Benzodiazepines are widely used to treat anxiety and/or insomnia. They include medications like Valium (diazepam), Xanax (alprazolam), Ativan (lorazepam), and Klonopin (clonazepam) that are used for anxiety and Restoril (temazepam) and Halcion (triazolam) that are used to help induce sleep. Benzodiazepines may also be separated into those that are long acting (e.g., Valium and Klonopin) and those that are short acting (e.g., Xanax and Halcion). Long acting medications tend to remain in the body for extended periods of time (e.g., days) whereas short acting medications remain in the body for hours – hence you need to take the medication more than once a day to maintain effects. Benzodiazepines are probably most effectively used as short-term management of anxiety and insomnia. As with any medication, there are trade offs that must be considered by both prescribers and consumers. First, there are […]
Archive for September, 2014
Alzheimer’s disease was first described as a case study of Auguste Deter, 51 year old, in a paper by Dr. Alois Alzheimer in 1907. He visually inspected her brain after her death and described “tangled bundles of fibrils” in her cortex that we now identify as plaques and tangles. Despite having over 100 years of study, we still have more questions than answers regarding etiology and biological processes underlying this progressive neurological disease (“Alzheimer’s disease: still a perplexing problem, Krishma Chinthapelli, British Medical Journal, 2014, 349, Q4433, PMID: 25005430). Prime Minister David Cameron announced support for the world’s most extensive population study in saying “dementia now stands alongside cancer as one of the greatest enemies of humanity.” Despite launching a study with quadruple the funding of previous work, there are huge challenges to be overcome. For example he stated that […]
There are many stressors that confront us such as divorce, dementia, death, illnesses, caregiving, injury, retirement, addictions, and/or neurological disease. Managing the emotions and behavioral changes required to move forward requires effort, persistence, emotional support, and saying the “right” things to yourself. This is the foundation of resilience. Self talk (“psyching oneself up”) as psychotherapy and self-help was popularized by Albert Ellis as “rational emotive therapy” and is broadly discussed today as “cognitive behavioral therapy.” The underlying assumption is that the dialogues you engage in with yourself are the foundation for behavioral change and managing difficult emotions. Consider the statement “I can’t do it.” Or sometimes others will try to help by pointing to someone who made the change you are seeking but you say to yourself “He/she can do it but that doesn’t apply to me.” For example, “I […]
