Help Starting new meds: Venlafaxine. How's your experience?

[wait.what]

I was on 187.5 mg a day for a while (Effexor comes in weird dose increments), but at that dose it made my skin pour out sweat. I would take showers all the time to wash the sweat off, but as soon as I toweled off, the sweat would start running again. My skin was basically never dry, and I started getting fungal infections. I was on 150 mg for a while with minimal side effects, but it also didn't affect my mood noticeably. Unfortunately, that's my usual response to antidepressants. Finally the dr. started weaning me off of it, taking me down 37.5 mg at a time for maybe a month or 6 weeks, and I was able to quit without withdrawals.

So for me it wasn't seriously harmful, it just also didn't help.

 

[megafire]

everytime i miss a dose, i feel nauseous and get the shits. so try not to skip because it isn't very fun and you poop a lot

 

[Last chance]

I was on venlafaxine for about three years after being on citrolpram for three year before that. Venlafaxine worked much better for me but at the same time I always had that feeling that I was on something,like a weird chemically feeling in my brain. It helped me stay alive though.

Coming off it was no fun at all,I reduced the dose over several months but the withdrawals were horrible. Brain shocks,really bad anxiety,nausea and a whole host of other nastyness that I cant really remember. The withdrawals were so bad that I nearly started taking it again just to make them go away.

So in short,yes I found it helpful but I would never take it again unless I was going to take it forever because of the withdrawals.

Oh and the sex thing - It make me last for ages without.....cumming and did the opposite for about six months after I stopped taking it.

 

[brainpain2]

SSRI's put me into dysphoric hypomania (lack of sleep, increased anxiety, being overwhelmed by everything, feeling like walls were closing in on me) which led to a diagnosis of bipolar 2. I did take Effexor for awhile before this happened. It took the "edge" off at first, as for side effects before the hypomania I remember major sexual dysfunction. The bits didn't really work anymore and there was zero sexual desire anyways. I didn't gain weight. Be careful if you go off and only under a doctor's care. Good luck

 

[Regen]

I took a high dosis and I like it very much and for me it was way better then sertralin (my actual med). But the side effect was the reason I switch back to sertralin.

 

[L-L]

I took a high dosis and I like it very much and for me it was way better then sertralin (my actual med). But the side effect was the reason I switch back to sertralin.

To be expected. Venlafaxine effects both Serotonin and Noradrenaline at the reuptake site, whereas Sertraline effects just Serotonin. Because it is effecting another reuptake site, the side effect profiles are often larger and more varied.

 

[jolez]

Been on them for a couple of years, keep me more stable and I'm able to function, my advice is don't forget to take them ! Withdrawal even for1 day brings hell ! Migraine and DT's !
good luck