Posted by Clayton on July 11, 2007, at 18:57:06
In reply to Re: Anyone had success on Effexor XR? » Kev, posted by Sachi on July 11, 2007, at 17:48:57
I want to echo the main thought expressed by the below reproduced post. I too had been through every anti-depressant in the book )amitryptalin, Prozac, Paxil, Welbutrin, Remeron to name some)except for Effexor which I greartly feared due to posts read on this site, paticularly those concerning the withdrawn effects.
When nothing else worked I gave it alot of thought and decided to try effexor. My PDoc started me at 150 mg and I am now up to 300 mg. There were NO side effects from the initial dose or the current rather large dose. NONE.
And, as to withdrawl effects, I was away on vacation and ran completely out of my Effexor (not very good planning there!). I waited with trepidation for the "brain shocks" and flu-like symptoms (so often mentioned on this site) but neither of these things happened AT ALL. In fact, there were NO WITHDRAWL EFFECTS (other than returning to the somewhat depressive state I was in before I stared the Effexor). And I went without the med for two weeks!
As for efficacy as an ant-depressant, I echo the setiments of the Author to whom I am responding. Effexor has helps me immeasrably. It is the first ant-depressant that has actually worked for me. In fact, it's the first one I could feel the effects of at all. I can say enough good about it.
It's a given that everyone reponds differently to different drugs. Still, I would not want to see people (who might well be hugely helped by Effexor)avoid it because of the plethora of negative posts on this and other sites. And my PDoc said there are parmacological solutions for the "brain shocks" if they occur. I haven't found out more about these because with me they DID NOT occur.
So, here's to Effexor, the only effectice anti-depreppant I have found, and one with absolutely no side-effects (for me).
If you have not done so yet, please read the post reproduced below. It tells a similar story much more eloquently than I could.
Regards and best of luck to you all!
> I almost didn't even try this med because of all the terrible things I read about it on certain sites. I am so glad I decided just to try. My Dr. said to start with 37.5 mg XR for an entire month just to be sure before upping the dose. I think that made me feel more comfortable. I could tell the second day I was taking it that it was working for me. In the past I have tried Zoloft, Elavil, Prozac, Celexa, Wellbutrin and most recently, Cymbalta. I have been diagnosed with cyclic dysthymia (mini bi-polar), major depression, post-partum depression and generalized anxiety disorder at different times in my journey. I'm not a complete nut, I function quite well, but have always felt like other people just seemed to feel better/more cheerful and optimistic than me... and that I always just had a dark aura/cloud over me no matter how I tried to lift it by exercise/meditation/nutrition etc. This has been a life-long battle for me and I have found the answer in Effexor. I wake up in the morning happy and ready for the day instead of in a cloud and wanting nothing more than to go back to sleep indefinitely. I have energy during the day instead of dragging through every moment only wishing for bedtime. I am not anxious for the first time in my life, which is weird because I am also not tried. Every other thing I ever took for anxiety made me want to go to sleep. Now I feel calm, but not sleepy... NICE! This is a miracle for me after 36 years of suffering. I hope other people who read all the terrible things about Effexor, also read this and at least give it a try at the lowest dosage just to see if it works for them like it works for me!
poster:Clayton
thread:13781
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20070710/msgs/769036.html