Lorazepam (Ativan)

Lorazepam is the generic name of the drug marketed as Ativan or Temesta. It is a benzodiazepine and has a short to medium duration of action. It has powerful anxiolytic (anxiety reducing) effects. It also has sedative/hypnotic (sleep inducing), anticonvulsant, and muscle relaxant effects. It is primarily used to treat anxiety and has a relatively high addictive potential. Lorazepam can be used for patients undergoing chaemotherapy to help prevent them from vomiting. It is occasionally prescribed in drug rehab centers in South Africa during the initial detoxification phase but is not favoured for long-term use.

In its pure form lorazepam is a pale white powder that is nearly insoluble in water or oil. In medicinal use it is usually prepared in tablets or as a solution for injection. It can also be used as a skin patch or by dissolving it under the tongue.

People who use benzodiazepines on a regular basis develop tolerance. This means that the body becomes accustomed to the drug and so it has less effect. Depending on what the drug is being prescribed for tolerance may be desirable or undesirable. Patients on Lorazepam will initially experience drastic relief from anxiety or insomnia but their symptoms gradually return. After 4-6 months of using benzodiazepine it is no longer effective and the doctor will either have to prescribe a different drug or increase the dosage.

Along with tolerance patients will develop a physical dependence on lorazepam and abruptly stopping using it can induce withdrawal effects. This is especially true if lorazepam was used in high doses or for a long time. Addiction to lorazepeam is also possible. This means that a drug rehab in South Africa will discontinue lorazepam as soon as possible in a controlled and tapering dose.

Patients using lorazepam are more likely to develop dependence than those using other benzodiazepines. It has a relatively short half-life (the amount of time for its concentration to halve in the blood) and people may crave the drug inbetween their scheduled doses. This adds to the psychological dependence of this drug. A drug rehab center in South Africa will only use lorazepam in the short-term and at the smallest effective dose if at all.

Patients who have been abusing lorazepam or who have used it long-term are often given an equivalent dose of diazepam (another benzodiazepine) and stabilized on this drug. Tapering the dose of diazepam can be accomplished with less discomfort to the patient.

Doctors are aware that lorazepam can be abused or sold on the black market for illegitimate use. They will therefore be careful when prescribing for unsupervised patients. Lorazepam has also been implicated in various criminal uses such as date rape or by criminals seeking disinhibition before committing crime.

Long term use of lorazepam can have very negative effects on the body. Addiction and dependency can also arise. If you would like help in finding an effective drug rehabilitation program in South Africa to help you quit lorazepam and stay quit please contact us.