"i have been diagnosed with depression and panic disorder (for 20 years now). i learned over the years that if i could keep my anxiety/panic under good control i would be much less likely to go into depression (uncontrolled anxiety greatly increases the chance i will experience depression). xanax works extremely well at keeping my anxiety (and hence depression) under control. these days i don&#039;t need to use it continuously because just knowing that xanax is there and works so well if i need it has a calming effect. i didn&#039;t give xanax 10/10 though because it has one annoying side effect for me: it kills my libido rather effectively if i take it for a few days. apart from that, very tolerable - way more so than any antidepressant i was on."