Posted by sar on October 24, 2001, at 16:04:42
In reply to Venlafaxine, and silly anti-capitalist raving, posted by Edward on October 24, 2001, at 15:19:19
i tried venlafaxine (effexor) for a month and had some strange side-effects; it also did nothing to help my depression (though, given, i did not give it the full 6-week trial period...but the side-effects and scary things i read about it discouraged me from taking it, though i was actively suicidal and terribly depressed).
prozac kicked my ass after several weeks; a strong backbone grew in the place of a pathetic lethargic piece of flesh, and i was able to hold down a job for 6 months (and i got a new job yesterday).
my cognition has diminished (i'm also on klonopin and neurontin)...i consistently misspell simple words or write "their" instead of "there"...but my depression had already destroyed parts of my brain in a different way; instead of hearing "this is how you do this, and this is how you do that," all i could think of was ways to off myself.
i'm able to laugh again, and i laugh alot.
i don't know anyone who has "recovered" from depression by taking AD's, but i'm relatively young and inexperienced. i've already accepted depression (or at least dysthymia) as an integral part of me, as i've had it from age 12 or so...i used to be really anti-meds, i'm a naturalist right, i don't want additives in my food i don't want to take birth control i don't want to--blah blah blah--but after 11 years of all of this, and after the worst episode yet, it didn't matter anymore, AD's were the only solution left. talk therapy was okayt but wasn't enough. love was okay but not enough. good grades at college okay but not enough.
i chose both prozac and neurontin (as opposed to celexa and depakote, as suggested by the pdocs) through research, lots of research...if you're a lazy depressed slob (as i was, too) there's plenty of time to spend on the internet and in the bookstore reading up when you've got the energy.
best of luck to you.
sar
poster:sar
thread:82205
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011015/msgs/82208.html