What effects does Xanax have on you, why do you take it?

The big blue one (1 mg., I believe) gives a good buzz, not unlike downing say three 16 oz. beers. It makes me a bit slow (as in stupid) but they do help to relax me and will help me sleep. I don’t suffer from anxiety so can’t address their affect on that but suspect they would reduce it. I don’t take them often but if I feel like getting a buzz (in the privacy of my own home), that is usually what I’ll grab. I will point out that they do not leave a hangover affect like I find with Valium. Hope this helps. See ya….wtf

I have bad problems sleeping. I have some anxiety but the big problem is a really, really noisy brain that plays scenarios over and over in my mind, fictional and non-fictional. When it gets really bad I take some Xanax because it relaxes me, and seems to completely cut off the racy thoughts.

For me the Xanax doesn’t so much feel like a buzz, but more of a groggy, relaxed state – sort of like Nyquil but not as warm and fuzzy. The next day after taking it, I feel like I’m experiencing my life on the other side of a window. I’m really detached, intellectually and emotionally. Sometimes, this can be a good thing.

The downside for me is that it does slow me waaaaaaaaayyyyyyy down the next day, plus, I wake up feeling like someone hit me with a baseball bat. I don’t like feeling like I’m not totally plugged in or thinking/responding quickly, so I take it only when absolutely necessary.

My prescription is for .5MG, and I take a half or a whole tablet, depending on what I need out of it. When I need to calm down, or prepare myself for an anxiety ridden situation – but still need to function well – I take a half tablet. For the first 15 minutes or so after taking it I feel sleepy, but after that I just feel normal. It’s a huge relief for me to feel that way.

If I’m very overwrought or need to get to sleep, I take a whole tablet. When I take a whole one, I have to accept that I won’t be able to drive or function normally for at least several hours. It makes me very groggy in a pleasant kind of way. I experience no after-effects whatsoever. The next day is perfectly fine for me.

I was on Xanax for a very long time, I had a prescription for both Xanax and Ativan, but preferred Xanax for panic attacks. I haven’t taken it in years, so this is what I recall.

First, they can induce a panic attack in me if I’m already feeling slightly anxious. It slows my heart and makes me very conscious of my heart rate, so then I begin to panic. I sometimes feel nauseous during this, so I lay completely still in bed, waiting for the initial effects to pass. Then it makes my body feel calm, even if I’m having a panic attack. It can make my pupils huge. Very slow reflexes.
I could function properly on it, it got to a point where I knew exactly the results so I was okay taking it in the daytime instead of just at night or when I was homebound.

@casheroo – Shortly after my father died, we had a huge thing going on and I had a series of horrible panic attacks – something rare for me. I was prescribed Xanax and noticed what you noticed. It seemed to slow my heart rate down and I was all too aware of that change. It scared the living daylights out of me, making things worse.

After I moved past that, I felt like I was in slow motion, then I crashed. I was on the .5mg dose and should have only taken half. (after speaking to a friend, she pointed out the obvious)

I still have 27 pills in the medicine cabinet. I took one about 3 weeks ago, to help me sleep. That’s about the only thing I want to use it for, now.

Thank you all who have responded. I wonder if there are sexual side effects men enjoy off of these? I had a panic attack last week and was given half a tablet (don’t know the dose) but I don’t remember much of what happened after that, took about three days to pass through my system and left me feeling very numb and disconnected which only caused another panic attack. Now the person who gave it to me feels badly and wants to stop taking them for themselves but I suspect they are physically addicted. blah. tmi.

@hungryhungryhortence…No sexual side effects on me but I wouldn’t be one to notice…I’m always…..........................................................................................................................wtf?!

@hungryhungryhortence I feel the way you felt when I take Valium. My body becomes instantly addicted to them, even if I only take one, I realized this when I was spacing out of it all the time, and not being able to concentrate. I used Valium after my son was born for uterine spasms and pain from endometriosis, so it wasn’t a daily thing for me to take it. I think your body likes the reaction you had, and you recognize that YOU don’t like the feeling, so be careful when taking something so addictive.

But I could take one right now….you know, for science and all…......wtf

@hungryhungryhortence I’m pretty positive Xanax is the medication my husband took when he was dating a girl, I think he might have been drinking..he actually became violent on it, terrible reaction to it. So, I think depending on the way the persons brain is wired, it affects everyone differently.

Xanax didn’t affect me like that, I had Vallium a couple times and I found it way better except for the joint ache. If that be the case and you don’t want to get addicted which both will do over time. Then I would go more natural, take Inosital by the spoonful if you like-won’t hurt you as far as I know, I mean it doesn’t have a maximum critical threshold, and it taste like sugar. Then, GABA a good amino, which GHB is derived from and we all know from the media the bad effects of that smart drug I would during the day try 5-HTP, or Tryptophan, pharmaceutical grade, but if you become sleepy then use it before sleep. Also, Melatonin sure knocks me out all night without the drowsiness the next morning. however dosage can be tricky-start low. I have also had great results from amino acids in loosing weight, reducing anxiety and mood improvement along with other over the counter goodies when I want fun and results.

I feel like most of the rest of the responses. The only problem I have with the happy pill is if I take one I have a really hard time remembering things I did that day which scared me from taking anymore.

Damn all, this is kind of scary not to remember stuff- we control freaks don’t do this very well.

@casheroo: he was dating ? I don’t know if that is a good or bad thing.

@Garebo I worded that poorly, it was pre knowing me. He was dating a girl and became violent with her only once when he took the medication. He never took it again because of what happened.

@casheroo: no problem, I am a pro at that
Kind’a thought so, but wasn’t real sure. Does he prescribe to an alternative medication that is agreeable to him now, you must be the antidote.

@Garebo ha, No..he took it recreationally…which I’ve never understood, I guess since I was prescribed it and needed it, taking those sorts of drugs for fun never made sense to me.

Good for you!

For me, it makes me kind of sleepy, but mostly it just makes me not care so much about stuff that normally would bother me. I am a high-stress person, and there are a lot of things that can make me upset very easily. For example, I have a 10-year-old son, and 4th of July is always a huge stress for me because he loves fireworks, and being the paranoid person I am, I always feel terrified that he will get hurt somehow. A xanax or two calms me down enough so that I can enjoy the evening rather than spend the whole night worrying about the “what ifs.” Basically, it makes me feel kind of removed from the situation, if that makes sense.

I used to be addicted to and sell xanax and valium. I blacked out and did a lot of dumb things on them. Benzodiazepines especially used outside of therapeutic doses make people aggressive and fight. Ask me about the valium wars. Benzos in small doses help some people but I think they are overprescribed and have more bad side effects than good for most people. They are extremely addictive. If you get addicted and go to rehab they send you to detox first for benzodiazepines which are valium, ativan, xanax, klonopin, restoril and a few other drugs. If you are addicted and quit taking xanax which can occur from therapeutic use you can have seizures and other bad withdrawals. I dont think xanax is a good drug in most situations.

@buster: can you share what you think is a normal prescription dosage of Xanax and what might be one being taken for recreation? Do men take them for sexual side effect? What is the draw? I’m not buying the “it helps me sleep” thing.

@hungryhungryhortence I have never heard of any men having positive sexual side effects from any benzos. But many men I know have said that some vidcodin based narcotic pain killers have Viagra-like effects on them, especially percocet and norco.

Xanax comes in .25, .5, 1, 2, and 3 milligram strengths. Most doctors start people out on .25 or .5 as needed occasionally or up to 3 or 4 times a day. After you have been on them doctors increase dosages because of tolerance to xanax. Most people who take them just to get fucked up will take at least .5 but 1–3 milligrams is a decent dose for a buzz. Some people do take more than that but thats when things can get real ugly quick. Sexually I think I perform longer on xanax but its not noticeably any better in my opinion. Xanax intoxication causes people to hide things or just misplace things then they can’t remember where they put it. I have done it several times and watched friends and my own grandma do it.