Psychotropic medication alleviates the symptoms of mental disorders and is often used in combination with psychotherapy. Many patients who have been prescribed psychotropic medications find that they are able to live full and active lives, but the side effects of these drugs are different for every individual. Below are the different classifications of psychotropic drugs.

Stimulants can cause an increase in alertness and wakefulness. They work to increase dopamine and norepinephrine activity. Stimulants that have medicinal uses include amphetamines. These kind of psychotropic medications can be used to treat lethargy, narcolepsy and ADHD. Possible side effects of stimulants include anxiety (even though some stimulants can be used to treat anxiety) and changes to blood pressure and heart rate.

Depressants are the direct opposite of stimulants, in terms of function. Depressants decrease activity in specific parts of the mind or body, often by facilitating opioid and GABA activity. They can be used as sedatives, hypnotics and anxiolytics. Anxiolytics are drugs that are used for the treatment of anxiety disorders, and they may also be used to treat insomnia and other sleep disorders. The most common depressants are barbiturates and benzodiazepines.

Barbiturates, including thiopental (sold under the trade name Pentothal), secobarbital (or Seconal) and am barbital (or Amytal) are psychotropic medications that can be used in the treatment of anxiety, although they have largely been replaced by safer benzodiazepines.

Barbiturates work by preventing signals from stimulating the region of the brain known as the reticular activating system. This part of the brain is responsible for the control of arousal, attention and the waking state. Barbiturates have similar side effects to benzodiazepines, but they are usually more severe. Patients can also become addicted to barbiturates. An overdose of barbiturates is very serious and can even be fatal.

Benzodiazepines are used to treat anxiety and insomnia. They include diazepam (or Valium), lorazepam (or Ativan), clonazepam (or Klonopin), triazolam (or Halcion) and alprazolam (or Xanax). They work by increasing the activity of GABA, a neurotransmitter. Possible side effects that can be experienced by patients taking benzodiazepines include dry mouth, apathy, drowsiness, sexual dysfunction and weight gain.

Muscle is better known for its ability to flex and give shape to a body. Like any other part of the body, muscles too are prone to diseases. Muscle Diseases, like any other kind of disease and infection, can affect anybody. It can even make a person physically disabled. The Muscle Diseases often make the person weak. The person suffering from Muscle Diseases is under constant pain and feels weakness in the muscles. He or she finds it difficult to walk, sit and get up, climb, run, lift or carry, or move the limbs. In most cases, progressive muscle wasting followed by contraction of muscles takes place. Muscle Diseases vary in their conditions and require different types of treatment. While some treatments respond to medicine, the others have ‘only’ a chance of improvement. Muscle Diseases may be caused due to various reasons. Some Muscle Diseases are genetic. These are caused due to defective genes in the body. Such diseases are genetic disorders that can make the individual permanently disabled, physically.

Genetic Muscle Diseases often need not be inherited from a parent with a family history of genetic disorder. This can happen spontaneously, due to gene abnormality. These diseases may affect the eyes, cause muscle wasting and even paralysis. The most well-known disease of the muscle occurring genetically is Muscular Dystrophy, or muscle-wasting disease. This is caused by the error in the gene and can affect anybody at any age. It is also known to affect the heart in some cases. Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), a muscle-wasting disease, affects only boys, unlike muscular dystrophy. There are other diseases that are non-genetic Muscle Diseases. These are acquired gradually and not caused genetically. These diseases may be caused by body’s own immune system, some kind of hormonal imbalance or even a disorder caused by the intake of medicines.

One such acquired disease is the inflammatory Muscle Disease, where the immune system of the body injures its own muscles. There are the metabolic Muscle Diseases, which may not be as common as the other Muscle Diseases. But once affected it has very little chance of recovery. These are caused by deficiencies in the enzymes. The symptoms begin with weakness of the muscles, until the condition of the ailing person deteriorates. For instance, the Carbohydrate-Processing Disorders is a type of metabolic disease where the breakdown of glycogen or glucose is affected.