Muscle relaxants, as you may guess from the name, work by relaxing the muscles and relieving the pain associated with constant tension of different muscle groups. They are quite often prescribed for treating and relieving such degenerative conditions as arthritis or direct muscle injury. However, most doctors prescribe these drugs in conjunction with physical therapy in order to assure prompt treatment. The most commonly prescribed muscle relaxant drugs include carisoprodol, diazepam and cyclobenzaprine.

Types of muscle relaxant drugs

Soma

Soma is muscle relaxant available only through prescription that has carisoprodol as its main active element. In most cases the drug is prescribed to be taken three or four times daily regardless of meals. Pregnant or nursing mothers are forbidden to take the medication as it has potential hazard for the baby. The most common side effects observed with the use of Soma include such symptoms as increased heart rate, drowsiness, dizziness, vomiting and indigestion.

Valium

Valium is usually prescribed for treating anxiety disorders, however many physicians also prescribe it for relieving muscle spasms and pain due to its sedative and relaxing effects. It is also known to help with sleep disorders and depression. The effectiveness of Valium is usually decreased with the use of nicotine. The most common side effects reported with the use of this drug include dizziness, decrease of sex drive, diarrhea, indigestion and dry mouth.

Skelaxin

Skelaxin is prescription muscle relaxant medication that is based on metaxalone as its main active ingredient. In most cases patients are prescribed with a single pill three times daily to achieve the desired effect, Patients with liver, kidney or heart problems are advised to not buy Skelaxin. The most common side effects observed with the use of this drug include dizziness, indigestion, headache, drowsiness and change in mood. If you have yellow skin, abnormal bleeding or bruising, or convulsion when using Skelaxin you should stop taking the drug and seek medical assistance immediately.

Flexeril

Flexeril is muscle relaxant available only through a prescription that is based on cyclobenzaprine as its main component. Doctors usually prescribe taking it two to four times daily. Patients who suffer from heart problems, glaucoma, abnormal urination, or an overactive thyroid are recommended to not use Flexeril. Common side effects that may be experienced with Flexeril include such symptoms as dizziness, dry mouth drowsiness, and indigestion. In case you experience chest pain, odd heartbeat, fever or seizure you should stop taking the medication and seek for medical assistance immediately.

There are different types of anxiety disorders, each of them characterized by different symptoms, intensity of anxiety and circumstances in which it occurs. One of the most common types is panic disorder that manifests through panic attacks that occur for no apparent reason. During such an attack a person feels dread, fear and experiences fast heartbeat and problems with concentration. This anxiety disorder is quite often connected with agoraphobia (fear of large open spaces and social settings) and social phobia, if untreated. However, in most cases this disorder is treatable with medications and psychotherapy.

Other common type of anxiety disorder is OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder). This disorder is characterized by obsessive thoughts and ideas that are organized with a ritual-like structure that is believed by the patient to control anxiety itself. This usually manifests in repetitive activities such as washing hands, closing doors and windows, sacking things in a particular order, etc, and if something impedes this activity there’s a feeling of dread in the patient.

PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) is also a quite widespread kind of anxiety disorder, usually linked to tragic events or catastrophes that the patient was witness to. The condition is characterized by emotional numbness, irritability and negligence to social activities and relationships. The problem with PTSD is that quite often it sets after a period of time, not immediately after the tragic events. People who were at war usually experience this disorder when trying to live a normal life again.

Social anxiety or social phobia is quite characteristic for large population areas and is described by fear and anxiety of social activities and large groups of people in one place. This makes it quite hard for urban dwellers to perform such everyday activities such as going to work or college, meeting friends and even going to the supermarket.

One has to understand that most cases of anxiety are treatable and it may be enough to go through a course of Xanax or any other medication to eliminate the problem. It may sound impossible for a person with anxiety disorder, however speaking with a doctor sure helps. Seek professional help if you feel that you have a particular type of anxiety disorder. Don’t buy Xanax, Valium or any other anti-anxiety drugs on your own. Prescription drugs like Xanax should be taken only with your doctor’s consent and following a prescribed dosage. Otherwise you can make the problem even worse.

Even in those days, music was considered great therapy. You could chill out to a lute or string quartet. Just gather a few musicians together, let them start up a tune, and your rock would soften and your knots dissolve. Moving into modern times, anxiety disorders are one of the most common complaints and the sale of medication to control anxiety represents big business. Despite the best efforts of the pharmaceutical industry that would prefer all to bow down and worship at the altar of their latest products, some researchers do actually look for alternative methods of treatment.

One of the more recent studies looked at the effectiveness of different types of massage The good news was that, regardless of the type, massage sessions were effective in reducing stress levels. Participants were given ten one-hour sessions and the improvement in their mood lasted for more than three months. In part, the explanation for this level of success is that the social interaction between the physical therapist and the patients helps to lift the mood. People find the one-to-one sessions of physical contact and talk relaxing and a constructive way of resolving problems. This is why the nature of the massage technique was proved irrelevant. Any form of rubbing has the same emotional effect. But this was not all good news. The researchers also found the same results among groups of people who did nothing more than listen to gentle music. Obviously, this is the cheapest kind of self-help therapy.

To test out the potential role of music, three further groups were created. One listened to music during a set of ten, one-hour massage sessions. The second was wrapped in a cocoon of warm towels (for the record, this is called thermotherapy) while music played. The third sat or lay quietly in their own homes, breathing deeply and thinking relaxing thoughts as the music played. There was no difference in the degree of benefit flowing from the three groups. All showed good levels of response and lower levels of anxiety. Put another way, despite their best efforts to find research evidence to favor professional services, the best value-for-money treatment was people relaxing to music in the peace of their own homes.

Of course, if anxiety levels remain at a troublesome high, there is always valium which, over a short period of time, will calm the savage breast and unknot your oak. But, no matter how effective valium may be, the best long-term treatment for generalized anxiety disorder or social disorder is relaxation to gentle music. It seems Congreve was right. So check through your CD collection or the contents of your iPod and find the music that works best for you.

If we go back sixty years, psychiatry in the US was still running in parallel with the European tradition of scientific method. This produced carefully defined diagnoses for general conditions, leaving practitioners with some flexibility to take a common sense view of the individual patient. Hence, the technical term might be a “nervous breakdown” which is a catch-all definition for anyone who has a few problems. But as the pharmaceutical industry used its economic power, these broad definitions were increasingly broken down into separate classes of disorder. As each new batch of disorders was defined, the manufacturers produced drugs specifically targeting each new disorder. In reality, people are still having nervous breakdowns and, truth be told, all the major drugs are interchangeable because the separate disorders are really only one or two basic types.

What prompted this redefinition of terms? Firstly, the introduction of the benzodiazepines. The manufacturers wanted a distinction between anxiety disorders and depression for marketing purposes. Once the APA gave in, it was the slippery slope to the present confused mess. As everyone knows, all depression has elements of anxiety and panic, just as anxiety and panic are indistinguishable from elements in depression. Recent surveys have found doctors routinely prescribing benzodiazepines such as xanax regardless of the diagnosis as anxiety or depression, and finding the same excellent results. Secondly, the APA wanted to move away from Freudian analysis and to ground diagnosis in observable symptoms. This led to the introduction of “major depression” and “bipolar disorder” which lump different sets of symptoms together in either a stable or unstable form. As the SSRIs came in as treatments for major depression, the pressure to keep inventing new disorders grew. Now all the anxiety and panic disorders are multiplying. Needless to say, xanax remains the most effective treatment no matter what labels are attached to the symptoms. If you are anxious, xanax is the answer. Sadly, the APA will not sympathize with such a simple view of the world.

For the medical profession, the constant debate is how to strike a balance between the need to give effective treatment, and the healthcare model which, for the most part, is for-profit. Almost all the research during the last century proves the benefits of the various types of psychotherapy. Making the patient the focus of attention and relating to that patient as an individual with needs is, in itself, a major therapy. Allowing the patient the time to talk through problems and devise strategies for coping gives the individual ownership over the solutions – a necessary mental step in making the strategies effective. The moment you approach the patient as an inconvenience – reduce choice over treatment options in favor of medication – the majority either give up or grow defensive and resentful. Doctors have often responded by making treatment using medication compulsory. Listen to hospital administrators and they will tell you the cost of labor in providing psychotherapy to all patients is impossible to fund. Listen to the pharmaceutical industry and it will tell you there are effective drugs to cure all problems without the need for expensive therapy. In a capitalist model, medication therefore tends to win out over psychotherapy.

This is not to say that drugs like valium are not effective. In fact, the majority of people feel less anxious when they begin taking it. But drugs like valium do not “cure” the underlying problems. For that, you need physicians, psychiatrists, therapists, counselors and social workers to reach out to each person and offer support. With proper care, most people with anxiety disorders can live normal lives as self-confidence returns. This places valium in its most effective role – to provide a respite, a breathing space during which the psychotherapy can encourage the individual to start making the changes necessary for the anxiety to fade. For these purposes, the best type of psychotherapy is cognitive behavioral therapy where people are trained to rethink the way in which they respond to pressure. They are exposed to the feared social situations and grow less sensitive. They learn how to cope without worrying. It would be wonderful if you could patent this and put it in a bottle. The manufacturer would make a fortune and earn the profound gratitude of everyone who has ever had an anxiety or panic attack. Until then, we have to rely on talk as the best form of treatment.