major depression

[MARIEALICE35]

HELLO,

    MY QUESTION IS I HAVE SUFFERED FROM MAJOR DEPRESSION FOR 10 YEARS.  I KNOW I ALWAYS WILL. MY QUESTION IS; I HAVE BEEN TAKING EFFEXOR XR THE WHOLE TIME. (SAVED MY LIFE). MY DR WANT'S TO SWITCH TO CYMBOLTA, CAUSE SHE THINKS IT'S MAYBY NOT WORKING.  IF IT'S WORKED FOR 10 YEARS COULD IT STOP HELPING ME AS MUCH AS SHE THINKS?  SHOULD I SWITCH?  THE SIDE EFFECTS, I DON'T HAVE TO TELL YOU, ARE REALLY BAD TO COME OFF EFFEXOR. I AM SOOOO SCARED. I WOULD LOVE YOUR ADVICE.
                               THANK YOU, ALICE

[soregretfull]

Try not 2 be scared. Get a second opion

[4Maddie44]

Hello, How are you doing?  I am on Effexor, but have been switched to the generic version.  I was on it before for a couple of years, and before that Sertraline.  Both suited me, but doctor thought Effexor was right for me.  I am 15 days into re-starting it.  Why does you doctor think it is not working for you now?  I took myself off Effexor without consulting doctor.  If you have help tailing off, you will be OK.  You must have a good talk with doctor about this.  Do you feel yourself that Effexor is not helping anymore?  I am scared all the time, about everything.  Depression is a very scary illness.  I too have had major depressio9n for over 20 years.  I will send you a private message.

[whodunnit]

Hi,

It doesn't really matter what the doctor thinks you know. If you think you are still doing well on it then stick with it. It truly is that simple. The doc makes recommendations based on what you tell them and what they observe but you are the only one who actually knows how you are.

Effexor, like most drugs really, can reach tolerance levels and lose any therapeutic value. Many seem to keep taking a med long after it's stopped helping simply becvause "it's what I take".

You need to decide if the depression has deteriorated or improved and then you decide on that basis.

Do not be scare of coming off Effexor, it's not as bad as so many say. It is no worse than a lot of drugs as many have withdrawal effects. Think about it. Meds that affect our brains having been taken for 10 years are bound to be missed when stopped, regardless of the drug.

The focus is on your mental health, not a couple of bad weeks coming off one med. It's temporary. Do it slowly and with doc monitoring your progress. If you decide it isn't helping any longer but do not let fear rule your use of meds. That's a certain way to let depression dominate you.

[Hensley258]

You would be wise to listen to Whodunnits reply.

It's a matter of how you feel. Do you feel like Effexor is no longer controling your depression? You know the symptoms, are they back even on Effexor?

I was on high dosage Effexor for 4 years before it simply and slowly stopped working to control my depression. I reached tolerance on the drug. I didn't need my Psychiatrist to tell me this because I could feel it happening.

Do you feel it happining? If so then before you make a snap change to Cymbalta (tried it after Effexor and found it to be useless) then you may be better to augment Effexor with a drug such as Lithium or Zyprexa then maybe increase the Effexor dosage. One can go as high as 450Mgs a day according to my Psychiatrist.

An increased dosage combined with augmentation can often kick start that Effexor into working again like it once did. That's what I did when my Effexor stopped working and it got me two more years out of the drug.

There is more than one way to skin a cat as my Psychiatrist always says.