Different Social Anxiety Medications

Social anxiety medications are very helpful for individuals, who suffer from social anxiety and symptoms of anxiety. Always remember that medications will not cure the condition, but will certainly reduce the severity of symptoms.

Social anxiety medications usually have a quick and positive effect with little or no side effects. However, it is important to look at certain factors before opting for such medications.

Consider factors such as:

• Severity of the condition
• General medical condition 
• Use of other medications

Commonly Prescribed Social Anxiety Medications:

• Anti-anxiety drugs
• SSRIs
• MAOIs
• RIMAs
• Tricyclic antidepressants
• Other drugs

1.  Anti-anxiety drugs:

Anti-anxiety drugs have sedative effects that play an important role in the treatment of social anxiety disorder. The most common anti-anxiety drugs prescribed are chlordiazepoxide also known as Librium and diazepam also known as Valium. These two drugs are highly efficient, when taken in appropriate doses to relax the stress and musculature.

Ativan also known as lorazepam, Klonopin or clonazepam are other two drugs used to start the management of anxiety. They are very helpful and are tolerated well by the human body.

Common side effects associated with these drugs are initial fatigue. It is very important to note that, when stopping these anti-anxiety drugs, it needs to be done in a gradual manner over a period of three to four weeks. Stopping these social anxiety medications abruptly will increase the extent of side effects.

2. SSRIs:

SSRI is the abbreviation of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors, which is a class of antidepressants that temporarily reduce the symptoms associated with social anxiety. Common SSRIs include Zoloft, Prozac, and Paxil.

3. MAOIs:

Just like SSRIs, MAOIs are a class of antidepressants used to temporarily reduce the symptoms of anxiety. MAOI is the abbreviation of Monoamine oxidase inhibitors.

Parnate and Nardil are two commonly prescribed MAOIs. They are mostly prescribed for individuals suffering from clinical social anxiety disorder.

MAOIs are the best medications used in combination with anti-anxiety drugs to treat severe forms of social anxiety. However, these medications may need certain diet restrictions.

4. RIMAs:

RIMAs or the reversible MAOIs are sometimes prescribed for social anxiety disorders. However, they are not as effective as MAOIs. The drug moclobemide belongs to this category.

5. Tricyclic Antidepressants:

Tricyclic antidepressants also known as TCAs are another class of anti-depressants that provide some relief for individuals from the symptoms of social anxiety.

Buspirone is the most common tricyclic antidepressant prescribed for social anxiety.

6. Other Drugs:

Clomipramine is also a very useful drug. Before opting for this drug, you need to consider the possible side effects that this drug can cause.

Stage fright, which is a more detailed form of social anxiety, can be reduced by using beta-adrenergic blocking drug.

Social anxiety medications are very useful in decreasing the symptoms of anxiety and panic attacks. Psychotherapy is of tremendous benefit in the treatment of social anxiety disorder. Finally, psychological conflicts that aggravate this disorder need to be resolved in addition to the use of medications.

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