Posted by dancing fool on August 21, 2006, at 9:28:02
In reply to Problems with Effexor XR and alcohol?, posted by Aciel on August 20, 2006, at 19:33:40
Hi Aciel,
I've been on Effexor for a few years (75 or 150mg). I also drink. I also feel a lowered tolerance and lowered self control, but not to the extent that you describe. Then again, I'm 46 years old and have been drinking all my life ...
I wonder if you've felt that you had issues with alcohol before you were on Effexor. The reason I ask is that maybe the drug in combination with your changed social environment brings out something that was there in the first place. Social pressure to drink is a terribly dificult thing to handle if you have some kind of a drinking problem - I know I have and I know I've never really been able to deal with it - except from quitting altogether.
If you're seeing a shrink, I would definitely bring it up. If you're not, please be careful and know that there are many who are having a hard time to deal with the social context of drinking. Some people find occasional AA sessions helpful. Finding additional friends who don't pressure you into drinking could also be an option. I'm not saying you should drop your drinking buddies, just find a few that don't, or at least don't find it important ... or something (just caught myself preaching there, sorry :-))
I'm pretty confident that you'll find some kind of solution - just the fact that you recognize it is pretty big. I doubt that the effexor has a whole lot to do with it, except that it blows up something that was there already. Then again, I've come across quite a few posts that claim that alcohol and effexor don't mix, period.
please keep in touch
dancing fool
poster:dancing fool
thread:13781
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060818/msgs/678677.html