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Medication : Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors ( Ssri )

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Medication is often used for both long-term and short-term treatment; it is commonly paired with therapy to help with physical symptoms or help patients relax during sessions and other activities. There are four major classes of medications used to treat anxiety: selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI), serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI), benzodiazepines, and tricyclic antidepressants. Antianxiety medication is used to slow down the central nervous system, giving the user a calm and relaxing feeling. Popular antianxiety medication includes Xanax, Valium, and Klonopin. These types of medication (benzodiazepines) are considered tranquilizers. They are fast acting and are commonly used during anxiety episodes or panic attacks. The effects wear off after a certain period of time and taking these medications comes with drawbacks. More than one in five adults uses at least one of the previously mentioned medication in 2010 (America’s State of Mind; Medco). This figure is an increase of 22 percent from statistics collected ten years earlier. Use of medication is more commonly seen among females. One in ten people in Iceland take antidepressants daily while in the United States forty percent of people diagnosed with mental health issues received treatment in the form of medication. Medications can be used to treat physical and psychological symptoms of mental illness, as opposed to therapy which can only treat psychological symptoms. National Health Service

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