One of my friend pursuing chemical engineering, due to exam stress, started taking clonazepam (klonopin) tablets (family doctor suggested just for one day when he was feeling too low due to exam pressure), now before each and every exam, he consumes the tablet. As a medical student, I tried to make him understand, the clonazepam (group benzodiazepine) is a tranquilizer which creates euphoria. It secretes more and more gaba in brain which is not good for brain. Still he does?t understand this and consumes. How can I make him understand and get him rid of this habit?

Milinder Kaur BediPsychologist1yrs exp

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Hello lybrate-user, first of all I'm glad that you are concerned about your friend and trying to help him. Please make your friend understand that taking medication unprescribed or self-medicating is actually harmful and can have adverse effects. If your friend's stress is only related to exam there could be various reasons for it. Fear of failure, too much of backlog in syllabus, his inability to cope with the syllabus which could be due to lack of proper planning and scheduled study, lack of interest, constant comparison and pressure from parents, too high unrealistic expectations from self; and if all these are not prevailing then the root cause needs to be found; for which he should seek a counselor/ therapist who would help him identify and guide him to cope up with stress through therapeutic interventions. Till then ask him to properly schedule his syllabus to manage his time and try implenting the planned schedule. Practice deep breathing exercises, drink plenty of fluids and have a healthy diet. Remember that focusing on your efforts will give you desired results and not focus on the outcomes. You can ask him to consult me in private. All the best!  

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