Posted by Mikeyqld on March 8, 2003, at 2:01:19
In reply to Re: Anyone had success on Effexor XR? YES! » MidgesMom, posted by KrissyP on March 8, 2003, at 0:12:03
I thought id give an overview of my own probs incase it can help anyone else. 18 years old and i get a total of 3 panic attacks. Mention them to my GP and he says starts taking this (Aropax) and tells me im a "worrier" like my mum! I had a shocking time on Aropax (only lasted a fortnight) and my GP then changed me to Effexor. I got the same sorts of side effects but they did soon settle down to a point where i could notice nothing strange even if i tried!
The panic attacks were gone but i felt like i was on a downward spiral to insanity! I mean, i was 18 and having to take anti-depressant drugs and worst of all i had no knowledge of what they were and why i needed them and of course - no one to talk to about it all (too ashamed of myself).
Over time, i started to notice that I was sweating profusely - especially at night and when (strange i know) i was sitting with my legs horizontal (still can't figure this one out!) My memory seemed to be slowly getting worse and i had gone from being dux of my grade to an "average" brain!
After having ongoing stomach problems, my GP decided that maybe the effexor was causing this and put me on to Serzone. Well, this was the worst period in my life and when i went back to him after about a month, i discovered that he had put me on something that shouldn't have been used for panic attacks! Nice to see that the doctor had been careful while messing with my own health and well-being!
Back on effexor for me! And with a large amount of help from a different GP, i discovered that it was a safe drug to use and not uncommon for someone my age. This gave me piece of mind and more self esteem.
But....! I developed a problem where after nearly every meal and sometimes totally spontaneously, i would be hit with what i describe as "yawning attacks and lethargy". I felt out of it - dissociated and my speech was slightly slurred and my memory was getting worse.
Having been to an endocrinologist with no luck, and tested for a million different things, i decided to knuckle down and spend the time, money and effort to get this sorted. After all, as most guys would know, people will hapily spend a thousand dollars on a car if it is broken - so why not the same ease to spend money on myself while i was broken?!
So i went to a psychiatrist and have been seeing him almost weekly for 2 months now. He has been a great help and has outlined a plan to rule out some of the more scary possible causes and hopefully find an answer. The list has included the following:- Generalised anxiety disorder, adrenal disorder, hypoglycemia, chronic fatigue, post viral syndrome (did i mention the 2 viruses i had while in high school?), a rare type of epilepsy, a legion or small (normally benign) tumor, food allergy.... and the list goes on.
He and i agree that i do have some form or anxiety disorder. But this appears to be second to a main cause that we cannot (so far) track down. The other possibility was that effexor was not agreeing with me and might have been causing a lot of my problems although helping with the anxiety and panic attacks.
Hyperventilation has been ruled out as a cause of the yawning attacks and yesterday i had an EEG and a CT scan done. I will let you know of the results when i get them next friday. These were done to check for the epilepsy and the tumor or legion and its funny but i kinda hope that it turns out to be one of these (at least i will be able to tell people that this is what is wrong with me!).
Well, that is a fairly comprehensive view of my past few years. If anyone has any questions or suggestions i am here to help and be helped.
The last thing i will say is that i have lost many friends and even a close girlfriend because of my problems. They are the type of thing that are very hard for most people to talk about so try to find at least one person that you know who cares and share it with them. If they truly to care, they might be able to help. But if they run, its not because they don't care, its because they can't understand. Other than that, use this site as much as possible because here you will find people who DO understand. And make a pledge now with me that when you do finally get your own problem sorted, you will continue to come here and try to help others in similar positions. The worst thing is that once poeple don't have their problem, they will stop visiting sites like this and therefore, there knowledge and positive experiences will be lost and of no use to anyone else. There are answers out there - they are just bloody hard to find! Hugs to you all.
poster:Mikeyqld
thread:13781
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030306/msgs/207068.html