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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 11 of 11. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Murray on October 22, 2002, at 21:33:23
I started taking effexor 2 months ago, and almost immediatly I noticed that my heart races by doing anything physical that I used to do easily. I can't walk up a flight of stairs without stopping at the top to catch my breath. I am normally in great shape, and this is bothering me because it is affecting my job as a letter carrier for the P.O. I used to have no problem carring mail for hours without stopping, now I stop every few houses and rest. My doctor says it "might" be the medicine and had me stop taking it a week ago. I still have the heart racing, and of course the depression is now back also. My doctor immediatly did rule out any heart problems, by having me take a series of tests. That is why he feels it may be the meds. Anyone else have this problem?
Posted by tai on October 22, 2002, at 23:01:03
In reply to Anyone else have heart racing on effexor?, posted by Murray on October 22, 2002, at 21:33:23
hey murray,
I have only been on effexor for about 2 weeks now, and although I dont have the racing heart, my athletic ability has gone to shit. I used to always have that little extra to push myself, but it is no longer there. I am winded faster, and get dizzy really easily. I study wu shu, and it has had a major affect on my performance. I struggle just to get through each class.
I also notice I get the shivers right when a sweat starts and then I my body trembles after a workout.
Posted by Mr Cushing on October 23, 2002, at 0:15:54
In reply to Anyone else have heart racing on effexor?, posted by Murray on October 22, 2002, at 21:33:23
Tai, that's a normal start-up side effect of the medication. You didn't think you were going to get away scott free from taking this stuff, did you? lol... Anyways, slow down your workouts for the next 3-4 weeks significantly. You'll SLOWLY gain your energy back within about a month's time frame. It's only your 2nd week now so I'm pretty sure that's what it is since I went through the exact same thing when starting on the drug.Murray, I also wound up having that racing heart after doing just about anything physical. I would get dizzy and my body would be pouring sweat over just the slightest thing that I used to be able to do with ease. I was also extremely restless, had TONS of energy, but that could be because I was diagnosed as being Bi-Polar II and the Effexor was making me just a tad hypomanic.
Now you didn't say what your dosage was of the medication. I was taking 75mg every day when I was experiencing the same thing. In order to solve this problem, I increased the time span of my dosage to 36 hours. For the next week that symptom seemed to disappear almost immediately. Couldn't tell you what happened after a week though since I finally added a Mood Stabilizer along with it (Depakote). Every day now I'm getting closer and closer to that "even keel" that Doctors are always talking about though.
How does Effexor work for depression anyways? I know for anxiety it does wonders if you stick with it, but I never heard of it doing anything significant for somebody suffering from depression as of yet.
lol... as a side note to that 36 hour thing, it can be kind of a pain in the "you know what" after a little bit. Tonight I was exhausted, fell asleep at 8PM while watching TV. It's now about 1am and I was supposed to take my medication tonight. Woke up having a minor panic attack so now I'm surfing the Net waiting for both the Effexor and the Klonopin to kick in so I can get a few more hours of sleep. But if you take the drug exactly on a 36 hour schedule, you'll find that the racing heart seems to disappear almost immediately. Doctor never really gave me any explanation for that though.
Posted by Essence on October 23, 2002, at 6:32:26
In reply to Anyone else have heart racing on effexor?, posted by Murray on October 22, 2002, at 21:33:23
I took Effexor XR for many years and while on it was investigated for heart problems. Racing heart, palpitations, etc. Everything, according to the cardiologist, was fine and he had no answer as to what was going on. I know in my heart it was the Effexor causing it and I told him so. He said if it was, it would stop when I ceased taking the meds. Well, it's been over 2 yrs since I stopped taking the effexor and my heart is still the same, resting heart rate is usually about 120. When I'm up and moving about, it goes to high for me to count. I'm always winded as well. I feel personally, that Effexor was the cause of this, and will suffer from this now for the rest of my life as a lingering affect of taking the Effexor.
Ess
Posted by Phil on October 23, 2002, at 7:02:39
In reply to Re: Anyone else have heart racing on effexor?, posted by Essence on October 23, 2002, at 6:32:26
I hope you can get that checked out, that's not good, obviously and the docs need to find an answer. Go to Ivan Goldberg's site, just key his name into Google. He has his email address listed and will respond to your question, from what I've heard.
He's $500. an hour so take advantage of the email!
I wish you luck and a smart doctor.Phil
Posted by linkadge on October 23, 2002, at 7:22:43
In reply to Re: Anyone else have heart racing on effexor? » Essence, posted by Phil on October 23, 2002, at 7:02:39
When I started the Effexor I had the exact
same problem. The drugs that effect
Norepinephrine can do this. My heart was
resting at 120. This was very strange
as my normal heart rate was around 50-60,
I take Celexa now and have good PB and
heart rate.Note this was the reason I stopped the med,
I am a severe hypochondriac, and I already
constantly fear having a heart attack
(crazy eh, I'm only 19) This sent my
fears through the roof, but I regret it
because in other respects I was feeling good
on the effexor, I didn't seem to hinder
my piano ability like the Celexa can do.
I am awaiting Duloxoine in hopes that it
won't cause this, I feel i need some sort
of Norepenephrine reputake, but can not tolerate
a doulbe heart rate, it's not healthy.Linkadge
Posted by jyl on October 23, 2002, at 8:14:31
In reply to Anyone else have heart racing on effexor?, posted by Murray on October 22, 2002, at 21:33:23
i am on effexor too...
if i exercise like i used too to get rid of this excess "on the wall" feeing-i get violently ill.
passing out and vomiting.
but slow and steady-like stretching is helpful.
jyl
Posted by Murray on October 23, 2002, at 19:05:20
In reply to Possible Solution -- Tai Murray, posted by Mr Cushing on October 23, 2002, at 0:15:54
Mr. Cushing, thanks for the advice. My doctor did not suggest not taking it every day. I really did not feel too bad when I took the 37.5 dose for the first week, then I took 75mg for the second week, then I was moved up to 150mg. The heart racing really only started to be real bad in the last week or 2. I had all the usual side effects already, and got passed them. (the sweats, the headaches, the weird dreams, etc) I was feeling great as far as the depression. The stuff really works great for that. One thing the doctor did mention is that he wanted me to wait a month or so for all the medication to leave my body and then see if the racing stops. If it does, he still believes in this medication and wants me take a lower dose of it next time. I think I'll mention the 36 hour thing to him and see what he says.
Posted by lilsis on October 24, 2002, at 10:07:24
In reply to Anyone else have heart racing on effexor?, posted by Murray on October 22, 2002, at 21:33:23
i did horribly. i hate effexor and always will
Posted by jayneintl on October 24, 2002, at 13:25:05
In reply to Anyone else have heart racing on effexor?, posted by Murray on October 22, 2002, at 21:33:23
I just posted today on this below and then saw this thread. I'm a hypochondraic too, though Effexor helped immensely with that and the social anxiety. I'll try spreading out the dose to 36 hours. My heart tests ruled out any cardiac problems.
Posted by jflange on October 24, 2002, at 13:36:33
In reply to Anyone else have heart racing on effexor?, posted by Murray on October 22, 2002, at 21:33:23
Murray:
This has happened to me as well. The heart racing that makes you tired and winded is probably being caused by the Effexor, and it is likely dose-related (i.e.: you are on a too-high dose). Since you are experiencing the anti-depressant benefits of Effexor and have managed to get through all the start-up side effects, it seems like a bad idea to wash out >all< the Effexor just to see if the heart pound is still there. A better solution might be to simply reduce the dose, especially since you mentioned that your experience on 37.5 and 75 was positive and heart pound-free. See what happens then? This has been effective for me in the past.
jflange
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