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      Anxiety suppression

      Anxiety suppression (also known as anxiolysis or minimal sedation) [1] is medically recognized as a partial to complete suppression of a person’s ability to feel anxiety, general unease, and negative feelings of both psychological and physiological tension. [2] The experience of this effect may decrease anxiety-related behaviours such as restlessness, muscular tension, [3] rumination, and panic attacks. This typically results in feelings of extreme calmness and relaxation.

      Anxiety suppression is often accompanied by other coinciding effects such as disinhibition and sedation. It is most commonly induced under the influence of moderate dosages of anxiolytic compounds which primarily include GABAergic depressants [4] [5] , such as benzodiazepines [6] , alcohol [7] , GHB [8] , and gabapentinoids [9] . However, it can also occur to a lesser extent under the influence of a large variety of other pharmacological classes which include but are not limited to cannabinoids, [10] dissociatives [11] , SSRIs [12] , and opioids.

      References

      1. National Cancer Institute. (2016). NCI dictionary of cancer terms. | https://www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/anxiolysis
      2. Gordon, J. A. (2002). Anxiolytic drug targets: beyond the usual suspects. The Journal of clinical investigation, 110(7), 915-917. | https://dx.doi.org/10.1172%2FJCI16846
      3. Tyrer, P. (1988). Prescribing psychotropic drugs in general practice. British medical journal (Clinical research ed.), 296(6622), 588. | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2545227/
      4. Lydiard, R. B. (2003). The role of GABA in anxiety disorders. The Journal of clinical psychiatry, 64, 21-27. | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12662130
      5. Nuss, P. (2015). Anxiety disorders and GABA neurotransmission: a disturbance of modulation. Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment, 11, 165. | https://dx.doi.org/10.2147%2FNDT.S58841
      6. Shader, R. I., & Greenblatt, D. J. (1993). Use of benzodiazepines in anxiety disorders. New England Journal of Medicine, 328(19), 1398-1405. | https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJM199305133281907
      7. Smith, J. P., & Randall, C. L. (2012). Anxiety and alcohol use disorders: comorbidity and treatment considerations. Alcohol research: current reviews. | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3860396/
      8. Schmidt-Mutter, C., Pain, L., Sandner, G., Gobaille, S., & Maitre, M. (1998). The anxiolytic effect of γ-hydroxybutyrate in the elevated plus maze is reversed by the benzodiazepine receptor antagonist, flumazenil. European journal of pharmacology, 342(1), 21-27. | https://doi.org/10.1016/S0014-2999(97)01503-3
      9. Pollack, M. H., Matthews, J., & Scott, E. L. (1998). Gabapentin as a potential treatment for anxiety disorders. American Journal of Psychiatry, 155(7), 992-993. | https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.155.7.992
      10. Blessing, E. M., Steenkamp, M. M., Manzanares, J., & Marmar, C. R. (2015). Cannabidiol as a potential treatment for anxiety disorders. Neurotherapeutics, 12(4), 825-836. | https://doi.org/10.1007%2Fs13311-015-0387-1
      11. Irwin, S. A., & Iglewicz, A. (2010). Oral ketamine for the rapid treatment of depression and anxiety in patients receiving hospice care. Journal of palliative medicine, 13(7), 903-908. | https://doi.org/10.1089/jpm.2010.9808
      12. Evans, B. J., & Burrows, G. D. (Eds.). (1998). Hypnosis in Australia. 82-3. Australian Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. | http://hc.rediris.es/pub/bscw.cgi/d4501310/Evans-Hypnosis_Australia.pdf#page=96

      Tags

      cognitive
      depressants
      suppression

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