Aa
does anyone else have 0 energy?
Hi, i am new to this site and so glad i found it. i have no motivation (exept to get off the venlafaxine) not like me at all. I never want to go outside let alone work out. I am down to 1 pill aday of 75mil, I break it in half, take half in the a.m half in late afternoon. I went yesterday afternoon to get beer, but now i think that drinking makes things worse. Does anyone else think that way? Kathryn
I am so glad you are feeling better and hope the doctor helps you through all this. Yes we want to know what she says.
I take omega 3 capsules, 1 daily, and multivitamin pill daily. Just ordered some vitamin B too.So great when we begin to feel better. Long may it last for you.
Glad you like this site. Isn't everyone so kind and understanding? I am glad I am here too.
Take care
I take omega 3 capsules, 1 daily, and multivitamin pill daily. Just ordered some vitamin B too.So great when we begin to feel better. Long may it last for you.
Glad you like this site. Isn't everyone so kind and understanding? I am glad I am here too.
Take care
Hi, thank you for you comment. Yes I do need to see my Dr. soon. I will make an appt tomorrow. I feel normal today, like I said in my previous post......last night I took one venlafaxine 75mg and two colozopam because it felt like I was coming out of my skin so it must still be in my system. Even though the Dr said I could wean off myself.......because I weaned off the colozopam, I know now that I need help to get off of this. Thank you for your thoughts and encouraging me to see the Dr. i will let everyone know what she says. Well at least all this has gotten me to take fish oil caps and try to eat better (i do think the fish oil helped my brain zaps) I worked out this a.m and plan to go for a walk this eve. Wow I do feel better. I have not gone for walk or worked out in weeks. I hope I still feel well tomorrow. I hope everyone is doing ok and being kind to themselves, I know it is not our fault and we all do the best we can. Again I am so happy i found this site. Kathryn
Welcome to the forum, and to MedHelp!
Listen, you do NOT want to try to taper off Effexor yourself. Effexor has a reputation for being very difficult to discontinue. A taper should be EXTREMELY slow. By slow, I'm talking months, even a year. You're dropping your dose WAY too fast. You're going to end up making yourself feel even worse, which I think you're discovering.
If the Effexor wasn't helping with your depression, there are other options. You need to be making this decision with the guidance of your doctor. If you have decided to stop the Effexor just because you don't feel you should have to take medication, or because you want to give it a go without medication, that may not be a good enough reason. ALL too frequently, people are managing their depression/anxiety well with these meds, and decide, for the above kind of reasons, to d/c their meds...only to experience a reemergence of the initial symptoms, sometimes even far worse than the initial ones, and sadly, getting back on track with meds is usually much harder the second time around.
I'm not saying that people (or YOU) can't tackle depression without meds...of course it can be done, what I am saying, is make sure your reasons for wanting to come off are good ones, and that you've REALLY weighed the pros and cons. If you just aren't happy about having to take a pill for the rest of your life to feel "normal"...in my opinion, that's not reason enough. If you had high blood pressure, or diabetes, you wouldn't think twice about your need for medications. Treating mood disorders should be NO different.
I've done this to myself a few times. I have been Rxd a few different SSRIs at different times to treat my panic disorder and depression. After a few years, I decided I didn't need, or want the med anymore. Biggest mistake I could have ever made. Within a few months, my panic returned with a vengeance, and it was MUCH harder to get back on meds...the start-up side effects can be MUCH more severe during subsequent courses of treatment after coming off.
Whatever you decide, make sure you've done so after CAREFUL consideration, and some research. Also, take into consideration if the meds have helped you up until this point. If they HAVE...there should be no reason to make changes. If the Effexor wasn't working like it should, then there are plenty of other med options...which you would need to discuss with your doctor.
If you DO decide you definitely want to go off the Effexor...do NOT make any more dosage changes yourself. Continue taking the medication at your most recent dose and get in to see your doctor. Tell your doctor you want to be weaned VERY slowly. With Effexor, that is a must to mininize the severity of the discontinuation syndrome. Also, if you aren't in therapy already, ask your doc for a referral. Therapy is invaluable in treating depression.
I wish you the best, please stick around and let us know how you're doing.
Listen, you do NOT want to try to taper off Effexor yourself. Effexor has a reputation for being very difficult to discontinue. A taper should be EXTREMELY slow. By slow, I'm talking months, even a year. You're dropping your dose WAY too fast. You're going to end up making yourself feel even worse, which I think you're discovering.
If the Effexor wasn't helping with your depression, there are other options. You need to be making this decision with the guidance of your doctor. If you have decided to stop the Effexor just because you don't feel you should have to take medication, or because you want to give it a go without medication, that may not be a good enough reason. ALL too frequently, people are managing their depression/anxiety well with these meds, and decide, for the above kind of reasons, to d/c their meds...only to experience a reemergence of the initial symptoms, sometimes even far worse than the initial ones, and sadly, getting back on track with meds is usually much harder the second time around.
I'm not saying that people (or YOU) can't tackle depression without meds...of course it can be done, what I am saying, is make sure your reasons for wanting to come off are good ones, and that you've REALLY weighed the pros and cons. If you just aren't happy about having to take a pill for the rest of your life to feel "normal"...in my opinion, that's not reason enough. If you had high blood pressure, or diabetes, you wouldn't think twice about your need for medications. Treating mood disorders should be NO different.
I've done this to myself a few times. I have been Rxd a few different SSRIs at different times to treat my panic disorder and depression. After a few years, I decided I didn't need, or want the med anymore. Biggest mistake I could have ever made. Within a few months, my panic returned with a vengeance, and it was MUCH harder to get back on meds...the start-up side effects can be MUCH more severe during subsequent courses of treatment after coming off.
Whatever you decide, make sure you've done so after CAREFUL consideration, and some research. Also, take into consideration if the meds have helped you up until this point. If they HAVE...there should be no reason to make changes. If the Effexor wasn't working like it should, then there are plenty of other med options...which you would need to discuss with your doctor.
If you DO decide you definitely want to go off the Effexor...do NOT make any more dosage changes yourself. Continue taking the medication at your most recent dose and get in to see your doctor. Tell your doctor you want to be weaned VERY slowly. With Effexor, that is a must to mininize the severity of the discontinuation syndrome. Also, if you aren't in therapy already, ask your doc for a referral. Therapy is invaluable in treating depression.
I wish you the best, please stick around and let us know how you're doing.
Well yesterday was not anything like the day before. i had a really hard time leaving the house again, but got my errands done. Does anyone else have trouble shopping? i found myself just standing in the store staring into space, not beingable to concetrate on what to buy even though i had I list and had shopped there so many times before. Also in the eve I just couldn't stand the way I felt anymore so I ended up taking one 75mg of venlafaxine and 2 colozopams (that I had already weaned off of) so i am not sure how today will go since i messed everything up with my tapering off, but the medication made me feel normal. Very confusing stuff. I think I will go to the Dr. again....not sure if I am doing this right or not. Maybe i will just focus on loosing this stupid weight, I have been working out at all, like I said before.......going to try that for a week and will let you know. Wow all this is so time consuming, and costly and makes me feel crazy and totally out of control. I am stronger than the drugs, I am stronger than the drugs. Kathryn
Hi everyone,and thank you for responding to my post.Yesterday I am happy to say was the best day i have had in so long. I am really not sure if it was because I have been staying in and pretty much doing nothing but eating or because I took the JNK booster (has selenium in it) and then took liver complete along with watermellon juice. I seem to have just been searching for answers to this awful situation that we all have......I found that effexor messes up your selenium after a while (selenium makes you feel good). Anyway I am still determend to get off of this horrible med, so yesterday I still only took a half of a 75mg tab of venlafaxine. I have also started taking the fish oil and vitamin E I think it does help the brain zaps. I did ask my Dr if I could start the taper and she said "well you already know how" because I tapered off the colosopam really slowly. But now i am at the point that I just want to be the real me, the person who had energy, loved to work out, loved to go on long walks, clean and organize, eat healthy, and care about how she looks. The past six months i have felt her slip away little by little and now it is not her at all. I have gained 14 pounds in about 4 months. So I can relate to those who said they were embarassed to go out because they had nothing to wear.....me too....same 3 tops 1 pair of pants. i can not wear any of my my really cute clothes. Oh well, so my new thing is to keep trying and only do want my body/inner voice tells me. I know soon I will want to work out and go on walks again . Again I am so glad I found this site. My heart goes out to everyone suffering through this hell. I will let you know if today is as good as yesterday. K
A new thread about Effexor withdrawal, that's great. No don't drink alcohol with anti-depressants, not a good combination!!
I found the generic Effexor did not work for me, and although doctor was reluctant, he put me back on the brand.
I had come off Effexor 150mg daily cold turkey, and was well for a year, but the depression came back. I was very well for that year. As I have had depression for many years, I know I must take anti-depressants. So I am back on 150mg daily now.
I lost the weight I put on with the medication when I stopped it, but it has all piled on again. Only side effect I have with Effexor.
Yes I do get a bit tired, but not drained as you seem to be bubbly.
You both sound like lovely sensible women. Welcome to the forum.
I found the generic Effexor did not work for me, and although doctor was reluctant, he put me back on the brand.
I had come off Effexor 150mg daily cold turkey, and was well for a year, but the depression came back. I was very well for that year. As I have had depression for many years, I know I must take anti-depressants. So I am back on 150mg daily now.
I lost the weight I put on with the medication when I stopped it, but it has all piled on again. Only side effect I have with Effexor.
Yes I do get a bit tired, but not drained as you seem to be bubbly.
You both sound like lovely sensible women. Welcome to the forum.
Hi Kathryn
I am new as well and so thankful I found this site.
I have suffered from major depression for years and I can tell you from experience that drinking even one beer will make you feel worse when you are on anti-deprsssents. Also not taking them like you are supposed to can be harmful.
There is no shame that you need something to help you, I had to come to that realization.
I have tried the generic and it does not work for me.I get really depressed and same as you do not want to go outside of my house I done want to be around people or talk to people
Talk with your doctor maybe you can't take the generic.
Please do not stop taking this med without the advise of your doctor because sometimes the outcome can be worse if you just stop it or dont take it like they tell you to.
I really hope this helps you Please stay strong and know that there is nothing to be ashamed of.
Sometimes we go through a rough patch and sometimes we need meds to get us through life. and which ever it is! IT IS OK
I am new as well and so thankful I found this site.
I have suffered from major depression for years and I can tell you from experience that drinking even one beer will make you feel worse when you are on anti-deprsssents. Also not taking them like you are supposed to can be harmful.
There is no shame that you need something to help you, I had to come to that realization.
I have tried the generic and it does not work for me.I get really depressed and same as you do not want to go outside of my house I done want to be around people or talk to people
Talk with your doctor maybe you can't take the generic.
Please do not stop taking this med without the advise of your doctor because sometimes the outcome can be worse if you just stop it or dont take it like they tell you to.
I really hope this helps you Please stay strong and know that there is nothing to be ashamed of.
Sometimes we go through a rough patch and sometimes we need meds to get us through life. and which ever it is! IT IS OK
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