Inconsistent portrayal of medication dependence, withdrawal and discontinuation symptoms in treatment guidelines for anxiety disorders

There are many similarities between the withdrawal symptoms that arise in the course of benzodiazepine (BDZ) cessation and discontinuation symptoms that appear during the cessation of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), with 37 of 42 symptoms identified as common to both. Moreover, a recent systematic review has found that symptoms occurring during discontinuation of SSRIs are not necessarily prevented by gradual tapering and that they can be severe, last long or appear late and should be considered to constitute a withdrawal syndrome.