Xanax Dangers: What are the Risks Associated with Mixing Xanax and Alcohol?

Alcohol and Xanax use can be a fatal combination.

Xanax is a benzodiazepine that can be extremely harmful when use is abused, but also when taken together with alcohol.

What is Xanax?

Xanax is the commonly known brand name for Alprazolam and can only be obtained with a prescription. This benzodiazepine can be used to treat anxiety or Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), insomnia, panic disorders and seizures.

The calming effects and addictive qualities have led to Xanax being abused. It is usually misused in combination with another substance (polydrug use), especially alcohol.

Addiction or the abuse of either of these substances can damage your body and health, but when used in combination, they can be incredibly dangerous and could result in death.

If you take Xanax in large quantities, this can produce a euphoric effect, which makes it an attractive drug. This, paired with the fact that it’s a prescription drug and therefore, not generally harmful, leads to misconceptions about the safety of its use.

The Effects of Xanax on Your Body

Xanax is a depressant that depresses your central nervous system. This happens because the drug regulates the release of the brain’s gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) neurotransmitters. [1]

This chemical, GABA, is within many of the brain’s nerve connections and is released when you are feeling anxious or nervous to help combat this feeling.

Xanax use increases the amount of GABA in the body and induces dopamine. Dopamine is well known for increasing feelings of pleasure and reducing panic and anxiety.

For someone who might have an anxiety-related mental health illness, such as PTSD, the effects of Xanax can enable them to function normally and avoid episodes of high anxiety or panic attacks.

However, due to the pleasurable effects of Xanax, some people might abuse the drug for recreational purposes instead of medical purposes. This can be dangerous if a doctor has not prescribed it directly for you, or if you use more than the doctor has prescribed.

The effects of Xanax include:

increased relaxation
reduced feelings of panic and anxiety, or worry
lightheartedness
feeling sleepy

In larger dangerous amounts, the drug can have a euphoric effect.

Can Xanax Use Lead to Addiction?

As you take Xanax over time, the brain gradually becomes dependent on receiving the neurotransmitter GABA from the drug and will start to not produce it by itself.

Tolerance of Xanax happens when the body no longer responds to the drug in the same way that it did when you initially started using the drug, requiring more of it to receive the same desired effect.

Tolerance occurs because your body speeds up the metabolism of the drug. The more your body is used to metabolising the drug, the more is needed to experience the desired initial effect.

This can then result in an addiction to Xanax as you need more of the drug to feel the desired way. A dependency or addiction to Xanax can occur in just three or four weeks. [2]

If you use Xanax in large amounts and then try to quit using the drug, your body may experience withdrawal. Users who suddenly quit cold turkey could feel withdrawal symptoms including high levels of anxiety.

Other Xanax withdrawal symptoms could include intense body aches and pains, insomnia, vomiting, uncontrollable shaking, high blood pressure, mental instability, and life-threatening seizures.

What are the Dangers of Mixing Alcohol and Xanax?

Xanax and alcohol both result in side effects that alter a person’s mental state and behaviour. They are also both nervous system depressants which can cause life-threatening sedative effects when taken in combination or alone in high quantities.

The combination can also lead to a risk of overdose. [3]

When used with alcohol, Xanax can cause a decreased heart rate, cause your heart to stop beating, damage neurological activity, and slow your breathing down to the point of respiratory failure, temporary or permanent brain damage, coma or even death. [4]

Other potential effects of Xanax and alcohol misuse, both long-term risks and short-term effects can include:

liver inflammation, liver damage or liver failure
loss of coordination (impaired coordination or poor coordination) and motor skills
heart disease
extreme drowsiness
memory impairments
lower levels of brain activity
decreased sex drive
reduced cognitive function
cardiac issues
kidney damage
clammy skin
high blood pressure

A Xanax overdose or alcohol poisoning is also more likely to happen, which can cause respiratory depression, dangerous seizures, coma or death.

You should call 999 and seek immediate health treatment from a medical professional if you think you may have taken too much Xanax with alcohol.

What is the Treatment for Xanax and Alcohol Addiction?

The first step to battle substance use disorders is to contact a rehab centre such as Rehab Recovery. We can find a suitable treatment for you and can advise you on what your options are.

For a Xanax and alcohol addiction, it is important to quit under medical supervision by medical professionals due to the dangerous withdrawal symptoms you could face when you stop using these substances. [5]

In addition to detoxing from Xanax and alcohol, mental health treatment can also be accessed. This is a crucial part of recovery and can lead to a more successful long-term recovery.

There are plenty of treatment options for you to recover from the effects of alcohol and Xanax, so get in touch today.