ANXIOLYTICS

The advantages of the benzodiazepine class of medications was safety safety safety. Whereas it was quite common for people to die from the pre-benzodiazepine era anxiolytics, it was quite uncommon that someone could die from these type anxiolytics. Further, there later developed an antidote that would reverse the sedative effects of benzodiazepine medications in an individual who had taken an overdose. An additional welcome feature of the benzodiazepines is that tolerance did not develop. This meant that if a certain dose was effective to calm a certain level of anxiety in a particular person, it would continue to have the same degree of effectiveness despite the person taking the medication even for years.