Posted by Zellie on January 30, 2004, at 22:20:59
In reply to Re: Any good experience with Effexor? Scared now!, posted by Alittle Lost on January 30, 2004, at 21:38:48
I am sorry that yours is not a positive experience with the Effexor. Everyone's body chemistry is different, so what works wonders for one person, can be quite the opposite for another.
It is not that the pills are evil. Their reaction with you is clearly a very bad one. My mother-in-law recently had a terrible reaction to 2 different, common pain killers in the hospital...nurses were surprised....but it was horrible for her. She had frightening, disorienting hallucinations that lasted for hours. She now has had the 2 pain killers listed on her chart that she cannot tolerate these drugs. The drugs felt evil to her, but they simply reacted very poorly with her chemistry, whereas thousands of people benefit greatly from them.
Similarily, when I have demerol, my blood pressure plummets so low, that if I did not have medical attention immediately, I may not survive it. So I have on all my medical records that I cannot have it.
Effexor has provided me with wonderful results. I have a friend, however, who went all the way to 300 mg, and never stopped being utterly fatigued on it. Her doc wanted her to see if her body would settle down with it in time (since it did relieve her depression), but it became clear to me that it did not (she'd given it from August to January). I strongly advised her to see her doc again right away, and ask to be titrated (SLOWLY!!) off it, since it did not seem to be the med for her.
I am now on Wellbutrin in addition to the Effexor, and I am tolerating it wonderfully. However, occassionally a person will have a nightmare of an experience going on Wellbutrin.
Personally, I do not think that Effexor is a good medication for a person to begin if they are not a candidate for remaining on it long-term. I will always need an AD, so I am a good candidate for Effexor. Some people who have not been plaged with depression all their lives, but have just a single episode, may require just a short-term AD therapy. In my opinion, they'd be better off with a different medication...one that is much easier to titrate off of.
Again, I am very sorry to hear of your experience. I hope you find a medication that will be very beneficial for you.
Kindest regards,
Zellie
> I thought that the Effexor was doing me good at 1st....low dose. Then I couldn't get out of bed so we went higher and higher and higher 225mg and I said no more. I just felt like I was getting addicted to it. Miss a dose or 2 and you will know what I mean. It takes control of your life. There are other meds out there that do not control you. I'm on day 4 of getting off those evil pills. I wish I could die. One minute I'm going 100 mph and the next I'm on the floor in a ball crying. I went to the store and went into such a panic I had to leave my things behind....I felt like the walls were coming in on me and I know I turned a few heads while I pushed my way frantically out the door. I know that the next few days are going to be the hardest days of my life and with the love of my friends, I will make it through. I will never let anything like Effexor control me again. I thought my manic depression was controlling.....nothing like the evil doings of this pill they call medicine.
poster:Zellie
thread:13781
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040127/msgs/307561.html