Dose - A very interesting question: Alprazolam equivalence to Alcohol?

[bosch man]

Well to me anyway!

I see alot of clued up folk here so answer this.

Alprazolam at .25mg known as alcohol in a pill so what in your opinion is this dose equivilant to in alcohol units? It must have an equivilant if they work on the same receptors, i ask because its well known that you need to be drinking 15 + units daily to suffer withdrawal effects if quitting and 30 units daily to risk seizure. So in theory if you only do a certain amount of alprazolam aday you could easily quit without withdrawal?

I took .125mg and it felt to me around 4 units of alcohol! But lasted around 6 + hours whereas the alcohol effect at that level lasts around 1 hour.

Any input appreciated wether you think this is a stupid post or not! LOL.

[Politicalchalk]

Well, since Swiy requested any input (and Swim has spent a little while thinking about it), there are clear similarities between alcohol and benzos.

However, Swim is hesitant to, in essence, call it "alcohol in pill form." It's misleading and inaccurate. A better phrase would be "Structurally similar to, but different from alcohol."

Sorry Swim can't really help with the number game though!

[honourableone]

Originally Posted by Politicalchalk

Well, since Swiy requested any input (and Swim has spent a little while thinking about it), there are clear similarities between alcohol and benzos.

However, Swim is hesitant to, in essence, call it "alcohol in pill form." It's misleading and inaccurate. A better phrase would be "Structurally similar to, but different from alcohol."

Sorry Swim can't really help with the number game though!

I agree, directly comparing doses for drugs this different isn't really going to achieve much. What did you mean by stucturally similar? Because the stucture of alprazolam is much more complicated than ethanol, and lacks a hydroxy group (and an ethyl group for that matter). I will agree similarity in that they both have an effect on GABAA receptors though.

@ bosch man: sorry I didn't answer your question more directly, but I feel that you consider alcohol and benzodiazepines to be more similar than they are. I would be interested in knowing where you got the term "alcohol in pill form" from.

[Ilsa]

agreed wth swi-honourable, the op is comparing apples and oranges, so to speak. alcohol acts on a different pathway in the brain than benzos...its actions in the brain are well-documented:

Table 1: Alcohol's Effect on Neurotransmitters and Receptors

• Glutamate
  • Alcohol inhibits glutamate receptor function
  • This causes muscular relaxation, discoordination, slurred speech, staggering, memory disruption, and blackouts
  • Ether and chloroform have similar effects on the glutamate system
• GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)
  • Alcohol enhances GABA receptor function
  • This causes feelings of calm, anxiety-reduction and sleep
  • Valium has a similar effect on the GABA system
• Dopamine
  • Alcohol raises dopamine levels
  • This leads to excitement and stimulation
  • Cocaine and amphetamine have similar effects on the dopamine system
• Endorphins
  • Alcohol raises endorphin levels
  • This kills pain and leads to an endorphin "high"
  • Morphine and heroin have similar effects on the endorphin system

reference


benzodiazepines, like alprazolam, act one GABA A receptors, enhancing their activity, the net result of which is a calmative effect.


so, although ethanol and benzo's share this aspect of their effects on the brain at a cellular level, teh net effects are very different. the reference to alprazolam being 'alcohol in a pill' is indeed misguided.


it's effects may feel like being drunk to swiy--everyone responds in subtle and not-so-subtle ways due to differences in physiology, among other factors. do not try to dose this med as one would ethanol. start low (which swiy has done--good job there for being cautious) and work up. one can always take a little more, but it's not so possible to 'untake' something.

Reputation Comments on this post:

	nice detailed response
	Excellent information. It taught me something about alcohol's neurological effects.

[gmeziscool2354]

Is SWIop a recovering alcoholic and using the benzo as an aid?

it seems so. swim would imagine taking the pill exactly as reccomended by the prescribing dr. would be ones best bet

Reputation Comments on this post:

good advice

[bosch man]

...not a recovering alcoholic...i drink too a little too much admittedly to calm my anxiety and the doc says i'd be best off trying a benzo as its safer and more for the job!

[soma]

For SWIM (as a benzo-tolerant SWIMMER), he feels that 1mg alprazolam = 1 shot of standard (say, 80 proof) vodka. Though, he does find alprazolam markedly more euphoric, cleaner, and without hangover. This is because benzos bind to gaba(a) very selectively, whereas, as one of the above poster stated, ethanol is a very non-selective chemical. Therefore, the physical intoxication will be stronger with alcohol (i.e. inability to walk), whereas the mental intoxication will be very similar to higher doses of alcohol (i.e. SWIM may not feel intoxicated, but have some mild amnesia. Long story short, the vast effects of alcohol is mediated by the large amount of receptors it hits. Therefore, benzos feel more cleaner, are more euphoric, and safer.