Depressants in Treatment: History, Method, Prevalence/Effects

This report covers the history, method, prevalence, and effects of depressants in treatment. It explains the types of depressants and their potential side effects. It also provides guidance on how to use depressants safely and effectively.

RUNNING HEAD: Depressants in Treatment 0
Depressants in Treatment

Depressants in Treatment 1
Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................1
History........................................................................................................................................1
Method.......................................................................................................................................2
Prevalence/Effects......................................................................................................................3
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................4
References..................................................................................................................................5

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Introduction
The depressant is a chemical which causes a decrease in activity, stimulus and motivation in
the central nervous system. These constituents cause the brain and the body to slow down.
There are some terms which are used for depressant are sedatives, hypnotics and downers.
Doctors prescribe the depressants to relieve anxiety and sleep problems for the patients.
Depressants have high fascination potential. These should be used with extreme
attentiveness. The depressants can be effective treatments for lowering stress and the level of
anxiety.
The most common depressants are Mebaral, Nembutal, Valium, Ambien, xanas, sonata and
more. Prescriptions depressants are prised medical option for treating various health issues.
The types of medications are available in mainly three categories barbiturates,
benzodiazepines, and sleep medications. This report includes the history, method and the
effects of the depressants. The history includes the origin of the treatment as well as the
implementation of the practice. The method describes the way treatment is conducted
whereas the effects define the duration of the treatment practised.
History
The treatment takes into account the kind of medication used and the necessities of the
individuals. The appropriate treatment is required for the kind of drug used and the needs of
the individuals. The effective treatment may need to integrate numerous constituents
comprising decontamination, counseling, and medication whenever possible. There are
numerous courses of treatment which is obligatory for the patient to make a full recovery.
The major two categories of drug addiction treatment are behavioral treatments and
medications (Ghosh & Das, 2014). The behavioral treatments help patients to stop consuming
drug by modifying harmful patterns of thinking and behavior. The strategies are taught to
manage desires, avoid prompts and situations which lead to deterioration. The behavioral
treatment can also undertake the form of individual or group counseling to help patients in
improving their personal relationships. It also improves the ability to function at work and in
the community as well (Zhou, He, Chen, Yang, Lin & Han, 2015).
The immediate withdrawal of depressants can also result in serious withdrawal symptoms. It
is seen that when a person is addicted to the depressants then the activity of the brain is

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slowed. The conditions such as depressant addiction lead to originate the treatment. The first
sign of exploitation is taking depressants without any medical guidance or outside the
prescription of the doctor (Menon, 2014). The most common examples are taking depressants
recreationally to escape problems or using someone else’s prescription. Other conditions that
caused the recommendations to use the treatment are secretive behaviour, mood swings,
decreased social activity, periods of depression, decreased work productivity, withdrawal
symptoms when not consuming depressants. The excessive use of the depressants can lead to
overdose and death (Peacock, et al. 2016).
Method
The medical treatment is strongly suggested to the depressants. A recovery program begins
with addressing symptoms of addiction and withdrawal. This program is designed as per the
individual needs. It is followed by inpatient treatment and then transitional steps towards a
sober life. An initial period of detox is given to the depressant addicts to allow drugs to exit
from their system (Zullig, Divin, Weiler, Haddox & Pealer, 2015). It is ensured that the safe
cleansing of the body is done in this process. The prescriptions depressants are a valuable
medical option for treating various health issues. There are some health risks which are taken
outside of a doctor’s explicit assistance (Soliman, Elkatory, Hashem & Ibrahim, 2018). The
depressants and its effects on the mind and body can be treated by knowing and treating the
following category:
Barbiturates: The barbiturates such as phenobarbital and pentobarbital have been used for the
anti-anxiety and anti-seizure properties. The medical use of it has been deteriorated over the
years in favor of benzodiazepines because of the lower risk of overdose.
Benzodiazepines: It has been available since the 1960s and sometimes called benzos. It treats
sleep disorders, anxiety, convulsions, and other serious stress reactions. It is considered safe
and short-term medical treatment. Common benzodiazepines comprise valium, Xanax,
Ativan and more.
Sleep medication: There are specific treatments which are designed to treat sleep disorders
specifically insomnia. These depressants are ambient and Lunesta.

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The depressants help people to reduce anxiety and get good sleep. But these depressants
come with potential side effects and should be used with certain deterrents. Such things
should be considered if a person is prescribed a depressant:
 Take drugs as prescribed. Barbiturates and benzodiazepines have the impending for
abuse and should be used only as recommended.
 The body necessitates time to get habituated to the medication. During the first few
days of taking depressant, a person might feel sleepy and uncoordinated. These
sensations go away when the body gets used to the drug (Shrimali & Miller, 2016).
 Long term use of depressants can increase serious risks. It can also result in
developing a tolerance for drugs. A person needs a large dose to get the same results
that he or she did when started taking the medication. On the other side, continued use
of the depressants can also lead to physical dependence and withdrawal once the
medication is clogged (Ostacher, Perlis & Geddes, 2015).
 Talk to doctor if symptoms are withdrawn or likely to stop taking medication. The
depressants slow down the brain activity rebounds and race out of control if it is
stopped to taking drugs. It possibly leads to the harmful consequences. A person
should talk to doctor if he is thinking to discontinuing depressants or suffering from
withdrawal of depressants.
Prevalence/Effects
The depressants work in various ways and the most common is by increasing production of
gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). This augmented brain chemical has the effect of slowing
brain activity and producing a recreation effect. On the other side, there are frequently
various side effects to depressant use. The short-term effects include slowed pulse and
breathing, lower blood pressure, dilated pupils, confusion, disorientation, the problem in
concentration, fatigue, difficulty in urinating and dizziness (Ross, et. al, 2016). The advanced
doses can cause weakening of memory, coordination, judgement, tetchiness, obsession and
suicidal thoughts. Some individuals experience the opposite of the envisioned effect like
anxiety or violence. The narcotics and sedatives with other constituents, mainly alcohol can
slow breathing and the heart rate. It can also cause to death.
The long-term, effects vary on the type of depressant and severity of use. The depressants
require developing tolerance and increased doses to maintain the desired effects. The

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potentiality of the long-term effects comprises chronic fatigue, sexual dysfunction, weight
gain, depression, breathing, difficulty in sleeping (Read, Gibson & Cartwright, 2016). The
drugs can also upsurge the risk of diabetes, blood pressure and weight gain in the long run.
Conclusion
The depressants are effective treatments for lowering stress and the level of anxiety only if
these are used with extreme attentiveness. Doctors prescribe the depressants to relieve
anxiety and sleep problems for the patients. Depressants have high fascination potential. But
the depressants should not be immediately withdrawn as it can result in the serious
withdrawal symptoms. Additionally, it is also seen that when a person is addicted to the
depressants then the activity of the brain is slowed and can lead to various health risks. But
there are certain things which should be considered while taking treatment such as taking
drugs as prescribed, take time to get habituated to the medication, stop long term use of the
depressants. A person should discuss to the doctor if the depressants are suddenly withdrawn
or withdrawn before the completion of the treatment.

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References
Ghosh, P., & Das, M. (2014). Study of the influence of some polymeric additives as viscosity
index improvers and pour point depressants–Synthesis and characterization. Journal
of Petroleum Science and Engineering, 119, 79-84.
Menon, V. (2014). Anti-depressants in bipolar disorder: Quo vadimus?. International Journal
of Advanced Medical and Health Research, 1(1), 28.
Ostacher, M. J., Perlis, R. H., & Geddes, J. (2015). Monotherapy antidepressant treatment is
not associated with mania in bipolar I disorder. American Journal of
Psychiatry, 172(6), 586-586.
Peacock, A., Bruno, R., Larance, B., Lintzeris, N., Nielsen, S., Ali, R., ... & Degenhardt, L.
(2016). Same-day use of opioids and other central nervous system depressants
amongst people who tamper with pharmaceutical opioids: A retrospective 7-day diary
study. Drug and alcohol dependence, 166, 125-133.
Read, J., Gibson, K., & Cartwright, C. (2016). Do GPs and psychiatrists recommend
alternatives when prescribing anti-depressants?. Psychiatry research, 246, 838-840.
Ross, S., Bossis, A., Guss, J., Agin-Liebes, G., Malone, T., Cohen, B., & Su, Z. (2016).
Rapid and sustained symptom reduction following psilocybin treatment for anxiety
and depression in patients with life-threatening cancer: a randomized controlled
trial. Journal of psychopharmacology, 30(12), 1165-1180.
Shrimali, K., & Miller, J. D. (2016). Polysaccharide depressants for the reverse flotation of
iron ore. Transactions of the Indian Institute of Metals, 69(1), 83-95.
Soliman, E. A., Elkatory, M. R., Hashem, A. I., & Ibrahim, H. S. (2018). Synthesis and
performance of maleic anhydride copolymers with alkyl linoleate or tetra-esters as
pour point depressants for waxy crude oil. Fuel, 211, 535-547.
Zhou, M., He, Y., Chen, Y., Yang, Y., Lin, H., & Han, S. (2015). Synthesis and evaluation of
terpolymers consist of methacrylates with maleic anhydride and methacrylic
morpholine and their amine compound as pour point depressants in diesel
fuels. Energy & Fuels, 29(9), 5618-5624.

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Zullig, K. J., Divin, A. L., Weiler, R. M., Haddox, J. D., & Pealer, L. N. (2015). Adolescent
nonmedical use of prescription pain relievers, stimulants, and depressants, and suicide
risk. Substance use & misuse, 50(13), 1678-1689.