AllExperts > Pharmacy 
Search      
Pharmacy
Volunteer
Answers to thousands of questions
 Home · More Pharmacy Questions · Answer Library  · Encyclopedia ·
More Pharmacy Answers
Question Library

Ask a question about Pharmacy
Volunteer
Experts of the Month
Expert Login

Awards

About Us
Tell friends
Link to Us
Disclaimer

 
 
 
 
About Dr Alan Galbraith
Expertise
I can answer most questions on drugs, both medical and "recreational". Answers can be given in either technical or layperson terminology. My main areas of interest are psychiatric, gastrointestinal and cardiovascular drugs.

Experience
I have been a university lecturer/head of department for almost thirty years, but am now retired. My research interests were alcohol, smoking and cardiovascular disease.

Organizations
Institute of Biology, London.


Publications
Author of "Fundamentals of Pharmacology" 5th Edition published in November 2007 by Pearson Education, Australia.

Education/Credentials
BSc(Hons);MSc;PhD;MIBiol; Cert Biol; HECert

 
   

You are here:  Experts > Health/Fitness > Pharmacology > Pharmacy > Paxil and Ativan

Pharmacy - Paxil and Ativan


Expert: Dr Alan Galbraith - 12/3/2004

Question
Hello. This is my first time ever using the allexperts.com site. I have simple question. I suffer from severe anxiety/panic attacks. I recently had to go to the emergency room because things were so bad I could not sleep or stop shaking. They gave me a shot of Ativan and a 30 day supply of 1 mg Ativan pills to take home with me. My psychiatrist has now switched me to Paxil (20 mg / day) since the other drug he had me on (Risperdal) apparently made things worse for me. I've only been taking the Paxil for a few days now at 10 mg to start out. I still get real shaky and scared feeling sometimes. My question is can I take the Ativan along with the Paxil or is that not a good idea? The Ativan really calms me down, but the Paxil isn't working yet. Please let me know. Thank you very much for your time.

Sincerely,
Lloyd Foss

Answer
Dear Lloyd

Unfortunately Paxil often takes 10-14 days to have its maximum clinical effect and it would be better if you can avioid taking the Ativan at the same time but if you really feel the need for it there is no absolute contraindication to taking it for the short term. The main problem with Ativan is that prolonged therapy can lead to undesirable effects eg confusion, memory lapses and addiction. Once the effect of Paxil kicks in say another 7 days and you have been still taking the Ativan try seriously to withdraw the Ativan and do this by decreasing the dose to one half tablet for no more than four days and then nil. I would think that the Paxil will have kicked in by then. Addiction to Paxil is not a problem.

All the best and I am sure that we can conquer your panic attacks relatively safely.

Regards

Dr Alan Galbraith

Add to this Answer   Ask a Question


 
User Agreement | Privacy Policy | Kids' Privacy Policy | Help
Copyright  © 2008 About, Inc. AllExperts, AllExperts.com, and About.com are registered trademarks of About, Inc. All rights reserved.