Revista de Psicologia Forense

Abstrato

Benzodiazepines Dependence: Addiction to Legally Prescribed Substances

Sofia S. Anna Gandra, Agostinho Leite D Almeida, Zelia M Teixeira

The undue use of benzodiazepines can lead to dependence of this substance, constituting a serious health problem, hard to manage therapeutically. Despite this finding, the prescription of benzodiazepines is still common. In the literature there are several proposals for therapeutic intervention, ranging from the gradual reduction to the psychotherapeutic intervention. In view of the above, this review of the literature aims to understand the specific theme of addition to benzodiazepines. With the present study, we highlight the impact that this dependence has on individuals’ lives, the difficulty of withdrawing these substances, and the lack of adequate responses in the national health system to deal with the problem. We came to the conclusion that the psychotherapeutic intervention is extremely important for the treatment of this phenomenon and that the prevention of these situations must be a priority.