kooer

Im a newbie here, but have posted in substance absuse forum. Anyway, my doc put me on effexor 37.5 mg once a day. it says that it takes four to six weeks to take effect.....can it happen sooner?? Considering this is my 7th day of going thru opiate wd's I feel wonderful loopy, like when i stand up or something. Anyway dont mean to babble but if anyone has any experience with this med, please post. Thanks so much in advance

Kooer

historyteach

I do not have any experience with this particular anti depresant. Others who do will come along later.
http://www.webmd.com/search/search_r...?query=effexor
This should help.

Shalom!

shutterbug

if you're still around...let me know and i will give you links to several threads about Effexer where others have shared their thoughts and experiences....

Astro

Hi Kooer,

I'm new to SR so missed this thread initially. I started taking Effexor XR in May of 2005, and tapered off it a couple months ago.

Yes, it's possible it'll work sooner, but in my case it took even longer. Every person will react differently. I completely understand that loopy feeling, and for me it was months before that went away. I also experienced something that felt like "cobwebs in the brain", a foggy or disconnected feeling.

Try reading other people's experiences on websites, but keep in mind that every person reacts to medications like Effexor in their own way, so don't be scared off by negative experiences, and try not to expect miracles either.

If there's a positive side to my experience, it's that I sleep perfectly and function much better than I ever did in my 27 year drinking career. It was hard to get past the initial discomfort, but worth every bit of it in my opinion.

reader

I take 150mg of Effexor and I am doing really well with it. I prefer it to other ADs that I have tried because it gives me no bad side effects. Like Astro said I also sleep better.

Astro

Same dosage I took. I also forgot to mention that when I tapered off there were zero side effects, but others I've talked to said that it wasn't so easy.

fstedy62

kooer i see you started taking effexor,my dose is 225 mg,i also take 100 mg seroquel and 1200 mg of lithium,i must be realy messed up ha ha ,any way with your effexor dont miss a dose or you could have bad side effects. listen to your doctor and be honest when you speak to him/her. be safe eddie

BSPGirl

I quit Effexor cold turkey after a few weeks and I didn't notice any side effects either, but yes most ppl aren't so 'lucky'...

Marte

Lady_Blue

I guess I'm worse off than ALL of you. I STARTED out on 37.5mg every am, went up gradually & stayed @ 75 mg., (if memory seves me correctly for years with no problem. I have graduated up to 300 mg. (My Dr. said "we" won't go any higher. It was a last ditch effort to get me through my last SEVERE depression. I think that was in part due to the fact that besides suffering from depression, I had also been addicted to opiates (hydrocodone) and was sick & tired of being sick & tired. I got off of them in June, (the hydros), had 1 relapse EARLY in the stage. I haven't touched any hydrocodone (Vicodin-10 mg) aka Norco; 10/325 since that early relapse. I think it lasted 9 or 10 days. Are you taking Effexor just to relieve yourself from the withdrawals? I was just curious.

reader

Effexor gets in your system much quicker than most AD, I should know I have tried almost all of them. My Doc. told me it begins to work faster. It is great u are getting off the opiates. My best friend is struggling with it, the docs. keep pumping her the oxy's. Day 7 is great keep up the good work !!!!!

Astro

[QUOTE=Lady_Blue;1127818] I have graduated up to 300 mg. (My Dr. said "we" won't go any higher. QUOTE]

By what I've heard that is the maximum dosage anyone can take.

I also posted this in another thread today:

What worked for me is trying to reinforce a positive attitude on myself. Walks in the sunlight, exercising, eating right, meditating, talking to others in recovery, etc. Anything to keep my thoughts away from depression and isolation seemed to make the medication more effective. Positive actions and thinking seemed to increase the effectiveness of EffexorXR. Sometimes it's a struggle, but the benefits are worth it.

mikiglen

just curious...i tried effexor in the past because my doc said it helped with anxiety and depression, while also giving some energy. the few times i took it, i got just the opposite, waaaaaaaaaaaay wiped out.
does anyone here that takes it find they have more energy? i am wondering if i should have stuck it out
misti

Astro

Misti, I had to stick it out for a long time before it felt really effective. There were weeks that went by when I sat at my desk and zoned out, unable to get up enough energy to move around. For me that seemed like the problem. Once I forced myself to be active and alert, the medication worked great and I started functioning in a normal fashion.

mikiglen

hmmmmmmm, i am thinking about switching from prozac to that or wellbutrin. i thought the prozac wasn't working, BUT now that i've got the opiates out of my system (13 days, woo hoo), i am feeling much better. i am thinking part of it may be the prozac, and i don't want to screw it up.
it's good to have options and an understanding doctor
thanks, astro, i thought i was crazy, being tired on an "energy" ad

PaperDolls

There are quite a few threads around here about Effexor.
I'm currently on 300mg per day. I have good days, and I have bad days.

Here are some links to threads about Effexor:
http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...hlight=Effexor

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...hlight=Effexor

A bunch more threads here:
http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...earchid=653573

I wish you well.

doll

Astro

Doll, I hope your good days eventually overcome all those bad days.

Mikiglen, I used to think I was crazy so I checked into a hospital for a mental evaluation. Whaddya know, they told me I was an alcoholic/addict! ;-)

Scott

skunkape

I'm on Effexor XR 150 mgs a day and it works pretty good to control my anxiety and depression. I still get down, but nothing like I used to. They say it takes 6 weeks to work but it was slower for me, didn't see any real progress until the second month or so, but my life has gotten so much better. Don't give up on your Antidepressant too soon, they are very slow, but very effective for depression.

sisterray

Does anyone get head zaps from effexor? I gained a bunch of weight on it, and if I missed a dose, then I got weird nerves from it. It also gave me the foggies. Going off it sucked bad too, but I had to-I had reached the 300 level, and the dr. said I would have to go off and start over again-apparently it is easy to build up a tolerance to it. But I didn't want to go back on after it taking weeks to get off. I am now on something that I guess is relatively new-called cymbalta-much much better, I am losing some of the bloat, and no more head zaps.

PaperDolls

I get the head zaps -- but actually lost some weight when I started it. Don't worry -- I gained all of it back and them some.

I'd like to switch to something else but don't want to wean myself off. It's no fun, that's for sure.

Good luck sister -- and the rest of yous too.

doll

fstedy62

i only get the head zaps when i miss a dose,one time i went on a five day binge,didnt take any medsall that time. DONT RECOMEND THAT !i also gained about 35 pounds i quess thats the price i pay for the way i was be safe! eddie