Medications for Social Anxiety and Social Anxiety Disorder
101Dose Ranges for Antidepressants in the Treatment of Social Phobia
Generic Name    Brand Name   Therapeutic Dose Range (mg)*
SSRIs
citalopram    Celexa   10–60
escitalopram    Lexapro/Cipralex   10–20
ﬂuoxetine    Prozac   10–80
ﬂuvoxamine    Luvox   50–300
paroxetine    Paxil  10–60
paroxetine CR    Paxil CR   12.5–75
sertraline    Zoloft   50–200
Other Antidepressants
mirtazapine    Remeron   15–60
moclobemide    Manerix/Aurorix   300–600
phenelzine    Nardil  45–90
venlafaxine XR    Effexor XR   75–375
*Dosages are based, in part, on recommendations by Bezchlibnyk-Butler, Jeffries, and Virani 2007.
TREATMENT WITH ANTI-ANXIETY MEDICATIONS
The most frequently prescribed anti-anxiety medications are the benzodiazepines. These 
are sedatives that include drugs such as clonazepam (Klonapin in the USA; Rivotril 
in Canada), alprazolam (Xanax), diazepam (Valium), and lorazepam (Ativan). To date, 
only clonazepam and alprazolam have been investigated in controlled studies for the 
treatment of social anxiety disorder (Swinson et al. 2006). Although neither is ofﬁcially