What Is Doxepin Used For?

Anxiety is much more than the normal kind of worry that people experience day to day. It's chronic and fills a person's day with exaggerated worry and tension, even though there is little or nothing to provoke it. Having this disorder means always anticipating disaster, often worrying excessively about health, money, family, or work. Sometimes, however, the source of the worry is hard to pinpoint. Simply the thought of getting through the day provokes anxiety.

 

There are several different treatments available for anxiety (see Anxiety Treatment), including cognitive behavioral therapy and various types of anxiety medications. Doxepin is one of the medications approved to treat anxiety, including anxiety caused by alcoholism or other medical conditions.

 

How Doxepin Works

Doxepin is a tricyclic antidepressant. Tricyclic antidepressants are an older group of medications that have been used to treat depression for many years. Even though doxepin has been around for a long time, it is not entirely clear how it works. The medication affects several chemicals in the brain, including serotonin and norepinephrine. It is thought that perhaps doxepin allows these chemical to stay in the brain longer, which can help with depression symptoms and anxiety. Doxepin can also block histamine receptors, making it useful as an antihistamine.

 

Doxepin Use in Children and Teens

Although doxepin is not approved for use in children or teens, it may be used "off-label" in these age groups. However, the medicine is not recommended for use in children under 12 years old. Antidepressants have been shown to increase the risk of suicidal thinking and behavior in short-term research studies involving children and teenagers (see Doxepin and Suicide for more information). Talk to your healthcare provider about treatment options for childhood or teen depression or anxiety.