I started taking Effexor yesterday. I'd previously tried Mirtazapine, but the weight gain I experienced just made me feel worse about myself.

Within three hours of taking my first 75mg Effexor pill, I had a panic attack (I'm anxious by nature, but not usually like this). I thought I was going to have to go home. As it turned out, none of the people I could talk to were around, so I stuck it out and made it through the day.

When I got home I noticed my pupils were very dilated, and I felt "speedy", which didn't bode well for a good night's sleep. As it turned out I probably got two hours, although I was in bed from about 11:00pm - 6:00am.

The final thing is that I have absolutely no appetite, the complete opposite to how Mirtazapine affected me.

Are these symptoms normal and, if so, do they pass reasonably quickly?

Thanks

dtm

I think I would call the doctor and leave a message about how you are feeling. This happened very quickly and with your pupils dilating and intense panic attack, he probably should know this. It might very well be temporary and ease up soon but better to be safe than sorry. Plus I know it will be hard for you to feel comfortable taking the next one. Take care!!!

Gentle Sun

the pupil thing happens a lot to people when you first start the med, it makes you a bit sensitive to light, but its nothing to worry about.

the sleep problems should settle down as will the 'speedy' feeling.

the anxiety may have been the efexor but agin that should settle, of course if you are prone to anxiety then the thought of taking a new med might be making you particulary anxious, it should settle within a few days.

Effexor gave me a speedy feeling as well, and never went away for as long as I was on it. I enjoyed the feeling, I felt so motivated and invincible all the time, which lead to some good things at work. However, if you do not like it you should get your doctors opinion on the situation to see if he thinks it will pass.

Thanks guys. That makes me feel much better about this. I called the doctor, and he said give it a couple more days. If it gets worse, we'll look at alternatives.

I still have the speedy feeling, but it's not as strong as it was yesterday. Pupils are big as ever. No appetite whatsoever, can't sleep, and am grinding my teeth. But all this I can put up with for a time, if this drug works for me.

Cheers

dtm

I'm sure it will. The bad feelings do go away, the nausea and the lack of appetite will end soon. However it does take about 6 to 8 weeks for most ADs to kick in, unfortunately not as fast as we'd like.

Take care.

Eileen

Day 3 today, and the spacy feeling has definitely abated, and I actually got a good night's sleep last night.

What hasn't abated yet is this kind of numb feeling.

Before I started taking Effexor I was literally crying all the time. I couldn't cry now if I wanted to.

Will this pass too?

it should do.

You guys are so cool. Thanks so much.

Maybe I'm a little extra anxious from the new meds, but it's been really troubling me.

Thanks again.

dtm

Well, it's day 6 today. Very low, after a couple of days that I actually didn't feel too bad, if I discount the side effects.

I'm still having trouble forcing anything down, other than plain toast. Anything else just exacerbates the nausea. I'm also getting quite agitated about 4 hours after taking my dose.

Yawning is a very weird experience. It's like I feel it through my whole body, especially in my brain. Anyone else have those?

This post has been edited by dtm: Mar 3 2008, 02:24 AM

yawning in the early stages of starting efexor, yes I had that and it goes.

remember and take the efexor with food otherwise you may get a queasy stomach.

Hi there. I did one week on Effexor a couple of weeks ago. It brought on panick attacks (which I never have and was not being treated for!) to the point where I missed 3 days of work. My heart was pounding out of my chest. I tried to "ride the wave" of side effects, but it became too much for me to bear. I didn't sleep more then 3 hours per night and ate almost nothing. It was the worst experience. When I finally told the doc, he told me to stop immediately. All of the above went away in 2 days. Apparently it was not the right medication for me!