How Long Does 5 Xanax Last (And Why)?

How Long Does 5 Xanax Last (And Why)?

Exact Answer: Atleast 4 Days

Xanax is the brand name of a general medicine called alprazolam. Xanax belongs to a group of prescription drugs that are called benzodiazepines or benzos for short. It includes other medications such as Diazepam, Lorazepam, and Clonazepam.

Benzodiazepines are drugs that work by slowing down the brain and central nervous system. Taking Xanax won’t cause a ‘high’, unlike some other drugs, will do. When the CNS tranquilizes, people with anxiety disorders, stress, depressive disorders, and panic disorders will feel a calming effect that helps soothe their symptoms.

Xanax is the most prescribed psychotropic medication in most parts of the world. It works for many people, but it can also become habit-forming and has numerous side effects.

How Long Does 5 Xanax Last

How Long Does 5 Xanax Last?

Detection TestsDuration
Urine Test5 to 7 Days
Saliva Test2 & 1/2 Days
Blood Test1 to 6 Days
Hair Test1 to 7 Days

The tests used for detecting Xanax in an individual’s system are urine tests, blood tests, saliva swabs, and analysis of hair follicles. Urine tests are the most used, but the length of time that Xanax remains in the bodily fluids, depending on how much the drugs have been in use as abuse. As for irregular consumers, a urine test will not help detect after four days, but for heavy users, it can, up to one week.

Tests for saliva and blood work on a shorter timeline. Although they can detect Xanax shortly after a dose, unfortunately, saliva tests work only for 2.5 days after the last dosage, and blood tests are only detectable for a day. Hair follicles tests detect the drug for at least one month after the most recent dosage as the drug accumulates in traces in the hair follicles.

Nevertheless, it takes much longer to show up in hair follicles than in any bodily fluids. A sample of hair, soon after someone uses Xanax, will result negative for the drug. It is not very uncommon for a person to get addicted to a benzodiazepine to get tested for the substance as part of drug treatment.

Several occupations need to test for drugs and their similar medications that create sedative effects, including benzodiazepines if heavy machinery is involved. So it is necessary to switch to different medication days or weeks before appealing for one of these jobs.

Why Does 5 Xanax Last That Long?

Xanax or Alprazolam is a very quick-acting drug. Its effect can only last for roughly 4 hours. Even though it doesn’t last too long as the half-life of Xanax is just 11.2 hours. Thus, give the explanation for both, why somebody with a prescription has to take the drug multiple times in a day and why Xanax withdrawal lasts for so long the substance stays in your body for a long time, it just becomes ineffective after 4 hours.

When Alprazolam enters the body, it is processed in the liver. The liver will then metabolize it into two types of primary metabolites, 4-hydroxyalprazolam and α-hydroxyalprazolam. It takes around five half-lives for a substance to clear from the body and with a half-life of only 11.2 hours. So, the assumption is that elimination of Xanax from the body can happen after 2 to 4 days. Several factors affect the detection of how long Xanax can stay in the system through a drug test.

  • Age, weight, metabolism, liver function, mental health, and other health factors: Older individuals, those overweight, or those with a poor metabolism will take longer to process and excrete Xanax. A younger individual with healthy liver function, on the other hand, won’t take that long.
  • Frequency, Dose of Xanax, and Length of drug use: The habit of drug intake also influences the amount of time it takes for the body to process Xanax. The strength of the dose, the time, and how frequent is the drug intake determine how long it will stay in the system and show up on drug tests.
  • Alcohol and nicotine intake might slow down the metabolization of Xanax, making it last in the system longer.

Conclusion

Conclusively, there is no means to know how long the drug will be visible in a drug test. If anyone has to cross a drug test, the most favorable thing they could do is to not involve in Xanax abuse in the first place itself.

Several Xanax alternatives exist for people who suffer from anxiety, depression, or panic disorders. The most reasonable options are other types of benzodiazepines. Each of them has its own individual set of advantages and disadvantages.

For some individuals, SSRIs or Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors can relieve symptoms caused by depression, anxiety, and panic disorders. These antidepressants can also provide an advantage to those dealing with co-occurring depression. They can conceivably address symptoms related to that, as well.

Reference

  1. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.2190/DE.37.4.e
  2. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/00952999109001605
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