Did Venlafaxine change your life for the better?

[Crispsmakemehappy]

Venlafaxine prescription sitting a few days now and I’m unsure what to do. I’m AD free as week now but scared to try these incase they make me have suicidal thoughts like others have….

Tell me your positive stories please, I know they are meant to be horrendous to come off and needs to be done at a super slow pace.

TIA 😌💐

🙋🏻‍♀️ me! Wouldn’t be without them - They took things from beyond shit to ok for me and I’ve been on them (at a stable dose) for nearly 4y now. I was told I could increase my dose to feel ‘better’ but am ok being ok if you know what I mean 🙂 Good luck @Crispsmakemehappy

Yes. After trying many ADs it's the only one that manages my anxiety so that I can function and sleep and not be a constant ball of adrenaline, while having no bad side effects. The only significant side effect is that I can't drink much alcohol as it exaggerates the effect - so that means I hardly drink but I'm OK with that and it's healthier.

I have gradually reduced my dose so it's now very low but still has the same effect. But I tried going lower/tapering off and the anxiety came back, so I do think it's genuinely helping me.

What dose are you taking? Doctor has prescribed me I think it’s 37.5 to begin with. I’m so nervous to take it. I can’t deal with bad side effects like I had on fluxotine. I’m so scared i start them and they don’t agree but I can’t come off them. I know it’s my anxiety making me overthink too

@ThatCheeseIsMine @exitlight sorry I meant to tag you both in that reply.

Yes. 20 years of trying to cope, trying other ADs, without success. Life changing.

I'm on 37.5 now but started on much higher - 150. I didn't have any bad side effects - and I did with other ADs. I know everyone is different but that's a low dose and likely to be fine. Also, I know it's meant to be hard to come off venlafaxine, but I think it's not so hard if you've only just started and found it doesn't agree with you. In that situation, with a low dose, it shouldn't be hard as you won't have got used to it and its effects.

@Crispsmakemehappy 150 on a modified release. I take mine in the evening.
I was switched from sertraline and had 72h of hideousness in the switch as I weaned down the sertraline and onto 225 of venlafaxine over the course of 72h (closely supervised) as I wanted to do it while I had enough support around for my children so if I was out of it, it didn’t matter so much. Once that bit was over, I’ve been fine 🙂 stayed on 225 for about a year and then went 225-200-175-150 over the course of a couple of month and have been there since, plodding on quite nicely. I still have bad days but they’re no where near as bad 👍🏻

The only one that ever worked for me, I've been on it for years, still 37.5 dose, and it's been life changing. Just don't miss a dose or more, it makes you feel spaced out!

These are mine….anyone else had these?

Yes they look familiar, although I don't always get those - I've been given a wide range of different makes and shapes, which I think suggests they're all the same inside as I've never noticed any difference in the effects. But yes, I have had those exact ones and had no probs with them.

Is it anxiety you suffer from? (if you don't mind me asking - don't answer that if you don't want to).

They have absolutely changed my life for the better. Currently on 225mg

One word of warning- if you do eventually increase your dosage, be scrupulous about taking them, and keep the timing fairly consistent. It's a medication that needs to be tapered up at the beginning and down at the end. So if you were on 75mg, you would need to reduce to 37.5 for a bit before stopping.

They were a game changer for me. I'm currently on the 37.5 and the 75 together, so a total of 112.5mg each morning. The first few days I felt a bit sicky and sweaty and they did keep me awake initially but the effects were nothing to what I had on the Sertraline or Citalopram.
They've made it so I can function. It is scary starting to take something new, but if your doctor has prescribed it it's worth trying

@ThatCheeseIsMine anxiety and intrusive thoughts. And maybe a bit of depression too for good measure 😌 I can honestly say that fluxotine was making me severely depressed. I am so glad to be off it

Yes, it's completely changed my life for the better, I'd be dead without it. I'm on 150mg.

I rarely used to leave my house, had panic attacks, terrified of everything.

Now I've passed my driving test, still feel anxious at times but haven't had a real panic attack in a couple years.

Take them! You might have a couple weeks of feeling weird and foggy, but it's worth it once you're settle down.

I've been on them over 3 years and they have literally saved my life. I'm on 337.5mg modified release daily. Started on 37.5 for first couple of weeks to minimise side effects but I don't really get any. Bit of nausea when first started or when dosage increases, and maybe a bit of night sweating. But they completely switch off my intrusive thoughts.

I was able to go back in to work 2.5 years ago after thinking I would never be able to, and my anxiety being terrible. I now work full time and have had promotions. No other drug has ever worked for me.

Took them for about 10 years. Didn't expect to ever come off, but they stopped working as my depression became more hormonal.

Coming off took forever, I split the pills into quarters and did it super slowly, to try to avoid the side effects which are truly horrible. And def don't forget to take them, you'll know about it!

They kind of reset my brain, I still have anxiety and depression but I know what not feeling that is like now, so am able to manage it better.

Have tried alsorts and these were the most successful for me.

Yes

Against everyone else - Venlafaxine almost made me end everything.
It made me totally unable to function.
I'd had a breakdown, and was prescribed it alongside Amitriptyline.
If it makes your brain stop being able to comprehend anything, please stop trying with it.
Currently taking Duloxetine. I'm really good right now.

@ThatCheeseIsMine anxiety and intrusive thoughts. And maybe a bit of depression too for good measure

That sounds very like mine. I hope although not everyone has liked it, you will try it because it can really help with these things. The anxiety is probably making you worry about it now more than you need to IYSWIM.

Re taking it, I have mine last thing at night after a snack.

YES!! Venlafaxine saved my life. That's not an exaggeration. 5 years of nothing else working and finally my life went back to normal. That was 20 years ago and I'm still well now.

@fuckinghorgel god I hope so. I was on citalopram for 12 weeks and waited and waited to feel different but nothing, then onto fluxotine and it was shockingly bad. SSRI’s don’t seem to agree with me. Doctor had then prescribed mirtazapine 2 weeks ago but once I checked them up I refused them. Now these. I am just terrified to take them after what happened with the fluxotine. I just want to feel normal again. So happy they helped you. I love hearing positive stories

I'm on 75mg I'm on other psych meds (including another AD) but it's definitely helped a little

@dane8 i would definitely start slowly. I think they would give me more diazepam as they had done with the fluxotine. I think I’m just disappointed as I had just thought the citalopram would do the trick. I never had thought some might not agree with me.

@GlitchStitch thats wonderful to hear. Can I ask had u tried many AD’s before these? I’m just so nervous to try and not react well to them, especially coming up to Christmas if that makes sense. My summer went past in a blur as I first started citalopram in June and I was so up and down it was horrendous