them selves to crave for and achieve that artificial moment of peace and tranquility.
If you are on prescription, follow the prescription to the letter. Take no more and no less. In the end, its all psychological. How can you let a pill take control of your life?
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