Anybody know about Effexor?

[Nervous]

Some people on another forum they had bad experiences with it and had permanent side effects. Today the psychiatrist prescribed me a higher dosage. I hadn't been feeling any side effects so I wasn't gonna tell him I wanted to stop taking it just because of things I'd heard from a couple people on the internet.

Is 150 mg alot?

 

[frenchie]

I'm not sure about the dosage, but I had bad side effects with Effexor. It's strange. It apparently causes manic shopping. And the worst damage I've done to my credit was done while I was on Effexor. I also believe that this is one that needs to be closely monitored because I had a cousin who was getting meds from a nurse without real monitoring from a doc and he had major issues with mood swings.

 

[VioletTears]

My advice to anyone who is starting on Effexor (or Paxil), PLEASE research withdrawl effects before taking it! My doctor didn't prepare me for what I would go through, and although I did read about these things online, I assumed they were extreme examples and that I had nothing to worry about. WRONG! I was only on this medication for one month. When I reached 187 mg the side effects suddenly hit me like a ton of bricks. Everytime I stood up my head and legs went numb and I thought I would pass out. Then I would lay down and my heart would be beating really hard. I felt like the bed was a boat under me, like it was swaying. I ended up spending much of the day in bed, not sleeping but not really awake either. I felt like I was in a transe. I thought maybe I was going to die.
When I began to taper down my dose (due to the side effects) I ended up with so much mucus in my lungs that it was hard to breathe, extreme mania (only sleeping 2 hours at night because my mind was racing and my eyes were going crazy in circles... it was bizarre), horrible headaches, spotting (girl stuff... basically bleeding when I shouldn't have been)... When I gave up on tapering and stopped taking it the effects were even worse. I missed the past 2 days of work because of horrible nausea and vomitting. At first I thought it was just me but after reading things and after being told by a friend that she and HER frend went through HELL trying to get off of it, I don't think my case is at all unusual. In fact, I'm maybe even lucky, since I was on it for only a month... I believe very stongly that this drug should be reserved only for cases in which all other possibilities have failed... Much as MOAIs are now treated... I also am convinced that the makers of this drug KNOW that it is addictive/creates hell for people and they don't care because they are making a huge profit by providing people with hope, only to slay it later...

I HAVE heard that it helps some people but given all the bad it does I would really use it as a last resort...

Also, FYI, I took Zoloft for the same amount of time. It had a bad effect on me psychologically (made me more anxious and such) and zoned me out but it was nothing in comparisson, and when I went off it I had no problems... I was just back to my normal self.

 

[Nervous]

Thanks for relating your experiences. I'm already feeling like crap from missing today's dose. I'll just keep taking the Effexor until my next appointment and tell the psychiatrist I wanna quit.

My advice to anyone who is starting on Effexor (or Paxil), PLEASE research withdrawl effects before taking it! My doctor didn't prepare me for what I would go through, and although I did read about these things online, I assumed they were extreme examples and that I had nothing to worry about. WRONG! I was only on this medication for one month. When I reached 187 mg the side effects suddenly hit me like a ton of bricks. Everytime I stood up my head and legs went numb and I thought I would pass out. Then I would lay down and my heart would be beating really hard. I felt like the bed was a boat under me, like it was swaying. I ended up spending much of the day in bed, not sleeping but not really awake either. I felt like I was in a transe. I thought maybe I was going to die.
When I began to taper down my dose (due to the side effects) I ended up with so much mucus in my lungs that it was hard to breathe, extreme mania (only sleeping 2 hours at night because my mind was racing and my eyes were going crazy in circles... it was bizarre), horrible headaches, spotting (girl stuff... basically bleeding when I shouldn't have been)... When I gave up on tapering and stopped taking it the effects were even worse. I missed the past 2 days of work because of horrible nausea and vomitting. At first I thought it was just me but after reading things and after being told by a friend that she and HER frend went through HELL trying to get off of it, I don't think my case is at all unusual. In fact, I'm maybe even lucky, since I was on it for only a month... I believe very stongly that this drug should be reserved only for cases in which all other possibilities have failed... Much as MOAIs are now treated... I also am convinced that the makers of this drug KNOW that it is addictive/creates hell for people and they don't care because they are making a huge profit by providing people with hope, only to slay it later...

I HAVE heard that it helps some people but given all the bad it does I would really use it as a last resort...

Also, FYI, I took Zoloft for the same amount of time. It had a bad effect on me psychologically (made me more anxious and such) and zoned me out but it was nothing in comparisson, and when I went off it I had no problems... I was just back to my normal self.

 

[VioletTears]

No problem... Sorry to be a downer but I hope you do okay coming off it and you find something else that helps you... I guess I'm in the same boat right now so I know what a frustrating process it is...

I personally want a break from meds but I'm hoping they'll let me try Welbutrin... People in my family have done fairly well on it and I have heard some good things. After this experience I do want to research more first, though.

 

[Michie3]

I was on effexor for about two months. I know side effects vary and it must work for some people, but it actually made me uncaringly suicidal (when I wasn't really before), I'd get the urge just to walk out into traffic at my college, weird stuff. Not to mention other more personal side effects

I found that a prozac and buspar combo worked well for me, although I'm not taking it at the moment... since my husband and I are trying for kids I don't want any unnecessary teratogens.

 

[Stressball]

I've been on Effexor-Xr for for nearly 8 months now. (First 75mg, then 150mg, then 110mg then back to 150mg. 150mg is not alot...it goes up to like 400 something.) First 2 days I felt lightheaded, bit sick, and got rashes on my legs but it dissappeared quickly, also totally lost my appetite for 2 weeks but it returned to normal. Had slightly blurry vision for a while too... I also sometimes sweated alot at night, waking up like I ran a marathon..it really helps with anxiety and handling major depression...like before I took it it was a huge struggle to even get out of bed or have a shower. I really don't know what I'd have done without it...I was constantly thinking of killing myself.... I have to take it for at least a year since I've been depressed for 8 years. The thing I really hate about it though, is it makes me permernantly tired and emotionally flat, hard to get excited about anything, but its not so bad if I exercise...effects everyone differently though.

 

[caitlynx]

I took Effexor a few years ago and it really helped me a lot with depression and SA (to the point that I am now considering going back on it) but there were definitely major side effects. For me they were sweating a lot, insomnia, being jittery - and yeah, missing a dose or going through withdrawal afterward was horrible (the phenomenon called "brain zaps").

My advice would be don't go on or off them without close monitoring from your doctor. Also, different meds work for different people. Lots of meds are a nightmare for some and a life-saver for others.

 

[geyser]

I've been taking 75mg of Effexor for about 2 years now. It has honestly worked wonders for me.

My girlfriend also started taking it after I finally got her to go to the doctors with her depression and she was given the same 75mg dose. It didn't help her as much and her dose was upped to 150mg. The difference in her mood is massive.

I was kind of worried about her having such a high dose, I mean I'm a 6'0 guy who weighs 195lbs, she's 5'3 and weighs 120lbs...and she's taking double my dose. But it's working really well for her.

The biggest side effect for me was I couldn't orgasm for a month or so after I started taking it, and no one warned me about that. She had the same problem when she started, only it lasted a bit longer.

 

[Carol]

My doctor prescribed Effexor to take away my migraine headaches, and it worked great until I had to stop taking it because I was pregnant. The withdrawal was horrible. I sunk into a terrible depression and just wanted to die. It lasted about five months and it was the worst five months of my life.