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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by kelranji on October 22, 2002, at 15:11:05
Today is the first day if the third week on Effexor. Started at 37.5 first week then to 75mg the second week. Still on 75mg. This morning, I got up late, dressed and fed the kids in a hurry, put them on the school bus, called in sick to work and went back to bed. I slept until noon.
This is so not like me. I feel like my arms and legs weigh 100lbs each and don't want to move. I just want to go back to bed and sleep.
Anyone else have this? I've done fine on Effexor so far and I really like it. This is the first time I have felt like I have absolutely no energy. My concience keeps saying "go outside, get some fresh air, take a walk or a bike ride" but I just want to go lay back down.
Suggestions??
Posted by jyl on October 22, 2002, at 15:41:11
In reply to Sleeeeeeepy on Effexor XR today. Any advice?, posted by kelranji on October 22, 2002, at 15:11:05
hi-week 4 of effexor.
was on trazodone too(pm) but husband flushed them.
notsleepy at all-infact on the bloody wall all the time!
paxil made me sleepy though-culdnt stop the yawns for months.
was a horrible summer-it is really hard when you are only able to do the basics and cant enjoy it.
passing you a sunshine lollipop
jyl
Posted by Mr Cushing on October 22, 2002, at 15:45:26
In reply to Sleeeeeeepy on Effexor XR today. Any advice?, posted by kelranji on October 22, 2002, at 15:11:05
Yep, I had that, week 7 (or is it 8?) at 75mgs a day. I'm surprised this didn't hit you sooner, as it had hit me within the first few days of taking the drug. I don't know what to tell you, it lasted a few weeks in my case. Exercise is for the best though, when you get up and move around a bit, you feel a little bit better, not as prone to just passing out cold and doing nothing.Then one day, you're just not tired anymore. That's when the medication has fully hit you.
Posted by Marginal on October 23, 2002, at 19:43:48
In reply to Re: Sleeeeeeepy on Effexor XR today. Any advice?, posted by Mr Cushing on October 22, 2002, at 15:45:26
So, kelranji, you were taking the XR for 7 plus weeks, went through the sleepiness/spaciness side effects, and THEN the medicine kicked in?
I'm hearing stories of this nature regarding Effexor, where it shows a flicker in the first 10 days or so, and then sputters; next, at weeks 2 and 3 (and possibly beyond) come the side effects (everything we know so well, PLUS a uniquely virulent fatigue and sense of being 'out of it'); only THEN -- after 4 weeks or longer -- does the medicine kick in the way it should. A state resembling remission. Or so I hear.
This has been a problem for me with Effexor: I'll lose patience sitting through the side effect phase, not knowing whether the fog will ever clear for me, as it does for so many others with this med. Abruptly, I'll go off the medicine in frustration. A lifelong battle with this demon doesn't make for much patience. Since its introduction, I’ve gone through this pattern perhaps 4 times with Effexor: start on it, ramp up the dose, and never ‘stick it out’ more than 6 weeks.
Just recently, I went off Effexor during the heavy stage of side effects, giving the whole trial about 4 weeks. [I know, this is abysmal; I was trying it again in a last attempt to break a particularly vile and resilient depression after getting discouraged with the ‘better than nothing’ effects of the SSRIs]
Going off the Effexor made my depression much worse, to the point of considering ECT (see other posts).
But over the past two weeks of getting Effexor out of my system, we've thrown in some Remeron, which is OK. But it's meant just to stabilize, as we decide what to try next...
Just a ramble...thanks for the ears...and eyes
Posted by Marginal on October 23, 2002, at 19:56:20
In reply to Re: Sleeeeeeepy on Effexor XR ... Did I miss it? » Mr Cushing, posted by Marginal on October 23, 2002, at 19:43:48
revise that -- it should be directed at Mr. Cushing! Apologies...
Posted by kelranji on October 23, 2002, at 21:19:03
In reply to Re: Sleeeeeeepy on Effexor XR ... Did I miss it?, posted by Marginal on October 23, 2002, at 19:56:20
Thank you for sharing all of your experiences. I went back to work today. I had more energy, but not as much as I wish I had. Hopefully the energy will come back and I'll feel like being more active. I feel like a slug. The constipation doesn't help that feeling either. Big bloated blah.
But I won't be afraid and give up on this so soon. It's only been 16 days.
I'm just cruisin' through the tunnel anticipating the light.
Posted by LynnPerley on October 23, 2002, at 21:40:59
In reply to Sleeeeeeepy on Effexor XR today. Any advice?, posted by kelranji on October 22, 2002, at 15:11:05
I had similar effects at about the same time, same dosage. I also noticed a "whoops!" after several weeks when it finally started working. At about 4 months it started coming back and I was told to increase the dose to 225 mg. Now, if I get enough sleep (which I can do most of the time if I force myself to go to bed early) I don't have this problem.
What time of day are you taking the effexor? Try gradually switching it to a few hours before bedtime. It really helped me when I did that.
Posted by kelranji on October 23, 2002, at 21:47:08
In reply to Re: Sleeeeeeepy on Effexor XR today. Any advice? » kelranji, posted by LynnPerley on October 23, 2002, at 21:40:59
Thanks Lynn! I've thought about that, switching the times. I take it at about 7:30am right now.
I was wondering if I would have more energy if I took it at 11pm right before I went to bed? Maybe I could concentrate better at work too?
I have also read posts where people who take it at night can't get a full nights rest and have to take additional medication to help them sleep. I really don't want that either.
Posted by Alara on October 24, 2002, at 7:44:01
In reply to Sleeeeeeepy on Effexor XR today. Any advice?, posted by kelranji on October 22, 2002, at 15:11:05
> This is so not like me. I feel like my arms and legs weigh 100lbs each and don't want to move. I just want to go back to bed and sleep.
>
>
Kelranji, I can relate and really wish that I could offer some advice! The problem is that people differ in their responses to drugs. When I first started EffexorXR I noticed an irrisistable urge to yawn but my energy levels improved in general. Energy levels peaked within around 3 weeks of reaching my peak dose (75mg) and then reached a kind of plateau within 9 months or so. After that, I started experiencing the exact phenomenon that you describe - going back to bed, sleeping all day, feeling as though my limbs weighed a thousand tonnes...On the other hand, there are loads of people on this message board who vow that the hypersomnia lifted within a few weeks of commencing the Effexor. You might find that this happens for you. If I were you, I'd wait a little longer, just to give it a chance.
Posted by LynnPerley on October 24, 2002, at 21:22:37
In reply to Re: Sleeeeeeepy on Effexor XR today. Any advice? » LynnPerley, posted by kelranji on October 23, 2002, at 21:47:08
I gradually moved my dosage up. I started taking it in the morning. Then, I moved it up by a few hours, for about three or four days. I kept repeating the pattern until I ended up with early evening for a while, because it gave me a little burst of energy followed by a big crash. Eventually, the little burst of energy faded, and now I get a good night's sleep. I also get some of the vivid dreams that people talk about.
This is the end of the thread.
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