Alprazolam (Xanax®) Withdrawal Symptoms

Having trouble sleeping lately? Have you also stopped taking Xanax?

Alprazolam, sold in generic form but best known by the brand name (Xanax®) can be a powerful tool to help manage symptoms of anxiety disorders.  A patient may be prescribed alprazolam along with cognitive behavior therapy.  The medication can often help a patient calm down enough to fully absorb his or her therapy sessions.

But alprazolam is only prescribed short-term because of the risk of addiction.  This is a class of drug known as a benzodiazepine.  Over prolonged use, usually more than six months, the body becomes tolerant of benzodiazepines.  The body then needs to take more and more pills in order to get the same effect.  The person then becomes addicted.  Xanax® withdrawal symptoms can be painful.

No Cold Turkey

Never stop taking alprazolam suddenly.  Always tell your doctor or therapist that you want to go off alprazolam.  Benzodiazepines need to be tapered off slowly.  If you do not have a pill splitter, ask your pharmacist to split the pills, if necessary. 

Normal Withdrawal Symptoms

Alprazolam withdrawal symptoms differ from person to person.  Common mild but highly annoying withdrawal symptoms to plan ahead for include:

• Headache
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Dizziness or lightheadedness

Unless a person is both vomiting and has diarrhea to the point where he or she risks becoming dehydrated, calling a doctor is usually not necessary.  These withdrawal symptoms can start a few hours after the last dose or even occur during a missed dose.  But always consult your doctor if you are worried about these symptoms.

Unusual Withdrawal Symptoms

Some strange but not dangerous symptoms have been reported by some patients, including this writer, as they went through Xanax® withdrawal.  These include:

Sweaty palms or breaking out into a mild sweat

Ringing of the ears or hearing strange noises that no one else can hear

Having a persistent strange taste in the mouth that can last for days

These symptoms should go away in a few days but always contact a medical professional if they either do not go away after a week or if you are very worried about them.

Dangerous Withdrawal Symptoms

These are the worst known alprazolam withdrawal symptoms.  Anyone going cold turkey from alprazolam risks experiencing these symptoms.  Anyone tapering off of any benzodiazepine should have a doctor’s office or trusted friend call the patient every couple of days to see if these symptoms crop up:

• Seizures
• Return of panic attacks
• Hallucinations
• Heart palpations or a hammering heart
• Sudden or bizarre personality changes

Contact a doctor immediately.

Sources:

“The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Controlling Anxiety.” Joni E. Johnston, Psy.D. Alpha Books; 2006.

EMedTV. “Xanax® Withdrawal Symptoms.” http://anxiety.emedtv.com/xanax/xanax-withdrawal-symptoms.html

National Anxiety Foundation. “For the Layperson: Dr. Steve’s Guide for Discontinuing Xanax® (Alprazolam.)” Stephen Cox, MD. http://lexington-on-line.com/naf_xanax.html

Image from Wikimedia Commons

Dangers of Combining Prozac and Xanax

Please do not use this article as a substitute for a mental health professional’s diagnosis.

Prozac (fluoxetine) and Xanax (alprazolam) are two of the most prescribed drugs for mental disorders.  Prozac is often prescribed long-term (over six months) while Xanax is prescribed usually prescribed for short term use only due to its highly addictive nature.  Although many patients can take both Prozac and Xanax without problems, for some patients, this combination may worsen their depression or anxiety.

Usual Symptoms

Xanax helps slow down brain function.  There are many advantages to a slowing of brain function, particularly for patients suffering from debilitating panic attacks or flashbacks to traumatic events.  People experience significant physical pain from panic attacks and flashbacks, which only reinforces their fears and makes it hard to shake off the past.  When a patient can be freed from the physical symptoms, it helps them to take in good stimuli and help them with talk therapy. 

But when brain functions are slowed down, people tend to get sleepy.  Antidepressants are notorious for making people sleepy.  However, people on Prozac tend to lose this sleepy feeling after two to four weeks since their first dose.  But taking Xanax on top of Prozac may cause sleepiness or a feeling of all-encompassing fatigue.  Some people adjust and some people do not.

Unusual Symptoms

Medication Madness: The Role of Psychiatric Medications in Cases of Violence (Macmillan; 2009) chronicles many instances of patients reacting badly to a combination of Xanax and Prozac.  They became even more depressed, loss interest in anything, had suicidal thoughts and had more frequent panic attacks or bouts of crippling anxiety.  Some people even became violent or engaged in dangerous activity such as risky sex.

However, some of people of these lurid tales also took other medications such as sleeping pills or drank alcohol – a practice highly discouraged for anyone taking benzodiazepines.

One less dramatic unusual side effect from the mixing of the two drugs is bad constipation.  Constant constipation that lasts more than two weeks can also be a problem, particularly if the constipation also causes painful cramps.  Eventually, a patient will have to taper off of Xanax, but call a doctor to see if a reduction should start sooner than planned.

Proceed With Caution

Everyone reacts differently to prescription drugs – and a combination of prescription drugs.  No matter if a patient has taken Prozac for years without side effects, adding Xanax should be a matter of proceeding with caution.  Since a patient’s brain functions are slowed and they may be battling comorbidities such as migraines or epilepsy, the patient may become easily confused due to fatigue and physical pain.

When any patient is prescribed a new psychiatric medication, the patient needs supervision to be sure unusual symptoms do not develop.  This person needs to be a trusted friend or family member.  If the patient has none, then the doctor’s office should at least call every few days and schedule check up appointments one to four times a month.  Any missed appointments should be a red flag.

Sources

Breggin, Peter.  Medication Madness: The Role of Psychiatric Medications in Cases of Violence, Suicide and Crime.  Macmillan; 2009.

Drugs.com “Xanax Information.” 2010.  http://www.drugs.com/xanax.html

Author’s personal experience

Image "The Drowsy One" (1840) by Friederich von Amerling from Wikimedia Commons

YouTube eHow Video: How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs on Pets

Bed bugs are more likely to feed on pet owners than pets, but any port in a storm works for bed bugs. Bed bugs are not know to transmit any diseases through their bites, but the bites themselves are problematic. If there are hundreds of bed bugs feeding on one pet, the pet's blood loss will be considerable.  

Sadly, there is no medication to kill bed bugs that bite our pets such as for fleas, ticks and lice. You have to kill the bed bugs in order to protect you and your pets. This requires extensive home cleaning and at least two treatments from a professional exterminator. Here's more from eHow:

Side Effects of Lipozene (Glucomannan)

Glucomannan's secondary side effects is sleep loss due to the primary side effects. If you already have trouble sleeping, be careful with this supplement.

Lipozene is a weight loss herbal supplement also known as glucomannan or knojac fiber.  It’s available over the counter as opposed to a prescription drug.  It’s made from African plant roots.  Fiber is important to help make a person feel full and to keep the bowels regular.  Two 1500 milligram capsules are swallowed with a full glass of water a half hour before meals to help curb overeating.  Lipozene can cause embarrassing gastrointestinal side effects because of this powerful form of fiber.

Just because a supplement may be labeled “natural” doesn’t mean it’s free from side effects.  Always talk to a doctor or nutritionist before taking any herbal supplement, including Lipozene.  Some people are able to take half the recommended dose to avoid the worst of side effects, but halving the dose does not help everybody.  Themanufacturer urges all pregnant or nursing women to avoid Lipozene.

Common Side Effects

The most common side effects of Lipozene are similar to a spastic colon, drinking a prescription laxative or eating a bowl too many of your favorite high-fiber breakfast cereal.  Gas, intestinal pains, cramps from bloating and diarrhea can last for hours after taking Lipozene.  The intensity of these symptoms varies from person to person.

Because of these side effects, women who have spastic colon or diarrhea during their periods should not take Lipozene at those times.  People with hemorrhoids may find their symptoms flare up on Lipozene.  People who have already been diagnosed with gastrointestinal ailments like irritable bowel syndrome or Crohn’s disease may experience severe symptoms of their condition.  Anyone with these conditions should ask their doctor’s advice before taking.

Uncommon Side Effects

One uncommon side effect is an inability to swallow the capsules.  The fiber in Lipozene begins to expand when in contact with moisture.  This means that the pills can swell up to cause dangerous intestinal blockages. The pills may begin swelling up in the throat, causing pain.   This swelling is why Lipozene has beenbanned in Australia since 1985.

Another unusual aside effect is a sudden drop in blood sugar levels, which can make you drowsy or tired.  Anyone taking insulin or suffering from diabetes needs to keep their glucose levels as stable as possible.  Consult a doctor before taking Lipozene.  Your doctor may advise against taking glucomannan.

Warning

Some people are allergic to glucomannan.  These allergic reactions will happen within a few minutes of the very first dose. These allergic symptoms include sudden skin rashes, hives, difficulty breathing or a strange swelling of the face, tongue or throat.  If any of these symptoms occur, contact a doctor immediately.

If you are determined to take Lipozene anyway, make sure you are at home near a bed and a toilet in case of bad side effects. Try on a night before you have to work or go to a major event like a wedding because gastrointestinal upsets may keep you up all night.

Image of knojack plant by James Steakly for Wikimedia Commons.

Bedbug Reproduction and Traumatic Insemination

Pity the poor female bedbug – she does not have any genitalia. So how do bedbugs reproduce? Through the bizarre act of traumatic insemination.

Bedbugs (also spelled bed bugs) such as Cimex lectularius reproduce in a way much different than other animals – even other insects.  This process is very accurately called traumatic insemination.  However, researchers Alastair D. Stutt and Michael T. Siva-Jothy report that in their observations of 89 traumatic inseminations, the female never once resisted a male.

The Process

The male has a blood meal. 36 hours later, he’s ready for copulation.  The male locates a female based on size.  Females are often larger than males, but a male trying to copulate with other males does happen in the bedbug world.  Upon finding a female, the male locates a groove in the female’s abdominal wall, stabs through her exoskeleton with his sexual intromittant organ. Once skewered, the male pumps in semen, withdraws and crawls off to find another blood meal.

Underneath the punctured exoskeleton, the male’s sperm enters the female’s mesospermalege.  This is a pair of fake sexual organs modified from the insect’s immune system.  The theory is that males used to stab a female anywhere and injected sperm into the bloodstream, as happened to the closely related bat bugs. But if the male is going to stab, he should just stab in one place most able to take the blow.  So the female’s body evolved just such a location. Inside are spongy tissues and a liquid called hemolymph.  The sperm rides the hemolymph to the female’s ovaries.

The sperm finally combine with the eggs. She lays about six per week and can lay up to 500 in her one year lifetime if she is able to get a hold of blood meals about every two weeks.

Complications

Bedbugs, although not a social species like termites or bees, do cluster together in hiding places.  Female bedbugs, after several traumatic inseminations with males, often crawl off alone to recover, according to Cornell University.  If she is inseminated too many times, she can develop an internal infection and die.  According to Stutt and Siva-Jothy, bedbug females receive an average 20 traumatic inseminations per month.

But by crawling off to get some peace and quiet, she also winds up spreading the bedbug population throughout the general area.  This helps more bedbugs find more sources to feed from so that more and more and more bedbugs do not feed from the same body or bodies.

Another complication is that the sperm from the first male that inseminated her will not succeed in fertilizing her eggs.  That honor goes to the sperm from the last male that inseminated her.  Just how this happens is unclear.  It could be that the female’s mesospermaledge chooses which sperm will live and which will die.  This may be why it is so closely tied into the female’s immune system. Should this theory prove to be true, then perhaps the female bedbug has the last laugh after all.

Sources

Cornell University New York Integrated Pest Management. “FAQ List for Bed Bugs.” http://www.nysipm.cornell.edu/whats_bugging_you/bed_bugs/bedbugs_faqs.asp

“Traumatic insemination and sexual conflict in the bed bug Cimex lectularis.” Alastair D. Stutt and Michael T. Siva-Jothy. “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.” Vol 108, No. 13. March 29, 2011. http://www.pnas.org/content/98/10/5683.full

National Geographic News: “Bat Bugs Evolved Fake Genitals to Avoid Sex Injuries.” Anne Minard. Sept. 25, 2007. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/09/070925-bat-bugs.html

Image by Rickard Ingell for Wikimedia Commons

How to Get a Free Hotel Room Upgrade

Vacations suck when you can’t get any sleep. There’s no sense paying for a room if you cannot get any sleep in it. Always be polite when asking for a better room.

Your hotel room may be great, but you can bet there are much better ones in the hotel you are staying at. Perhaps you want a room with luxury features such as a great view, mini bar or balcony.  You may also want a specific room in the hotel, such as the room closest to the hotel pool.  You may be able to get it without incurring any additional costs if you follow these tips.

When Booking a Room

Summer and holidays are the worst time to try and ask for a free room upgrade. It’s also hard to get a room when the hotel is fully booked because of a major sporting event or business conference. Your best bet in getting an upgrade is for when the hotel is not so busy at any other time. See if you can join the hotel rewards program. Members usually get first crack at any room upgrades.

Huffington Post blogger and frequent traveler Amy Chan advises customers to check in to their hotels as late as they possibly can. Always check with your hotel for check-in times. If you can put off checking in until the last hour you are allowed to do so, there is a better chance that someone who booked a luxury room has cancelled.

Before You Ask for an Upgrade

Make sure you look respectable and wear conservative or professional clothing before you ask a member of the hotel staff for an upgrade.  Do not wear trashy, overly-revealing clothes. Women especially need to keep this in mind. No hotel wants to be known as a home for prostitution. Unfortunately, many hotel workers will make an instant snap judgment about your profession based on your clothes, hair style and amount of makeup.

Be calm and smile when asking for an upgrade. Be polite at all times – even when you know that a luxury room is available and you are denied getting it. After all, you are asking for a favor. Ask if you could be considered for any room upgrades, should they become available. If you are at the hotel because of a special event like a family reunion, mention this to the clerk. Sometimes this is enough to push you to the front of the waiting list for a room upgrade.

Disappointment with Hotel Room

Although most regular hotel rooms are comfortable and adequate, some rooms are far from perfect. Perhaps the shower doesn’t work. Perhaps nearby construction is keeping you awake. Complain to the manager politely and suggest that you can be placated by a room upgrade. Only use this tactic if you have a genuine complaint, otherwise you may be branded as a troublemaker.

Image of Shanghai hotel bed by Daniel Case for Wikimedia Commons

Author's Note: This article first appeared on the late-lamented website Helium,com and I see it's up on some scraper sites on the web.

Using Exercise to Stop Hamsters From Cage Bar Biting

A common behavior problem among pet hamster species is that they bite the bars of their cages for hours every night. They do this because they are bored. Provide your hamsters with physical and mental stimulation.

CHUNKCHUNKCHUNKCHUNK!!!!  This is a familiar sound to many hamster keepers, especially those with Syrian or golden hamsters.  The beloved hamster is gnawing endlessly at the metal bars of its cage.  Since hamsters are nocturnal, no one in the home is getting any sleep until the hamster stops bar biting.

In 1998, some unknown person dumped a cage full of Syrian hamsters at our apartment complex parking lot.  My roommates and I managed to rescue two.  We thought we were ding the best we could by getting Habitrail cages that alternated plastic bottoms, tunnels, wheels and metal bars for better ventilation. 

And then the bar biting began.

Is This Normal?

Hamster teeth grow throughout their lifetime.  Gnawing regularly on hard objects helps to wear their teeth down.  Some gnawing behaviors are normal.  But, according to Training Your Pet Hamster co-authors Gerry Bucsis and Barbara Somerville, obsessive gnawing is not.  Although all hamsters will test the strength of their cage bars, they should not be biting the bars for hours a night every night.

This is because hamsters evolved to wander for miles every night among arid, desert regions in Asia and the Middle East, constantly looking for food.  Syrian hamsters have only been domesticated since 1930.  Other pet hamster species only entered the pet trade in the 1970s at the earliest.  The instinct to run, search, dig and store food is still strong in pet hamsters.

Hamsters can also break their teeth chewing on metal bars, according to Hamsterific.com.  When hamsters bite the bars of their cages, they tend to lean on one side, which means their teeth are not getting worn down evenly.  This can make eating more difficult as well as cause tooth damage.

Causes of Bar Biting

Hamsters bite the bars of their cages because they are trying to find a way out.  According to Martha Boden, writer for Small Animal Channel.com and Bow Tie Press, hamsters are trying to find a way out because they have a ton of energy and very little roomto release than energy.  Even a cage we may think is large is practically nothing for an animal that evolved to scramble across the desert for miles every night.

Hamster may also try to escape if they scent another hamster in breeding condition anywhere nearby.  This was what happened to the two hamsters we rescued back in 1998.  Unfortunately, one was male and  the other was female.  Despite keeping them in separate cages and separate rooms, Hamnesty the male somehow managed to escape and have a tryst with Miss Whiskers. 

A couple of weeks later, a heavily pregnant Miss Whiskers managed to squeeze through the bars of her cage despite being as round as ping pong ball.  The reason she escaped was because of hunger.  She was found inside the food bowl of our terrified guinea pig’s cage.  Cinnamon the guinea pig, although being far larger species, knew better than to argue with a ravenous pregnant Syrian hamster.  The next day, Miss Whiskers gave birth to eight healthy babies.

More Physical and Mental Stimulation

For most hamster owners, males and females arranging trysts are not the main causes of bar biting.  Boredom is.  Some owners with large imaginations and some spare cash create elaborate cage structures for their hamsters so they have yards and yards to explore. 

Other hamster owners cannot afford such elaborate set-ups.  But they can give their pets some physical and mental stimulation by taking the hamster out of the cage and placing them in a toy like a hamster ball.  Ten or fifteen minutes is plenty of time inside of such toys because the air may run out.  Always supervise your hamster when he or she is in a hamster ball.

Gerry Bucsis and Barbara Somerville also recommend placing the hamster in an empty bathtub for 30 minutes to one hour per night.  Hamsters cannot jump out of the bathtub, but you should still supervise them anyway.  Toys and chew treats can be placed in the tub with the hamster.  Sticking a treat inside of a scrunched up ball of clean paper makes the hamster work for his or her food.

After all of this activity, the hamster should be tired and more than ready to get back to his or her cage, check on the caches of treats, groom and sniff about the premises to make sure all is well.

In Conclusion

Hamsters are highly intelligent and highly active little creatures.  They are not satisfied with a clean cage, plenty of food and a wheel.  If these needs are not met, they turn to potentially dangerous and highly annoying habits like biting the bars of their cages.  They need to discover new things and take time to run about outside of their cages.  If these tips do not work, consider housing your problem hamster in an aquarium. Be sure to keep the aquarium away from heat sources like bright sunlight.

References:

Training Your Pet Hamster. Gerry Bucsis and Barbara Somerville. Barron’s; 2002.

Hamsterific. “Stop Chewing on Those Bars!” http://www.hamsterific.com/CageBarChewing.cfm

Small Animal Channel. “Hamster Bites Cage Bars and Water Bottle.” Martha Boden. http://www.smallanimalchannel.com/critter-experts/hamster/hamster-bites-cage-wires.aspx

Personal experience with Syrian hamsters

Image by Ferryhalim for Wikimedia Commons.