On average, withdrawal may begin six to eight hours after your last dose. The timeline for Xanax withdrawal is different for everyone. People who abuse Xanax or take it at high doses for long periods of time are at risk for Xanax withdrawal if they quit taking it. This situation can also fuel Xanax addiction. People may also develop a tolerance to Xanax and require more as time goes by. With regular Xanax abuse, the central nervous system begins to depend on Xanax to balance itself. Sometimes people develop Xanax dependence because they want to feel the desired effects beyond what is possible from the prescribed amount. The short-acting nature of Xanax may contribute to this. People who have liver function problems from abusing alcohol will also have a harder time breaking down Xanax. Not only does alcohol intensify some of the effects of Xanax, it can cause your body to take longer to get rid of it. Alcohol UseĪlcohol and Xanax compete for the liver’s attention when taken together.
Other drugs may speed up the process of metabolizing Xanax. Some drugs act on the same body processes that eliminate Xanax. Certain drugs affect the way your body rids itself of Xanax. If you take Xanax with other drugs, it can take longer for your system to process it. The average half-life of Xanax is 11 hours. The half-life of Xanax in older adults is often over 16 hours. It may take older adults longer to process Xanax. People with panic disorders may take around 4 mg of Xanax a day. 5 mg tablets three times a day for anxiety disorders. Higher doses may take longer to metabolize. How long Xanax lasts may also depend on the dose. Things that impact the way your body metabolizes Xanax may include activity level, ethnicity, muscle mass, age and size. Xanax may stay in your system for a shorter amount of time if you have high metabolism. How long you feel the effects of Xanax and metabolize it varies because it’s based on several factors. On average, these are the time periods for detecting Xanax: How long Xanax stays in your system depends on your individual makeup. These may include saliva, blood, urine and hair tests. Certain tests can detect Xanax in your system days after you’ve taken it. In general, it usually takes two to four days to eliminate Xanax from your system. People can metabolize drugs at different rates. This varies depending on factors like how quickly you metabolize drugs. The half-life of Xanax is around 11 hours. Half-life is the time it takes for the amount of drug in your body to decrease by 50%. The length a prescription drug stays in your system depends on its half-life. Though effects of Xanax may wear off in four hours, the medication stays in your system longer. Extended release means the effects of the drug are spread out throughout the day instead of being delivered right away.
There is also an extended release form of Xanax that is taken once a day. People prescribed Xanax for anxiety may take Xanax two or three times a day depending on their needs.
Usually any noticeable effects of Xanax are gone within about four hours. They begin to gradually subside after reaching their peak. Xanax effects peak around one to two hours.