EFFEXOR XR Reviews (VENLAFAXINE HYDROCHLORIDE)Average Rating: 3.0 (2225 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare EFFEXOR XR with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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Results are sorted by Date added. Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 |
More on EFFEXOR XR: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR EFFEXOR XR | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 5 | serious depression + anxiety | some constipation and very brief period of occasional night terrors for about first 6 weeks, but since then, none | Initially tried Celexa, which only caused symptoms to worsen. Then tried Effexor at 150 mg/day, which helped almost immediately. Dr. later increased dose to 300 mg/day which, along with cognitive behavior therapy, helped me get back to healthy mental state within about 3 months from start of my symptoms and I have been doing well ever since. I have thought about trying dose reduction, but really don't want to risk withdrawal symptoms. Taking this drug is really no different than taking my daily cholesterol and blood pressure meds that I'll be taking for the rest of my life. Patients should realize that: 1) each person reacts differently to each anti-depressant, so unfortunately finding the right drug is a trial & error process and 2) drugs ALONE are not the answer to mental health issues - you have to be willing to work with a therapist to change your negative thoughts. | M | 62 | 10 years 300 1X day | 2/6/2011 | 5 | "Depression", PDD, PTSD. | After a lifetime of distress, I now feel more like a normal human being. | F | 61 | 3 years 150mg, 1X day | 1/31/2011 | 5 | cfs | dry mouth, night sweats, nervousness | I heard about this med after listening to a talk on CFS. I tried it and it has helped so much. I dont know where I would be without it. It clears the 'brain fog' completely, and gives me the strength to deal with everything in a positive light. I have tried to ween myself off this med (for 6 months) but I found that the benefits outweigh all else. At the end of the day---its about quality of life ! | M | 50 | 13 years 150 1X day | 1/23/2011 | 4 | Depression | At 37.5mg my depression is controlled. I will experience episodes of depression but it's manageable. When I increase the dose to 75mg I experience vivid dreams, interrupted sleep, anxiety, irritability and unwarranted anger. | For me, this medication manages my depression if I take it at a low dose. I have not gained/lost weight, but I am an endurance athlete. | F | 47 | 6 years 37.5 1X day | 1/22/2011 | 1 | PTSD | Horrible, visual interuptions, feeling like i was having electric shocks in my head which lasted a year after getting off, horrific nightmares,suicidial fantasys (i'd never been suicidal before!) night sweats-PJ's soaked through!, angry/violent outburst, took 3 years to get off it, terrible terrible withdrawals | I lost my job & 4 years of my life to this drug it should be illegal and I'd like compensation!!!! I still suffer from the nightmares although not as vivid, I think this drug does irriversable damage! | F | 37 | 4 years 300mg 1X day | 1/14/2011 | 2 | bipolar ii + depression/anxiety | intense increase in anxiety and agitation | seems that effexor caused an episode of hypomania with extreme anxiety resulting in increased depression; not a good mix for my condition; regime includes lithium (1500mg); lamictal (300mg); buspar (50mg); abilify (15mg) | M | 40 | 90 days 1X day | 1/12/2011 | 1 | depression/mood disorder | WORST WITHDRAWAL EVER. I've been on anti-depressants for at least 5years, and I've tried multiple ones but by far effexor was the worst. Yea it helped during the time I took it. But if I missed a dose I got those "brain zaps", and I just felt in a fog not myself at all. But when I came off it was the WORST experience I felt like I was in withdrawal from a hardcore drug. Brain zaps constantly, the shakes, sweating, nightmares, anxiety, muscle spasms, and crying spells. | Don't take effexor its not worth the risk of a horrible withdrawal. It has a half life of 5hours, that's why you feel so crummy after missing one dose. awful awful medication. | F | 18 | 1 years 350 1X day | 1/9/2011 | 5 | Major Depressive Episodes, Anxiety | If I miss a dose by even a few hours I get horrible lucid dreams. The worst of my life. And withdrawal effects sink in within hours. If I remember to take it at the same time everyday there are no side effects. It's a miracle drug. | This has given me my life back. After Prozac, Wellbutrin, Zoloft, Celexa, Paxil, and a few others failed to help me Effexor finally did the trick. I had to be patient though. It took between 2-3 months for me to really feel close to "normal" again. It did not help me until I worked up to the full dose of 225 mg. So please be patient and give it a chance to work its magic. I have interest in things again, I don't sit in a corner and cry for no reason, and some of my social skills are coming back. I can actually enjoy some company. I don't have the urge to die anymore. I feel moderately content with my life right now which isn't great, but is a HUGE step up from the dark hole I was in. | F | 24 | 6 months 225 MG 1X day | 1/3/2011 | 4 | Depression/PTSD/Panic attacks | Horrible Nausea at first and when dosage was changed, tired, difficulty sleeping, libido is actually better than before. | I was in a really bad place. Nightmares every night and tired all day, almost to a state of paranoia. Tried other drugs but the effexor xr seems to be doing the trick. It is a slow process and I take mirtzaphine at night. But I also keep all my therapy sessions. The drugs can not do it alone. I have resolved myself that I will probably be on the this or something else the rest of my life. | F | 51 | 18 months 150 1X day | 12/29/2010 | 1 | Depression, anxiety | Lowered libido, dizziness, nausea, feeling as though I was outside of myself, strange appetite, headaches, restlessness (couldn't stop tapping my feet), possible vision changes? (severe difficulty driving at night), frequent yawning, bizarre dreams and nightmares, tiredness, difficulty concentrating | Effexor made me feel as though I was constantly drugged, as though I was outside of myself and looking in or in some twilight zone (very difficult to describe). I went off the medication cold turkey, and the withdrawal was brutal - I missed four days of school because I couldn't stand up for more than a few minutes at a time without feeling an intense dizziness, almost as though my brain was sloshing around in my head. I suffered from paranoia in which I thought people were going to come through the window and shoot me. I was able to finally make it to school on a combination of Dramamine, Motrin, and Xanax. I would not wish the withdrawal on anyone. | F | 17 | 1 months 37.5 1X day | 12/22/2010 | 3 | Depression, GAD, Panic attacks | Fuzzy head, dizzy, nausea, fatigue, irritability, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, anhedonia, addiction, headaches | The drug seems to work somewhat for depression and anxiety but has left me feeling angry, anxious, lack of feeling, wired and fatigued while on the drug and depressed, anxious, nauseous, with trying to go off the drug. Was on Pristiq 50 mg for a while tried to get off and could not withdrawal without craving for the drug, so asked to go on low dose effexor xr to satisfy my craving. This drug is addictive and has bad withdrawal. It can work for some people, just don't believe that it is any safer than other addictive drugs, remember all newer drugs are not addictive like cigarettes weren't a long time ago. All psych drugs can form a dependence, best not to start on drugs if you can manage another way. | M | 43 | 2 weeks 37.5 1X day | 12/21/2010 | 2 | Depression/Anxiety | Sexual appetite depleted, mood swings, nausea, and slept all day. Helped w/ depression but not my anxiety too much. | After getting off XR--6 years later I am still experiencing some of the side effects. Mainly night terrors, hallucination, and dizzy spells after I awake from a night terror or bad dream. I can't recommend this drug. | M | 31 | 2 years 75mg 2X day | 12/14/2010 | 4 | Depression/ Anxiety | Weight loss. Dilated pupils. Tired all the time! - Sleep a lot. Probably sleep away half my life :( Helped with my random deep depressions that I would previously have, but seemed to cause a more prolonged mild depression. Don't think it helped with anxiety at all, in fact it may have caused me to have more social anxiety. Took me many years to realize this but I have great difficulty concentrating & loss of motivation ever since being on this drug. I used to be a lot more physically active, I used to always turn my homework in on time and be on time to things. Straight A student. Now I am the opposite, I sleep all the time, have no energy to work out, I procrastinate, struggle focusing on my reading for class. Also - when I first started taking this medication I noticed I had difficulty having an orgasm for the first few months, but this went away later on. It may be more difficult for me to have one, but I am now able to. | F | 25 | 6 years 150mg 1X day | 12/13/2010 | 2 | migraines, anxiety and depression | Mainly, insomnia, and migraine headaches got worse! | Initially, it really helped with my depression but as time went on, had trouble staying asleep--averaged 5-6 hrs./night and I need at least 8-9 hours of sleep! Also, as time went on, I would wake up in the morning (after 5-6 hrs. of sleep) with a migraine coming on and pain in the back of my head/neck like someone had hit me with a frying pan! I even tried cutting back (1/2 of 37.5 mg) but that did not work either. It took about 10-12 days after I quit taking it before I started feeling better with my head and sleeping 8-9 hours. | F | 60 | 6 weeks 37.5 mg 1X day | 12/6/2010 | 1 | Depression and OCD | I tried to overdose on 1375mg of this drug. | F | 16 | 1X day | 12/5/2010 | 4 | counter acts tamoxifen for breast c | none a little weight gain | stoped hot flashes from tomoxifen an anti breast cancer drug | F | 50 | 6 months 75 1X day | 11/29/2010 | 4 | Suicidal Depression/Anxiety | At first I had some nausea, excellent wet dreams, insomnia, dilated pupils. | I guess I can't complain. The drug has indeed lifted my depression when Lexapro started failing. I don't really enjoy my life though. I feel like I could do anything and it wouldn't really matter. The drug has a pretty big zombie effect on me more so than others I've taken. Maybe I'm on too high a dosage. But I have to say I like it since it pretty much saved me from committing suicide. It's just gonna be hard to reclaim my life and emotions. | M | 28 | 5 weeks 300mg 1X day | 11/26/2010 | 1 | more depressed and aggitated. All I wanted to do was sleep and I had to have help taking care of my children because I was too tired to. =( | 2nd worst med I've ever tried. Topamax was the worst. | F | 33 | 2 weeks 37.5 1X day | 11/23/2010 | 5 | Major Depression/Anxiety | Initially erectile dysfuncion, used Viagra, then didn't need it anymore. ED went away after a few months. Through the entire time I was on Effexor skipping a dose was a real problem-- disjointed thoughts, anger, truly strange dreams. | I switched to Effexor XR after a couple of years on Paxil. Paxil saved my life from obsessive suicidal thoughts, but after a couple of years I started abusing my son's Ritalin (he has ADHD). My doctor switched me to Effexor XR. It worked beautifully. I was on for about 5 years and felt so good I titrated off it with help from Prozac. I've been off Effexor (and all anti-depressants) for almost a year with no negative effects. I feel like the Paxil, the Effexor and staying busy, focused and positive "changed my mind" from tending to depression, drug/alcohol abuse and anxiety to health. | M | 48 | 5 years 225 MG 1X day | 11/22/2010 | 4 | PPD, GAD | First week was a little rough. Felt jittery and nauseous. Occasional night sweats. SLEEPY, but had difficult time falling asleep at night. Increased appetite. Short term memory wasn't very good while on it. | Effexor absolutely worked for me. I started to feel relief from my PPD in 1 week while on it. Then my anxiety went away, been dealing with that all my life. I felt great! At times even euphoric. I still felt emotion, I could laugh and cry when appropriate. No change in my libido(yay!). If it weren't for the side effects I would probably stay on it. The side effects are not cool. WEIGHT GAIN, hungry ALL the time! SLEEPY, but had a hard time getting to sleep at night. Short term memory loss, felt ditzy at times. It was mostly the weight gain that made me quit taking it. I worked out 5-6 days a week but could not control my cravings and continued to gain weight. I tapered VERY slowly. I opened the pills and would slowly increase the amount of the little balls that I would take out. I had ZERO withdrawal symptoms. I would recommend Effexor to others and would consider going on it again if I were going through a rough time (although as briefly as possible). | F | 33 | 1 years 75mg 1X day | 11/19/2010 |