Posted by AnneL on December 3, 2001, at 23:19:09
In reply to Paxil vs Effexor, posted by jscottb on December 3, 2001, at 22:38:11
Dear jscottb,
My initial response was, if it's not broken don't fix it and then I got to thinking, hey if you do not feel that you are making a satisfactory recovery, then perhaps you should discuss other medication options with your doctor. After all, there is always the chance that you may be able to add another medication or change over to another medication, such as Effexor.
Having tried Paxil, very low dose Prozac (5 mg. really pathetic!), and Celexa, I can tell you that all 3 gave me anxiety. Do I really know if they caused anxiety? Or perhaps I was just really scared about trying these types of medications.
The end result is that I tried Effexor, but knowing that I get anxiety about potential side effects, including anxiety, my doctor prescribed a benzodiazepine (Klonopin) along with the Effexor.
I am happy to say that I am very, very pleased with Effexor (a remarkable recovery), have no anxiety and the only thing I experienced in my overwhelming rush to get off medications (because I was cured!) was a nasty, nasty day of what is termed "discontinuation syndrome" which was completely reversed by resuming my standard dose.
Having learned one of life's tough lessons, I am in no rush to get off of medication. And when the time comes (when and if), I will work closely with my doctor. The long and the short of it is this, have a very frank discussion with your doctor about the areas in your life which you feel could be improved. I also hope that you have supportive family, friends and hopefully a good therapist to help deal with the issues of living that we all have, whether we are depressed or not.
:) AnneL
poster:AnneL
thread:85928
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011202/msgs/85937.html