Effexor XR and effexor xr

I suffered from major depression last spring. The worse in my life ever, with a lot of anxiety.
I have been on Effexor XR 75 mg for 6 months. My main problems are :
LOW SEX DRIVE 9could also be from the birth control pill), SHORT TERM MEMORY PROBLEMS (a bad one), DIZZINESS.
My doctor felt that i needed to increase to 150mg because she thought i still had problems (like lack of motivation and negative thoughts): we started by adding 37.5mg extra. By day 2 or 3 of this increase, I was waking up constantly during the night, and felt extremely agitated. Like I would crawl right out of my skin. I couldn't lie still and moved about a lot in my bed, especially my legs. By day 6 of this increase, my anxiety was SO BAD, I was back to nearly the same anxiety I had in the spring before starting treatment. BE CAREFUL about increasing your dosage. TELL SOMEONE to watch if your mood changes and to take you to the ER if necessary. thank goodness I didn't need to go.
I now take fish oil (omega 3) and within a couple months of that, I noticed that my anger/impulsive and concentration seemed better. I am also going off the birth control pill this month 9ortho tri cyclen lo). I brought it up to my GP, to a psychiatrist and to my opharmacist that I was depressed and could there be a link with the birth control pills and they all said "I don't think so."; "no", "very unlikely". Well my major depression, MAJOR MOOD FLUCTUATIONS, anxiety and ANGER control problems all started with the beginning of the birth control pill.

I have been on anti-depressants for about 10 years now. I've tried Wellbutrin, Lexapro, Prozac, and Effexor (just to name a few). I've been on Effexor (this is my 2nd time) for about 4 years now. I finally decided to get off the effexor and I desperately want to share what's been happening ever since. I slowly weened off of it, starting at my regular 175mg a day for 2 1/2 weeks, then down to 125mg, 75mg, and then 37.5. My doctor suggested I change doses every week, however I went 2 1/2 weeks because of the AWFUL side effects.

I have had the typical head "buzzing" is what I call it and my nerves are a wreck 24/7 but the worse problem I'm having and the one I haven't seen anyone write about yet is my severe stomach problems. I have had diarrhea everyday, all day, since I went off Effexor. It's been over 2 weeks since I've taken my last pill and it's not getting any better. My dr. thinks it could be IBS or bad eating habits, but I've tried changing my diet, etc. and nothing is giving me any relief. It's come to the point where I can't tell if my nerves are what is upsetting my stomach or if my upset stomach is what is setting off my nerves. Anyone else with these issues??

And in case anyone reads this before starting Effexor, please please don't use this medication. Try any and/or all other anti-depressants before using Effexor. It may work for your depression, but the side effects highly out weigh the benefits. I'm finding that out the hard way now. I would have never taken this drug if I knew what I would be in for 4 yrs down the road. And I can't help but be upset with our healthcare system when doctor's would actually prescribe this to their patients.

Effexor XR has been a life-saver for me! I have been taking 150mg per day for about 8 yrs. Recently, 75mg was added to my daily dose because of a temporary new stress or on my plate - divorce. With the increased dose came constant sweating and unbearable dry mouth. I dropped back to the 150mg dose and the sweating is back to being manageable and the dry mouth is much less. I can't imagine living without Effexor XR - this anti-depressant has literally saved my life -- I know now that life doesn't to be so horrifically painful as was the norm for me prior to taking Effexor XR. I have no other side effects - I have gained some weight but only over the past two years and that possibly can be attributed to my age (50) and the stress of a bad marriage. The half life of Effexor is short and I do sometimes get the electrical shock feeling in my head -- that usually a red flag that I missed a dose. To be on the safe side I keep a dose in my purse as a back-up. All-in-all, it feels great to be 'normal', even if it means using Effexor XR - I hope it never goes off the market. Way-back-when, I initially started out w/ Paxil (helped, but I felt just below the surface of reality and had horrid withdrawals) - then tried Wellbutrin and after a day was so terribly spaced out that I could only minimally function and couldn't even leave the house - got off of that stuff immediately! Effexor just lets me function and feel feelings at a normal volume. Thank you Lord!!

This medication was a life-saver for me when I first started taking it 7 years ago. Unfortunately, every so often it would stop being effective. My Dr. would up the dosage until I was on the highest and could go no future. So I set out to titrate off, which I did very slowly, but it was hell. The worst was when I was finally done. I felt like a junkie. I was shaking, having crazy brain zaps that made me feel like I was being shocked every time I'd close my eyes. I was sweating like a pig. My sleep was was filled with terrifying nightmares that left me screaming out in my sleep. I am 5 weeks off and still experiencing nightmares, and a few mind-zap things-but nothing like they were when I first started to come off. Yoga and meditation seemed to be the only things that helped. Each day I wanted to take it again just to feel normal. No one can believe that a common SSRI can have such horrible withdrawal effects, so I am on a quest to educated everyone I know.

I have been taking this drug 75mg everyday for 6 months. at first I was feeling so much better. This past winter I have been sick constantly. I almost never get sick and I have had every virus that has went around. now I am feeling so weird sleep disturbances weird dreams, not being able to sleep but being exhausted.. I have gained weight and want to eat all the time. I am going to the doctor in a few days and will be asking to be weaned off this drug.

I am going on day 4 of stopping my Effexor cold turkey. I was on 300 mg and taking 20 mg of Pexeva. I am stopping cold turkey after being on this medication for three years. The withdrawals are terrible, I don't know why any doctor in their right mind would ever prescribe this medication for anyone. I have those wonderful brain zaps every ten seconds, the only thing that momentarily makes me sane is food, as if the 30 pounds this medication has gained me aren't enough, stopping it is going to pack on another 30. I am a bundle of anger and rage directed at anyone within distance. I am at the toilet every night waiting and praying that I can just throw up. When I finally can fall asleep I am jolted awake in a puddle of sweat having just had yet another nightmare. And when I say nightmare, I mean the kind that have me screaming out loud in terror waking my husband. Minor daily tasks are ignored due to the fact that putting one foot in front of the other is too much to handle. I can't stand this feeling and only pray for the day that it will stop.

night sweats, hot flash, panic feeling, fast heart rate, headache. AND THAT WAS IN ONE DAY! Felt spacey and out of this world. No joke. It started out good then it was like whamo! I took it on Thursday and Thursday night I was in the ER having an EKG done and blood tests done. Even in the hospital, laying in the bed, I had stomach pains, burning in my stomach and my heart started jumping. No heart issues, everything fine. I got severe thirst and anxious. Doc said it was reflux.. Mmmhuh. I only take Synthroid for my thyroid disorder and Prevacid for reflux. (And I don't take it every day) That is it. Friday, woke up feeling like I was drugged, flu like symptoms. Friday was little better, still kind of out of it, like I was coming off a high, kind of down. That night, around 5, I woke up with the heart palpitations and the anxiety and I just had to tell myself to calm down and I went back to bed. Today, my tongue feels funny, dry. And I only took one. I turned the meds back in..... If one day side effects are like that, I am not taking anymore. It is about trust in God!!!

I have been taking Effexor XR for a year now. When I first started I was taking a 150MG now I am down to 75mg a day. I have experienced a lot of abnormal dreams and usually I am interacting in my dreams. I also have experienced different parts of my body jumping. I am coming off of this medications and work on my anxiety on my own. It is always best to do everything natural because no one knows what medication actually does to your body but I can tell you I have had some strange feelings.

I had trouble with my vision, sweating more than usual, mania and then about 4 days after my dose was increased to 150mg from 75mg I I suffered from blackouts, confusion, suicidal thoughts, suicidal actions which resulted in a stand off with the police. I have been in and out of the mental hospital for the past month until I refused to take anymore anti depressants and became stable on my own. I still have some panic attacks and nightmares which I have never had before in my life. I would advise any one who is prescribed this medication to report all side effects they are experiencing to their doctor because once you start blacking out it's too late for you reach out for help. I will never take another drug that interferes with the chemicals in my brain and am seeking counsiling to deal with my social anxiety disoder rather than taking meds.