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Comment by EvanKelly | Hacker News Reader

Performers with stage fright have been using beta blockers for year as an off-label treatment for performance anxiety.

A doctor friend of mine passed along a recent NY Times article about how beta blockers may actually be able to cure the autonomous nervous system response and re-train the brain to not panic in otherwise panic inducing situations.

It's very exciting research and it's great to see non-psychoactive drugs used to combat mental issues.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/24/opinion/sunday/a-drug-to-c...

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> it's great to see non-psychoactive drugs used to combat mental issues

Huh??? Drugs that combat mental issues are, by definition, psychoactive. If beta blockers weren't psychoactive drugs, they would have no effect on anxiety.

Not necessarily. Betablockers can treat symptoms of anxiety resulting from activation of the sympathetic nervous system by blocking the action of adrenaline on adrenergic beta receptors. They may also have psychoactive effects (for example, propanolol appears to have some effect on memory consolidation [0]) but it's the inhibition of the body's "fight or flight" response that is helpful in treating performance anxiety.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propranolol#Psychological

Anxiety provokes a physical response - palms start sweating, the heart beats faster and harder, breathing increases, skin itches, hair rises. These are all adrenaline reactions; part of the "fight or flight" response.

As your body goes through these physical reactions your mind starts whirring.

It's possible that calming your body helps you to calm your mind.

Performers with stage fright have been using beta blockers for year as an off-label treatment for performance anxiety.

I read about that a few years ago, so gave it a go before high-pressure situations where, previously, my mind and attitude were fine but my body was going nuts, and.. the fight-or-flight response has either been heavily diminished or even absent. I consider them a major win with only occasional (several times a year) low dose use but YMMV.

I've heard bananas contain a natural source of beta blockers.

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