The Problem of Using Tranquilizers to Relieve Stress

Compared to previous decades, our modern way of life is decidedly more stressful. With its attendant discords and cutthroat competition, today's urban living gives rise to tensions and anxieties. Within recent years, drugs - which go by the name tranquilizers - have been developed. Under the close supervision of a doctor, these enticingly-named drugs afford a means of calming a nervous person down and enabling him to survive difficult moments of stress.

As to how they affect the brain, tranquilizers can be likened to alcohol or to barbiturates (barbituric acid-derivatives used as sedatives and often addictive). The danger in using these drugs is that they diminish the user's ability to perceive and react to emergency situations. Therefore, a person using a tranquilizer should keep himself from driving a car or operating complex machines.

The greater danger though in using tranquilizers comes from their effect on the user's disposition or attitude; these drugs make him less oblivious to the problems surrounding him. As he had once experienced the lightening of stress and anxiety that tranquilizers provide, it is only natural for him to desire this same feeling of relief over and over. Consequently, the user becomes increasingly reliant on these drugs, is less able to meet life's true state and real situations, and finds it growingly difficult to bring the apparent addiction to an end.

Buying genuine tranquilizers without a doctor's prescription is generally not allowed. But there are certain nonprescription drugs made to closely imitate tranquilizers. Unfortunately, most of these over-the-counter drugs contain one of the antihistamines (their chief ingredient, in fact), which are known to cause lethargy. On top of not receiving the kind of drug he expects to have, the buyer of these nonprescription drugs faces the risk of antihistamine overdose.

No one can avoid stress, that's for sure. The worthwhile accomplishments of life demand taking action with regard to stress one way or the other. But if tranquilizers are not the perfect answer, what then does a person do to be free from stress?

For a person to successfully get rid of the basis for his anxiety, he must learn to adapt to stress. The person who has not learned to adapt to stress fails in both mental and physical health. His body's organs react negatively to the disturbed condition of his mind. Rather than resorting to tranquilizers to deal with stress, try some other ways - those that are wholesome and have been proven effective. You may, for example, allow time for healthful recreation, learn how to relax for a moment, or establish a balance between work and play. [Read the Original Article]