Librium (chlordiazepoxide) and Xanax (alprazolam) are both prescribed to treat anxiety. However, the intensity and length of the drugs’ effects sets these two medications apart.
Chlordiazepoxide has a slow-building, mild, long-lasting therapeutic effect suitable for milder anxiety, or as a treatment for symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.
Alprazolam has a faster, more potent, and shorter lived effect that is useful when dealing with increasingly severe anxiety and panic disorders.