What are the dangers and effects of mixing Muscle relaxers and Alcohol?

Introduction to Muscle relaxers:

 As their name suggests, Muscle relaxers are used as a medication for relief from muscular spasms and muscle aches and pain. Muscle relaxers are related to 2 drug classes called Antispasmodics and Antispastics. Antispasmodics work by affecting the central nervous system and reducing muscle pain. In contrast, Antispastics reduce pain by directly affecting the muscles present in the spinal cord, which helps in muscle spasms. Muscle relaxers are generally prescribed more for acute pain rather than chronic pain by the doctor. Muscle relaxers work by affecting the muscles in such a way that the muscles tend to become less stiff and tense. Muscle relaxers also act on the central nervous system and the chemicals that send pain signals to the brain.

Types of Muscle relaxers:

1. Diazepam

2. Carisoprodol

3. Cyclobenzaprine

4. Metaxalone 

Muscle relaxer drugs that fall under Antispasmodics

1. Dantrolene

2. Baclofen

3. Tizanidine

What Is Alcohol

Alcohol effects depend upon person to person. But the results caused due to alcohol in the body are entirely negative. Alcohol directly gets entered into the bloodstream and starts affecting the body, and people begin experiencing the effect such as:

1. Dizziness

2. Reduced inhibitions

3. Concentration problems

Many health effects are also associated with the consumption of alcohol such as:

1. Serious liver diseases

2. Heart issues

3. Breathing problems

4. Mental disorders

5. Interaction with many medications

Relation between Muscle Relaxers and Alcohol

 It is a natural tendency of an individual to take the medication of muscle relaxers to lower and cure the muscle pain and muscle ache. But there are some people who look upon some other alternatives apart from medicines.

People try to find the resort to alcohol where they think a glass of drink can kill their pain. It can produce pain-relieving effects and reduce the pain. But similar to every other medication, Alcohol can cause a negative impact on health when a person is taking muscle relaxers.

Taking alcohol along with muscle relaxers is a bad idea as it worsens the situation. But what exactly are the dangers of mixing muscle relaxers and alcohol?

Affecting the nervous system

 Muscle relaxers work by affecting the brain and the nervous system. It slows down brain activity to decrease pain. This results in calmness. This is the same thing happening with an individual when they consume alcohol.

Taking muscle relaxers and alcohol together can depress the nervous system. The combined effect of both can make a body experience symptom in greater intensity. People tend to feel drowsier and sleepier when using muscle relaxers and alcohol together as compared to taking only one of them.

Lead to Addiction

Many people generally develop alcohol addiction. As muscle relaxers provide pain relief and calmness and can lead to drowsiness, people may get addicted to muscle relaxers and alcohol together. Both of them contain addictive substances. Long-term usage of them can result in addiction.

Mental health disorders

It can badly affect the mental health of an individual. People might face mental health issues and disorders such as depression, suicidal thoughts, anxiety, social anxiety disorders, panic attacks, and many more. Addiction to both- muscle relaxers and alcohol can lead to mental health deterioration. 

Major health issues

Every medication which is prescribed to people does not go hand in hand with alcohol. Alcohol contributes to increasing the risk of side effects, and many of them are severe side effects.

Similarly, Alcohol with muscle relaxers can have the following health side effects:

1. Shallow breathing

2. Dry mouth

3. Constipation

4. Memory problems

5. Nausea

This combination of muscle relaxers and alcohol can lead to the following severe and serious side effects:

1. Blurred vision

2. Risk of overdose

3. Liver damage

4. Seizures

5. Blood pressure

6. Brain damage

This combination can be fatal and increases the risk of the problems mentioned above. It can lead to loss of life if proper precautions are not taken and alcohol consumption and muscle relaxers are not terminated. 

Conclusion

Consumption of muscle relaxers along with alcohol is not a good idea at all. People following such a combination should immediately stop this as it can cause many health-related as mentioned above. This combination can be really addictive and may result in the case of overdose, where a person may also lose his life.

As both alcohol and muscle relaxers work in the same way, it increases the intensity and the volume of the effects that should take place and increases the potential health risk.

Thus, it is better to consult your doctor about your drinking habits, if any, before taking any muscle relaxer or else you can also visit Painosoma which provides information on muscle relaxers from trusted sources.

Reference: 

https://patient.info/bones-joints-muscles/muscle-relaxants

https://www.therecoveryvillage.com/alcohol-abuse/alcohol-and-muscle-relaxers/

https://www.healthline.com/health/muscle-relaxers-and-alcohol#takeaway

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/muscle-relaxers