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Do nerve pills actually suppress the nervous system and how would that effect the Shingles virus which is known to activate under large amounts of stress?

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closed as off-topic by WYSIWYG Jun 28 '15 at 15:39


  • "Personal medical questions and health advice are off-topic on Biology. We cannot safely answer questions for your specific situation and you should always consult a doctor for medical advice." – WYSIWYG

Please be a bit more specific. What type/brand of "nerve pills" are you referring to? – jarlemag Apr 16 '14 at 19:09
Aren't all nerve pills made to calm your nerves but say Xanax to throw one out there. – user6116 Apr 16 '14 at 22:35

I gather you are talking about anti-axiety drugs (anxiolytics). Benzodiazepines is one of the major groups of anxiolytics, and includes Xanax. Benzodiazepines are central nervous depressants, meaning that they reduce the activity of neurotransmitters in the brain. They do this by binding to the GABA-A receptor and enhancing the effect of the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA when it binds to the same receptor. The binding of GABA to a GABA receptor on a neuron causes hyperpolarization of the neuron by ion flow through the cellular membrane and decreases the chance of an action potential. So yes, nerve pills act by supressing the nervous system.

As for your question about interaction with Shingles, I think that's considered off-topic under the personal medical questions policy.

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What makes you decide that that is a personal medical question? If suppression of the nervous system would affect shingles, its a valid question. As shingles affects the nervous system, its a valid question. Saying that its under the "personal" medical questions policy is a cop out. But good answer on the first part. – user6116 Apr 17 '14 at 11:07
I'm not deciding that it is, just giving my opinion. Others may disagree, but in any case I'm not capable of answering that question. – jarlemag Apr 17 '14 at 11:19
@jody it's borderline, it's not strictly a medical question but if we answer it someone could use it as "medical advice" and end up doing something stupid. And saying someone is using it as a cop out is not a very good way of showing gratitude. – rg255 Apr 17 '14 at 20:15