Benzodiazepine Misuse and Addiction
Benzodiazepines are some of the most common medications doctors prescribe to treat anxiety and sleep disorders.1 Some prescription medications, including benzos, can be addictive, especially if misused.2 People who misuse benzos can suffer from health consequences, including addiction and overdose death.2
What Are Benzodiazepines?
Benzodiazepines are a class of medications that fall into the category of central nervous system (CNS) depressants.3 They act by calming an overactive CNS and can have anxiolytic, sedative, hypnotic, anticonvulsant, and muscle-relaxing effects.1,3 Benzos can produce drowsiness, reduce anxiety, induce sleep, and reduce muscle spasms and seizures.3
Types of Benzodiazepines
- Signs of Alcohol Addiction
- Alcohol Addiction Statistics
- Alcohol Addiction in Teens & Young Adults
Benzodiazepine Misuse
- Effects of Alcohol
- Alcohol Overdose
- Alcohol Withdrawal
Diagnosing Benzodiazepine Addiction
Only a qualified mental health or medical professional can diagnose addiction. Someone who is addicted to benzos will be diagnosed with a sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use disorder.9 Professionals use diagnostic criteria from the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition, (DSM-5) to guide their diagnosis.
Effects & Risks of Benzodiazepine Misuse
The opioid class of drugs includes prescription pain medications such as hydrocodone and oxycodone, synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, and illegal opioids such as heroin.6 Opioid misuse poses a significant risk of drug addiction and numerous health consequences, including respiratory depression and overdose.3, 6
Fentanyl is up to 100 times stronger than morphine. It can be deadly even in small amounts and is a major contributor to overdoses in the U.S.7 Illegally made fentanyl is synthesized in labs and often mixed with other drugs like cocaine, heroin, meth, and MDMA, frequently unbeknownst to the user.8
Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment
People who chronically misuse alcohol can develop alcohol dependence, which is a physiological adaptation that can occur due to the ongoing presence of alcohol.9 When a person who is dependent on alcohol stops drinking, they can suffer from alcohol withdrawal.9 Dependence is not the same as addiction, but it is often a feature of alcohol use disorder (AUD).1, 9
Benzodiazepine Misuse and Addiction FAQs
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- Sarangi, A., McMahon, T., & Gude, J. (2021). Benzodiazepine misuse: an epidemic within a pandemic. Cureus, 13(6), e15816.
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2022, May 10). Misuse of prescription drugs research report: overview.
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2018, March 6). Prescription CNS depressants drugfacts.
- Department of Justice/Drug Enforcement Administration. (2020, April). Drug Fact Sheet: Benzodiazepines.
- United States Drug Enforcement Administration. (n.d.). Drug scheduling.
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2018, June 6). Understanding drug use and addiction drugfacts.
- American Society of Addiction Medicine. (2019, September 15). Definition of addiction.
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2021). Key substance use and mental health indicators in the United States: Results from the 2020 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (HHS Publication No. PEP21-07-01-003, NSDUH Series H-56). Rockville, MD: Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services.
- American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing.
- Bounds, C. & Nelson, V. (2021, November 14). Benzodiazepines. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island, FL: StatPearls Publishing.
- Schmitz, A. (2016). Benzodiazepine use, misuse, and abuse: A review. The mental health clinician, 6(3), 120–126.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, February 23). Polysubstance use facts.
- Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. (2015). Detoxification and substance abuse treatment. Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) Series, No. 45. HHS Publication No. (SMA) 15-4131. Rockville, MD: Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.
- Blodgett, J. C., Maisel, N. C., Fuh, I. L., Wilbourne, P. L., & Finney, J. W. (2014). How effective is continuing care for substance use disorders? A meta-analytic review. Journal of substance abuse treatment, 46(2), 87–97.
- National Institute of Mental Health. (2021, March). Substance use and co-occurring mental disorders.
- Kang, M., Galuska, M.A., Ghassemzadeh, S. (2022). Benzodiazepine Toxicity. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing.
