Phenazepam tablets and alcohol: compatibility and consequences

The effect of Phenazepam on the human body

Phenazepam has the following effects:

reduces phobias;
eliminates anxiety and increased irritability;
suppresses the severity of mental disorders;
eliminates dizziness and headache;
reduces the frequency and duration of epileptic seizures.

After taking the medicine, the person is in a lethargic state, disoriented in space.

The above state of slowness disappears when addiction occurs. In medicine, Phenazepam is often prescribed to potentiate the effect of anesthetics. The action of the drug is aimed at the central nervous system - Phenazepam has sedative properties.

The action of ethanol is aimed at reducing the excitability of nerve cells, developing enthusiasm and elevating mood, like any narcotic substance. The severity of intoxication is due to the influence of toxic metabolic products of ethyl alcohol on the human body. What happens if you regularly drink alcohol? In such patients, brain cells are damaged, the functions of the cardiovascular system change, and disturbances occur in the gastrointestinal tract.

What to do if you develop an overdose of Phenazepam

It is necessary to call an ambulance and take the victim to the hospital. Before the doctors arrive, you can try to help the person yourself. If you do not provide him with help in the first few hours, then this threatens the development of serious complications.

Gastric lavage

If the patient is conscious, then to quickly remove the remaining drug, he needs to rinse his stomach.

To carry out the procedure, you should drink 1 liter of clean water at room temperature or a hypertonic salt solution.
To prepare it, you need to dissolve 2-3 tbsp in water. l. table salt. It is not recommended to use a manganese solution, so as not to cause a burn to the esophageal mucosa.
Then you should induce vomiting by placing 2 fingers in your mouth and pressing on the root of the tongue. To cleanse the stomach as much as possible, you need to repeat the procedure several times.

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Sorbents

Drugs in this group are used to neutralize the effect of Phenazepam and cleanse the intestines of harmful substances. Products that need to be mixed with water have the fastest action. However, if there are none, then you can use the products in tablet form.

After cleansing, it is necessary to restore the intestinal microflora. The use of Bifiform or other products containing bifidobacteria will help with this.

Drink plenty of fluids

If you are poisoned, you should drink as much fluid as possible. You can give the victim tea or just water. Since Phenazepam poisoning can cause problems with swallowing function, you need to ensure that you drink slowly and in small sips.

What to do if a person is unconscious

If the patient has lost consciousness, you need to quickly lay him down on a flat surface. Raise your legs up slightly to increase blood flow to the heart and head. Turn your head to the side. This will prevent vomit from entering your respiratory tract if vomiting begins.

While waiting for an ambulance, you need to constantly monitor the patient's breathing and pulse.

If these signs are absent, then clinical death occurs. In this situation, resuscitation measures should be performed: perform indirect cardiac massage, perform artificial respiration.

You can check breathing by placing your hand on the patient's chest. It is easier to monitor your pulse by placing your hand on the carotid artery in your neck. This is a large vessel that is easy to detect even for an inexperienced person.

Health care

The patient is given an antidote that can block benzodiazepine receptors. Thanks to this, the hypnotic and sedative effects of Phenazepam are neutralized.

Treatment in hospital

In a hospital setting, the victim is provided with qualified medical care: the stomach is washed, then a substance is administered that helps stop the activity of Phenazepam.

When drawing up a scheme for further therapy, the causes of poisoning and the general condition of the patient are taken into account. If necessary, additional tests are prescribed.

In case of severe poisoning, an antidote is administered intravenously. Prescribed medications that support the functioning of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems.

How dangerous is the combined use of alcohol and Phenazepam?

Can Phenazepam be taken in combination with alcohol? The categorical answer is: no, under no circumstances . If you mix the drug with alcohol, the effect of Phenazepam on the central nervous system will become more noticeable. The following reactions occur:

Indications for use of Phenazepam

Phenazepam is widely used by doctors to treat insomnia, neurotic disorders, panic attacks, stress and phobias, to relieve alcohol and drug withdrawal (o syndrome), as well as for convulsive syndromes and preparation for general anesthesia during operations.

This medicine belongs to the benzodiazepine class of psychotropic drugs. It is stored according to list “B”, that is, it belongs to potent substances. It can only be purchased with a prescription prescribed by a doctor.

Phenazepam is not prescribed for myasthenia gravis, glaucoma, children and adolescents under 18 years of age, pregnant and lactating women, as well as for shock, coma and acute respiratory failure.

Phenazepam is used with caution in cases of liver and kidney failure, depression, organic brain damage, and a tendency to abuse alcohol and psychotropic drugs. It is also not recommended for elderly people to take Phenazepam.

In what cases does an overdose occur? Is it possible to poison yourself with Phenazepam? The drug is strictly incompatible with alcohol. Having a suppressive effect on mental processes and the activity of the central nervous system, the combined use of alcohol and Phenazepam causes severe disturbances in the psyche and basic life processes, including respiratory arrest and death.

According to the instructions, taking this drug is allowed if there are true indications. These include the following pathologies and conditions:

neurosis-like conditions;
alcoholism;
reactive psychoses;
teak;
status epilepticus;
hyperkinesis;
psychopathic conditions;
epileptic seizures;
senesto-hypochondriacal disorders;
psychopathic states;
muscle stiffness;
insomnia;
neurotic conditions;
athetosis;
for premedication in anesthesiology;
substance abuse;
withdrawal syndrome;
myoclonic and temporal lobe epilepsy;
dysfunctions of a vegetative nature;
schizophrenia;
vegetative lability;
conditions;
fear, anxiety, emotional lability, increased irritability.

The annotation indicates the following contraindications to taking Phenazepam:

intolerance;
alcohol poisoning;
coma;
advanced age;
glaucoma;
drug dependence (proved by anamnestic data);
drug poisoning;
liver failure;
breastfeeding;
analgesic poisoning;
hyperkinesis;
respiratory failure in the acute phase;
pregnancy (the entire period and especially the first three months);
apnea at night;
children under 18 years of age;
renal failure;
sleeping pill poisoning;
ataxia;
state of shock;
myasthenia gravis;
hypoproteinemia;
psychosis;
depression with suicidal tendencies;
organic brain pathologies.

About the drug Phenazepam, the instructions for use say that it should not be combined with alcohol. Why?

Stress, anxiety, depression, insomnia - all these are components of the life of almost any person. A prolonged stressful state leads to a deterioration in health and frequent colds, which weaken the body.

Many are diagnosed with convulsive syndrome, which begins with a slight tremor. Based on all these factors, dangerous diseases develop, which can sometimes lead to disastrous consequences.

Doctors, of course, can prescribe antidepressants and sedatives, but most often they prescribe Phenazepam, which is a tranquilizer with an excellent therapeutic effect. As you know, the combination of a sedative with alcohol is not the best, and in this article we will figure out whether this is so, we will consider what indications and contraindications the instructions for using the drug provide.

Lethal quantity

Phenazepam plus ethanol will give an unknown effect, not a single person can say what will happen to the patient after such a dose. The magnitude of the lethal dose is determined by concomitant pathologies, the state of the immune system, the food taken and the presence of drug intolerance.

Pharmaceutical data indicate that 7 ml of the drug in the form of an intravenous injection or 10 mg in tablet form causes an overdose. The patient finds himself between life and death and may die. The possibility of survival is negligible even with competent and timely medical care.

Phenazepam price

The price of the drug Phenazepam ranges from 80-220 rubles. The product is cheap, but the following analogues exist:

Tofisopam;
Lorafen;
Alprazolam;
Lorazepam.

Bromodihydrochlorophenylbenzodiazepine is found in the following medicines:

Fenzitate;
Elzepam;
Tranquesipam;
Phenorelaxan;
Fezanef;
Fesipam.

The price of Phenazepam on the Russian market is:

78-100 Russian rubles per package of 0.0005 mg tablets;
89-133 Russian rubles per package of tablets 0.001 g;
132-194 Russian rubles per package of tablets 0.0025 g;
130-198.5 Russian rubles for 10 ampoules of 0.1% solution.

At the same time, the cost of the drug in pharmacies in Moscow and St. Petersburg is slightly higher than in pharmacies in smaller cities.

The price of Phenazepam in Ukraine is from 35.95 UAH. You can find out how much the drug costs on the Internet or, if there is no price on the pharmacy’s website, by calling the phone number provided.

Very often on forums you can find questions about where to buy Phenazepam without a prescription and how to buy Phenazepam in Moscow if there is no prescription. In this case, most people recommend ordering the drug from an online pharmacy with home delivery.

However, doctors do not advise against buying drugs like Phenazepam online and without a doctor’s prescription.

What happens if you mix Phenazepam with beer?

The Internet contains information that taking Phenazepam in combination with beer, at least non-alcoholic, does not pose any danger. These reviews are based on the fact that the combination of malt and hops is not exactly what people mean by “alcohol.” But this is a mistaken opinion.

However, it is worth noting that if you take Phenazepam with beer, the consequences will not be as serious as when taking the medicine together with stronger alcohol.

The following reactions result from drinking beer with Phenazepam:

Initially, the patient is “knocked out”; the person falls asleep and wakes up 12 hours later, not earlier. Sometimes suffocation occurs in a dream, and a person can die.
The next day, severe depression occurs.
Repeated intake of this combination leads to the development of respiratory disorders, and attacks of suffocation occur even in the absence of alcohol consumption.
There is lethargy and lack of concentration.

Overdose symptoms

The main signs of a drug overdose are:

drowsiness that does not go away under any conditions;
decreased reflex activity;
confusion;
shortness of breath, sometimes quite severe;
coma.

If the patient experiences one or more phenomena, it is necessary to consult a doctor and avoid alcohol consumption. It is important to prevent the person from falling asleep. To do this, you can turn on loud music, pour cold water on the patient and hit him on the cheeks.

You should not neglect such measures as gastric lavage, inducing vomiting, and using laxatives. Quite often, an overdose causes death.

How soon can you take Phenazepam after drinking alcohol?

Phenazepam in combination with alcohol leads to the development of severe consequences. Therefore, you should know how long it is permissible to take Phenazepam after drinking alcohol. The half-life of the drug is 12 hours. This means that every 12 hours its concentration in the human body decreases by half. For example, if initially Phenazepam was 4 ml, then after 12 hours there will be 2 ml, and after another 12 hours - 1 ml.

1 tablet contains 2 mg of Phenazepam. This means that after taking this pill you need to wait 48 hours, no less. After the first 12 hours, 1 mg remained, after 24 hours - 0.5 mg, and so on. After 48 hours, 0.125 mg remains, which is less than the acceptable amount. In turn, after 2 tablets of Phenazepam 96 hours should pass, after 3 - 144 hours.

Main aspects of the drug

The instructions indicate that this drug interacts with a number of other medications:

Before taking the drug, it is necessary to study the interaction of Phenazepam with other medications.
Levodopa. Reduces its effectiveness in patients being treated for parkinsonism.
Zidovudine. Increases its toxic effect.
Antihypertensive drugs. Strengthens their therapeutic effect.
Clozapine. There is a high risk of respiratory depression.
Antipsychotics, ethanol, centrally acting muscle relaxants, antiepileptics, narcotic analgesics, sleeping pills. Taking them in parallel with Phenazepam mutually enhances the therapeutic effect.

Phenazepam is a drug presented in the form of tablets and solution. The tablets are taken orally, this is their minor disadvantage; the effect takes longer than with the parenteral route.

Based on the instructions for use of the drug, its list of indications is significant.

The instructions say that it is aimed at:

Elimination of symptoms of neurotic conditions;
Treatment of the initial stages of alcoholism;
Psychosis after severe moral and physical shocks;
Epileptic seizures;
Involuntary muscle contractions (hyperkinesis);
Psychopathological syndrome;
Seizures of an epileptic nature;
Rigid muscle condition;
Restless sleep, insomnia;
Neurotic syndrome;
Relieving symptoms of substance abuse;
Treatment of withdrawal caused by alcohol addiction;
Schizophrenic syndrome;
Lability of a vegetative nature;
Anxiety, constant fear, severe irritability.

It belongs to a number of sleeping pills, inhibiting the cells of the reticular formation in the brain.
Relieves symptoms of psychological stress.
Affects the thalamus, eliminating the symptoms of various neurotic disorders.
Has a sedative effect.
It leaves the body through the genitourinary system.
Does not affect delusions and hallucinations.
Reduces the number of convulsive manifestations.
Relieves tension from muscles and relaxes them.
Has a suppressive effect on manifestations of fear or anxiety.

Phenazepam is used based on the recommendations and prescription of the doctor, the tablets are used:

If a person cannot sleep, then drink 0.5 mg per half hour.
Treatment of neurotic disorders – 0.5 mg, 3 times a day.
For severe attacks of fear, 1 mg 3 times a day.
Epilepsy attacks - start with 2 ml, but do not exceed 10 mg.
Alcohol withdrawal – 4 mg per day.

Even for disease prevention, the course should not exceed 14 days. If the symptoms are pronounced, the doctor may prescribe treatment for 60 days; weaning off the drug must be gradual.

The solution is used if an immediate solution to the problem is needed:

An epileptic attack is alleviated by 0.5 ml of the drug.
Panic attack of fear – 1 ml, 4 times a day.
Alcohol withdrawal syndrome 0.5 mg once every 24 hours.

The approved drug is sold exclusively by prescription, since its effect on the body is very strong and not always predictable.

How long can you take Phenazepam? Doctors do not recommend exceeding a 2-week course of treatment, otherwise addiction syndrome will appear and more tablets will be required for calming euphoria.
Due to an unauthorized increase in the norm, as well as a quick refusal of the medicine, a person may experience irritability, anger, and resentment towards others.
When taken uncontrolled, this drug destroys cerebral circulation.
Phenazepam is not prescribed during pregnancy, mental illness, renal, hepatic, respiratory, or heart failure.

It is strictly forbidden to give medicine to minor children, as well as to drink to persons under the influence of alcohol or a hangover.

Hangover syndrome and medicine

During a hangover, Phenazepam poses a danger, despite the fact that it is recommended for severe withdrawal symptoms. Why is this happening:

Phenazepam plus alcoholic drinks provoke the development of addiction. Addiction is accompanied by a pronounced withdrawal syndrome.
The medicine is prescribed exclusively by a specialist, the therapeutic course is carried out according to a certain scheme.
An aftereffect is observed, the person loses working capacity, irritability increases and weakness occurs throughout the body.

Let's summarize the general rules for using phenazepam for withdrawal symptoms

Treatment with the medicine will take from several weeks to several months. It is contraindicated to use Phenazepam with alcohol; it is also worth remembering that Phenazepam is a so-called pharmaceutical drug.
When a person is already accustomed to using it, it will be necessary to gradually reduce the dose.
Because phenazepam can also cause withdrawal symptoms and then you won’t have to expect anything good.

That is why, please do not use this drug only as prescribed by your doctor. He will be the one who will be able to select the correct dosages that will not harm you, and under no circumstances should you exceed them. If you want to get rid of problems with alcohol, contact the “Health” clinic. This is where highly qualified specialists can help you and prescribe the right treatment for you. Treatment and all procedures to get rid of alcohol addiction take place strictly under the supervision of experienced doctors. It is in our clinic that they will help you.

Phenazepam and driving

The inhibitory effect of Phenazepam explains the restriction on driving or other activities related to concentration. This is also indicated in the instructions for use of Phenazepam. The medicine imitates the effect of alcohol. Driving a vehicle in this condition is extremely dangerous for all people involved in the traffic. Even if the device does not detect ethanol, the police may send the driver for examination.

In accordance with official documents, a person can drive if the content of Phenazepam in the blood is 10 ng/ml, no more.

It takes at least 3 weeks to confidently drive a vehicle. This depends on the state of health of the person and the testing devices of the traffic police. It is better not to drink alcohol at this time, so as not to interfere with the body’s cleansing of the drug.

Treatment of withdrawal symptoms

First of all, it is worth saying that without treatment, alcohol addiction progresses.
With each new use, a person’s craving for alcohol increases, their general health deteriorates, and the body’s ability to resist illness decreases. Treatment of alcoholism in the full sense of the word is the achievement of freedom from addiction, long-term remission. Such treatment involves drug detoxification of the body, rehabilitation and adaptation to ordinary life - socialization.

Why should you not take phenazepam if you have a hangover?

Phenazepam and some other benzodiazepines are used in complex multi-day treatment of acute alcohol withdrawal. But to relieve anxiety during a hangover, the use of this drug is not recommended for the following reasons:

If, against the background of a hangover, alcohol still remains in the blood, then these tablets will enhance its effect on the central nervous system. This is especially dangerous after alcoholic excesses, when the concentration of ethanol in the blood is high. Phenazepam sleep during alcohol intoxication greatly increases the likelihood of complications of drunken sleep - respiratory depression, cardiac arrest, vomiting in the supine position, crash syndrome, retrograde amnesia, involuntary urination and defecation;
This medicine quickly causes addiction, and then dependence with the development of withdrawal symptoms, which are more severe than withdrawal from alcohol. It is important that in those who drink alcohol, dependence on phenazepam develops faster than in other patients. Withdrawal symptoms often include depersonalization, hallucinations, and epileptic seizures;
In patients with altered reactivity (adolescents, elderly people, athletes, cannabinoid users, patients taking psychoactive substances, people with hereditary metabolic characteristics), MDD agonists can cause paradoxical reactions (acute arousal, anxiety, hallucinations, nightmares, fits of rage, inappropriate behavior );
the drug itself causes an aftereffect syndrome (decreased performance, muscle weakness, irritability), which sharply narrows the possibilities for treating acute cases of hangover.

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By the way, it is the content of MDD agonists in beer (hop components), on the one hand, that determines the calming effect of beer, and on the other hand, the difficulties in treating a beer hangover and the more severe course of beer alcoholism. (You can find out how to effectively deal with a beer hangover, as well as a lot of other interesting information about this alcoholic drink, in the article “10 Useful Facts for Beer Lovers.”)

How the drug works. Application and contraindications

Phenazepam (bromodihydrochlorophenylbenzodiazepine) is one of the most widely used benzodiazepine tranquilizers, with a predominant anxiolytic (anxiety-relieving) effect. All drugs in this series penetrate the blood-brain barrier and bind to specific benzodiazepine receptors (BDRs) in the central nervous system.

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Initially, these receptors were given independent significance, but later it turned out that their purpose was to increase the sensitivity of other receptors, namely, gamma-aminobutyric acid (aminobutyrate, GABA, GABA) receptors to their natural agonist (agonist is the active principle that causes the normal behavior of the object or target. Compare with the opposite meaning “antagonist”).

Gamma-aminobutyric acid is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter of the central nervous system. Increasing the sensitivity of receptors to GABA through excitation of the MDD leads to an increase in the action of the inhibitory transmitter and determines the main effects of benzodiazepines - mental relaxation, drowsiness, lethargy, and decreased emotional sensitivity.

Contraindications for the use of phenazepam are: depression, severe liver and kidney dysfunction, glaucoma, poisoning with tranquilizers, antipsychotics (neuroleptics), sleeping pills, narcotics.