Most people experience feelings of
anxiety before an important event, such as a big exam, business presentation, or first date.
Anxiety disorders, however, are illnesses that fill people's lives with overwhelming anxiety and fear that are chronic and unremitting, and can grow progressively worse.
Depending on the type of anxiety, a person can experience several possible
anxiety symptoms, including:
- Feeling shaky, jittery, or nervous
- Feeling tense, fearful, or apprehensive
- Avoiding certain places or activities because of fear
- Experiencing a pounding or racing heart or trouble catching your breath
- Sweating or trembling that is unexplained
- Having fears of losing control, going crazy, or dying.
Librium is approved to for
anxiety treatment. Librium is not for "everyday anxiety" associated with the usual stresses of life. Instead, it is intended to be used to treat
anxiety disorders or to treat temporary anxiety symptoms associated with a particularly stressful event (such as emotional or physical trauma). Librium is also approved for use just before surgery to help control anxiety or apprehension.
Librium is part of a group of medicines called benzodiazepines. Benzodiazepines have several effects on the body, including:
- Reducing anxiety
- Causing sleepiness
- Relaxing muscles
- Stopping seizures
- Impairing short-term memory.
All medicines in this category can have these effects to some degree, depending on the specific benzodiazepine that is being taken. They work in the brain by enhancing the effects of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a brain chemical that is naturally calming. GABA can slow down or stop certain nerve signals in the brain. This is why Librium and other benzodiazepines are known as mild tranquilizers, sedatives, or central nervous system depressants (CNS depressants).
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