Xanax may make CPPS worse...

[Wolf]

I raise this issue about Xanax from my own experience and wonder if others have found this to be the case. Eight months ago when my chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome symptoms began, I was going through a great deal of stress at work and began taking .25 of Xanax regularly. This then turned into .5 daily once my symptoms became bad. Recently I was all the way up to .5 twice a day and though it would relax me and help my symptoms (pain and frequency) I believe in the end it might have done more damage than good. I say this because I have come to believe along with my doctor that my body no longer knows how to deal with stress on its own. My body has forgotten how to relax by itself, so now each time the Xanax wears off, my pelvic floor tenses up again, probably even worse than before. My body has become dependant on having the Xanax in my system to keep things relaxed. The major turning point came recently when I realized the Xanax had begun to effect my memory. That was it for me. I'm 38 and not ready to become senile. I have begun the difficult task of slowly getting off Xanax and though it is painful, I think in the end it's what my body truly needs.
I'm just curious if other chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome suffers have had a similiar experience with this drug.

[MastCells]

Xanax is not meant to be taken long-term. It is indicated for the short-term use of anxiety relief. One's body quickly builds a tolerance to it, and one may become dependent on it if taken daily.

[CppsDad]

I agree completely. Xanax is quicker acting, and effective, but also has a sharper rebound effect when it wears off. This leads to near-immediate dependency after only a few days of use. I had serious withdrawal effects after each stretch of Xanax use. I think the Xanax has it's place, however. For some of us, we can't even begin to practice some of the protocols we advocate until we can calm down enough to do so. But taking the Xanax without working on any other alternative methods of relaxation and anxiety reduction is a recipe for dependency.