There are some categories of drugs that this medicine interacts with and it is extremely important to know about these interactions before and during administration of this medicine. If you are receiving Xanax, your pharmacist or doctor may have already asked you about other drugs you are taking in order to monitor their interaction for you. In any case, you should never begin, discontinue or change the dose of this medicine or other drugs you are taking, before consulting your doctor or pharmacist.

Generally, you should seek doctor’s advice if taking this medication along with such medicines as antifungals, anti-depressants, anti-seizure drugs, antihistamines, psychiatric drugs, sedatives and tranquilizers, muscle relaxants, narcotic pain relievers, and antibiotics.

More specifically, this drug must not be used with the following types of medication that can cause a very serious interaction - some azole antifungals (such as ketoconazole and itraconazole, which contribute to building up of the drug in your body); delavirdine; sodium oxybate and indinavir. Other interactions that have a milder degree of danger related to interaction, but are still preferably to be avoided, are with digoxin, clozapine, disulfiram and kava.

You should always verify the labels on all your drugs, even the medicines for cold and cough, because they may contain some ingredients that may cause drowsiness. To be safe and sure, it is always better to ask your pharmacist or doctor.

The drug is dangerous to a fetus or a newborn child, so if you are pregnant, planning to become pregnant or have just had a baby, you should not take this medication. The risk for the baby is associated with muscular weakness and respiratory problems. The drug may also show in the breast milk and affect your nursing baby. Another possible consequence for your baby may be withdrawal symptoms.

You should always remember not to discontinue the use of Xanax abruptly and/or without consulting your doctor.

Overdose

This medicine is not prescribed to children under the age of 18 years. For adults, the dosage is determined individually but is usually starting at between 0.25 and 0.75 mg per day. The starting dosage may increase to 1 mg for Xanax XR. Increasing incrementally at a rate not higher than 1 mg every 3 to 4 days, the dose of medicine usually reaches 3 to 6 mg a day.

Overdose can occur when these dosages are breached or at interactions with other substances such as other anti-depressants and/or alcohol. In rare cases such an overdose can be fatal. Fatality is a greater concern for elderly people receiving this medication.

The main symptoms of overdose result from its reflection of the brain’s central nervous system and include, but are not limited to, the following:

Hypotension (low blood pressure), confusions, dizziness, impaired coordination and balance, disorientation, hypoventilation (short and shallow breathing), somnolence, slowed reaction time and impaired or absent reflexes, muscle weakness, fainting, coma and death.

It was shown that about half of the cases of death are resultant from toxicity of the drug in its interaction with another drugs, most frequently methadone and cocaine. The drug alone is blamed for a lethal result in only 1% of all cases.

It should be noted that it is illegal under US law to share Xanax medication with others.