What Are Barbiturates? Barbiturate Overdose Risks. Barbiturates Examples. Barbiturates Drugs Uses, Types, Side Effects & Addiction Treatment. Prescription Barbiturates vs Barbiturates Street Names.

What Are Barbiturates?

What’s a Barbiturate? These sedative-hypnotic medications have been trusted for over a century to treat various conditions, from seizures to migraines to insomnia. Barbiturates make you feel relaxed and sleepy. They block or prevent convulsions and seizures. Barbiturates boost a brain chemical called gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which slows down the brain’s activity. Barbiturates are synthetic drugs. While they may be less prevalent now due to concerns about misuse and side effects, they still stand as a reliable backup treatment when all else fails. Learn more about What are Barbiturates below.

Barbiturates Alcohol Dangers

Combining two types of drugs is never a good idea. It’s hazardous to take Barbiturates with heroin or alcohol. Barbiturates, alcohol, and heroin make the nervous system and the brain less active. The nervous system controls breathing, so if someone combines drugs, a barbiturate overdose can become more likely, wherein a person is more susceptible to stop breathing and dying.

What are Barbiturates’ Side Effects?

Barbiturates are a class of sedative drugs indicated for treating anxiety, insomnia, and other medical conditions. Barbiturates act on the central nervous system to slow brain activity, and when taken in large doses, they can cause:

• Respiratory depression.
• Coma, and even death.
• Barbiturates are highly addictive and should be used with caution.

Most Common Barbiturates Side Effects

When used as a short-term medication, barbiturates can effectively relieve symptoms of anxiety and insomnia, provide pre-surgical sedation, and act as anticonvulsants for those with seizure disorders. Like most drugs, barbiturates drugs have side effect profiles. Chronic abuse of these drugs can produce several dangerous effects, such as:

High doses or barbiturate overdose can result in coma and significant brain and other organ damage.

Effects Of Barbiturate Drugs

What are some of the effects of barbiturates? Barbiturates slow down the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) similarly to alcohol. They may be classified as ultra-short, short, intermediate, or long-acting, depending on how fast they produce results and the duration of those effects.

In the case of long-acting barbital and phenobarbital, their effects may last up to 1 day. Usually, these long-acting barbiturates are used with other medications to prevent convulsions in epilepsy.

The effects of intermediate-acting barbiturates, like butabarbital sodium, last between six and twelve hours, and these are used to treat people who have insomnia. Pentobarbital is an example of a short-acting barbiturate used to help someone suffering from insomnia fall asleep.

What Do Barbiturate Drugs Feel Like?

Drugs called barbiturates induce relaxation and sleep. When a patient consumes more barbiturates than is typical or advised, an overdose of these drugs results, either by chance or by purpose, this may occur. A drug overdose poses a risk to life.

Barbiturates might make you appear drunk or intoxicated at relatively low doses.

Addiction to barbiturates exists. They cause physical dependence in their users. Withdrawing from them (stopping them) can be fatal. Barbiturates’ ability to modify mood quickly leads to tolerance with continued use. However, tolerance to the deadly effects spreads more slowly, and continuing usage raises the danger of severe poisoning.

Short-Term Effects of Barbiturate Drugs

Barbiturates are efficient short-term painkillers that can provide:

• Presurgical sedation.
• Anticonvulsant effects for people with seizure disorders.
• Relief from insomnia and anxiety symptoms.

Popular Barbiturates Drug FAQs

Accidental Barbiturate Overdose

Accidental barbiturate overdose usually happens when too much of the drug is taken at once, either due to misuse or from taking more than the recommended dosage. Symptoms of accidental barbiturate overdose include confusion, slurred speech, slowed reaction time, slowed breathing, and in severe cases, coma. Treatment for an unintentional barbiturate overdose involves seeking immediate medical attention.

Barbiturate Overdose Risks

Barbiturates have a low therapeutic index—meaning there’s a relatively thin line between the dose needed to achieve therapeutic effects and one that will result in harmful consequences. Overdose can be a hazardous side effect of barbiturate abuse, especially when polydrug use involves substances like heroin and alcohol.

If a barbiturate overdose is suspected, seek medical help immediately by calling 911. Upon arrival, experts will take and monitor an individual’s vital signs and screen them for substances. Overdose can result in severe injury due to reduced motor function and the possible results of a fall. Such damages can include head and neck injuries, which can have long-term health effects on a person.

Kidney injury and muscle damage are also possible due to a lack of awareness of surroundings and an individual’s ability to lie on a hard surface for a prolonged period. Aspiration of the lungs is also possible, and the most extreme cases can result in coma and death.

What Are Barbiturates’ Abuse Symptoms?

Symptoms of barbiturate intoxication and overdose include:

Excessive and long-term use of barbiturates, such as phenobarbital, may produce the following chronic symptoms:

Symptoms of Barbiturate Overdose

Barbiturate intoxication and overdose symptoms include:

• The changed state of consciousness.
• Thinking difficulty.
• Sleepiness or coma.
• Poor decision-making.
• Coordination failure.
• Breathing is shallow.
• Slurred, slow speech.
• Sluggishness.
• Staggering, balance difficulties.

Excessive and long-term use of barbiturates, such as phenobarbital, may result in the chronic symptoms listed below:

• Changes in vigilance.
• Reduced performance.
• Irritability.
• Memory lapses.

Barbiturate Overdose Treatment

The treatment for a barbiturate overdose depends on the overdose’s severity and the person affected’s medical condition. Treatment may include supportive care, such as providing oxygen and intravenous (IV) fluids, and medications to reverse the effects of the drug, such as flumazenil or naloxone. Dialysis or hemoperfusion may sometimes remove the drug from the bloodstream.

In extreme cases, where a barbiturate overdose is severe, and an individual has stopped breathing or is having a seizure, it may be necessary to use a machine to temporarily enable living for the individual (called mechanical ventilation) or to give the individual electric shocks to stop the seizure, as well as to provide supportive care.

Barbiturate Overdose Death 

Barbiturate overdose deaths typically occur due to respiratory depression, which causes the individual to stop breathing. There is also a risk of seizures, cardiac arrest, and coma in severe cases. Immediate medical attention is needed to treat a barbiturate overdose.

Barbiturate overdose is typically caused by taking an overdose of a barbiturate drug, either accidentally or intentionally. Barbiturates are central nervous system depressants that have a soothing effect, slow down breathing, reduce alertness, and can even cause coma. Symptoms of barbiturate overdose include slow and shallow breathing, slowed reaction time, confusion, slurred speech, drowsiness, and severe coma. Treatment involves immediate medical attention. If the individual cannot be treated promptly,

Barbiturates Drug Addiction Statistics

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), in 2018, approximately 1.7 million people in the United States reported misusing prescription sedatives like barbiturates in the past year. Between 1999 and 2017, there was a 68% increase in the number of deaths involving barbiturates in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In 2017, there were 1,480 deaths involving barbiturates in the United States.

Although the statistics for the barbiturate drug class are not as well known, it is well known that a severe health risk is associated with barbiturate abuse. According to research, 9% of Americans will misuse barbiturates and or barbiturates-like medications at some point.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, barbiturate abuse is less common than other abused drugs. However, it is estimated that around 0.7% of Americans aged 12 and up have misused barbiturates within the past year. The drug’s abuse has been linked to a higher risk of a Barbiturate overdose and is especially dangerous if used with alcohol or other drugs.

---

---

Most Common Prescribed Barbiturates Drug

If you are wondering, “What are prescription barbiturates?”, “What pills are barbiturates?”, “What medications are barbiturates?” or “What drugs are considered barbiturates,” below is a list of common examples of barbiturates and their side effects:

Phenobarbital

It is one of the most well-known and commonly used barbiturates still in use today. Phenobarbital’s purpose is to maintain insomnia, seizures, and anxiety.

The side effects of Phenobarbital are:

Secobarbital barbiturates drug.

The Secobarbital barbiturate is more commonly known by its street name, “Pink Ladies,” In the medical setting, it is most frequently used for anesthesia in humans and euthanasia in pets. It is a widespread medication in presurgical sedation but has very high addiction rates when used recreationally.

Secobarbital is not an anti-anxiety medication, as it is reported to develop a tolerance in as little as two weeks. Outside of the surgery setting, it is used in hospitals or detox facilities on a short-term basis only to treat people with insomnia who are already addicted to barbiturates. Other than that, it is one of the most common drugs used in a “death with dignity” situation. This demonstrates how potentially harmful this drug can be when abused.

The side effects of secobarbital are:

Amobarbital barbiturates drug.

Commonly known as Amytal, this medication is used pre-surgery to calm anxiety, as a sleep aid, or as an anticonvulsant. Individuals taking Amytal for any reason are advised not to take any other sedative medications, not to drink alcohol, and to only take other drugs after speaking with a doctor. This barbiturate has also been revealed to lower the effectiveness of birth control contraceptives in women.

The side effects of Amobarbital are:

Pentobarbital barbiturates drug

Pentobarbital was initially manufactured in the 1930s as a sleep aid with the brand Nembutal. In low doses, as a medication, it can also help reduce anxiety and control seizures and is commonly used in the surgery room.

Pentobarbital works by binding to the nerve receptors in the brain that are in control of relaxation. Due to this, people either taking or abusing Nembutal can often experience complications with their heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing, which forms a hazardous condition if someone combines them with other drugs.

Nembutal is another barbiturate commonly used as an “end-of-life” medication and is primarily legal in countries where euthanasia is legal. In the United States and Europe, it is one of the most common drugs used in the euthanasia of animals.

The side effects of Nembutal in humans are:

In many countries, getting most of these barbiturates can be extremely difficult, but there are still hundreds of cases of overdoses every year due to barbiturate abuse.

Suppose you take a prescribed amount of a barbiturate for sleep, anxiety, or epilepsy. Before taking or experimenting with other medications or drugs, you must speak with a medical provider. It is also highly suggested that the user does not drink alcohol.

Another common side effect of these barbiturates is that they reduce the effectiveness of female birth control contraceptive methods. Women not ready to get pregnant are highly recommended to use an additional contraception, such as a condom.

Barbiturate Abuse

Barbiturates are common drugs of abuse; as a result, many medical professionals prefer to prescribe benzodiazepines. While benzos are still addictive abuse drugs, they have slightly fewer abuse risks than barbiturates.

Individuals who abuse barbiturates tend to choose short-acting or intermediate pills, such as Amytal and Seconal. Such specific drugs typically produce effects within 15-40 minutes, and results can take up to six hours to diminish. Long-acting barbiturates can bring products that last up to two days, but abuse rates for these barbiturates are lower.

The most common method of abuse is oral ingestion in pill form, but some who abuse the drugs have been known to inject the substance in liquid form to speed up delivery to the system. Barbiturate abuse is usually motivated by a desire to reduce anxiety, mitigate the effects of other drugs, and lessen a person’s inhibitions. 

Misuse of barbiturates usually arises from attempts to self-medicate. Unfortunately, misuse can frequently lead to abuse and possibly addiction, as it’s always a slippery slope when dealing with addictive substances.

Barbiturate use is a major addiction problem for a lot of people. Most individuals who take these medicines for pain syndromes or seizure disorders do not abuse them. Those hooked on the drug usually begin using a medication prescribed for them or other family members.

Most barbiturate overdoses involve a combination of drugs, often alcohol and barbiturates, or opiates such as heroin, oxycodone, fentanyl, and barbiturates.

Those who use such combinations tend to be:

• New users who do not know these combinations can lead to coma or death.
• Experienced users who use them on purpose to alter their consciousness.

Barbiturates Withdrawal Symptoms

Since physical dependence and tolerance can develop with continued use, barbiturate withdrawal symptoms from regular use can lead to various problems, including:

Barbiturate withdrawal symptoms in cases where an individual stops regular use of very high doses of these drugs; Barbiturate withdrawal symptoms can be much more severe and might include:

Abrupt withdrawal from the regular use of high barbiturates can be life-threatening. People who have become addicted to these drugs must seek the care of trained rehabilitation professionals to help them withdraw safely and effectively from these drugs.

Barbiturates List Street Name Linked to Barbiturates Withdrawal & Abuse Symptoms

• Barbs.
• Block Busters.
• Christmas Trees.
• Goof Ball.
• Pinks.
• Red Devils.
• Reds & Blues.
• Yellow Jackets.

Top Barbiturates Frequently Asked Questions

Barbiturates Withdrawal Treatment

There is no home antidote for barbiturate addiction treatment. If you believe someone has taken barbiturates inappropriately, take them to the hospital for evaluation by a doctor or consult a barbiturate addiction specialist.

Withdrawing from barbiturates can be severe and potentially fatal and should not be done alone. The help of a medically supervised withdrawal management program will ease the more uncomfortable symptoms and ensure safety from the more severe and possibly life-threatening symptoms. Medically supervised detox can also boost the chance of a successful recovery from barbiturate dependence and addiction.

The detoxification program for barbiturates usually uses a tapering program such that the clients are given subsequent decreasing doses of either a long-acting barbiturate or benzodiazepine. This incremental process allows the body to adapt to lower levels of barbiturates and slowly normalize its functioning without experiencing the severe effects of withdrawal.

Other medicines may also be employed to control specific symptoms that the tapering process does not effectively address. Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) may prolong the withdrawal process; however, it also decreases the signs and virtually eliminates the possibility of risky symptoms, such as seizures. A medically assisted detox program will be administered under the supervision of an addiction medicine physician or a psychiatrist specializing in addiction.

What Are Barbiturates? Barbiturate Overdose Risks, Use, Effects, Withdrawal & Addiction Treatment Video