Effexor and mood swings

Ugh, this has to be the worst medicine I have EVER been on. I was having anxiety attacks that occurred every evening and lasted for hours. Hot flash, nauseousness, inability to concentrate, thought I was going crazy.........
they started after my mom went in for open heart surgery in Nov of 2008. They put me on Xanax for attacks, and Clonazepam (double ugh), and I didn't take Effexor for a while, but my aunt convinced me to do it as I wasn't doing much better.

The thing is I'd been having issues with fatigue, heart palpitations, facial hair, etc. for several months to years and the doctors ran blood work and said everything was fine........

With the clonazepam and effexor I didn't have mood swings so much, but it was because I spent 16-20 hours a day in bed. When I first started the effexor I was told that the side effects go away after your body adjusts, and as it was the fourth or fifth anti-depressant I tried I figured I would suffer through. I lost 40 pounds (as I was/am overweight it was a good side effect in some ways) in a matter of 6 weeks, lost my appetite to the point that when I realized that I needed to do something about it I had to force myself to eat 1/2 piece of toast a day, slowing eating more...........I went several weeks only able to eat an average of 500 calories a day. I was so nauseous all the time. I was pretty much having a break down. I would only be "functioning" for 2-6 hours a day.

After going to the ER because my muscles began shaking while standing or trying to climb stairs (I'm only 28), having racing heart beats which they just prescribed more medication for, absolutely no energy, my hair falling out by the handfuls, I would wake up with it on my pillow............could not concentrate for the life of me, falling behind in school work (back to school mom), unable to do papers because I couldn't think.............

They finally tested my thyroid (runs in the family, have been telling them it sounded like my thyroid from the beginning........) my levels were finally off the charts, my TSH wasn't even registering. I was diagnosed with Graves disease........which can cause the panic attacks that they put me on the medication for in the first place.

As I figured it was probably the Graves, I tried weaning off my meds, only to feel as though I was going nuts and going to die............... I cut my clonazepam and effexor dosages in half, and within 2 days I could concentrate, and within a couple weeks I could go up and down the stairs again.............

Even now it is hard to say how much of my issues were caused by the Graves and how much was due to the Effexor combined with the Clonazepam. I was able to wean of the Clonazepam within 6 weeks by cutting my dosage in quarters every two weeks, but NOT the Effexor. I tried cut it and started having panic attacks, couldn't think, major migraines, and bed ridden........so I had to reduce it even slower.

Once I got down to half a dose, all of my symptoms went away except the fatigue. That is why I associate a lot of it with Effexor and NOT the Graves, because the symptoms did not go away until I reduced the drugs. I am now finally free of Effexor for about a month, and it was a hard road. It took me six months. I still have some issues with concentration and the occasional panic attack, but they are very minimal. I have read that this could be due to either both or one of the drugs I was on as it can take a year or more for your body to adjust.

Anyhoo, I wonder if the medication didn't trigger the Graves, or what.............but I would NEVER EVER suggest this medication to anyone.

I have gained most of the weight I lost back........but that is to be expected since my metabolism probably hit rock bottom not eating anything but toast for weeks.......

Anyhoo, I really wish that Doctors would tell you what could happen before giving you a drug. At least then when you start having these symptoms you know where and why...........rather then going in, and them having no idea?!?!?!? Funny, as if you search online you see lists that match exactly what you are going through.

I am now VERY leery about taking any meds at all, including Tylenol.

I am Bipolar, and I have been on many drugs. When I began taking Effexor, I was misdiagnosed and told that I was manic depressive. Anti-depressants can often make people with Bipolar worse. Effexor was the worst! My main issues were terrible, vivid nightmares and anger problems. The nightmares were bad, but after even one alchohlic beverage, I became enraged. I said and did things to my friends, that I would never do. I know you are not really suppose to drink on a lot of medication, but one drink? I became scared of myself and I am lucky to still have my friends.

I do know, that Effexor works for some people, because my dad is on it and he loves it. It just wasn't for me.

I was on a 225mg daily dose of Effexor for about two weeks before I started to ween myself off because it was doing nothing for my situation, causing ridiculous dehydration, and possibly causing mood swings. I haven't taken any for just over a month and every day I'm still getting the same extreme light-headedness that I got the first time I missed a dose. I have no idea how long this is going to last, and I'm sick of it.

I urge anyone who is researching this medication and considering starting it to reconsider. Tell your doctor you would rather try something different first.

Thank all of you for your candor. I too had been on anti-depressants for the past 3 years. I finally said enough is enough, each med had different side effects.I had lost interest in my "life" didn't want to exercise, work or really do much of anything...unless I "had to" & was becoming quite the actress going through the motions...this was NOT the ME I had known for 30+ YEARS & will not BE ME. I have the blurred vision, confusion, forgetfulness to name a few of the side effects. It has been 1 year since my divorce (reason I started it)... I no longer felt "situationally depressed" and assumed the unusual feelings I was experiencing was due to the drug and that I needed to get off of it to get my life back. So I stopped Effexor cold turkey.After two weeks & unusal side effects I got on line to see what other experienced. I too have experienced the vivid dreams / nightmares, where I literally felt as though I was "drugged". I have the cotton mouth, when tired "spaced out", mood swings, tiredness, night sweats, flu like symptoms, my appetite has increased, I had no sex drive on Effexor, 2 weeks off and it is coming back at least I'm thinking about it....I can identify with most of what I've read others have experienced on some level.

Bottom line...if I had it to do all over again. I would NOT take any anti-depressants, I suppose I was depressed divorcing & I should have been it is a major change in ones life. In hindsight I should have let my mind and body go through whatever the "natural process" was to be... because the experience going on, waiting to feel "normalcy" (which neve happened) and coming off has been awful. My point of view, there is no "magic" pill that is going to make us get up and go like the TV commercials portray. Life is difficult & I will survive without a "pill", I definately feel better over all getting the Effexor out of my system ...I'm hopeful the side effects will be short lived.

Hello

I was on the Effexor drug for Major Depression among other symptoms. I believe I was having hot flashes, and heavy sweating. It was terrible droplets of sweat coming down my face and I was unable to control it. I was taking 225mg for about 4 months and felt my depression coming back on. My doctor wants to put me back on another kind of psychotropic med, but I think I will do it like the old days "ignore it". The worst side effect I am having is the mood swings, the brain shifting. The brain shifting feels as thought it hurts my vision, when the brain shift I feel my eyes twitching. Is pretty bad feeling the brain shift, your equilibrium is off. I feel dizzy, sick to my stomach, diareah and feeling wanting to vomit.
I cannot wait until this all goes away. I am hoping it goes away

I have been reading about this now for three hours, and it has made me feel both better and worse. I have been on antidepressants for over 10 years; I think I have been on Effexor for around 4 or 5. It has all but banished my panic attacks; I haven't had one in months now, and those that I have had over the past few years have been endurable to say the least. What worries me is the changes in my personality that have taken place over the past decade. I have been thinking that what I have been experiencing is my depression getting worse and that I have been spiraling down into severe mental illness. It's frightening to say out loud that you think you are going crazy, and so I have managed to keep a tenuous hold on reality and ever onward I go. I mentioned my symptoms to my doctor almost 2 years ago, and her response was to increase my dosage to 112.5 a day. This only served to confirm my belief that my mental health was indeed declining. After reading these posts I want to weep with joy that I am not crazy, it is this magic pill that I take every day. I too have avoided going off Effexor because of the side effects; it seems that it would be easier to withdraw from a serious heroin jones with less suffering. My side effects while being on the medication have been: loss of interest in everything in life that ever interested me, weight gain with loss of appetite (go figure), loss of sex drive and almost an aversion to sex or intimacy, fatigue, confusion, and an emotional withdrawal from those around me. The few times I have tried to go off Effexor (or missed a few days due to forgetfulness or lack of interest in going to the pharmacy to pick them up), my symptoms have been: that weird feeling of your brain having to catch up to your eyes, that feeling of being shocked or zapped, a descent into depression equaling the speed of an Olympic bobsled run, a feeling of hopelessness, headache, cotton mouth, diarrhea, mood swings so severe and radical that I frighten myself, irritability to the point of wanting to chew off my own fingers, tears over everything and anything, and restlessness. Reading over this, I'm thinking that being depressed was not so bad after all. It's kind of sick to wish for simple depression; it reinforces my belief that this medication is bad. I see that in another post someone is asking if there is any rumble of a class-action lawsuit; I would also be interested in this information. Thank you for sharing what this medication has done to all of you, and I hope that my post helps someone else with similar experiences.

i have been on effexor for one year. and i love it, actually i have lost weight! i was put on it to help with my hot flashes and mood swings. i was on zoloft and gained 70 pounds. i love effexor.

Since being on Effexor,I have terrible headaches , mood swings, and diahrea. I have also gained about 50 lbs. This was supposed to be a mood stabiliser. I' more depressed now than ever.