I am having the same thing.. I have been on Effexor Er for 15 years and just a few months ago I have started seeing this, only when I have diareah! This is odd.
thank you joya325! i'm also on venlafaxine and have had this condition since months. it was all a mystery. although nothing showed up in tests i was still paranoid over the idea of terrible disgusting worms living inside my digestive system all this time.
I did a search to also find out what these are
They are hollow and plasticy. I too am on velafaxine! Just to let you know! Hey id ask for my money back on that stool study! Thank you psychology student.
I think it HAS to be the medicine. Its the one thing we have in common besides the white ball issue. I have the same problem with the same panic.. but after reading alot of posts on different sites, I found we all take meds. Venlafaxine. Im not worried any more. Ty for giving me relief.
i'm a phd student in psychology, and in my psychopharmacology courses i was taught that extended-release capsules (of any sort of medication) often contain little balls like those you describe. the mechanism is this: each ball has a sort of hard casing that slowly breaks down in the digestive tract, releasing medication slowly, over time, as it disintegrates. these little balls often disintegrate so slowly that the body passes them while they're still relatively intact, although the medication will likely have drained out of them. this might be why they sink when you take them out of the capsule (since they're still filled with medication) but float in the toilet and are easily crushed (because they're hollow after passing through your body). i have read accounts of people panicking upon finding these little balls in their stools; the medical establishment (doctors, medication labels, etc.) really should give people better warning that this might happen.
of course i can't be positive (since, obviously, i haven't seen the evidence firsthand) that this is what you're experiencing, but i hope it helps!
I've been taking 225mg of generic venlafaxine XR made by Teva USA for several months and never experienced this issue until yesterday and today, when I had a stomach ache and diarrhea with little white balls throughout. Though I still wonder why this has never happened before, I'm relieved to find out that this is a seemingly normal side-effect of venlafaxine XR.
Absolutely insane that I found this thread...I've been hatching the same problem recently and am also taking Effexor XR!! I won't worry myself about this any longer!
I know you posted this in 2010 but I do hope you read this. I too am wondering what this is. Although it sounds your case may be a bit more severe but I am in the same boat and wanted to tell you that I am also taking Venlafaxine!! That seems too much of a coincidence. If you do read this it would be great to talk, maybe we can swap info. Thank you!
You are not the only one. I also take venlafaxine ER 150 ml, and have the little white balls. We are losing a lot , if not all, of our medication. I switched to the tablets and pooped out the whole pill. Now I cut it in half and scrape the coating of with a knife, Real drag...need help bad.
I have been experiencing the same things and I ran across this site:
http://www.news-medical.net/drugs/Efexor-XR.aspx
Do not be concerned if you see small white granules or balls in your stools after taking Efexor-XR.
Inside Efexor-XR capsules are spheroids or small white balls that contain the venlafaxine active ingredient. These spheroids are released from the capsule into your gastrointestinal tract. As the spheroids travel the length of your gastrointestinal tract, venlafaxine is slowly released. The spheroid 'shell' remains undissolved and is eliminated in your stools. Therefore, even though, you may see spheroids in your stools, your dose of venlafaxine has been absorbed.
I've been on venlafaxine for over a year now and have had diarrhea for about 9 days. I noticed the tiny white balls this morning and was certain I had a parasite. Thankfully I came across this post. Side note; I too drink a lot of sports drinks. Peculiar. I think I'll just have some dry toast and imodium and hope for the best. Lol
I read somewhere that these little white balls can be from drinking too many sports drinks which I do. I think it's a build up of casein in the intestines that balls up as it moved through. I quit drinking them and it stopped, I started drinking them again and it came back. However, I am also on venlafaxine. Interesting...
omg i am so happy if found this site! i have the same issue with the little white balls in my stool and also take Venlafaxine! That HAS to be what it is! like others i opened one of my capsules and the balls in my stool look the same! i feel so much better now!
Thank goodness, my search led me here for the white ball issue, and I am on venlafaxine/effexor. Yes they need to warn people so we are not worried about being infested with something when its nothing like that.
Wow, what a relief, I am currently having a problem with pain in my stomach and acid reflux. Literally just took a sample of my stool and noticed the white dots. As like everyone else, I panicked and went straight to the internet to try self diagnose until I got results. Found this chain of discussion and what a relief!!! I also take Venlafaxine/Effexor and you are 100000% correct. It matches what s written on the leaflet given to patients when they start taking the medication. Only I had forgotten. So while the white dots are nothing to panic about lets hope everything else turns out good. Thank you for your knowledge and wisdom assuring all of us.
I've started noticing little white specs about a week ago. I take no medication whatsoever, don't smoke, 2 beer a day guy, but the one thing I do - eat a virtually carb free diet. I consume less than 50 grams of carbs a day. I eat eggs, cheese, meat, veggies, nuts and fat. I assumed the white specs were undigested fats. For some reason, it doesn't bother me as much as many of you seem to be bothered. I never thought of lice, worms or parasites. I feel very healthy, no GI issues or problems at all, no bloating, no gas, no pain, but something certainly changed in the last 10 days. Taking Venlafaxine seems to be the cause of most people's problems. Anybody reading this forum have the white spec problem and does not take Venlafaxine?
Oh my God!!! Thank god for the Internet. I googled little white balls ... And it filled in the rest and sent me here. I'm on Venlafaxine and now it's all been answered!!!! I was starting to get worried enough to google. Thanks to the person who started this thread :-)
I have been taking Venlafaxine for years now and just this morning noticed the little white balls in my stool. I panicked and was sure it was a worm of some sort. Thank goodness for the internet. My mind is at ease with the Extended Release Venlafaxine. I love the Internet.
I started taking venlafaxine for 2 weeks now and have noticed small white balls in my poop also. It has been driving me crazy, trying to figure out where they came from. They are hard- but can be smashed. From all these posts- I am leaving it at its because of the venlafaxine. Doctors are making me broke!! Specialist- $50.00 a visit- not to mention the test. And this is with BCBS insurance. I feel like a hypochondriac and now my son of 25 yrs. old is turning into one also. ugggg- Is there no end and except through death?
Ive had the same problem for years. I found this info from the manufacturer of Venlafaxine
http://www.mydr.com.au/medicines/cmis/efexor-xr-modified-release-capsules
Here is the website:
http://www.news-medical.net/drugs/Efexor-XR.aspx
Found an Australian web site about warnings and side efx of Effexor er:
Do not be concerned if you see small white granules or balls in your stools after taking Efexor-XR.
Inside Efexor-XR capsules are spheroids or small white balls that contain the venlafaxine active ingredient. These spheroids are released from the capsule into your gastrointestinal tract. As the spheroids travel the length of your gastrointestinal tract, venlafaxine is slowly released. The spheroid 'shell' remains undissolved and is eliminated in your stools. Therefore, even though, you may see spheroids in your stools, your dose of venlafaxine has been absorbed.
Pretty sure this is what those of you taking venlafaxine are experiencing.
I also have been taking Venlafaxine for years and Effexor years before that. I started noticing the little white balls in my stool years ago. I even asked my internist about them and he did some testing with no results. I'm so relieved to know this is probably the medicine - not some parasite. I've been searching on-line about this for years and finally came upon this page. Thanks for sharing.
I have been taking the Effexor extended release for 14 years and have had these small white balls in my stool for 7 years. If they are a result of taking this medication then why did I not have them for the first 7 years. Does anyone know?