You might wonder, how long does Xanax remain in your system. With all of the side effects associated with this drug, one would assume that it would be eliminated quickly by the time it reaches the urinary tract. But that is not how it works. Long term use of benzodiazepines can cause a build up of toxins in the body, including those in the urine. In fact, most patients are unaware of how long they will have to deal with the side effects and are unaware that they will have to cease using the drug.
If the long term effects of taking the highest dosage of xanax you can legally possess lasts more than three days, you must stop taking it under the provisions of your doctor's orders. At that point, you should consult your physician about further treatment. The withdrawal symptoms from xanax will likely be intense, so it is important that you are extremely comfortable with the idea of eliminating the medication from your life. You can do that through a carefully monitored, gradual decrease in the daily dose and the continuous replacement of the pills with a lower, more natural dose of Xanax.
For most people, the answer to the question 'How long does xanax remain in your system' is not very long. It is safe to remove the pills for at least four days. This allows your body to break down the pills over time and reduces the possibility of severe side effects. In most cases, a gradual decrease in the amount of xanax taken each day is adequate. You do not want to abruptly stop taking the medication because you did not take long enough or it may lead to severe headaches, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea.
Some patients find that their urine tests result become slightly elevated for a short period of time after discontinuing the use of xanax. It is not unusual for this to last for two to three days, however, and most patients report no ill effects. Keep in mind that urine test results are only one method of measuring the drug's effects in your body; therefore, it is extremely unlikely that you will have any other negative side effects. In most cases, the urine test will simply confirm that you are not pregnant or lactating and that there are no hormonal changes occurring. Once the effect of xanax in your urine ceases, the test will be repeated and your current dosage will be increased accordingly.
Two things could cause variation in the detection time between urine testing and the dosage of xanax. First, there could be a small difference between the dilution of the pills with saliva and the concentration of the drug in the blood stream. This would only result in a slightly higher detection time. Secondly, there could be a significant change in the concentration of the active ingredient between the two. In both of these cases, the medication could be cut down or even discontinued.
How long does xanax stay in your system depends on how long the pills are taken. Taking two pills a day does not raise the concentration in your blood stream very dramatically, but many individuals do have long-term cumulative effects from taking the medication. If you take two pills a day or more, your body will eventually break down completely and cease its metabolic function. This could result in death due to starvation of the metabolism or organ failure brought on by organ damage. This is not the intended result of the medication, so anyone taking the pills should seek medical attention right away.
The length of time that xanax stays in your system depends greatly on how well your liver is able to metabolize the drug. Many people with liver problems find it very difficult to metabolize large doses of medications and they experience extreme symptoms when they attempt to stop taking the pills. The liver's inability to metabolize means that the medication cannot be safely and comfortably removed from the body. For this reason, withdrawal symptoms often lead many people to believe that their medication has either expired or that it cannot be taken any longer. However, there are several factors that contribute to how long a certain medication will remain in your body including your age, liver condition, your current medical circumstances and how long you plan to stay on the medication.
When considering how long does xanax stay in your system, it is also important to consider how long it would take for withdrawal symptoms to appear if you were no longer taking the medication. If you were taking an extremely high dosage, you could experience symptoms almost immediately. Even if you were taking a lower dose, you could experience symptoms before the medication had even left your system. Therefore, it is important to consult your doctor when considering whether or not you should stop taking the medication and when withdrawal symptoms occur.
