Do you know that doctors can legally prescribe drugs that may not be primarily designed for the condition that you have? This practice is called “off-label” prescribing. This is the reason why you may find yourself taking drugs prescribed by your doctor that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may not have approved for your condition.
Trazodone is one of the drugs that has many off-label uses. While the drug has been originally approved by the FDA for the treatment of depression in 1981, it is widely being prescribed for a number of other conditions. Here are the conditions trazodone is used for.
Depression
Depression is a disorder that is characterized by experiencing deep sadness, irritability, and low motivation levels for at least two weeks. When depression becomes severe, it can negatively affect a person’s daily life and ability to function normally. Many studies suggest that this condition is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain.
Trazodone as an antidepressant is a drug that affects the brain’s levels of serotonin and noradrenaline to make the user feel better. It can supposedly take 1 to 2 weeks to start feeling the effects of the drug, but it can take up to 4-6 weeks for users to experience the maximum benefit of the drug.
Sleep problems
Trazodone is one of the most commonly prescribed drugs for treating sleep problems like insomnia. Although the drug was not originally designed for this condition, it is often prescribed by doctors because it can have sedative effects.
Drowsiness and sleepiness are the common side effects of taking trazodone. Users also report side effects of feeling light-headed and losing body coordination. Because of this, it is very important that trazodone users refrain from going out of the house or driving a vehicle after taking the drug as it could impair a person’s thoughts and reactions.
Anxiety
Anxiety is a very common mental disorder that affects 40 million people in America. As anxiety is a mental disorder, there is still a stigma associated with this condition. Because of this, only 36.9% of people suffering from anxiety get treatment for the condition.
There are many different drugs to treat anxiety. While there are limited studies that prove the effectiveness of trazodone for anxiety, many doctors prescribe it because trazodone is considered as a less addictive drug than other anti-anxiety meds.
Some of the more popular anti-anxiety medications are Xanax, Valium, and Klonopin, which are all benzodiazepines. Benzos, however, are notorious for being highly addictive drugs so many doctors are cautious about prescribing them to patients.
Because trazodone is being used as an anti-anxiety medication, some recreational users think that they can get high on trazodone just like how they use benzos for recreational use. The problem surfaces when taking too much trazodone do not cause a feeling of high, thus, users tend to take more pills which could lead to drug overdose.
While many users report that trazodone helps in their anxiety issues, there are also some people who experience more severe anxiety symptoms and even panic attacks when taking the drug.
Schizophrenia
Chronic schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that is characterized by enduring hallucinations, delusions, lack of motivation, and trouble in concentrating. This disease affects less than one percent of the US population.
While there is still no cure for schizophrenia, trazodone has been found effective in reducing the negative symptoms in schizophrenia when used in conjunction with other drugs. The benefits of using trazodone for this purpose was also shown to outweigh the risk of worsening psychosis.
Alcohol Recovery
Trazodone is a drug that is commonly prescribed for people in alcohol recovery in order to promote sleep. It is also being prescribed to lessen the effects of alcohol withdrawal such as depression, mood swings, and anxiety. However, there are conflicting views about the use of trazodone as some argue that using trazodone may lead to increased chances of relapse. Other studies, however, show conflicting results concluding that trazodone use and alcohol relapse are not associated.
Should you take Trazodone?
Trazodone is a prescription medication that should only be taken under strict supervision of a doctor. While trazodone is generally considered as a drug with a low potential for abuse, it is not recommended to take the drug if it is not intended for you. While trazodone has sedative effects, the drug will not give you feelings of being high. Taking too much of the drug can lead to a trazodone drug overdose.
If you or a loved one is struggling with substance abuse, help is available.
Contact Morningside Recovery by Lighthouse today.
