hi all,

i am using effexor xr 225 mg. in divided doses and ativan 1 mg. 3x/day...if this regimen does not work, my doctor has suggested i add risperdal .25 mg daily...have any of you heard of taking this combination? i know each person will react differently to medications, but this is something i wanted to throw out and get some feedback...thanks in advance...

You definitely ant to stick with the Effexor for at least 8 weeks to see if it works for you or not. Actually I tend to wait even longer than 8 weeks because I know it takes time for the AD's to work and KEEP WORKING! As for the Ativan, this is a benzoadepine, which means can get pretty addictive, you might try to take it only as needed, like when you're feeling very anxious and very moderately. Your doctor might want to work on that with you. The Risperdal is an anti psychotic medication, I don't know if this is exactly what you need, you also might want to talk to your doctor more about this. Just make sure you know what your meds are for, and do some research! Hang in there and good luck!

Hello Pattycake--I am on 225 mg eff and ativan 1mg 3xday also. Tomorrow I start Risperdal; not sure of the dose as I have to go pick it up and I don't think he told me, but I'll bet it is low dose bec he always starts out low. I also take ambien for sleep 2 10 mg nite. I have not taken this combo before so I am anxious to see how it works. Hopefully no side effects. Been trial and mostly error for 4 years now; so somethings gotta give. I don't know how many more combos there are for me. Haven't tried Lithium or shock yet, but I'm not opposed to anything that will help get me back to my old happy go lucky self. Keep me posted as to how well it is doing for you. good luck---FLIPFLOPS

I took Risperdal for several years and it helped a great deal. It sort of gives a boost to the anti-depressants. It acted as a mood stabilizer for me and definitely helped with sleep. .25 mg. is a very low dose, so I shouldn't worry. I was taking a much higher dose. It did help me a get through a very bad time, but eventually I decided to wean myself off of it, because I was beginning to notice tremors in my hand. Don't let that frighten you. Remember, I was on it for at least 3 years or more and a pretty high dose. Risperdal has the lowest incidence of that sort of side effect of any of the atypical anti-psychotics.

When I went off the Risperdal, my hand tremors stopped. But I was at a point then when I felt I no longer needed it.

As to benzo's - I have been taking Librium for several years without becoming addicted. That is to say that I can go days and sometimes weeks without feeling the need to take one. If I were addicted, I don't believe that I would be able to do that. It's a matter of using them judiciously. If I'm having a particularly bad patch with anxiety, I will take one (low dose - 10 mg.) and my doctor has told me I could take as many as 4 a day. Sometimes I've done that.

You can take benzo's safely if you are sensible in the way you use them.

Good luck!

P.S. Risperdal usually kicks in pretty quickly - 3 days or so.

Hi pattycake
Although Risperdal is an anti-psychotic, it is used for many other things. Many anti-psychotics are used in low doses to help with anxiety, it works well, with minimal side-effects because the dose is low and it's not addictive. I have a few friends who see the same pdoc that I see and they take low-dose Risperdal with their anti-depressant and a benzo. I've never taken it myself, though.