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Looking forward to getting to know you!

Hi all, I just found this forum, I've just started taking efexor again and would like a place to talk about how the treatment is going.

I was put on efexor around 2 years ago after prozac had no effect. It really helped me cope during a time when I was suffering depression and a lot of anxiety, I stopped a year after partly due to it starting to let me forget to take it. What I mean by that is if I missed one dose I would get the electric shock effects and feel a little "crazy". By this time though it wasn't happening anymore so I figured they weren't having the same effect anymore, I was also noticing how more "aware" I felt without them so I stopped taking them without any problems.

Looking back now though that might have been a mistake, I had a really stressful period afterwards where the meds may have helped if I'd still been on them and I've been very unmotivated since. I quit my job after xmas, I'd been planning to, it had been making me miserable since September, it was making me very tired and my concentration was seriously bad. Since it invoved driving people around at night it wasn't a good idea to carry on. So now I'm looking for a job I can do in the meantime until I go back to studying (hopefully in September) but I'm so unmotivated and miserable in the daytimes it all seems doomed.

I don't have anxiety like I did 2 years ago but I do feel extra hostile towards people (which work seemed to make worse). I'm going back on the efexor in the hope that it will get me through this tough period like it did before.

Stainboy
welcome to the board. I hope that efexor helps you.

Did you know that irritability can be a symptom of depression?

Perhaps working at night didn't really help you. I hope you manage to get a job but perhaps what you could do in the meantime is get a sick note from the dr and get some benefits in the meantime instead of being on JSA.

I'm in the UK and have been off sick for nearly 3 years so have living on a combination of 'sick pension rate pay' and Incapcity Benefit.

Take care.
Eileen

Hi,
I to was taking efexor for my depression three years ago maybe slightly more, i was on 75mg 3 aday i not sure how high that dose is in comparison to others but it did nothin for me whatso ever. i reached this dose in a space of three months and was told there an then that two more increases would mean it beein addministrated in hospital. so iam guessing not a good dose to be on and only beein 24 possibly a risk depending on how it affected any other part of my body.
iam pleased to say i dont remember suffering any side effets, and from that dose i stopped taking all meds and therapy in one go, at the time it wasnt what i wanted to do for the rest of my life as i saw it.
i watched my dad suffer for years on meds and i didnt want to follow suit,i dont regret stopping the tabs as they didnt change how i felt but do wish i had continued the counselling longer.
only problem there is ii hate to talk about the stuff that troubles me, even this iam writing now iam finding hard.

on that iam gunna leave it there before i soak the keyboard from reliving the past in my head.

gabriel

Gabriel
welcome to DF.

The dose of efexor you were on is supposed to be the most therapeutic dose at 225mg a day. It does seem a shame that you stopped both meds and counselling in one go. Counselling or therapy can really help you sort out your problems especially if they are interfering with your day to day life.

If you are still suffering then can you get counselling again, its not a sign of weakness to need that kind of help.

I'm sorry that you have seen your dad have problems with meds, sometimes some people and some illnesses can't be helped that much by meds. In fact a lot of depression may only be helped by therapy. I was on efexor for over 3 1/2 years and didn't have too many side effects. I too managed to come off them without any problems.

Whatever you decide to do I hope that DF can help you.

Eileen

Gabriel and Stainboy,

A very warm to the both of you!


Luv,
Autumn

thankyou for the welcome,

seeking counselling again is easier to say than do when your doctor doesnt want to throw you a bone,
i asked to be referred just before xmas roughly 16th and iam still waiting for any sort of corispondence which i find not only discusting but also disheartning, as i am asking for help and hearing nothin. i know it takes time but as you will understand its my life i have thoughts to take each day, a little peice of paper with a date on it is as much a comfort at the moment for me as talking is for others.
i dont like to talk well find it hard but again in time this will lighten and maybe even comfort me enough to get on.

there is more to the story of my dad and his depression which continued on after i had ceased to take my meds.
i had a rough time and very hard decisions to make as to whether i look after him and my brother finacially( by forcing myself into work)
which i did sucessfully (i worked from the ground up to a supervisor within six months of no meds, whhile progressing to train for my managers position.) only thing stopping me after two and a half years of pushing was complete worthlessness from the job,what had i i'd achieved.( and the back problems from crazy hour shifts were i pushed myself sometimes for 18 hours straight no breaks five days a week and even went in on weekends if i needed to,one shift in one day lasted 21 hours and 43 mins with the next shift starting barly 5 hours later.) like i said crazy.

i willingly got up day by day to do so for more of an escape from everything,the more i pushed at work the less of life i saw and even if i became ill i did not stop.looking back i was after death,an end to my own pain...still.
right up till i left work in july 2005 i tried so hard to hide from everyone how i was feeling and sometimes from myself,but maybe its fate or ive abused someone in the past so bad that karma feels the need to prove a point. which ever it is iam unhappy with the todays not wanting tomorrows and severly hating yesterdays.
i cant continue with this anymore iam becoming low just writing it, d*** memories.

Gabriel

DF is a place where you can get support when you need it. I hope the counselling comes through soon. If you need urgent help/support then please do post in the "Members Needing Extra Help Now".

I was so tempted to move your last post there now for you. I think you would find that many people understand what you are going through, though maybe not what you have gone through. There are many people here who struggle with work and having depression and having to look after family.

This shows a strengh you have in you. I'm sorry that you had to give up your job but it sounds as though it was taking so much out of you. I'm sure there are other jobs out there that you can take on that don't expect so much from you.

Someone wrote a little saying down for me "keep on keeping on".

Let me know if you'd like your post moved to MNESN or start your own post there.

Take care.

Eileen

Thanks for the welcome,

It's funny how you change, I used to love working at night. When I was depressed and suffering anxiety 2 years ago I was happy in my pretty stressful night job, I felt safe there. But over the last few months it wasn't like that anymore, it had turned into the place that made me the most anxious even though this time I'm not having anxiety anywhere close to last time.

I really would like to work though so I don't feel comfortable asking to be off sick. I think if I can manage to find a job that would help me feel better as it's money that causes me the most stress at the moment.

jUst make sure you take care of yourself.

Eileen

:wave:

Hi

I'm new I'm from the north of England and have been on venlafaxine for a long time, one unsuccessful slow withdrawal from it and now I am just living life with it. It keeps me sane I think.

Many hospital trusts in the UK have made it consultant psychiatrist prescription only, which I find interesting. My GP started it around 4 years ago for me after an unsuccessful trial of fluoxetine. It does seem to work, I wonder if it is cost? Though really you should have an annual ECG (EKG in US) if you are on more than 200mg which maybe does not happen in primary care. Anyway just a few things I have pondered.

It works for me, it worked better with lithium added in but lithium is a bit of a scary drug.

:1cat: kittycat

Kittycat,

to the Effexor-room. It's good to hear you're doing okay on Effexor!
Thanks for joining us!

Autumn

This post has been edited by Autumn: Feb 22 2006, 12:58 PM

kittycat

ladybug

hi kittycat welcome to DF. I hope you find things useful here and that you find support and advice if you need it.

Take care.

Eileen

Hi -

I was on effexor for a couple of years, and it definitely helped with the depression and anxiety, but also made me feel wrapped in a cacoon, not really experiencing anything - positive or negative - fully. Also had sexual side effects that were difficult to live with.

After several months of doing quite well, my psychiatrist agreed that I could begin tapering off (I'm still on welbutrin). That went ok, too, and I was fine with no effexor for about 6 weeks. Then I began to feel worse week b