Antipsychotic medications work by altering your brain chemistry to reduce psychotic symptoms like

hallucinations, delusions and disordered thinking. They also help prevent those symptoms from
returning. Antipsychotic medications, sometimes referred to as neuroleptics or major tranquilizers, are
prescribed to treat schizophrenia and to reduce the symptoms associated with psychotic conditions such
as bipolar, psychotic depression, senile psychoses, various organic psychoses, and drug-induced
psychoses. People experiencing psychosis are sometimes, but not always, a danger to themselves and
others. Antipsychotic medications have both a short-term sedative effect and the long-term effect of
reducing the chances of psychotic episodes. Most drugs are available in oral dosage forms (tablets, dry
powder, and capsules), while some can be given in parenteral form (intramuscular and intravenous
injections).

Types of Antipsychotics

This category of medications fall into two categories:

Typical Antipsychotics, or First Generation Antipsychotic Drugs. The typical, or conventional,

antipsychotics were first developed in the 1950s. Haldol (haloperidol) and Thorazine (chlorpromazine)
are the best known typical antipsychotics. They continue to be useful in the treatment of severe
psychosis and behavioral problems when newer medications are ineffective. However, these
medications do have a high risk of side effects, some of which are quite severe. In response to the
serious side effects of many typical antipsychotics, drug manufacturers developed another category
referred to as atypical antipsychotics.

Atypical Antipsychotics, or Second Generation Antipsychotic Drugs. These new medications were
approved for use in the 1990s. Clozapine, asenapine, olanzapine, quetiapine, paliperidone, risperidone,
sertindole, ziprasidone, zotepine, and aripiprazole are atypical antipsychotic drugs. With the discovery of
clozapine in 1959, it became evident that this drug was less likely to produce extrapyramidal effects
(physical symptoms such as tremors, paranoia, anxiety, dystonia, etc. as a result of improper doses or
adverse reactions to this class of drug) in humans at clinically effective doses than some other types of
antipsychotics. Clozapine was categorized as the first atypical antipsychotic drug. This category of drugs
has also been of great value in studying the pathophysiology of schizophrenia and other psychoses.

Commonly Prescribed Typical and Atypical Antipsychotic Medications

Commonly prescribed typical antipsychotics include:

Haldol (haloperidol)

Loxitane (loxapine)

Mellaril (thioridazine)

Moban (molindone)

Navane (thiothixene)

Prolixin (fluphenazine)
Serentil (mesoridazine)

Stelazine (trifluoperazine)

Trilafon (perphenazine)

Thorazine (chlorpromazine)

Commonly prescribed atypical antipsychotics include:

Abilify (aripiprazole)

Clozaril (clozapine)

Geodon (ziprasidone)

Risperdal (risperidone)

Seroquel (quetiapine)

Zyprexa (olanzapine)

Kinds of antipsychotic medication

Modern medications for treating psychosis are known as ‘second-generation’ or ‘atypical’

antipsychotics. Some common atypical antipsychotics include:

Aripiprazole

Clozapine

Olanzapine

Quetiapine

Risperidone

ziprasidone

These are the names of the drugs themselves, but they’re often sold under different brand names.

Older, ‘first-generation’ or ‘typical’ antipsychotic medications are generally only prescribed if the
second-generation medications aren’t working for you.

Commonly prescribed typical antipsychotics include:

Haldol (haloperidol)

Loxitane (loxapine)
Mellaril (thioridazine)

Moban (molindone)

Navane (thiothixene)

Prolixin (fluphenazine)

Serentil (mesoridazine)

Stelazine (trifluoperazine)

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Antidepressants are a class of drugs that reduce symptoms of depressive disorders by correcting
chemical imbalances of neurotransmitters in the brain. Chemical imbalances may be responsible for
changes in mood and behavior.

Neurotransmitters are vital, as they are the communication link between nerve cells in the brain.
Neurotransmitters reside within vesicles found in nerve cells, which are released by one nerve and taken
up by other nerves. Neurotransmitters not taken up by other nerves are taken up by the same nerves
that released them. This process is called "reuptake." The prevalent neurotransmitters in the brain
specific to depression are serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine (also called noradrenaline).

In general, antidepressants work by inhibiting the reuptake of specific neurotransmitters, hence

increasing their levels around the nerves within the brain, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
(SSRIs), antidepressants that will affect serotonin levels in the brain.

Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) side effects

Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) are a class of antidepressant associated with sedation, dry mouth,
blurred vision, constipation, urinary retention, and increased pressure in the eye. They are also
associated with hypertension, abnormal heart rhythms, anxiety, insomnia, seizures, headache, rash,
nausea, and vomiting, abdominal cramps, weight loss, and sexual dysfunction. Tricyclic antidepressants
rarely cause liver failure.
Tricyclic antidepressants:

Amitriptyline.

Amoxapine.

Desipramine (Norpramin)

Doxepin.

Imipramine (Tofranil)

Nortriptyline (Pamelor)

Protriptyline (Vivactil)

Trimipramine (Surmontil)

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) side effects

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin/norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs)
are two classes of antidepressants associated with abnormal thinking, agitation, anxiety, dizziness,
headache, insomnia, sexual dysfunction, sedation, tremor, sweating, weight loss, diarrhea, constipation,
dry mouth, rash, and nausea. Rarely, SSRIs have been associated with hyponatremia (low sodium),
hypoglycemia (low blood glucose), and seizures.

The SSRIs Drugs to treat depression:

Citalopram (Celexa)

Escitalopram (Lexapro)

Fluoxetine (Prozac)

Paroxetine (Paxil, Pexeva)

Sertraline (Zoloft)

Vilazodone (Viibryd)

Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) side effects

Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) are a class of antidepressant associated with postural
hypotension (feeling faint upon standing due to decreased blood flow to the brain), high blood pressure,
fainting, abnormal heart rhythm, dizziness, headache, drowsiness, insomnia, anxiety, constipation,
nausea, diarrhea, sexual dysfunction, weight gain or weight loss, and edema. Seizures, rash, blurred
vision, and hepatitis are infrequently associated with MAOIs.
The MAOIs Drugs to treat depression:

Isocarboxazid (Marplan)

Phenelzine (Nardil)

Selegiline (Emsam)

Tranylcypromine (Parnate)

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Intravenous anti-obsessive agents: a review. Oral antidepressants are currently the first-line
pharmacotherapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), but response rates can often be
low and with delayed onset of therapeutic action anti-obsessive agents may have faster onset
of action and greater efficacy.

Fluvoxamine
Clomipramine
NCBI.nml.com
Antianxiety drugs are medicines that calm and relax people with excessive anxiety,
nervousness, or tension, or for short-term control of social phobia disorder or specific phobia
disorder. Antianxiety Drugs.
The antidepressants most widely prescribed for anxietyare SSRIs such as Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil,
Lexapro, and Celexa. SSRIs have been used to treat generalizedanxiety disorder (GAD),
obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, and post-
traumatic stress disorder.

alprazolam (Xanax)
clonazepam (Klonopin)
diazepam (Valium)
lorazepam (Ativan)
oxazepam (Serax)

Stimulants, as the name suggests, are drugs that increase the alertness of the user causing
increased attention, heightened energy and elevated blood pressure. These drugs essentially
stimulate the user and have been widely used throughout medical history in the treatment of asthma,
obesity, various neurological disorders and for certain respiratory problems. Many stimulants were
widely accepted as safe for a long time but as use increased and the dangers became more evident,
these drugs became less prescribed and less accepted except in the most dire cases.
 Today, stimulants are only used in the treatment of a couple of different disorders including ADHD
and certain types of hyperactivity disorder as well as narcolepsy, a chronic sleep disorder that
causes the sufferer to fall asleep at any give point and time. Even when prescribed for these cases,
stimulants are used as a last resort when other methods of treatment have failed.

Drugs that can be classified as stimulants include:

 caffeine
 nicotine
 cocaine
 amphetamines
 methamphetamine
 certain prescription drugs

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An anxiolytic (also antipanic or antianxiety agent) is the medication or other intervention that
inhibits anxiety. This effect is in contrast to anxiogenic agents, which increase anxiety. ...
Anxiolytic medications have been used for the treatment of anxiety disorder and its related
psychological and physical symptoms.

enzodiazepines include:
 Alprazolam (Xanax)
 Bromazepam (Lectopam, Lexotan)
 Chlordiazepoxide (Librium)
 Clonazepam (Klonopin, Rivotril)
 Clorazepate (Tranxene)
 Diazepam (Valium)
 Flurazepam (Dalmane)
 Lorazepam (Ativan)