venlafaxine

[dreamadream1]

Hello

Posting for traffic, due to start new antidepressants tomorrow, I've been on citalopram for 13 years and they are no longer keeping me stable.

Does anyone have any experience with venlafaxine?

Thank you xx

My DH takes it for severe OCD and it works well for him.

Sweating!

Hot sweats, flushes

I’ve been on it for about 18 years. Just to echo everyone else - do NOT miss a dose. I start getting side effects if I’m late taking it. Make sure you order your repeat prescription in plenty of time so you never run out, or you will regret it - take it from one who knows from painful experience!

You might get the “head zaps” - you know those purple lights they have on the wall in bakers shops to kill flies! Sometimes it feels as if you head it touching one of those purple lights!

it worked for me for quite a while, but was a bit of a bastard to come off. Had to take it ridiculously slowly.

As long as I don't sit and stuff my face with shite and move very little, my weight is stable. But I find this to be the case regardless of the meds involved.

Sertraline I lost loads of weight, did nothing for my MH

I mentioned detox as the side effects from missing a dose can be very similar, When I was in hospital we had in-depth chats about it as it kept arriving late if at all. I couldn't describe exactly how I was feeling and mentioned the similarities of detoxing cold turkey from other things, and I was told others say similar. The desire for the whatever wasn't there, but some of those same side effects.

When I was under 100mg a day it was easier to give up cold turkey. When I went well above that was when the side effects from missing a dose really started to hit within hours.

Thanks so much everyone.

I'm half way brought up my week 3 I think and doubled my dose. No nasty side effects and best of all, my mind and thoughts seem a lot clearer.

I've got my psychiatrist review on 11th February so many finally get some proper answers.

I'm half way through*

I'm with everyone else. It worked great for me but was an ABSOLUTE BASTARD to come off. Don't be me and run out on the Friday of a bank holiday weekend and decide to gut it out cold turkey because you were planning to come off them anyway. [Shudder]

My relative was on Venlafaxine XL and kept fainting as it gave them postural hypotension and had to stop it after only a few days.

@dreamadream1 My experience is similar in that Citalopram stopped working for me after many years, triggering a severe breakdown. I then went onto Sertraline, which wasn't good either. Venlafaxine has worked very well for me for 4 years (though taking a dose late means head zaps, which is good in a way as I'm less likely to forget days in a row).
I was on 187.5mg last year and thought I was going to need to up the dose again, but started cold water therapy (first in the bath and eventually swimming outdoors) and I've actually had to cut the dose instead. Apparently the cold water stimulates the release of norephinedrine, which is one of the neurotransmitters targeted by Venlafaxine, an SNRI.

Agree. Never miss a dose. I keep 1/2 tablets in my handbag incase I forget to take one in the morning

I've been on them on and off for 20 years after having been on virtually everything else since the age of 16. Sometimes I worry that I should come off but if they keep me well then I'll keep taking them!

Have taken Venlafaxine for a while now. 150mg capsules after a prolonged period of anxiety. Works really well for me. I was in a mess with my anxiety a few months ago and now much more stable. I take them alongside Mirtazapine which my psychiatrist recommended for me.

I am on maximum dose, along with mood stabilisers, and they have been a life saver for me.