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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 9 of 9. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Linda Rose on September 19, 2001, at 21:43:26
Hi everyone,
I started taking Effexor XR just 2 days ago for depression, so far the only side affects I have had is a mild headache and feeling sick to my stomach. However I have been sitting here for 2 hours reading these postings and I fell like I want to Quit while I am ahead. Is there anyone out ther that can give me some good reasons why I should continue to take this medication????
Posted by willow on September 20, 2001, at 20:15:11
In reply to Re: I need some very possitive feedback!!, posted by Linda Rose on September 19, 2001, at 21:43:26
Effexor has changed my life. It hasn't been a cure but it has brought me closer to "normal for me" than any other drug or therapy. I was able to get rid of the headaches when I started the medication by taking it twice a day.
I've been on it for a year now.
BEST WISHES
Willow
Posted by Linda Rose on September 20, 2001, at 21:17:25
In reply to Re: I need some very possitive feedback!!, posted by willow on September 20, 2001, at 20:15:11
> Effexor has changed my life. It hasn't been a cure but it has brought me closer to "normal for me" than any other drug or therapy. I was able to get rid of the headaches when I started the medication by taking it twice a day.
>
> I've been on it for a year now.
>
> BEST WISHES
> WillowThank-You Willow, I spoke with my Dr. today and he said I should atleast stick with it for a month. I want to try but It still scares me. Tonight while watching TV I had the weirdest sensation in my head and then I got this hot flash. It was scary!! Can you tell me a little about how you felt when you first started taking Effexor and how you were able to deal with it? also what drugs have you tried before?
Take Care
Linda Rose
Posted by Sea on September 20, 2001, at 22:48:50
In reply to Re: I need some very possitive feedback!!, posted by Linda Rose on September 19, 2001, at 21:43:26
Hi Linda,
I really understand your concern about taking Effexor, but would urge you to give it a try. I was in a similar situation about 6 weeks ago. I had just started Effexor XR (37.5mg) when I found this board and read all of the negative posts. It scared the s#*t out of me! I kept on reading and found several positive posts and a few people reminding us that negative experiences tend to get posted more often than the positive ones. I also read some of the papers on effexor clinical trials and decided that I needed to give it a reasonable trial. I had previously taken zoloft, which pooped out after 8 or 9 months, and wellbutrin which began to lose its effectiveness after a couple of years. I had been sliding down into that pit again and desperately needed to find something that would work again. I am now at 150 mg/day and feel really good. I am soooo glad I stuck it out! I haven't had any really bad side effects with it. I had some nausea the first couple of weeks, but being careful to take the effexor with food helped. While a number of people report effexor to be activating, it made me very sleepy within an hour, so I switched to taking it at night. My major problem has been with sleep, which seems strange since it made me so sleepy. Although I could fall asleep, I woke up frequently during the night. My mood began to lift a little even at the low dose, but I was exhausted and pretty much non-functional. My Dr. added trazodone at night and that helped the sleep. I continued to increase the effexor slowly and by the end of my first week at 150 mg I felt great! I'm going to stay at 150 mg/day until I see my Dr. next month, but will probably push it a little higher to see if there is any more mileage to be gained. While we all differ in our responses to these drugs, effexor has worked well for me.If you decide to stay with the effexor, I would urge you to work closely with your Dr. and make sure you get up to a high enough dose. While I had some minor gains at the lower doses, I didn't really begin to feel it until I had been on 150 mg for a week.
I hope this has been helpful.
SeaP.S. Here are some recent positive threads on effexor:
Beginning my fourth year... Mud 9/2/01
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010902/msgs/77421.htmlLove that EFFEXOR XR!!! Firebabe1 9/6/01
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010902/msgs/78069.htmlHas Anyone had a good experience with Effexor XR? Katey 9/17/01
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010917/msgs/78958.html
Posted by Katey on September 21, 2001, at 9:45:56
In reply to Re: I need some very possitive feedback!! » Linda Rose, posted by Sea on September 20, 2001, at 22:48:50
Linda, i'm in the same boat you are....except along with the nausea i cant function im so sedated....ive only been on effexor for about five days, but im still questioning if this was the right choice for me after all. Stick with it i guess, but do some outside of the board research and try to actually know about what your taking. it can be comforting in an odd sort of way.
Posted by willow on September 21, 2001, at 10:45:31
In reply to Re: I need some very possitive feedback!!, posted by Linda Rose on September 20, 2001, at 21:17:25
*I want to try but It still scares me.
You have to weigh the pros and cons for yourself. I'm on disability for "Chronic Fatigue Syndrome." I've had this for more than five years now. So for me the posts weren't that scary when I weighed the benefits of effexor against how some people were feeling.
*Tonight while watching TV I had the weirdest sensation in my head and then I got this hot flash. It was scary!!
Effexor literally warmed me up when I started taking it. A very common side-effect is sweating, over time this lessened for me. I didn't mind it though because I was cold all the time. The first few months can be tough, but again the good it did for me was better than not taking it. Why are you taking the medication?
*also what drugs have you tried before?
I've been on different older ADs and they all affected my emotions adversley. Tried two other newer ones and they gave me severe headaches and made me "angry." Trazadone did nothing for my energy but did help with some aspects of the physical pain involved with this syndrome.
Willow
Posted by galtin on September 22, 2001, at 19:29:19
In reply to Re: I need some very possitive feedback!!, posted by Linda Rose on September 19, 2001, at 21:43:26
> Hi everyone,
> I started taking Effexor XR just 2 days ago for depression, so far the only side affects I have had is a mild headache and feeling sick to my stomach. However I have been sitting here for 2 hours reading these postings and I fell like I want to Quit while I am ahead. Is there anyone out ther that can give me some good reasons why I should continue to take this medication????Linda Rose,
I am going into my seventh year on Effexor. It has virtually cured my chronic, near suicidal depressions. Based on my experience and the experience of friends, give it AT LEAST a month. Some people have a terrible time with Effexor side effects, but just as many people find that these effects dissipate with time. And with Effexor, increased dosage does not necessarily translate into increased side effects. The higher my dosage went the FEWER side effects I had.
Hang in there.
galtin
Posted by Linda Rose on September 23, 2001, at 2:37:38
In reply to Re: I need some very possitive feedback!!, posted by galtin on September 22, 2001, at 19:29:19
> > Hi everyone,
> > I started taking Effexor XR just 2 days ago for depression, so far the only side affects I have had is a mild headache and feeling sick to my stomach. However I have been sitting here for 2 hours reading these postings and I fell like I want to Quit while I am ahead. Is there anyone out ther that can give me some good reasons why I should continue to take this medication????
>
> Linda Rose,
>
> I am going into my seventh year on Effexor. It has virtually cured my chronic, near suicidal depressions. Based on my experience and the experience of friends, give it AT LEAST a month. Some people have a terrible time with Effexor side effects, but just as many people find that these effects dissipate with time. And with Effexor, increased dosage does not necessarily translate into increased side effects. The higher my dosage went the FEWER side effects I had.
>
> Hang in there.
>
> galtinThank- you all so much for resonding to my thread it has helped me to make the decision to go ahead with the Effexor RX. I still am a little nervous about it but I think after reading all of your postings Its worth a try.
I have had bouts of depression since I was 18 years old. I have tried other AD's but nothing ever really worked for me.I am 50 years old now and I am so tired of being down in the dumps all the time. My depression and "Mood Swings" have destroyed every realationship I ever had. Some of you have said that Effexor has changed your life and that is what I am so hoping it will do for me.
Today is my 5th day I haven't felt much different, I still feel sick at my stomach especially when I first get up in the morning,and the headache is still there. I am on the 37.5mg and Tuesday I will graduate to 75mg which I am kinda nervous about. I will keep you posted.
I would still welcome any and all postings. Its very good to know that there are people out there that understand and are willing to share their experience's.
Thank-You all Again
Linda
Posted by Linda Rose on September 25, 2001, at 21:12:39
In reply to Re: I need some very possitive feedback!!, posted by Katey on September 21, 2001, at 9:45:56
> Linda, i'm in the same boat you are....except along with the nausea i cant function im so sedated....ive only been on effexor for about five days, but im still questioning if this was the right choice for me after all. Stick with it i guess, but do some outside of the board research and try to actually know about what your taking. it can be comforting in an odd sort of way.
Katey,
I was just wondering how you are doing on the Effexor XR. Are you still hanging in there?
This is my 8th day on the medication. Most of the few side effects I had went away after about the 4th day. I was taking the 37.5mg but today I started taking the75mg. I didn't notice anything differnt except it made me real sleepy. My Doc said I was supposed to feel energetic but I'm still waiting for that to happen. I've noticed a slight difference in my mood but its really to earley to feel much difference I guess. I heard that it would take 6-8 weeks to really notice a difference.
I hope you are doing ok. Keep me posted and I will do the same with you.
Linda
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