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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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Posted by IsoM on January 10, 2002, at 15:05:47
In reply to new side effect, posted by melmel on January 10, 2002, at 14:06:11
I'm not going to be of much help to you but I always have had it, meds or not. It seems to part of the package that's described in the subsyndromal epilepsy questionnaire on another page on Dr. Bob's site. It's never bothered me though.
> i've been on effexor xr for approx 2 months now, 225 mg in the morning. i've noticed lately that when i first get up, before i take the medicine, if i wave my hand in front of my face (or another object moves by), it has a trailer behind it. (by trailer i mean like a tail following behind, kind of hallucinogenic) very weird. anyone else experience this?
Posted by ddurkee on January 10, 2002, at 15:15:02
In reply to What to do? , posted by Kara on January 18, 2001, at 9:50:42
I'm curious that you were diagnosed with anemia. I've been on Effexor for clinical depression for about 6 weeks. A couple weeks before I started the drug, I donated blood, and had no problems doing so. However, today, my hematocrit reading (iron) was too low. I'm waiting to hear from my doctor if it's an interaction from the drug (don't you just love doctors?) but I'm curious if the low iron count is a result of the drug, seeing as I've never had that problem when giving blood before.
Posted by Teva on January 10, 2002, at 20:34:01
In reply to new side effect, posted by melmel on January 10, 2002, at 14:06:11
> i've been on effexor xr for approx 2 months now, 225 mg in the morning. i've noticed lately that when i first get up, before i take the medicine, if i wave my hand in front of my face (or another object moves by), it has a trailer behind it. (by trailer i mean like a tail following behind, kind of hallucinogenic) very weird. anyone else experience this?
Absolutely! I found that it was especially bad if I missed a day. I hope it clears up for you.
Teva
Posted by sweet_slider on January 11, 2002, at 2:10:08
In reply to Re: What to do? , posted by ddurkee on January 10, 2002, at 15:15:02
I noticed the same thing when I went to give blood, it came up on the first machine(or initial test that they do)as too low but then they did a second test and my count was low but acceptable in their terms to give blood.
Dr. Bob do you have any idea if that is a side effect or just coincidence? I have been on Effexor XR for 5 months now and I have never had a problem with low iron before.
Posted by sid on January 11, 2002, at 8:15:47
In reply to Re: What to do? }}ddurkee Dr. Bob, posted by sweet_slider on January 11, 2002, at 2:10:08
Perhaps it has to do with Effexor, but it could just be that you give blood too often. I used to give blood every... (minimum allowed interval between blood giving at the Red Cross - can't remember; 2 or 3 months?), and at some point I had the same problem. I was told to wait a while because I had given too often and my blood needed more time to rebuild correctly.
> I noticed the same thing when I went to give blood, it came up on the first machine(or initial test that they do)as too low but then they did a second test and my count was low but acceptable in their terms to give blood.
> Dr. Bob do you have any idea if that is a side effect or just coincidence? I have been on Effexor XR for 5 months now and I have never had a problem with low iron before.
Posted by ddurkee on January 11, 2002, at 9:37:18
In reply to Re: What to do? }}ddurkee Dr. Bob » sweet_slider, posted by sid on January 11, 2002, at 8:15:47
True, and even though the last time I gave blood was only 8 weeks ago, the time before that was 2-3 years. I did look up some information on Wyeth's website and found that anemia is listed as an infrequent side effect, as opposed to a frequent or rare side effect. Still waiting to hear from my doctor! Thanks for the thoughts.
Posted by sweet_slider on January 11, 2002, at 13:33:32
In reply to Re: What to do? }}ddurkee Dr. Bob » sweet_slider, posted by sid on January 11, 2002, at 8:15:47
That could also be very true but in my case it was my first time donating blood and also it has come up on independent blood tests that my iron was low, I was having surgery and they had to give me extra IV's of something to make sure I had enough for surgery. I don't know much about blood and iron counts so I can't begin to speculate why it was low but I think it may have to do with one of the medications I am on, perhaps not the Effexor XR.
Cheers!
Posted by JANNBEAU on January 11, 2002, at 18:00:07
In reply to Re: What to do? }} Sid, posted by sweet_slider on January 11, 2002, at 13:33:32
OK, At this point, I cannot resist putting my two cents in here.
There are many types of anemias. Iron deficiency anemia is a SIGN of an illness, not the illness itself. Although there may be many reasons for the finding, a very important cause for IDA is BLOOD LOSS. In the absence of conclusive evidence to the contrary, all IDA must be considered the result of blood loss until proved otherwise. In addition to acute blood loss, slow, insidious loss of blood over a long period of time (sometimes years; and including menstrual loss) will result in the so-called "iron deficiency" anemias.
If you have a diagnosis, then disregard this message. Otherwise, I suggest that you request an appointment with a competent internist for a work-up.
Also, many of the reported "side effects" of any drug are the result of post-marketing voluntary reporting of observations of individual patients in which the drug may not be the causal agent. Only well-designed double-blind clinical trials of sufficient size to detect rare occurrances of side effects can separate out these effects. On the other hand, such studies are difficult to do and, often, the more rare side effects of a drug can't be distinguished in the types of premarketing investigations mandated by the FDA.
Cheers,
JANNBEAU>That could also be very true but in my case it was my first time donating blood and also it has come up on independent blood tests that my iron was low, I was having surgery and they had to give me extra IV's of something to make sure I had enough for surgery. I don't know much about blood and iron counts so I can't begin to speculate why it was low but I think it may have to do with one of the medications I am on, perhaps not the Effexor XR.
> Cheers!
Posted by ddurkee on January 11, 2002, at 18:43:29
In reply to Re: What to do? }} Sid » sweet_slider, posted by JANNBEAU on January 11, 2002, at 18:00:07
My doctor did get in touch with me today and I had blood drawn for a complete blood count and some iron level testing. She says it's not the medication. I still find it odd though that I was perfectly fine donating blood two months ago, and my period is actually next week. Well, we'll see what happens! Thanks for the thoughts everyone, and sorry my last post came up three times... I kept getting proxy errors when posting from work and thought it didn't post. Silly firewalls!
Posted by Paulio on January 12, 2002, at 13:57:36
In reply to Anyone had success on Effexor XR? , posted by jp on October 24, 1999, at 14:59:14
Hello...I am new to this group. After a month and a half of battling depression I finally went to the doctor. He prescribed me Effexor XR 75mg per day. I found this bulletin board researching the drug. Half of what I've read is encouraging, the other half scares the daylights out of me. I've had depression twice before. Was on Prozac at first (2 weeks of euphoria, then nothing). I was switched to Wellbutrin with Trazodone to sleep and that combo didn't sit well with me either. So
here I sit with this bottle of Effexor XR wondering to start on it or not. The withdrawal stories scare the hell out of me. Any advice ????
Posted by NikkiT2 on January 12, 2002, at 15:19:18
In reply to Re: Effexor XR cold turkey » nean, posted by JANNBEAU on January 10, 2002, at 13:31:56
I think its important to withdraw from effexor slowly, so please don't do cold turkey... some people are fine, some aren't - is it worth the risk?? After 7 days cold turkeying from effexor I went back on it.. my pdoc also contacted the makers he was so concerned and they admitted to some instances of problems.
By withdrawing slowly there seems to be little problem, maybe a few, but not alot.. so reduce your amount slowly over about 3 - 4 weeks and see how that goes.
Good luck,
Nikki
Posted by MaKi on January 12, 2002, at 19:25:50
In reply to Re: Anyone had success on Effexor XR? , posted by Paulio on January 12, 2002, at 13:57:36
Hi Paulio,
I don't think you have anything to worry about Effexor XR.
I've been on the medication for almost six weeks now and I
have never once yet experienced any side effects. As for the
withdrawal part, I don't think you should dwell on that just
yet, just worry about getting better first, then once it's time
to get off the medication, you can think about it then.Good luck,
MaKi
Posted by michelle a. on January 13, 2002, at 13:00:14
In reply to Re: Anyone had success on Effexor XR? , posted by Paulio on January 12, 2002, at 13:57:36
i did the same as you, did some research on effexor before taking it and stumbled upon this site. i was looking for an alternative to paxil because of the sexual side effects, and had heard that effexor was better in that area. so i tried it. i found that it was no different as far as the side effects, and when i missed a couple of dosed by accident, boy, what a freaky feeling!! my doctor prescribed wellbutrin to help with the sexual side effects, and it did help a little. but then i thought, why take this if it's not helping the problem i had in the first place? so i asked my dr. if i could just wean off the effexor and do the wellbutrin by itself. i had taken it before but had headaches, but this time around wasn't getting them. so she agreed. but the weaning off!!! i was on 150 mg (xr) and went to 75 for a week, then 37.5 for a week, and stopped (her directions). way too fast. very dizzy, to the point of being nausious (sp). so i then did 37.5 every other day for a week and then stopped. STILL had the side effects. so it came to just taking it when i couldn't stand it anymore, and now i'm off of it, but not without a lot of frustration and dizziness. i still get that feel-like-i'm-falling effect sometimes, but not as bad as before and very few and far between. to sum up: i didn't like it, but a lot of people have had success. if you do go on it and then decide that it isn't for you, just make sure to wean off, and it would be a good idea to have a psychiatrist do it, not a gp like i had. they go by the "book" and the book isn't always like real life. but my gp didn't know that because she's not a psychiatrist. good luck!!!!
Posted by cmcdougall on January 13, 2002, at 14:57:36
In reply to new side effect, posted by melmel on January 10, 2002, at 14:06:11
Hi,
I took effexor xr for about 18 months & was taking 150mg twice a day. I started to have the "tracer" or "trailer" effect too. It only lasted a short while right when I woke up in the mornings. My pdoc said he had heard of that, but not to worry about it, so I didn't. Unfortunately, the effexor pooped-out and withdrawal was TERRIBLE. While it worked tho', it worked good and not everyone has horrible withdrawal.
Good luck,
Carly
> i've been on effexor xr for approx 2 months now, 225 mg in the morning. i've noticed lately that when i first get up, before i take the medicine, if i wave my hand in front of my face (or another object moves by), it has a trailer behind it. (by trailer i mean like a tail following behind, kind of hallucinogenic) very weird. anyone else experience this?
Posted by babyface on January 13, 2002, at 17:04:15
In reply to Re: Anyone had success on Effexor XR? , posted by michelle a. on January 13, 2002, at 13:00:14
i had taken it before but had headaches, but this time around wasn't getting them. so she agreed. but the weaning off!!! i was on 150 mg (xr) and went to 75 for a week, then 37.5 for a week, and stopped (her directions). way too fast. very dizzy, to the point of being nausious (sp). so i then did 37.5 every other day for a week and then stopped. STILL had the side effects. so it came to just taking it when i couldn't stand it anymore, and now i'm off of it, but not without a lot of frustration and dizziness. i still get that feel-like-i'm-falling effect sometimes, but not as bad as before and very few and far between. to sum up: i didn't like it, but a lot of people have had success. if you do go on it and then decide that it isn't for you, just make sure to wean off, and it would be a good idea to have a psychiatrist do it, not a gp like i had. they go by the "book" and the book isn't always like real life. but my gp didn't know that because she's not a psychiatrist. good luck!!!!
Hi,
Just read your advice on going off Effexor slower than per week. I take 21/2 tablets of 75 mg a day.
My psych. told me to go off half a dose a week, do you think that that is slow enough?
I freak because I also feel the fuzzy head feeling after missing one dose a day so I am scared to go off to quick. Anyone have experience with going off half a dose a week?
Thanks for any feedback.
Posted by Dr. Bob on January 13, 2002, at 18:10:18
In reply to Re: posting problems, posted by Dr. Bob on January 4, 2002, at 1:18:52
> Best as I can tell, the problem was the server taking too long to email notifications (since this is such a long thread). So now I'm limiting it to just the most recent dozen. Let's see how that works...
I guess it's still a problem. So please be aware that posts to this thread may take a long time (possibly a few minutes) to be processed. I think I have a way to speed it up, but it'll take me some time to make the change. Thanks for your patience,
Bob
> PS: Follow-ups about posting problems should be redirected to Psycho-Babble Administration, etc.
Posted by broadville on January 14, 2002, at 12:03:47
In reply to Anyone had success on Effexor XR? , posted by jp on October 24, 1999, at 14:59:14
I just started Effexor for the second time and as far as the Sexual side effects are concerned is it possible to mix Effexor for the depression and add on the Wellbutrin for the increase in sex drive--has anyone tried this.
I also was on Depo Provera which seriously gave me a poor libido...
Thanks in advance
Posted by petters on January 15, 2002, at 1:21:45
In reply to Anyone tried an Effexor Wellbutrin mix for sexual , posted by broadville on January 14, 2002, at 12:03:47
> I just started Effexor for the second time and as far as the Sexual side effects are concerned is it possible to mix Effexor for the depression and add on the Wellbutrin for the increase in sex drive--has anyone tried this.
>
> I also was on Depo Provera which seriously gave me a poor libido...
>
> Thanks in advanceHi...
I would very strongly recommend Remeron as an add on strategi. It is very usefull in this aspect.
Best Wishes...//Petters
Posted by michelle a. on January 15, 2002, at 13:27:18
In reply to Anyone tried an Effexor Wellbutrin mix for sexual , posted by broadville on January 14, 2002, at 12:03:47
see my previous post!!! i'm not sure i can copy it, but i'll try..ok, i think it worked.. this was in reply to someone asking about their exp. with effexor, and mine just happened to include wellbutrin. i've taken depo, by the way, and boy, did i gain weight!!! my body seriously thought it was pregnant!
"i did the same as you, did some research on effexor before taking it and stumbled upon this site. i was looking for an alternative to paxil because of the sexual side effects, and had heard that effexor was better in that area. so i tried it. i found that it was no different as far as the side effects, and when i missed a couple of dosed by accident, boy, what a freaky feeling!! my doctor prescribed wellbutrin to help with the sexual side effects, and it did help a little. but then i thought, why take this if it's not helping the problem i had in the first place? so i asked my dr. if i could just wean off the effexor and do the wellbutrin by itself. i had taken it before but had headaches, but this time around wasn't getting them. so she agreed. but the weaning off!!! i was on 150 mg (xr) and went to 75 for a week, then 37.5 for a week, and stopped (her directions). way too fast. very dizzy, to the point of being nausious (sp). so i then did 37.5 every other day for a week and then stopped. STILL had the side effects. so it came to just taking it when i couldn't stand it anymore, and now i'm off of it, but not without a lot of frustration and dizziness. i still get that feel-like-i'm-falling effect sometimes, but not as bad as before and very few and far between. to sum up: i didn't like it, but a lot of people have had success. if you do go on it and then decide that it isn't for you, just make sure to wean off, and it would be a good idea to have a psychiatrist do it, not a gp like i had. they go by the "book" and the book isn't always like real life. but my gp didn't know that because she's not a psychiatrist. good luck!!!! "
Posted by binx on January 15, 2002, at 15:12:23
In reply to Anyone had success on Effexor XR? Paulio, posted by MaKi on January 12, 2002, at 19:25:50
I have had success on Effexor XR 250 mg 1x in the morning (well success
as part of the multidrug cocktail I'm currently taking). The most obtrusive
side effect has been the eradication of my libido. Strangely I've had no
bad experience with stopping the medication... i couldn't get to the
pharmacy to pick up the refill a couple of weeks ago and went
three days without the Effexor... no horror stories relate from just
stopping for a couple of days.
Posted by dee on January 16, 2002, at 17:38:19
In reply to Re: Anyone had success on Effexor XR? Paulio, posted by binx on January 15, 2002, at 15:13:29
I have seemed to have good sucess on Effexor I am now on my 5th week of taking. Some slight side effects at start, the first week I felt sick.
But everyday I seem to feel alittle better. More energy, and starting to actually be able to get out of bed and start my day more positive.
Posted by NatA on January 17, 2002, at 11:57:26
In reply to Re: Effexor Ex and Nicotine Patch HELP » NatA, posted by Ron Hill on January 5, 2002, at 16:14:18
Ron,
Thanks for the info.. I am fairly new to this whole thing.. and this is the first med i have tried.. but it seems to do well with me. But I cut my the patch in half for 4 days, and then no more patch and just started doing the gum at hard times in the day. You know, coffee in the am, and meals. What an instant improvement. The rage went away, and so did the tight wound up feeling inside. Thanks for the info and the response. I was really feeling out of touch with the real world there for a while. Good news, it has been almost 4 weeks!!
Well, Thanks again!!
Nat
Posted by SusanG on January 19, 2002, at 21:46:32
In reply to Re: Effexor Ex and Nicotine Patch HELPThanks, posted by NatA on January 17, 2002, at 11:57:26
I have read most of the posts on this message board and appreciate everyone's input. I thought I would share a bit of my experience with Effexor XR. I had been given low doses of Paxil, and later Zoloft, by my gyn to help with peri-menopausal mood swings. I went off each due to unwanted side effects. After experiencing some tremendous personal stress last August I called my gyn and asked for Effexor to help me get through my crises. It definitely helped and though I still struggled emotionally, I was able to function. However, after about 2 months on it I suddenly gained about 20 pounds over the next 2 months. Yes, my activity level had decreased and my eating increased (darn holidays!) but this seemed extreme even in view of those factors. Against the advice of the posts I'd seen here, I decided to just take myself off of it. After all, I only took 75 mg. The first day or so was ok, no noticable change. However, by the third day, I was an emotional wreck. I couldn't even go to work and spent the entire day sobbing. My husband was supportive yet alarmed and urged me to see someone. But who would I see? The gyn really only deals with the mood-swing aspect of things, not real depression, and had told me in the past that if these meds didn't help I would have to find someone else who could help me with meds. My family doc doesn't even know I'm on this and isn't particularly knowledgable about anti-depressants (I'd mentioned them to him before). The counselor I'd seen briefly and whom I called for a psychiatric referral so I could get this straightened out, thinks I am just hormonal. So I have gone back on the Effexor and don't know what to do from here. Just thought I'd share all this with you folks. Any suggestions are appreciated though I am easily overwhelmed these days and the thought of starting from scratch to figure out what is wrong with me feels so burdensome.
Posted by MaKi on January 20, 2002, at 8:15:09
In reply to My story of Effexor, posted by SusanG on January 19, 2002, at 21:46:32
Hi Susan,
It's really good that you could tell everyone your story,
I think asking for other people's advice or opinion is
always a good thing. First of all, I'm not even sure what
to tell you. I've been on Effexor XR for 6 full weeks now
and since then I've lost about 15-20lbs (yes I know that's
alot in a matter of 6 weeks). Most of the posts that I've
read so far read that most have lost weight at the beginning
and then gained in the later months. I'm really keeping my
fingers crossed because I don't want to have to deal with the
stress of gaining weight. So far, the Effexor has helped me
somewhat with my panic disorder. I've been able to go out more
and have no panic attacks. Sometimes I have the odd one while
at home but they seem to be alot milder, and happen less frequent.
I started off on 37.5mg and continued with that dosage for 5 weeks,
just a week ago, I increased to 75mg per day. Since my increase,
I've been extremely tired and can barely function. Sometimes I think
of going back down to 37.5mg but I'm sure my family doc wouldn't
agree with me, as he says that is not a therapeutic dose. So, like you,
I'm a bit confused these days as to what I'm supposed to do.By the way, how many mg's were you taking per day? Did you have any side
effects, including sleepiness? I hope my story helps you out even just a
little bit and please keep us posted.Good Luck,
Joanne (MaKi)
Posted by AnneL on January 20, 2002, at 15:28:44
In reply to My story of Effexor, posted by SusanG on January 19, 2002, at 21:46:32
Hi Susan,
Thank you for sharing your story and for seeking some information regarding Effexor. I have been on Effexor for 1 year and am taking 225 mg. daily.
Approximately 2 months ago, I decided to get off of Effexor because I have been feeling very good and like my "old self" again. I dropped my dose down to 150 mg. daily x 3 days and did just fine so I dropped my dose down to 75 mg. for another 2 days until I saw my psychiatrist. After I casually mentioned that I had dropped from 225 mg. to 75 mg. with 5 days he became very alarmed and "asked" me to please increase my dose back to 150 mg. at the very least because he was concerned that I would experience "discontinuation syndrome". I conceded his point and the following day I upped my dose to 150 mg. SEVEN DAYS later I started sobbing and could not stop! I had very odd thoughts of causing bodily harm to myself and totally "freaked out". I called my pdoc on a Sunday as an emergency call and thank God that I have a very patient and compassionate doctor! He explained that what I was experiencing was not some psychotic event or return of major depression but that I was one of the unfortunate people who are very, very sensitive to changing levels of seratonin and that I should immediately take 225 mg. of Effexor and stay at that level until my next appt. I was fine within 24 hours of resuming my dose.
The moral of the story is this: Effexor is a very helpful medication for many, many people. But do not try and discontinue the medication without professional advice. I will follow my pdoc's advise this time. Luckily, it only takes me one time to learn something!
Good luck!
Anne
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