Medication

[xo_haili]

Is there anyone else out there taking Venlafaxine ER / Effexor ? How does it make you feel?

[jrcnpg]

I have been taking venlafaxine for around ten years now and have found them to be the most effective medication I have ever had in terms of the management of depression and anxiety. The dose should be stepped up by your doctor who will decide at what dosage the medication will be best for you because everyone is different. In the initial stages of this medication the taste of them is, for want of a better word, absolutely crap and so it is better taking it with a glass of milk or anything else which has a pre-defined taste. This lasts no longer than around two or so weeks, if that. As with all anti-depressants, it is important to continue to take them even though you may be of the opinion that they are not working. Around two months, if not a little longer, you will begin to notice their effect.

[Hidden in reply to jrcnpg]

hi there, i have been on venlafaxine for a number of years. current dose is 225mg per day. i have no idea if this is a high dose but i am thinking it should be increased as my stress/anxiety/depression is and has been sky high for months now. so i do need to see my gp soon to discuss this.

[jrcnpg in reply to Hidden]

Apologies for this rather late reply. I've had the Crisis Team visiting and to be perfectly honest the service they provide isn't up to very much. Their first action (reaction?) is to remove my medication which, quite frankly is a desultory move. Suicidal intention is precisely that, suicidal intention (ideation now is the term they employ). They visit daily to provide medication yet on average the time of day they arrive to provide me with medication is five in the afternoon. It baffles me that I am supposed to be taking all of my medication three sometimes four times daily and when they actually do turn up how the hell am I supposed to take my medication as prescribed? One essential thing they seem to overlook is the fact that I am insulin dependant diabetic with some of the problems associated with that condition: neuropathic pain in the feet and hands, blood glucose levels through the roof one minute and verging on hypos the next. It is relatively easy should the thought arise, to inject myself with a massive dose of insulin which is fatal. Even they have to concede that removal of medication whilst leaving me with the diabetic medication verges on the absurd.

Sorry about that rant!

225mg of venlafaxine is a high dose but not the highest it could be. Have you anything in your life which you may point to to indicate why your anxiety has increased? Sometimes the slightest things can prompt such an increase. Consulting with your GP is both a good and bad thing. Was it your GP who initially prescribed venlafaxine for you? Have you ever been referred to a psychiatrist or spent time on a psychiatric ward? Has anyone suggested further courses of action such as CBT or that rather tenuous Mindfulness business?

Maybe after several years of venlafaxine treatment which now appears not to be as affective as you hoped, it would be a good idea to consult with your GP or psychiatrist regarding the possibility of an increase in your dosage. Remember though that doctors on the whole tend to be defensive following requests from patients which is something I find annoying to say the least. It is your body, it is your body which only yourself understands completely. Doctors do not take these medications and as such their criteria for prescribing tends to be whatever is written down in their drugs bible and maybe experience of other patients over the years. I am fortunate enough to have an excellent GP who will sit and actually listen to what I am saying and she constantly overrides whatever my psychiatrist may suggest should she be a tad dubious about his recommendations.

The best course of action may be to keep some form of diary or fact-sheet of your emotions/feelings throughout the day from the moment you wake until the moment you get yourself to bed and let your GP read it (it would be better if at all possible to book a double appointment then you will have more time in which to discuss your problems).

Take care, my friend, and let me know what your experience brings to your life.

John

[xo_haili in reply to Hidden]

what is a GP?

[Hidden]

Your doctor - General Practitioner x