The multiple anxieties of getting older: tranquilizers and the ambivalence of effect

Most studies on benzodiazepines emphasize overconsumption and warn of addiction, especially by older adults. This article is about the avoidance of benzodiazepine medications by 'aging' women living in a Brazilian village. This case study helps to support our central concern: to call attention to the ambiguities that exist in discussing these medications, and to stress the importance of a multilayered understanding of effect. We argue that benzodiazepines, like other psychopharmaka, induce bodily sensations that, at least in part, correspond to and are shaped by the situated self-image of individuals in distress.