Effexor XR for Major Depressive Disorder User Reviews (Page 4)

• Jen...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 10, 2020

"I took Effexor for a year. Got up to a 325 mg dose. My depression and anxiety got worse. Three suicide attempts in a year. Constant suicidal thoughts. Wasn't until I accidentally ran out of the Effexor that I felt some relief from depression and realized this med was making me worse! Needless to say, I fired my doc and am currently trying nortriptyline."

• Tom...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• February 24, 2024

"Works well for depression, but be aware that once you start this medicine you MAY not be able to come off of it. Because of the utterly horrific withdrawal effects. I can attest to these personally, and that is why since 2007, I am still on this medicine to this day and probably will be on it for the rest of my life. It can cause anger, hostility, lack of sympathy for others, loss of regret/guilt. I experienced all of these side effects, unfortunately. It also raises your blood pressure. I had to start taking high blood pressure medicine quickly after I got on this Effexor XR back in 2007. If you are worried about possible dependency for life, then you may want to consider another option instead of Effexor. It grabs ahold of you very quickly. Within a couple of weeks."

• sui...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 7, 2015

"Was switched to this after the generic version by Ranbaxy was discontinued. Developed symptoms of tolerance straight away. It causes my brain to scream out in pain all the time, and I keep getting unwanted thoughts. I also developed muscular aches and pains all over, and other drugs just kept causing my muscles to contract and be unable to relax. I tried stopping many times but kept returning because of the nausea and vomiting and all the other symptoms above. I have been off it for about three months and have been back on it for three days. Already I hear my brain screaming out in pain, and the unwanted thoughts return. The muscle aches seem to occur only in conjunction with another drug. I am taking it only because of the grief I feel in my heart."

• Kar...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 18, 2018

"I’ve been on Effexor XR for about 7 months now. At first, it made me feel off (I’ve been sober for 6 years, so I haven’t taken more than ibuprofen). It made me super tired, a little nervous, I wouldn’t be hungry, and I yawned constantly, but all that improved within a week or so. I was on cloud 9 for a while and felt clear, happy, and somewhat euphoric. Then my depression came back hard. I was on 75 mg for the first couple of months and now 112.5 mg. My night sweats are pretty bad, my rage hasn’t improved (I also have BPD, PTSD, and anxiety disorder), I’ve been constipated this whole time, and I just don’t think it’s helping me anymore. Missing a dose feels like detoxing from street drugs. Effexor worked great at first, and I never thought I’d switch, but I’m starting Prozac and titrating off. It hasn’t been too bad so far."

• Add...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 29, 2019

"I have been diagnosed with MDD, GAD, and OCD. I'm currently 36 years old and am healthy otherwise. Effexor XR worked well for the MDD and GAD, but I did not get relief from OCD (which may have intensified). However, this medicine caused me to have memory and thinking issues, and I would forget to take the medicine 1-4 times a month (which caused withdrawal symptoms to begin within ~4-6 hours of forgetting). I had to quit Effexor so I could do my job, but the withdrawal symptoms are horrendous. I've been tapering down (from 150 mg/day) for 4 months, and every step down is terrible for ~7-14 days. I can't work, or even walk around my house because I have body (and brain?) tremors, intense nausea, difficulty maintaining balance while walking, and intense muscle aches and pains in my neck and back. If the withdrawals and forgetfulness were less severe, I'd take this medicine forever because it really helped with depression and anxiety."

• Nor...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 30, 2022

"I made the biggest mistake of my life by taking this medication. In fact, it was the worst decision I ever made. The worst nausea and sickness I have ever experienced. I wake up in the middle of the night feeling sick to my stomach, and I use ginger to relieve the symptoms. While using this product, I developed bad motion sickness, and I have never experienced this before while riding in a motor vehicle. But after discontinuing use of this product, I developed serious motion sickness. Walking for a long period of time also causes my foot to get red and hurt a great deal, almost like a nerve injury. Then there was the constant shocking of my hands, so that I was incapable of writing using a pen or even squeezing a lemon. Further, I was unable to focus on anything and was so sleepy most of the time that I could sleep at any time of the day."

• hia...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 17, 2021

"When I first tried Effexor, it was after a huge panic attack. Lexapro didn’t make a difference in the way I felt. I started on 37.5 mg. I was better, but still had a few panic attacks. 75 mg cured my anxiety, but I felt extremely suicidal for the first time in a while. I’m now on 150 mg of Effexor, and my social anxiety disorder is gone. I haven’t felt this happy in years. I no longer cry every time I hear my alarm go off in fear for the day and what's coming next. But I will admit that missing more than one day of medication will give you brain zaps and dizzy spells. This hasn’t happened since a lower dosage."

• Cat...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 25, 2020

"I started taking Effexor at 50 mg, and my dosage has slowly been increased to 300 mg. It has helped a little, in conjunction with managing my PMDD, sleeping pills, and DBT. The side effects are awful. When I first started taking it, I got so nauseous I had to lay in bed all day and couldn't do anything. I started taking it at night to combat this, but then that gave me insomnia. The anorgasmia is awful. I still have the same libido as before, but reaching orgasm is near impossible thanks to this medication. The withdrawal is bad too, which is awful for me because I often forget to take it and will often leave it at home."

• Dep...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 18, 2017

"I started Effexor after not being able to take Paxil due to headaches, and felt like trash after a week on Paxil, sexual side effects from Paxil as well. On Effexor 37.5 mg I feel better, less depressed, don't have a lot of energy, but have less depressive thoughts. After a week my dose was upped to 75 mg. After a week on 37.5 mg I noticed it was almost impossible to orgasm. On 75 mg it is impossible for me to orgasm. This is making me want to stop it and try to find something else that may not affect me in this way. I don't have an issue with getting an erection and performing, it's just I can't orgasm. I have even tried generic Viagra 'sildenafil,' which does improve the erection but still can't orgasm."

• ste...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 21, 2022

"I tried this med after years of trying (with no success) various other antidepressants. I had hope. Unfortunately, like everything else, it didn't help and actually made me worse. The starting dose of 37.5 mg made me feel quite nauseated, but it wasn't bad. It lasted for about 2 weeks. It was a bit better when I ate something with the pill, though due to chronic anxiety, I haven't eaten in the day for years. The real problem though was that my pre-existing constant dread/fear/anxiety was amplified terribly every 2-3 days. I couldn't even leave the house and had no ability to enjoy anything due to the anxiety. Once I went up to a dose of 75 mg, the extra anxiety went back down, but the existing anxiety remained, and my emotional blunting has never been so severe! This started my time of sleeping most of the day, which I still do, 2 years later, even though I haven't taken these meds since late 2020. They say coming off Effexor is really hard, but I found it fine. No difference."

• Mis...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 13, 2021

"Started on Venlafaxine 1x 35 mg/day for a month with zero effect, combined with Propranolol 3x 10 mg/day. Depression and anxiety worsened, so got bumped up to 1x 75 mg/day with 3-5x 10 mg Propranolol for a month with zero response, and symptoms continued to deteriorate. Then given Mirtazapine 1x 15 mg/day, Venlafaxine and Diazepam with zero effect. Most recently now on Venlafaxine 75 mg x2/day, Mirtazapine 15 mg x2/day with CBT, still nothing and rapidly giving up hope. Previously tried high doses of Citalopram, Sertraline, and Mirtazapine all with zero effect and no side effect, even GP admitted I'm broken."

• Lau...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 1, 2022

"I had tried a few SSRIs to no avail. They made me feel like I was a zombie. Tried venlafaxine and had good results for a few months. After that, though, it felt like it stopped working. I missed a couple of doses and noticed no difference whether I was off the meds or on them. I, fortunately, did not experience any of the withdrawal symptoms that others report. It simply didn't work for me long-term."

• Sma...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 5, 2024

"I had tried the regular Effexor and was terribly nauseated, so bad I couldn’t get out of bed. I then was switched to the sustained release, but along with severe nausea, I felt as if I had the worst bladder infection of my life, so I stopped. Because I took this for just over a month, I have no idea how it works for depression. It certainly didn’t help me."

• Kel...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• June 30, 2015

"I have been on Effexor XR 300 mg since August of last year. I must say it has been a bumpy ride at best. I gave it an 8 because, although it has been fairly effective for my suicidal outlook on life, it has not really done a whole lot for my depression. I still have overlap symptoms, meaning that all my symptoms of depression are still there, I just don't feel like I want to die. As for side effects, in the first few weeks, all I was was tired, but after the initial few weeks, it subsided. After that, I really am no help because I went through the tribulation of finding a good anti-anxiety medication. I really do think I am alive now because of the Effexor XR. No improvement in QOL because I still deal day to day with depression, but not suicidal."

• Exp...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• February 25, 2017

"I am sure Effexor has helped many people over the years. I was one of the first patients to take Prozac. I was given ever-increasing doses as my depression increased. At first, I was HEALED! I wound up in the hospital with a psychotic break due to SSRIs. Effexor was given to me a few years later (doctors still did not correlate medication as a possible issue), and again I got more depressed. At this point, I was taking a bi-polar med, Lithium. The Dr. abruptly stopped Effexor from a high dose, and I do not remember the next month. I was on the payphone in a psych ward talking to my mom and came back. The nurses said I do not want to know what happened. I take my meds every day, at the same time, see my Dr. every 3 months, and am well."

• RSK...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 24, 2024

"I had incapacitating depression coupled with anxiety. It literally was not possible to live with this condition. I tried Paxil first for a month, but that did not change anything. My doctor recommended Effexor next, starting with 37.5 mg, which was increased to 150 mg in two weeks. Depression/anxiety lifted. Side effects were constipation and decreased libido. Currently, I am on 112.5 mg in the morning, which is optimal for me (when I tried 75 mg, I felt signs of depression returning), along with 7.5 mg Remeron in the evening, mainly for sleep."

• Sou...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• February 8, 2020

"Helped some, but never achieved remission from my depression while taking venlafaxine for about 9 months. Full remission with duloxetine within 90 days and continued efficacy for over 15 years. No significant side effects from either drug, although venlafaxine increased my blood pressure and pulse more."

• Lin...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 5, 2016

"My doctor put me on 37.5 mg regular (generic brand) for about 2 weeks, and I was so tired and still depressed. So she upped my dosage to 75 mg XR. After 2 days, my anxiety was out of control and I was depressed, so I had to be watched 24/7. I finally got off it after I switched back to 37.5 before going cold turkey. I didn't have any withdrawal symptoms. Good luck to anyone on this medication."

• 197...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• July 4, 2023

"I changed from fluoxetine to Effexor XR, gradually increasing up to 225mg. I'm not sure if the increased anxiety was from fluoxetine withdrawal, but it gradually got better and I found Effexor XR to be a much better drug. The only side effect I experience is high blood pressure. So now I am reducing. I am currently on 187mg, in my fourth week. After 6 weeks, the pharmacist advised me to go down to 150mg. I'm not sure, but I haven't experienced many withdrawals yet, but they could come. My blood pressure is slightly lower, but it may not be the drug, only time will tell once I am reduced."

• Aus...
• October 28, 2015

"Don't ever remember feeling 100% on Effexor. Bad withdrawal symptoms. I went from 150 mg of Effexor to 10 mg of Cipramil and feel a lot better. There is no way I'll ever be taking Effexor and wouldn't recommend it to anyone, too many side effects."

• bec...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 28, 2018

"I'm on the Effexor 50 mg dose. You can get a bead form or a tablet form. Well, when I'm on the bead form, it acts like I haven't taken it at all - I get dizzy, feel sick, often vomit, but when I'm on the tablet form, I'm fine."

• PPO...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• February 22, 2018

"I have been taking lamotrigine but find it ineffective for depression. I was misdiagnosed as bipolar. I am considering taking venlafaxine again, which worked to treat the depression for 12 years. I am a little wary, though, realizing now that all medications have bad side effects that at the time we tolerate. The downsides of venlafaxine were irritability and an inability to really relax. Tooth grinding, I lost and cracked 2 teeth and an inability to think or talk about my problems, armored and ignoring them. Is it better to live calmly with some depression than none?"

• Meo...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• March 26, 2023

"I have been taking Effexor for years, in doses ranging from 150 mg up to 225 mg. It works very well for GAD and depression, however, the side effects with dose changes suck (dizziness, nausea, brain zaps, headaches), but usually only persist for about a week. Cannot forget a dose, or the side effects come back. Overall, though, it has done well to manage my symptoms."

• Tis...
• July 12, 2015

"I am not only trying to help my depression, but I'm trying to find something to help my ADHD symptoms. ... my psychiatrist said this would help as a non-stimulant because I am really sketchy about trying Adderall or something similar. Well, my experience with Venlafaxine was that I developed twitches! Involuntary twitching is incredibly annoying. ... so back to fluoxetine. I did feel more focused... but the twitching is not tolerable enough for me."

• Ann...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 9, 2024

"For me, it is very sedating. I cannot breathe very well. Unfortunately, I haven't found an alternative because Seroxat left me after 5 years, and Cipralex (escitalopram) left me after 9 years. On the other hand, it is weak for depression, I had to add a second antidepressant beside it. I am taking 150 mg Venlafaxine."