Xanax Or Valium?

[William05]

I have cirhossis due to Alpha-1 Antitripsin Defincieny. I am currently taking .5 mgs of Xanax once or twice daily for anxiety. Would Valium be a safer choice considering the condition of my liver?

[DzzzzzNuts]

you dont check in to hospitals to get off of benzos. My goodness you have bad info. ANY responsible adult can taper themselves off of benzos... people with anxiety NEED benzos to have any sort of quality of life so please do not go freaking people out or being a know it all about something you are ignorant to. Valium hits you slower and stays in your system longer so it os good for milk anxiety, people with severe anxiety and panic need xanax it is quick acting and will not give you any drowsiness after 6-8 hours.

[KLeeJo]

I just found out yesterday that I have a 3.4 cm hypervascular lesion on the right frontal lobe of my liver. Also seen were 2 12 mm splenules. I have been on chronic pain meds for over a year now. From oxycodone, Valium, baclofen, robaxin and now Morphine along with hydromorphone. I am not a  drinker nor do I have Hep c, but NOW.... I'm really wondering IF all the pain meds, along with my other daily meds, havent CAUSED this lesion? Its a very concerning issue on my mind now...havent been able to sleep. My question is, shouldnt someone taking opiates and other muscle relaxers have their liver enzymes tested at least maybe twice a month? I didnt think it would be givin to me long term, if it was going to affect my liver?  I am NOW wondering if it was more the valium than Morphine? Neither are working anymore... Anyone else have liver problems from meds?
Thanks... KLeeJo

[hrsepwrguy]

Hep c itself no I don't believe so, hep c triple treatment can cause the body to absorb more of the drug by about 30% than it normally would

[berz718]

Can hep C reduce/change/remove the effect of benzodiazepines?

[crossroadsec]

Just noticed I was all over the place. The title of the post was Valium or Xanax. My transplant team said Xanax. Sry guys..

[crossroadsec]

I tale 1/2 Xanax for sleep. I'm the one who posted about pizza. I've eaten 1500 mg or less of sodium for years, ground my own wheat to make bread, and had almost NO white sugar in my life for 2 decades before I was diagnosed. I ate to feel good.
Last week or so, w some drops in labs... I still ate avocados n drank only rice milk. But I've had a few rough times where I just ate whatever I could to get pills down. Not smart, and I'm reevaluating living alone n working while finishing treatment. It takes a lot of energy to plan n cook a nutritional diet n get 20 gm of fat 3 xs daily.
Karen :) lol methinks I'm feeling guilty for the pizza. I can't make ONE mistake at this point w/o paying for it.

[stlawrence54]

I have chronic Hep C with cirrhosis and lesions . My specialist tries to keep all my pill-taking to a minimum , as he says that most pills (tablets especially) can do more harm to my liver. My primary care doctor , however is quicker on the draw than an old west gunslinger when it comes to her prescription pad. Xanax and Valium were both ruled out , so she put me on Wellbutrin for anxiety and depression. I hated the way it made me feel kind of spacy and "out of sorts" all the time , so I stoppped taking it and became more depressed and anxious . Now , I take one 100mg pill a day instead of the two a day she recommmends , and I feel much better. My specialist also recommends Benadryl as a sleep aid . He says it's basically the same thing in Tylenol PM without the Tylenol. Tylenol also markets the sleep aid only (without the Tylenol) as a product called Simply Sleep. Lots of people recommend Melatonin , but that doesn't work for me.

[sfbaygirl]

Unfortunate things?  Dare I ask what Ambien does?  I take ambien once in a while. It does help me sleep for 4 hrs at least.  I know the Lyrica didn't work for you, sure wish it did for your sake. Pain is hell and I know you know that!  My Dr. tried to put me on seroquel, I took something similar, forget the name now for sleep and to calm me down. Zanax did nothing!  Yes, I wish I could remember that name of what I took...I've seen it on TV as something lawyers are suing for. It worked to help me get some sleep and help with thought disorder, PTSD and nightmares.  

[alagirl]

it does seem like most of the docs prescribe xanax because hell, half of us seem to have been on it at one time or another.  The more pain I began to have though, I switched to seroquel (note that I don't have liver damage issues) so it would put me to sleep at night.  thats what i had the xanax for anyway and when I hurt so bad it doesnt work, so whats the point.  I decided to just take the thing that would at least let me get some rest for a while.  I can't take ambien, I do unfortunate things on ambien...

[sfbaygirl]

I have taken all stated above.  Neurontin drove me nutz. I was ready to jump outta my skin. I am now on Lyrica, which has sx, but is for nerve pain. It helps me immensely with my Fibromyalgia.  I have tried Zanaz and had NO help whatsoever. I could take 6 and had no help. It doesn't help nerve pain BTW.  The Neurontin and Lyrica do and have no  similar dx compared to Valium or Zanax.  Years ago Valium helped my anxiety, Zanzx helps anxiety as well.....Nothing to do with nerve pain.  They are two different animals in my opinion.  There is no way Zanax could help my nerve pain, nor Valium....Just my take and I have severe nerve pain from Fibromyalgia.  

[drlabash]

It would be a gross misstatement to call Neurontin a dangerous drug.  Neurontin rarely has serious side effects, does not interact with other drugs and is not addicting.  Side effects from Neurontin will go away when you stop the drug.  If you had problems with it, that is unfortunate, but that can happen to anyone with any drug.  The problems you describe are actually just as likely to have resulted from your disease, not from the drug. Your bad experience should not be considered a reason for others not to join the millions who have benefited from this medicine.  Benzodiazepines like Valium and Xanax are over all much more dangerous than Neurontin.  

Neurontin does not "do the same thing" as benzodiazepines, though both can be sedating.  Neurontin is a mood stabilizer and treats nerve damage symptoms.  Benzodiazepines are sedatives and muscle relaxers.  Neurontin (even though generic as gabapentin) is way more expensive than benzodiazepines.  Anxiety can be a result of depression, bipolar disorder, or even a result of hepatitis treatment drugs.  Which medicine will work best is highly individual.

[Forseegood]

sounds like you know youre stuff...what do you think about Ativan? that's the only one I can take, though I take it once in a great while cause I'm afraid of dependence to sleep...I can't take sedatives or sleeping pills...though I guess I'll have Ativan  more on treatment...thanks!

[drlabash]

Valium and Xanax are both benzodiazepines with overall similar effects (though individual effects may vary.)  Both are metabolized (chemically changed) by the liver.  However, Xanax is turned into an INACTIVE substance by the liver; Valium is turned into an ACTIVE substance by the liver.  This is one reason that the effect of Valium is longer than the effect of Xanax.  This also causes Valium to have less severe withdrawal if stopped suddenly.  But the active byproduct of Valium can build up in the system with prolonged use.  Hepatitis can potentially decrease the liver's ability to metabolize benzodiazepines, but this has not been conclusively demonstrated, and may differ from person to person with hepatitis.  All drugs metabolized by the liver (a very long list) interact with each other's liver metabolism in complex ways.  All benzodiazepines have some liver toxicity, but that has to be balanced against the need for treatment -- better to die a little sooner than suffer unnecessarily.  Valium hangs around longer, but so does its sedating effect -- hard to say if it is more toxic than Xanax.  Both these drugs are generic, so there is not much motivation to spend money comparing their safety in Hepatitis patients.

[Forseegood]

Hi, don't have time to read this entire thread so I might be repeating someone, but I was told by my doc that if you need to use a tranq...that Ativan is the kindest to the liver...and it says so on the lit for Ativan (generic) Lorazepam....that it is supposed to be the kindest....it is a benzo too, so maybe take it with a grain of salt, I don't know...so ask your doc....or pharmacist...there is the factor that each one of us reacts differently to different meds...and certain people might be taking more then they should, there are all kinds of variables to this, as with many things that pertain to this disease....

[TomD575]

Klonopin, Valium and Xanax are all Benzodiazepines.

[B-bunch]

Stay far away from XANAX. It stays in your system and affects your nerves for years after you stop. If you have to do anything, try Klonopin or Valium, they are a little easier to detox from. Unless you enjoy hallucinations.

[TomD575]

I would avoid Benzodiazepines for a long term treatment
About 10 years ago, a Doctor prescribed Xanax for a sleep disorder, the first couple of months were great, but my tolerance built up quickly and had to continue increasing the dosage to get the same effect, after six months I felt like a zombie.
I tired to quit cold turkey, but the withdrawal symptoms were so severe I had to go back on it.
I finally had to take 2 weeks off work to get off that poison.
The first week was unbearable, I literally couldn't leave my apartment for the first 3 days due to anxiety, severe jittery feeling, confusion, etc.
It took me 2 months before I was feeling back to normal.
Just my own experience.

[PRINCESS5121]

general comment.im taking 1 mg xanax for the anxiety i suffered prior to TX,and still on same dose,with no side affects.valium never did a thing for me.good luck all.....

[midnightrider]

neurontin almost killed me. my feet swelled like footballs.i was sick and toxic.this is a dangerous drug.
i have been on xanax for a long time i have horrible panic attacks.
when i got bursitius in my shoulder, i was prescribed valium for the muscle spasms. i was amazed at how much the pain was resolved but also the calming effects lasted longer than xanax.i was instructed by my pharmacy NOT to take the 2 together so i know it was the valium working better.
im going to talk to my dr about switching from xanax to valium.

i have been on all the other"monkey dope"(i.e klinopin, atarax,atavan,buspar,lexapro,all the anti depressant/anxiety "joke"pills)i call them" monkey dope" because they just dont work and some of them make your heart race and i already have A FIB .

if you have true  severe panic attacks you would find that they dont work at all they make u sleepy and thats all. youre sleepy and just scared to fall asleep.theese drugs such as valium and xanax get bad names because ppl take them for party purposes, not for the real issues, and for us with the REAL  problems "monkey dope" doesnt work.
i have had panic attacks so bad before that i would of drank yak **** if a dr said it would ease it.
i have been on xanax on and off for 10 years and never been addicted or had withdrawls. this is because i take it for the right reasons and i dont take more than im supposed to,actually i take it PRN not on a scheduled daily basis.

anyone wanting to try another route other than xanax or"monkey dope"ask your dr to  try you on  valium, works wonders.

[B-bunch]

Sorry, I forgot to tell you that Neurontin is processed through your kidneys not your liver. Give it a try.

[B-bunch]

How did you get yourself off all those drugs without checking into detox? Are you still on them? All those drugs are trouble to get off you know. You will have to have a doctor help you taper-off, probably in a hospital.
Good Luck everybody.
p.s. My doc offered me Neurontin, he said it does the same things that Xanax does without the addictive danger. He also recommended Klonopin. He said it has a longer half life so detox and tapering won't be so difficult. Effexor is another really dangerous drug. You'll have to check in to detox for that one too. At least they help when we are on the TX but are a real bear to get off without MAJOR detox episodes.

[toughluck]

I take Klonopin for anxiety and will use it during TX, I do not get the Valium hangover and moves through my system quickly, also if you want to stop sx is not as bad.

[kate400]

Best Xanax Pharmacies

http://www.cleopsa.com/pharmacies/xanax.html

Best Valium Pharmacies

http://www.cleopsa.com/pharmacies/valium.html

[Xenigma]

XANAX!!
I've used both over the years and Xanax is superior to Valium for anxiety and irritability.
I find Valium is a wonderful muscle relaxer,  NEVER take both together or in the same day.
You will get sick.