Sheridan smith health: star on her addiction to anti-anxiety medicine

Sheridan Smith, 39, has spoken about her struggles with mental health in the past, but speaking in a new ITV documentary, she revealed details of being addicted to anti-anxiety medication

and the adverse effect it had on her body. Sheridan had become addicted to her anti-anxiety medication she’d been prescribed, but her decision to stop taking it suddenly had an adverse

effect on her body. She said: “That night I took myself off to a hotel on my own. In my crazy mind, I thought, ‘I’ll do it (stop taking the tablets) myself. “I went there and just stopped my

tablets. Weirdly, a friend of mine had rung me and she came to the hotel. “It’s a miracle she did. It’s like someone was looking out for me because what I didn’t realise is that if you stop

these tablets abruptly, you seizure. DON'T MISS “I seizured five times and got rushed to A&E and she’s the one who got me breathing again.” ANTI-ANXIETY MEDICATIONS Anti-anxiety

medications help reduce the symptoms of anxiety, such as panic attacks or extreme fear and worry. The most common anti-anxiety medications are called benzodiazepines, according to The Centre

for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). Benzodiazepines are a group of medications that can help reduce anxiety and make it easier to sleep. But the calming effects of benzodiazepines can

often be achieved without drugs. CAMH adds: “Various kinds of exercise, such as walking, running, yoga or tai chi can help, as can reducing the stress in your life and taking time for

relaxing activities such as meditation, reading a book or having a warm bath. “Talking with a trusted friend, family member or therapist and working out the problems that are troubling you

can also help. Whenever possible, these approaches should be tried first, before benzodiazepines. “However, when non-drug approaches are not possible or do not help, benzodiazepines can

provide relief.” If you think you have generalised anxiety disorder, speak with your GP, who will then recommend the best treatment option for you. The new documentary Sheridan is appearing

in is titled Sheridan Smith: Becoming Mum, and airs on Tuesday September 1 at 9pm on ITV.