Triazolam Symptoms and Warning Signs

Triazolam Info

• Triazolam Addiction and Abuse
• Triazolam Symptoms and Warning Signs
• Triazolam Treatment and Rehab
• Triazolam Withdrawal and Detox

Triazolam is a sedative-hypnotic prescription medication that belongs to the benzodiazepines class of drugs. It is a Central Nervous System depressant, with muscle relaxant and anticonvulsant properties. The drug is mainly used to treat insomnia and help those suffering from this condition to fall asleep. However, it has a high potential for abuse and can easily cause addiction. This is why standard prescriptions last for no more than ten days.

Most people take Triazolam legitimately, but many slip into the cycle of abuse. This is because the drug has a fast-acting nature and a short half-life. It has near instant effects, inducing sleep and sensations of calmness in less than two hours, but leaves the body rapidly, which means you may need to consume more in order to feel calm.

Recreational users primarily misuse the drug to enjoy its calming and relaxing sensations and also take it to heighten the effects of other substances, such as alcohol and heroin.

Abusing a drug like Triazolam can easily lead to dependence and addiction, which can in turn cause damaging health and social consequences. If you’re taking the drug recreationally, please stop and seek help now. If you’re taking it via a prescription and have gone over the prescribed dosage, it’s important to consult your doctor.

Understanding the signs and symptoms of abuse can help you avert the related dangers of abusing Triazolam, and also help you avoid addiction. This knowledge can also come in handy for recognising abuse and addiction in a loved one. Most people abusing Triazolam tend to be ignorant of this fact until it begins to cause severe damage. However, when abuse is caught early enough, health dangers can be mitigated.

Types and Brands of Triazolam

Triazolam comes in a number of branded formulations. It is only legal to take the drug under prescription, as it is a Class C controlled substance in the UK and a Schedule IV drug in the US. However, this does not stop desperate users from acquiring the drug on the streets and via the online black market.

The most popular brand name for Triazolam is Halcion. Other branded formulations include Hypam, Apo-Triazo, and Trilam. There are also designer names for the drug for when it is synthesized with other compounds, but acts as the main ingredient. These designer names include chlorotriazolam, chloroxanax, 2′-chloroxanax, and triclazolam.

Why does Triazolam have the potential for abuse?

Generally, benzodiazepines are habit-forming drugs, which can result in dependence after long-term use. Triazolam is one such drug and has an ultra-short half-life. It leaves the body as early as two to four hours after ingestion, which makes its potential for abuse fairly high. People who take Triazolam on prescription mostly do so to help them fall asleep. However, because its effects wear off quickly, it can’t keep you asleep for too long. This could tempt you to take the drug repeatedly and in high doses (against medical advice).

For recreational users, it’s easy to abuse Triazolam, as they are taking it without medical guidance. Using Triazolam alongside other CNS depressants (such as opioids and alcohol) is another form of abuse that has dangerous side effects.

Another reason that you or a loved one might be abusing this drug is due to the fact your body quickly builds tolerance its effects. This means after a period of usage, your brain will no longer respond to a standard dose of the drug, compelling you to take larger quantities in order to induce its sleep-enabling and relaxing sensations.

How does Triazolam affect the brain and body?

Triazolam induces sleep and its calming effects by increasing the presence of a brain chemical known as Gamma Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) at the GABA receptor. This chemical is responsible for inhibiting nerve excitement (in the brain and Central Nervous System) that can lead to hyperactivity in various realms of the brain, thereby causing a lack of sleep.

When this neurochemical is increased by Triazolam, it slows down brain function and inhibits CNS nerves further to trigger a lulling sensation that facilitates sleep. However, Triazolam leaves the body quickly after two to three hours. At this point, the levels of GABA begin to drop and the calming effects will start to wear off.

Recognising the Common Warning Signs of Triazolam Abuse

Coming to understand that you’re abusing Triazolam can be difficult. This is because as a prescription medicine, it’s easy to convince yourself that the signs you see are merely common side effects that aren’t harmful. However, going beyond your prescription schedule and dosage can be very harmful. Therefore, it is crucial to look out for signs of abuse, so that you can avoid the imminent related dangers.

If you have a loved one who might be using Triazolam, it’s also important to look out for signs of abuse, because they may be abusing the drug without having any idea that they’re doing so.

You’ll experience signs that accompany normal prescription use as well as harsher side effects when you abuse Triazolam. The simple fact that you’re using Triazolam for longer than ten days shows you’re abusing the drug.

One common, telling sign of abuse is withdrawal. During this phase, adverse symptoms will surface when you stop taking the drug at the frequency and dose to which you’ve become accustomed. Furthermore, addiction and dependence are also dangerous signs of abuse.

However, during the early stages of abuse, you will experience warning signs in the form of physical and psychological symptoms.

Physical symptoms of Triazolam abuse

Physical symptoms of Triazolam abuse may differ from person to person, especially due to the variations in dosage, age, and medical condition. However, there are common physical signs that you should look out for in yourself and your loved one. They include:

Drowsiness: the lulling effects of Triazolam will leave you in an almost constant state of light-headedness and sleepiness when you abuse the drug.</p

Slurred speech: abusing Triazolam can also cause you to communicate less clearly on occasions.

While some of these symptoms may appear during short-term use, they are also indicators that you’re abusing Triazolam. Other signs of abuse include nausea and vomiting, sweating, and stomach cramps. In severe cases, seizures may also occur when you abuse the drug for a long time.

Psychological symptoms

Psychological symptoms include issues such as anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, confusion, lack of concentration, and hallucinations. These can turn you into an entirely different person over time. Once you realise that you’re no longer functioning as you used to and no longer happy or as active, these are warning signs that you should visit a physician.

Your loved one will also show these signs if they’re abusing Triazolam, including lethargy, social disconnection, reduced alertness, and depression.

Your loved ones might also exhibit these signs, although there are behavioural indicators to look out for if you’re concerned they have become addicted to Triazolam. These include:

Triazolam addiction and the brain

When you reduce your intake of Triazolam for any reason, withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety, agitation, seizures, and rebound insomnia will be triggered. These symptoms are your brain’s way of telling you that it needs Triazolam. Withdrawal is the main reason why most addicts do anything necessary to use the drug again.

Learn to identify the Immediate Side Effects of Triazolam Abuse

During short-term use, you will experience the calming and sedative effects of Triazolam. However, these feelings are also accompanied by immediate side effects – especially when taken in large doses, against medical advice. These side effects include:

Learn to identify the Long-term Side Effects of Triazolam Abuse

Triazolam is never intended for long-term use. Taking the drug for more than two weeks is never advised. If you abuse this drug for longer than what it’s designed, you will consequently experience adverse effects. Dangers of long-term abuse include addiction and dependence. When your body begins to rely on the drug for proper function, you’ll be at risk of withdrawal complications. Continued abuse can also lead to the following consequences in the long run:

Intervention for a Triazolam Addiction

If you see these warning signs of abuse and addiction in a loved one, please call their attention to their drug abuse, as well as the dangers they face and the implications of their actions to those around them. Setting up an intervention has proven to be an effective way in confronting loved ones about their behaviour. This way, they can hear from those around them and come to see the extent to which they have actually gone.

Detox and Withdrawal from Triazolam

Detoxification is a process whereby your body expunges the remnants of Triazolam, as you seek freedom from the drug. This process is accompanied by a host of unpleasant withdrawal symptoms, but these can be managed with medication therapies via a medically assisted detox treatment.

Treatment and Next Steps

Treatment involves a detox programme and behavioural therapies via rehab. These therapies will help you address any psychological issues that initially caused your addiction as well as those that resulted from it. Also, you’ll be equipped with coping strategies that will help you stay off the drug.

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