The Shyness & Social Anxiety Workbook
94UÊDrug treatments are easy to use and don’t take up much time. You just need 
to remember to take your pills. In contrast, CBT requires a lot of hard work 
and can be time consuming.
UÊMedications often work more quickly than CBT. Depending on the type of 
drug, changes in anxiety can be observed in as little as an hour for treat -
ment with anti-anxiety medications, and in as little as two to four weeks 
for treatment with antidepressant medications. Typically, CBT takes several 
weeks to months before signiﬁcant changes take place.
UÊMedications are often less expensive in the short term. Visits to your doctor 
can be infrequent once a stable dosage is reached. At that point, the only 
cost is the medication itself. In contrast, CBT usually requires regular 
visits to a therapist throughout the treatment and therefore can be costly, 
 especially if you have limited coverage through your health insurance.
Disadvantages of Medications Compared with CBT
UÊAnxiety is more likely to return after stopping medication than after stop -
ping CBT. In other words, the effects of CBT are often longer lasting.
UÊMedication may be more expensive than CBT over the long term. Because 
medication is typically used for a longer period (often years), the costs are 
likely to add up to more than the cost of CBT, which generally lasts only 
several months.
UÊMany people experience side effects when taking medications. Although 
these are usually manageable and improve after the ﬁrst few weeks, some 
people experience more severe side effects, making treatment with medica -