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dinney · 09-06-2007, 09:47 AM

Hi~
Dr. started me on 37.5 mg of effexor in middle of June, dealt with some awful side effects but stuck it out. He then upped me to 75 mg and man that was worse then awful so am back down to 37.5 mg. Still am having problems with occassional dizziness and stomach cramps/ diareha from time to time, headaches and rarely just feel angry ! I am sticking with it as 2 months ago my Dr. referred me to psychiatrist and I"m yet to see one who is to help with meds.

Anyone else have problems with effexor ? Have been told STAY ON THEM until I see someone.

Survivor3 · 09-06-2007, 12:35 PM

I had a bad time with Effexor and stopping this drug was a nightmare. Hopefully your p-doc has good advice.

dinney · 09-06-2007, 01:20 PM

Survivor3,
That is what I have heard about effexor too, scares me to death to think of when I try to get off of it. Am sure it's slow procedure ! Just wish I would hear from the p-doc soon as I think the longer I'm on it the worse it will be.

Thanks so much for taking time to answer me.

jul747 · 09-06-2007, 02:52 PM

i hated it and getting off of it was hell........

Will I Be Happy · 09-06-2007, 03:23 PM

Hello! I was on Effexor. You couldn't pay me to take it again. It was the worst thing for my depression. The side effects were insane. It made me much much worse than I was before. Dizziness, anxiety, shaking. I went off of it right away. I tried a few others after that. I've been on Cymbalta since last summer (not this past summer). It's been a life saver for me! I think Effexor should be taken off the market. I haven't heard many good things about it.

dinney · 09-07-2007, 10:16 AM

So how long did it take all of you to get off this "stuff" ? Know you can't just quit it, darn it I really wish I had never started on it but trusted my Dr. and KNEW I needed something.

Am putting ANOTHER call into psychiatrist to see why they haven't gotten me in for med consultation. Really gets MORE depressing when you can't get the right help.

Thanks you guys for your input and hope to hear from you soon.

trg247 · 09-07-2007, 01:09 PM

Hi:

Of all the people Effexor does not work for there are hundreds of thousands of people it does work for. No one is going to deny there is a lot of problem getting off of this med but there is reason why it is one of the top prescribed antidepressant on the market. Not every antidepressant is going to work for everyone our brain chemistry is too different to allow that to happen. If your going to take a med with the idea in your head it is not going to work then chances are it is not going to work. There are reasons why these meds are tested against placebos for the clients thoughts has an effect on how well the med is received. It also takes between four to six weeks for the med to be truely in your system to judge whether or not it has an effect. Are the side effect soley due to the drug or are they partly anxiety based? How long it takes to come off of Effexor is based on how much you are taking, how long you have been taking it for and the person's tolerance toward the drug

take care
trg247

dinney · 09-07-2007, 01:41 PM

trg247-
When my physician put me on effexor I had made up my mind it WAS going to work and I have stuck with it since June 11th so don't think it's my mindset having any effect. Will just wait and see what med drs. tell me when I see them (my Dr. referred me to them to tweak my meds, said that is their specialty).

Thanks for your input, do appreciate it.

Jenn4508 · 09-07-2007, 01:55 PM

It does work differently for everyone. Personally I was on it for three years and never thought it worked... like a good patient stayed on it like the good doc told me too. I finally told him I wanted off this stuff now. I must tell you I had been diagnosed with depression, then generalized anxiety disorder and that was the reason for the efferxor after all different kinds of other meds. Then, last year was diagnosed with BP and the new doc continued to keep me on effexor along with other drugs. When he finally took me off this drug he immediately switched me to cymbalta. No time in between. I stayed on the cymbalta for 8 months and it didn't do anything either. I finally said it wasn't doing anything for me. You may want to see about switching from effexor to cymbalta with no time in between as I had no bad side effects. However, I need to tell you I also have fibromyalgia which I take many meds for that also.

Just please keep in mind that what works for one may not work for someone else and vice versa. I always have to keep in mind that I take 10 different meds a day, 23 pills a day. My shrink, therapist, GP and pain management doc are all aware of what meds each other have me on.

Sorry if I rambled, I just wanted to give you my suggestion and what I went through. There are many different drugs that you can try without having to go through detox from the effexor.

Good Luck and God Bless

mycatwillow · 09-09-2007, 05:05 AM

Effexor saved my life, plain and simple. Doesn't work for everyone, just like any other medication. But it works for lots of people. I prefer not to think about the side effects of coming off it until I actually have to face it.

lonelymum · 09-09-2007, 06:47 AM

My short stint with Effexor. I have been on and off meds for depression for years but my latest was Effexor 75mg because I was diagnosed with Dengue Fever plus chronic depression (Doc suggested I take it to relax my muscles due to the pain I was experiencing). I took one tab of Effexor and had terrible nausea a few hours later rushing back and forth to the bathroom dry reaching and felt so terribly drugged. The next day I felt so ill all day. This was from one tablet!! Maybe the dose was too high for me personally am not sure but did not take anymore after all I have been through health wise I did not need this as an addage. I know everyone's systems are different but this did certainly not suit me.

SycamoreLeaf · 09-09-2007, 07:21 AM

I am in the process of coming off effexor - see my thread re this. I felt that it did work for me but alongside Cognitive Behavioural Therapy - which according to the Psychs is the only thing that works - but who knows? Everybody is different and what works for one might not work for another.

My personal "tricks" are:

1. As the doc who first diagnosed me said - I have an illness which needs treating like diabetes. sometimes it might need drugs to regulate it sometimes lifestyle. First and foremost he said do not be ashamed, it is not your fault.

2. Try and be positive - along with my Severe Clinical Depression according to my 1st Psychologist I am a perfectionist and mind reader. This means that if i don't do something perfectly I will beat myself up about it and this can worsen my depression and so on and as to the mind-reading I think people think bad things about me all the time maybe a bit of paranoia. So now I try to be deliberatley less than perfect and more laid back. (it doesn't always work but I do try)

3. I now use my mind as a personal "life video recorder" - what i mean by this is that if I am going into a situation that is stressfull i try to imagine going through the situation with a good, neutral and bad endings and see myself living with the results. Then when I go through the scenario I know I can live with the outcome.

4. Be honest not only with yourself but also with those who love you. i am in the fortunate position of having found a partner who loves me as I am - warts n' all, and this has helped me so much - but I told her on our first date that I had an illness and she said that was ok.

5. Any meds that I have to take are just to keep me in balance especially through periods of relapse and, like a diabetic, I might have to be on some form of medication for some or all of the rest of my life - but accept it as the price of having to remain balanced.

I am new to this site and feel that it is useful having chats to like minded people who know what it is like to be depressed. Touch wood - I have come through a 6 year episode and survived reasonably intact and today I am ok....

bshea · 09-09-2007, 06:35 PM

EFFEXOR IS HORRIBLE!! GET OFF IT ASAP, seriously, that **** it rough, that was the worst anti-depressant ive ever taken, EVER, and is actually one of the ADDICTING ANTI-DEPRESSANTS believe it or not... get offf itt!
that shits not good, at all.

mycatwillow · 09-10-2007, 04:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bshea

EFFEXOR IS HORRIBLE!! GET OFF IT ASAP, seriously, that **** it rough, that was the worst anti-depressant ive ever taken, EVER, and is actually one of the ADDICTING ANTI-DEPRESSANTS believe it or not... get offf itt!
that shits not good, at all.

I'm sorry but I have to respond to this post. This is a place to state opinions and personal experiences. You may have had issues with the drug, and I know a lot of people have. But many more have had great experiences with it, including myself.

For anyone who reads this, do not let it scare you. There are risks to any drug, but in most cases the benefits outweigh the risks by far. You need to take ALL information in consideration and make a responsible decision with your physician. Do not take one person's opinion as fact, including mine.

borderlinefine · 09-10-2007, 07:24 AM

out of all the antidepressants ive been on(paxil, zoloft, prozac, lexapro and effexor) effexor was by far the best one for me.

dinney · 09-10-2007, 08:37 AM

Thank you SO much for all your input on Effexor. I continue taking the 37.5 mg each morning until I'm told to do something different I guess. Know I need something and they probably all have their pro's/con's to them and I'm looking for something that has no side effects and makes me feel good ! Have tried just a few others and the only one I can remember (years ago) that I got along with was prozac (but memory may be failing me about not having any problems with it)..Some others were HORRIBLE too but I am VERY sensitive to most meds and I swear it's not in my head. ha

God Bless all of you, either on effexor or quit it for negative reasons. Just nice to talk to someone that has been on it.

trg247 · 09-10-2007, 01:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mycatwillow

I'm sorry but I have to respond to this post. This is a place to state opinions and personal experiences. You may have had issues with the drug, and I know a lot of people have. But many more have had great experiences with it, including myself.

For anyone who reads this, do not let it scare you. There are risks to any drug, but in most cases the benefits outweigh the risks by far. You need to take ALL information in consideration and make a responsible decision with your physician. Do not take one person's opinion as fact, including mine.

Hi:

Very well said.

take care
trg247

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