How Long Does Xanax Stay In Your System?

How Long Does Xanax Stay In Your System? Effects, Half-Life, Drug Tests & Addiction Treatment


What Is Xanax & What Is It Used For?

Xanax is used to treat anxiety disorders and panic disorder (sudden, unexpected attacks of extreme fear and worry about these attacks). Xanax is in a class of medications called benzodiazepines. It works by decreasing abnormal excitement in the brain.

Xanax may be habit-forming or may cause drug addiction. Worried if how long does Xanax stay in your system? You have to take Xanax exactly as directed. Do not take more of it, take it more often, or take it in a different way than directed by your doctor. While taking Xanax, discuss with your healthcare provider your pain treatment goals, length of treatment, and other ways to manage your pain. Tell your doctor if you or anyone in your family:

There is a greater risk that you will overuse Xanax if you have or have ever had any of these conditions.

How Long Does Xanax Stay In Your System?
How long does Xanax stay in your system? Studies have shown that the half-life of Xanax ranges from 6.3 to 26.9 hours, depending on the person.

Do not drink Xanax and alcohol or use street drugs during your treatment. Drinking alcohol or using street drugs during your treatment with Xanax also increases the risk that you will experience these serious, life-threatening side effects. Tell your doctor if you have or have ever had depression or another mental illness. [1]

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How Long Does Xanax Last?

How long does Xanax stay in your system? If an individual is abusing Xanax by taking it without a prescription or taking more than prescribed, it’s possible that addiction can develop even more quickly. With recreational Xanax use, it can take just a couple of weeks to become dependent on the drug. Over the coming weeks and months of use, the addiction strengthens, and individuals are likely to begin making drug acquisition a priority.

Like many drugs, Xanax dosages stay in the body long after a person stops feeling its effects. Experts use a measurement called half-life to determine how long a drug stays in the body. A drug’s half-life is the amount of time that it takes for the body to eliminate half of it. The half-life of Xanax is 8–16 hours in a healthy person, with a mean half-life of 11 hours. How long does Xanax stay in your system? Shorter than that of many other benzodiazepines.

What Are The Effects Of Xanax?

Xanax dosages may cause side effects. Tell your doctor if any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away:

  • Drowsiness
  • Light-headedness
  • Headache
  • Tiredness
  • Dizziness
  • Irritability
  • Talkativeness
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Dry mouth
  • Increased salivation
  • Changes in sex drive or ability
  • Nausea
  • Constipation
  • Changes in appetite
  • Weight changes
  • Difficulty urinating
  • Joint pain

Some side effects can be serious. If you experience any of the following symptoms or those listed in the IMPORTANT WARNING section, call your doctor immediately or get emergency medical treatment:

  • Shortness of breath
  • Seizures
  • Severe skin rash
  • Yellowing of the skin or eyes
  • Confusion
  • Problems with speech
  • Problems with coordination or balance

Xanax dosages may cause other side effects. Call your doctor if you have any unusual problems while taking this medication.

Symptoms of overdose may include the following:

  • Drowsiness
  • Confusion
  • Problems with coordination
  • Loss of consciousness

The Half Life Of Xanax

The term “half-life” can be misleading; however, this is because it takes four to five half-lives for the body to completely eliminate a drug. This means that it may take an average of 44–55 hours, or about 2 days, for Xanax to leave the body. How long does Xanax stay in your system? In one study, researchers reported that they could detect Xanax in a person’s saliva for up to 2.5 days after their last dose. [2]

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How Long Does Xanax Stay In Your Body?

Xanax is taken by mouth and quickly absorbed into the bloodstream. Effects should be noticed within an hour and the medicine reaches peak concentrations in the body after one to two hours. People who take Xanax regularly can build up a tolerance to it and effects, such as a feeling of calm or sedation, may take longer to develop or not be felt as strongly as before.

How long does Xanax stay in your system? Xanax is usually prescribed three times a day because its effects on the body (calming, sedation, relaxing) tend to wear off within eight hours for most people. However, one dose of Xanax remains detectable in the body for two to five days – the exact length of time depends on several factors specific to the individual who took the dose.

Saliva Drug Test Xanax

It takes about five half-lives for 98% of a drug dose to clear the body. The maximum detection time for Xanax in the oral fluid is 2.5 days. [3]

Xanax Blood Drug Test

Xanax is detectable in blood tests for up to 24 hours.

Xanax Hair Drug Test

Xanax can be detected in your hair starting 2–3 weeks after and for up to 90 days after your last dose.

Xanax Urine Drug Test

The drug is detectable in urine drug tests for up to 4 days.

False Positive Testing

A false positive means that the test has detected the presence of these substances in your body when you haven’t actually taken them. Drugs, foods, and other substances can cause false positives. Worried how long does Xanax stay in your system?

If you’re taking certain medications like antidepressants or even antibiotics, or any type of drugs, you have to declare it during the drug tests. If you suspect certain medications you took had what you believe is a false positive test, work with your healthcare provider to see if you can stop taking the medication or cut back on it. Then ask for a confirmatory test or a repeat test.

How Long Does Xanax Stay In Your System?
How long does Xanax stay in your system? On average, Xanax has an elimination half-life of about 11 hours (though the range is from about 6-27 hours—sometimes higher in obese patients).

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Why Do People Abuse Xanax?

Xanax is one of the most widely prescribed benzodiazepines for the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder. Its clinical use has been a point of contention as most addiction specialists consider it to be highly addictive, given its unique psychodynamic properties which limit its clinical usefulness, whereas many primary care physicians continue to prescribe it for longer periods than recommended. 

Can you inject Xanax? Regardless of what substance has been abused or how it is being used, the red flags that signal addiction are the same across the board. They include:

  • Using every time opioid withdrawal symptoms start to appear
  • The tolerance that causes the user to increase the dose
  • Avoiding family functions or hanging out with friends because it takes away from time using the drug
  • Worrying about one’s Xanax supply and thinking about the next time it can be used
  • Continued use despite great conflict due to Xanax use
  • Inability to control how much or how often the drug is used

Treatments For Xanax Addiction

How long does Xanax stay in your system? Clearing Xanax from the body and overcoming withdrawal symptoms is the goal of Xanax detox, which is the first step of treatment for Benzo addiction. We Level Up comprehensive team is prescribing medications that can alleviate your withdrawal pains while monitoring your health 24 hours during the detox. We prioritize your safety and comfort because this is a fragile and challenging time for you.

Once detox is complete, a new doorway in treatment opens up, which is referred to as a residential level of care. We Level Up residential care program slowly and effectively introduces the individual into an atmosphere of therapeutic growth, marked by master’s level therapists, clinicians, group counselors, psychiatrists, and a community of like-minded individuals with the same aim: to attain sobriety and live a great life.

Some of the many modalities applied and practiced within our residential treatment facility are:

We Level Up treatment tailors the program to the individual and the individual to the program of recovery. We begin by assessing our client’s history of mental health, drugs, and alcohol-related past. The needs of each patient are specific and personalized because we aim to provide comprehensive support for mental health, addiction, and dual diagnosis treatment. We Level Up supportive environment is designed accordingly to give patients 24-hour care for sobriety. Most importantly, we hope to have our clients live comfortably within the facility during this crucial and fragile time.

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How We Can Help? Searched for “Treatments for Xanax addiction?” or are you seeking a national inpatient rehab destination?

We Level Up prioritizes removing temptations for relapse and applying an air of recovery into every component of the treatment timeline, including Xanax addiction treatment. We Level Up finds that when clients are living in a supportive community, especially during their early recovery process, they can truly focus on what matters most: their recovery.

Above all, if you or a loved one is struggling with Xanax addiction, reach out to us because we may be able to help you explore treatment options. Contact We Level Up today for any questions such as “How long does Xanax stay in your system?”.

How Long Does Xanax Stay In Your System?
How long does Xanax stay in your system? If you’re struggling with drug abuse, contact We Level Up today!

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Sources:

[1] Alprazolam – U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health
[2] How long does Xanax last? – https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/326488
[3] Detection Times of Diazepam, Clonazepam, and Alprazolam in Oral Fluid Collected From Patients Admitted to Detoxification, After High and Repeated Drug Intake – National Center for Biotechnology Information