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Re: effexor for depression fibromyalgia???

Posted by reb on August 8, 2001, at 17:12:57

In reply to effexor for depression fibromyalgia???, posted by reb on August 4, 2001, at 20:46:38

hi, thanks to all for the great feedback...
i still have the effexor sitting on the counter & am still very afraid to try it. it's not just the side effects i'm worried about... it's more the fears of:
-how will i keep affording this?
-what happens if it works, do i have to be on it for the rest of my life?
-if not, what happens when i go off? will my brain chemicals be "atrophied" & will i just sink down even lower when i get off the "crutch" of the drug? then i'll wish i had never taken it.
-what happens when it stops working, when the brain develops a "resistance" to it (which i've also read a lot about)? then they will just keep upping the dose, and upping it, and.....??? no way man!
-why do i want to be a guinea pig all over again for a drug whose damaging long-term side effects are still not proven or disproven???

i keep reading stuff about eye damage, "brain shivers" that last for many months after quitting, "serotonin overload syndrome" (or whatever it's called... & all this other frightening stuff. i DO NOT take these drugs lightly. but at the same time, i'm desperate for some help, i can't even work, too broke to go to any more docs to find out what's wrong. there has GOT to be a name for what's wrong w/ me. i cannot possibly believe that it's normal to feel like this!!! if it's this bad at 33, then how is it going to be at 40, 50, or ---60? don't think i will be able to make it if that's the case.

noa, i got some basic blood work done- thyroid, liver, iron, etc. was all fine. they didn't do the tests that rule out FM though. that means going to another doc and shelling out more cash (no insurance). she wants to send me to a rheumetologist... but said be careful because some "don't believe in" FM. but i also don't want to go to one who just throws everyone with miscellaneous symptoms into that category either. i either want to KNOW if it IS or is NOT FM. (or even if there IS such a disorder in the first place).
thanks for letting me vent... (very frustrated right now!)----- take care everyone...

> hi there,
> i'll try to keep this short....my symptoms:
> long-term depression, recently gotten worse afer quitting job and LONG bout of bronchitis. lungs have never been the same (soreness in morning)-
> also recently have had extreme unexplainable muscle soreness/weakness/stiffness- mostly lower back & legs- not from either exertion or lack of exercise- just the usual activites: getting up in morning (feel like hit by mack truck!), regular walking, standing for more than 1 minute. never had pain like this before. got blood work & lung x-ray- all OK.
> i've been depressed most my life, hospitalized 4x when younger (for school "phobia"- < or---crappy schools! > & family problems- "broken home")... dep is nothing new, but recently gotten worse, can't seem to crawl out of. unable to work (yes i'm broke now), or socialize, don't want to see or talk to anyone. i'm 33 but feel & like a sick old lady (my bf says i walk like one). don't drink or smoke, extremely sensitive to cig smoke (& other smells, loud noise, bright light) so don't go out anymore to clubs or bars. also super-sensitive to alcohol, never drank much but now don't at all. (2 sips=instant hangover/migraine!) very prone to headaches & migraines... also bronchitis, prob due to smoke from working in bars.
>
> i'm VERY reluctant to try any new drugs, don't trust them AT ALL. very afraid due to my past- being forced to take psych drugs (trilafon, elavil, navane, lithium)that made me feel like i had a "chemical lobotomy"--- shattered my concentration, took YEARS to rebuild. now, my doc says my "depression is causing the muscle soreness" although that's kind of vague-- and there's MORE to it than just dep--- but there might be some truth to it. the more i read about FM, the more it fits symptoms exactly- esp SORENESS (which is a new thing)/fatigue/spaciness/memory problems.
> MY possible diagnosis: i've had chronic burnout from stress, which has led to adrenal exhaustion, which maybe has led to FM??? anyway........she suggested effexor, since it blocks reuptake of noradrenaline as well as seratonin (lifts dep, AND gives you a shot of adrenalin, supposedly). but I AM AFRAID!!!! not only can i not afford, but also worried even if it works great i will be dependant on it. THEN what?
> plus i don't have insurance!!! these drugs only mask symptoms, they don't get to the ROOT of the problem & solve it. but i can't live like this anymore!!!!!! i am in low-cost therapy. i took zoloft for several months last yr which helped (my lows weren't so low & i didn't cry all the time anymore) but then i couldn't afford anymore--- also i felt like it wasn't working as well (THEN what? do you keep upping & upping the dosgae? i don't THINK so!!)-- also heard that your brain chemicals get dependent- i.e. grow "apathetic" on it- and also that it leaves some kind of sticky deposits/residue on your heart valves. (and i have mitral valve prolapse, so that is scary!) ----ANY TRUTH TO THIS????
>
> one more thing-----let's remember, SO FAR, ELI LILLY HAS MADE OVER 20 BILLION ON PROZAC ALONE!!!!!
>
> so, does anyone have experience with using effexor for depression and fibromyalgia (if that is what i have)??? my doc says she's had the best feedback w/ this drug, but then i see all the scary stuff on this board.
> also does anyone know about these zoloft side affects?
>
> thanks to all for any insight/enlightment...
> take care of yourselves!
> reb in austin, TX


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poster:reb thread:73585
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010804/msgs/74221.html