This transcript has been edited for clarity. Madhukar Trivedi, MD: Hello. Welcome to the podcast. My name is Madhukar Trivedi. I’m professor of psychiatry at UT Southwestern and the founding director of the Center for Depression Research and Clinical Care. Today it gives me great pleasure to introduce my colleague and friend, Dr Jonathan Downar, … Read more
When benzodiazepines were first introduced, they were greeted with enthusiasm. Librium came first, in 1960, followed by Valium in 1962, and they were seen as an improvement over barbiturates for the treatment of anxiety, insomnia, and seizures. From 1968 to 1982, Valium (diazepam) was the No. 1-selling US pharmaceutical: 2.3 billion tablets of Valium were … Read more
Insomnia rates continue to rise in the setting of the pandemic,1 Contributing to increasing rates of depression and anxiety, as well as worsening symptoms of other severe mental illnesses. Data suggests this symptom, defined as chronic sleep onset and/or sleep continuity problems associated with impaired daytime functioning, is common in psychiatric illnesses, and can worsen … Read more