Posted by Bill LL on April 27, 2005, at 8:49:56
In reply to Effexor XR Newbie, posted by bobbied on April 26, 2005, at 13:23:50
Effexor has a reputation for being a very safe and very effective drug. It's a lot safer than many of the older anti-depresssants. It's just as safe, but a little bit more effective than most of the anti-depressants currently used.
I have done a lot of reading about Effexor and other antidepressants and have never read anything to suggest that Effexor can cause brain damage or any other type of injury. It can however feel uncomfortable for a week or so if and when one discontinues using it.
I believe that 37.5 mg is the typical starting dose. Eventually, most people go up to I think around 300 mg. But as long as 37.5 is working, I guess you should stay there. Just do not hesitate to increase the dose if and when it starts to be less effective.
> I started this stuff 5 days ago and feel great, compared to before. But now that I've read all of these bad posts I'm a little scared. What's the deal w/brain damage, is all of that true or some wako's idea of being funny.
>
> I must say that my Anxiety and Depression are under control compared to before. My family has been begging me to see a Dr. for years about my "emotional outbreaks", and I was having suicidal thoughts often. My dad attempted suicide unsuccesfully 4 yrs. ago, and that seemed to complicate my own condition. For the first time in yrs. I feel happy, really trully happy. I haven't stepped up my dose yet I'm supposed to Friday but I don't want to be overly medicated should I stay at the 37.5 dose? Anyways I'm glad I found this site even though it's scaring me a little. I'm poor and can't afford therapy maybe this will help me.
poster:Bill LL
thread:489859
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050423/msgs/490272.html