Shown: posts 1 to 9 of 9. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by caitline on October 19, 2002, at 19:20:46
My spouse has been taking 75mg of Effexor XR for over a year. His body could only handle 75mg because of it's over-sensativity. However I have noticed his behavior patterns have changed. He's more of a loner. He has far more extreame mood swings. Has next to no patients or tolorence for anything. He doesn't seem to care about the consequences of his actions. He's more careless. Physically; he has frequent headaches and stomach related problems. However I'm more concerned about the behavior changes and I wondered if anyone on Effexor has noticed any of these characteristics of themselves after going on Effexor.
Posted by Phil on October 19, 2002, at 19:45:08
In reply to Can Effexor alter personality?, posted by caitline on October 19, 2002, at 19:20:46
It's a big advantage for depressed people to have someone around to observe our behavior. You usually can't see it yourself.
When you've brought this up before, what was his reaction? Would he be agreeable to you going to his doctor with him to give your perspective?
I would say that, if he can't up the Effexor, to think about augmenting or switching. He needs to get to a therapeutic dose on something because everything you've said indicates his depression has worsened. What you describe is depression. Not effects of the med. Meds are supposed to get you back on your feet and out the door.
He's being undertreated. If he's seeing a GP, he needs to dump them and see a psychiatrist. If he's seeing a psychiatrist, he needs to find a new one.
Posted by utopizen on October 20, 2002, at 0:18:10
In reply to Re: Can Effexor alter personality?, posted by Phil on October 19, 2002, at 19:45:08
If he's seeing a GP, he needs to dump them and see a psychiatrist. If he's seeing a psychiatrist, he needs to find a new one.
>>Wow there! Perhaps he thinks he's fine, or that the med's working. And he's telling this to the doctor he sees, or not telling much.
Even I, who is a hypochondriac about everything, have gone on lapses for the first couple of months on a new med. I think it's making me great, etc., then like 2 months after taking it everyday my friend goes and says how I act differently, etc...
Doctors can really only go by what the patients says. The patient may over-rate the side-effects he's experiencing, or the response, etc.
It's very important to remember this in seeing "efficacy ratings" of meds. These are based on surveys of patients, not doctors observing patients. Basically only kids with ADD get the more objective approach, where studies tend to include teachers and parents writing observation reports.
I guess there's no "loner-acting syndrome analzer" invented yet...
Posted by Alara on October 20, 2002, at 2:24:09
In reply to Can Effexor alter personality?, posted by caitline on October 19, 2002, at 19:20:46
Caitline,
I was on Effexor for four years. For the first couple of months my mood was considerably brighter but I also went through periods of extreme irritablity and lost my temper a number of times. (I am usually very even tempered.) The irritability subsided after 3 months or so, so I'm assuming that this was some kind of adjustment reaction. Since withdrawing from Effexor 8 weeks ago, I have been struggling with the anger/irritablity again. I believe that my brain chemistry is adjusting to the reverse situation and that this will subside in time.
You mentioned your husband's headaches and stomach problems. This sounds like an anxiety reaction. I actually found that my Irritable Bowel Syndrome completely disappeared while on Effexor and returned after withdrawal. I am now temporarily on 0.5mcg of Xanax a day to help with the anxiety and the stomach problems have disappeared again. From what I understand, Effexor generally helps with anxiety but your husband may be one of those people for whom it has the opposite effect. It sounds as though the Effexor may be exacerbating his anxiety rather than alleviating it.One other point: I personally noticed AFTER coming off Effexor that my personality had changed while on the drug. Like your hubby, I became less concerned with the consequences of my actions and became less emotionally responsive on the whole.
There's a price that you pay with any psychotropic medication, I guess. If your hubby is not bothered by his mood swings, his apathy, and stomach problems, then it may be better to let sleeping dogs lie. He may feel that he is getting the relief from depression that he needs and for ANYONE with depression, any kind of relief is a Godsend. (You have my sympathy. It must be very difficult to `lose touch' with your husband like that. He looks like your husband but his soul seems to have changed.)
If your husband is NOT happy with the status quo, I'd urge him to return to the doctor to have his medication revised. Every patient is different and needs to be assessed on an individual basis.
Hope this helps.
Posted by Ritch on October 20, 2002, at 14:16:30
In reply to Can Effexor alter personality?, posted by caitline on October 19, 2002, at 19:20:46
> My spouse has been taking 75mg of Effexor XR for over a year. His body could only handle 75mg because of it's over-sensativity. However I have noticed his behavior patterns have changed. He's more of a loner. He has far more extreame mood swings. Has next to no patients or tolorence for anything. He doesn't seem to care about the consequences of his actions. He's more careless. Physically; he has frequent headaches and stomach related problems. However I'm more concerned about the behavior changes and I wondered if anyone on Effexor has noticed any of these characteristics of themselves after going on Effexor.
Has his doctor excluded the possibility of bipolar disorder? Antidepressants (by themselves) can cause bipolars to become more unstable rather than less. He also could be undertreated (as Phil mentioned), and may need to be switched to a different med (that he can tolerate) at a therapeutic dosage. It sounds like the Effexor has increased his apathy and made him more angry. Serotonergic AD's can be very disinhibiting and *worsen* impulsiveness in some folks. I can't handle more than a tiny amount of serotonergic meds. What are his mood swings like on the *upside*? What is his sleeping like?
Posted by Phil on October 20, 2002, at 15:49:00
In reply to Re: Can Effexor alter personality?, posted by utopizen on October 20, 2002, at 0:18:10
I guess there's no "loner-acting syndrome analzer" invented yet...
(I don't know about you,utopizen but I think there's an opportunity here.)
Posted by wcfrench on October 21, 2002, at 1:18:36
In reply to Re: Can Effexor alter personality? » utopizen, posted by Phil on October 20, 2002, at 15:49:00
It sounds like he might be depressed. Maybe you should ask him right out how he feels? It could greatly clear things up. If he says he feels great, but just acts in these manners, then he is probably suffering from the side effects of the Effexor, but it is doing some good. If he says that he feels rotten, then it sounds like the Effexor is not really working and all of those symptoms would fall into symptoms of depression.
I have heard of people to have this kind of reaction to Effexor. Mood swings, irritability, apathy, but to an extent this happens with all medicines. Sometimes the one you pick just isn't the best one for you, and you need to make a switch. I think it's important, though, to find out if he is happy. When someone asks you if you are happy, it makes you think. During that thinking process, chemicals in the brain are influencing your mood, so this can often be the best way to find out if an antidepressant is in fact antidepressing. If he is happy, then I think you might just consider a change in medication. If he's not, then the problem is a little worse. You have to find another way to effectively treat his depression in spite of an acute sensitivity to medicine.
Please keep us posted.
-Charlie
Posted by wcfrench on October 21, 2002, at 1:52:20
In reply to Re: Can Effexor alter personality?, posted by Alara on October 20, 2002, at 2:24:09
Also, I wanted to add that it is very possible for someone's personality to change while on medication. I have certainly had personality changes on many different medicines, and sometimes you're a completely different person.
Disagreeing with Alara, I think that while our emotions, manners of speech, and thought processes may change, our souls do not. I am a very firm believer in this, and for many people, it is the one thing that you can hold on to. Your husband has a good soul. You married him because of who he is on the inside, and who he has the potential to be. While he may seem to act differently, he is still the same person, and you will see it if you dig deeply. I have gone through several life-changing depressive episodes, and through it all, the one thing I have learned is that we will always be who we are on the inside. Who we want to be, and who we know that we can be. And the truly good friends we have can see us through the curtains. A John Mayer song says, "Would you want me when I'm not myself? Wait it out while I am someone else? In time, I'll come around. I always do, for you."
Aristotle said that all beings have a potential to be realized, but that this can only be achieved under the right conditions. All beings, he argued, will order their activites toward this potential, and that once this potential is met, we are said to be "flourishing." We all have the ability to flourish, to be our best, to do great things. But sometimes, the conditions just aren't right. Work through it, it's worth it, and you will surely see him flourish. And when it's tough, always remember that what doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger. Especially in relationships. You are doing the right thing.
-Charlie
Posted by linkadge on October 21, 2002, at 18:30:54
In reply to Any antidepressant can seem to alter personality, posted by wcfrench on October 21, 2002, at 1:52:20
I agree,
even after being so angry and irritable,
yelling at people and generally being
a bastard, I would always at night ask
myself why I had acted this way. This
can be a sign of depression, when you act
it ways that despise deep down.Linkadge
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