Drugs

Benzodiaepines BZs

• Drugs used to treat anxiety and stress – making the person feel calmer.

• BZs reduce any increased serotonin activity which then reduces anxiety.

Beta-Blockers

• Beta-Blockers reduce activity of adrenaline and nor-adrenaline.

• They block receptors, making it harder to stimulate cells

• E.g the heart, so it beast slower with less force and blood vessels do not contract so easily. This results in a fall in blood pressure, therefore less stress in the heart – making the person feel calmer and less anxious.

Strengths of drugs • Drugs help with stress • Can be accessed by having two groups – one is

given the drug while the other is given the placebo.

Weaknesses of drugs • BZs are addictive• BZs can give you ‘paradoxical’ symptoms as a

side effect

Research

• Kahn et al – studied 250 patients over 8 weeks and found that BZs were more effective instead of placebo

• More over Beta-Blockers are effective in reducing anxiety in stressful situations.