Effexor - Sacramento,CA

Effexor was not a good match for me, it made me sleepy. I know other people who love it. I have found a good match in pristiq. If this one does not help, there is one that will!

M.

Effexor made me....how do I put it...dulled out of my senses. I didn't really anything. And it didn't make me tired, made me lose my appetite....I didn't really like it so my doc switched me to Cymbalta at the time. It was one of the better ones. I'd like to try Pritiq...I hear so many good things about it.

Effexor was a great match for me. I took it for about a year after my third miscarriage when my general anxiety spiraled completely out of control. I also have some moderate anxiety-based OCD that was getting disruptive to my daily life (ie - missing work to rehang all the clothing in my closet in a different organizational pattern or staying up all night to iron and refold all of my sheets - I can laugh about this now!!! lol).

I noticed a difference after about 2 or 3 weeks. From what I remember (I took effexor XR in 2003) I started out with like lowest dose every day for the first week and then increased to a higher dose. I remember that I noticed pretty quickly that I was less emotional. I did end up going up one additional increment which is where I stayed for the better part of 8 or 9 months. During that time I was able to get better control of my OCD and do a significant amount of work with my therapist. So, I tapered down and stayed there for a couple months and then weaned off.

I had no problems at all - no side effects that I noticed during the entire time, even during weaning. I would definitely give this medication a try.

I will offer this.... one of the reasons why the Psychiatrist suggested effexor was because my issues were anxiety based. Not really "mania", per say..... but at it's worst probably pretty close. therefore, I think it did 'calm me down'. So, if my issue had been depression I could see where it might make you 'dull'. But for me, I never felt like the drug did the work. I felt like it sort of just made me less emotional where I could then think through my issue - "OK, I can't leave this room because the drawers are not in order, so I have to reorganize them. Wait a minute. your actual issue is xyz and you want to reorganize cuz you don't have control over 123 etc etc". Whereas before I wasn't really able to even have that thought process because the emotional need to re-organize would have just completely taken over, you know?

I hope you get the information you need.

Tapering off Effexor can be a very long process for some people. In sensitive people, it has to be done slowly over many weeks or even a couple of months. The major side effect if you miss a dose or taper off too slowly is severe dizziness, which can be easily relieved by taking a dose.
This is my experience as a psychiatrist prescribing effexor. Otherwise it is mostly well tolerated and can be quite good at treating both anxiety and depression. In the beginning, nausea can be an issue. You also have to follow your blood pressure, as it can become elevated.

The regular Effexor (that you take 2 times a day) had me all over the place and I had a lot of side effects. But the Effexor XR is awesome. Starting up, during, and tapering off were all fine for me. It was the best anxiety med I ever had.

I had a really bad beginning with Effexor (75 mg) but I loved it overall. I started after surgery and not eating and with a lot of other meds. (I was diagnosed with IC - painful bladder syndrome.) I started throwing up repeatedly and couldn't stop. I had to go to the ER. Later, I called the on call Dr. at my urologists office. He said it was probably the Effexor that caused me to throw up. I started on 35 mg a few days later and took it with a lot of food. I would make my heart race a little. I later stepped up to the 75 mg. It helped with depression and anxiety. The main reason I was supposed to be on it was for pain. They said antidepressants can help with pain nerve signals. It didn't seem to improve my pain though. I had to be on other pain killers. I felt so much happier though.
I quit being on it when I got pregnant. I would love to have gone back on it afterwards for my post-pardum depression but my insurance changed and I can only get generics. I hope they come out with a generic for this!! I struggle with depression from time to time.
I would definitely say to start with a low dose!!!! I tried a few other antidepressant and this was the only one that worked for me. Good luck!

Hi there,

It's been a while since I took Effexor. I think I was on a very low dose of the slow release version. I was on it for about 4 years. Coming off of it was awful. I had these strange brain snaps and felt sick. I tapered off very gradually under the supervision of a psychiatrist, but felt just awful. I remember wishing I had never taken it during the time I was stopping.

As a side note, I haven't been on any depression medication for the past four years or so, and have been feeling much happier. I think the medication helped when I was really in a dark place, but I don't think I needed to be on them for such a long time. Really examining how I was living my life and making changes helped much more than any medication.

Anyway, I hope you are feeling better soon, with or without the medication. Hang in there!!!

H.