Diazepam is usually recommended only for short periods of time, around 2 to 4 weeks, to avoid becoming dependent on it. Avoid driving and using alcohol and recreational drugs while taking diazepam.
It is concluded that patients receiving a 2.5 mg dose of lorazepam should not drive or operate machinery for 24 h after the administration. After diazepam (10 mg) or medazepam (15 mg) patients should refrain from driving or participating inskilled performances for only 5 to 7 hours.
In addition, diazepam is long-lasting, with a duration of action of more than 12 hours. Treatment of seizures: 2 to 10 mg orally dosed 2 to 4 times daily as adjunctive maintenance therapy. Rectal gel 0.2mg/kg is an option for intermittent management of seizures.
Diazepam can make you feel sleepy, dizzy and forgetful when you first start taking it. You might also find it difficult to concentrate during the first few days of treatment and may experience blurred vision and muscle weakness.
The usual dose is: anxiety – 2mg, taken 3 times a day, this can be increased to 5mg to 10mg, taken 3 times a day. sleep problems (related to anxiety) – 5mg to 15mg, taken once a day at bedtime. muscle spasms in adults – 2mg to 15 mg a day.
It works by increasing the levels of a calming chemical in your brain. Depending on your health condition, this can make you feel drowsy, relieve anxiety, stop seizures or relax tense muscles.
Adults—2 to 10 milligrams (mg) 2 to 4 times a day. Older adults—At first, 2 to 2.5 mg 1 or 2 times a day. Your doctor may increase your dose if needed. Children 6 months of age and older—At first, 1 to 2.5 mg 3 or 4 times per day.
Risk of dependence: Using diazepam, even as prescribed, can lead to physical dependence and withdrawal if you stop taking the drug suddenly. Withdrawal can be life threatening. Misuse or addiction: Taking this drug can also lead to misuse and addiction.
Valium begins to work within 15–60 minutes when taken orally. This drug has been proven to help treat insomnia; therefore, an individual can expect to start to feel sleepy within this timeframe.
This medicine may cause some people to be agitated, irritable, or display other abnormal behaviors. It may also cause some people to have suicidal thoughts and tendencies or to become more depressed.
Additionally, if you want to go out for a few drinks with friends, you should wait at least three days to drink after taking Valium. However, if you're taking this drug long-term or regularly, avoid alcohol completely.
Diazepam and alcohol are both central nervous system depressants. Therefore, the effects of mixing diazepam and alcohol can not only be be unpleasant but, in some cases, life-threatening.
4 While the physiological effects may only last between four to six hours, the drug will be detectable in the body for much longer. A 5mg dose of Valium, therefore, might have a half-life of around 50 hours, but small amounts may remain in the body for up to 90 days, depending on the testing method.
Avoid operating machinery, driving, or performing tasks that require mental alertness while taking this medicine. Valium may be given in split doses, with the largest dose just before bedtime. Grapefruit juice or grapefruit products may increase blood levels of Valium; avoid concurrent use.
If you think you have become pregnant while using the medicine, tell your doctor right away. This medicine may cause some people, especially older persons, to become drowsy, dizzy, lightheaded, clumsy, unsteady, or less alert than they are normally.
If you're affected by your medication, you shouldn't drive until the effects wear off. Benzodiazepines are classed as 'controlled drugs'. If you drive and have above a certain limit of these drugs in your blood, you can be found guilty of an offence.
It can make you sleep very deeply. You may have breathing problems and difficulty waking up. It's possible to get addicted to diazepam, but you're less likely to get addicted if you take it at the lowest dose that helps your symptoms, for up to 4 weeks.
One tablet to be taken up to three times as required in a 24 hour period (minimum dose interval = 8 hours). For patients previously treated with a benzodiazepine - 5 mg up to three times daily (max.
Do not drink alcohol or use street drugs during your treatment. Drinking alcohol or using street drugs during your treatment with diazepam also increases the risk that you will experience these serious, life-threatening side effects.
The most common symptom of a diazepam overdose is falling into a deep sleep or "coma" while still being able to breathe well enough. Other symptoms may include: Bluish-colored lips and fingernails. Blurred vision, double vision.
Diazepam may be used for the short-term treatment of anxiety and seizure disorders. Diazepam acts on nerve cells to calm abnormal electrical activity within the brain. Diazepam calms and sedates and may be used in the treatment of anxiety, as an anticonvulsant, as a muscle relaxant, or for its sedative effects.
Are There Any Risks For Taking Diazepam For Long Periods Of Time? Diazepam is a safe and effective medication when used as directed. Benzodiazepines may produce emotional and/or physical dependence (addiction) even when used as recommended. Physical dependence may develop after 2 or more weeks of daily use.
Valium is not FDA–approved for long-term anxiety treatment or for the treatment of less severe anxiety symptoms that are associated with everyday life. It is only meant as a temporary treatment option for those who have moderate to severe symptoms of anxiety.
Notes for Professionals: Patients taking benzodiazepines for insomnia should not use caffeine-containing products prior to going to bed as these products may antagonize the sedative effects of the benzodiazepine.
“You shouldn't drink alcohol while taking diazepam,” warns Medical News Today. “This drug can interfere with your judgment, thinking, and motor skills. It can also make you drowsy and cause your breathing to slow down or stop.