Med Adjustments, what to do?

[EmmaSugar]

Hi all

I have been dealing with depression and anxiety since I was about 8 years old. I'm not 27 and am having a particularly bad "flare up". I've been controlled on Citalopram for many years now, but all of a sudden, it is not doing the trick. My doctor has added Effexor and we're working our way up to a therapeutic dose. A little over a week after we doubled my 75mg to 150mg, I began having weird symptoms. I felt slow, delayed, fuzzy, and disconnected from my body. I would also just get waves of overwhelming sadness. Of course it happened on a weekend, so the weekend MD just told me to go back to 75mg and follow up on Monday with my normal MD. So, today, she told me "Let's increase it by 37.5mg". I don't know, I'm feeling really discouraged and upset and I just want to say GTFO to the Effexor. Today, I basically just spent the day in bed until my BF got home and convinced me to take a walk around the block with him and the dogs. I'm so sick of this awful feeling.

Have any of you had side effects like this on Effexor?

I guess I'm just looking for words of encouragement more than anything right now. Thanks

[BonnieSue]

You are very normal! Look at these common and very common side effects of Effexor:

Very common (10% or more): Headache (up to 38%), dizziness (up to 20%), somnolence (up to 20%), fatigue (11%), nervousness (up to 10%)

Common (1% to 10%): Tremor, twitching, migraine, vertigo.

Source: Drugs.com.

You appear to be having very normal side effects that might go away. Give them time. I know you are miserable but your body seems to need time to let these side effects pass. It could take a few weeks, can you hold on for that amount of time?

[EmmaSugar in reply to BonnieSue]

Thanks for your response Sue. This is my first post on here and I have to say, the support feels really good So maybe my doctor was hoping that by more slowly increasing, that the side effects may not happen or be less? We're currently messaging back and forth on a secure hospital system, but it's just not the same as talking in person of course. Thanks for your support

[Ronkoz]

Be strong - it does take time and there is some trial process with meds. I don't take Effexor but I have your symptoms and am seeking treatment. I didn't really leave my apartment in December and January but slowly through meds and little challenges it improved. I have a dog too and each time I walked I added a block or a moment to pause with the hope to gain more and more comfort. It's not fun but soon you may want to take steps to get out more. About mid January I had to go on a trip to family and I cried like crazy because had to leave apartment - but a month later and I feel that feeling now only in a tiny amount with a few relapses here and there. My whole point is I hope you gain strength and be kind to yourself. Feel better!

[EmmaSugar in reply to Ronkoz]

Thank you for sharing and thank you for your support. I've never done a forum like this before and it feels good just to talk to others that have similar stories. I'm sorry you had a rough time recently but it's awesome that you've been able to slowly but surely make progress! Best of luck to you!

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its 5 months since you wrote your post, how are you doing now? i have the same symptoms as you now. i am so deeply depressed