One of the ways in which some of the antianxiety agents work is by induc-
ing muscle relaxation. Such relaxation has been found to be antagonistic to
anxiety.
A trade name for diazepam is Valium. A trade name for meprobamate is
Miltown. A trade name for alprazolam is Xanax. There are a number of other
antianxiety agents.(a) What kind of therapy passes a mild electric current through the frontal lobes of the
brain?(b) agents are drugs that treat mental disorders characterized by a loss of
touch with reality.(c) What is another term used to classify antianxiety agents?Answers: (a) Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT); (b) Antipsychotic; (c) Minor tranquilizers.Antidepressant agentsare used to treat such mental disorders as dysthymia
and major depressive disorder. The three basic types of antidepressants are (1) tri-
cyclic agents, (2) monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors, and (3) selective serotonin
reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). The three types work in somewhat different ways. The
tricyclic agents and the MAO inhibitors regulate the activity of the neurotransmit-
ter norephinephrine, and to some extent serotonin. The SSRIs, as their name indi-
cates, selectively regulate the activity of the neurotransmitter serotonin.
A trade name for imipramine, a tricyclic agent, is Tofranil. A trade name for
phenelzine, an MAO inhibitor, is Nardil. A trade name for fluoxetine, an SSRI, is
Prozac.
Mood-stabilizing agentsare used primarily to treat cyclothymia and bi-
polar disorder. Strictly speaking, antidepressant agents also have the effect of sta-
bilizing mood. However, the term mood-stabilizing agentsis reserved for drugs that
treat disorders in which emotional states such as mania alternate with emotional
states such as depression.
Lithium carbonate, a natural mineral salt, is the best known mood-
stabilizing agent. Its way of working is not completely understood. However, it
does appear to regulate the activity of certain neurotransmitters and promote
desirable changes in the ways in which some neurons function.
Trade names for lithium carbonate include Carbolith and Lithotabs.
Psychiatric drugs are treatments, not cures, for mental disorders. They help a
troubled person live with a chronic problem. The principal aim associated with
their use is long-term management of a mental disorder.
Also, psychiatric drugs have potentially toxic side effects. That is why all of
them are prescription drugs and should be administered under the watchful eye of
a medical doctor familiar with their various actions. All psychiatrists are medical242 PSYCHOLOGY