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 Gender with females listed first (reviews with no gender reported listed before females). 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 |
| 3 | FIBROMYALGIA | TOTAL LOSE OF SEX DRIVE, WEIGHT GAIN, FUZZY BRAIN, PROBLEMS REMEMBERING ALOT OF THINGS! | MY RHEUMOTOLOGIST BELIEVES THIS WILL HELP TREAT MY FIBROMYALGIA-WRONG! | F | 33 | 1.5 years | 12/20/2005 | 3 | Dysthymia | On 225mg: Weight gain (30 lbs) despite watching diet and exercising. High blood pressure. Joint pain after several years use - felt like arthritis. Withdrawal symptoms horrible if missed a dose. | At first, worked great at relieving depressive symptoms then benefit seemed to decrease over time. Tapered off drug over several months. Side effects disappeared after I was off completely for about 1 month. Began losing weight and blood pressure returned to normal. | F | 36 | 3.5 years | 12/20/2005 | 3 | Depression / anxiety | Sexual side effects, drowsiness. Tired all the time and sleeping long hours. Migraines. | I was taking 75mg and my dr then upped the dose to 150mg. I've been on 150mg for almost 3 weeks..I was feeling like I didn't like it at all. I had a lot of headaches. Sexual side effects were worse. I was spacey and just felt out of it all the time. I'm now taking 75 mg again along with 150mg of Wellbutrin and I think that I'm starting to feel better. Less spacey but still tired. Has anyone else here taken effexor and wellbutrin together? Did it help at all. | F | 32 | 3 months | 12/31/2006 | 3 | 150 mg Effexor XR | I started out on 75 mg. I've been taking 150 mg for almost 2 weeks now. I've noticed an intense craving for chocolate, anything sweet. I haven't noticed a lot of weight gain but it does concern me because it seems like all I can think about is eating chocolate, cake, cookies etc. I've had the will power to resist so far. Has anyone else experienced these cravings? I'm also tired most of the time. Definite decrese in energy. | F | 32 | 2 months | 12/24/2006 | 3 | Depression, rage | Severe lethargy, apathy; it's made me the laziest person alive. No problems with weight gain (if anything, I've had weight loss), no brain zaps, no nightmares or any of that other stuff. Headaches, dopey/groggy/crappy feeling when I tried to wean off it. | Effexor does work as a "chill pill" for me. I was going through an extremely stressful time six years ago (cancer, bad marriage/philandering husband/raising two children virtually alone > divorce) and probably would have completely lost it without this. That said, it seems like overkill. I'm on 225mg, but 75/150 didn't cut it. I've tried (weakly) to get off it, but tapered doses made me a crazy woman. But I'm a zombie! Divorced for several yrs, no desire to meet anyone, no desire to leave the house or even get out of bed. Family thinks I'm "severely depressed" although I'm just plain tired or lazy. It SUCKS. I want to WANT to have a real life again, I want to get out and live life but I just CAN'T do it! Would love to hear about someone having a successful discontinuation of this drug! | F | 40 | 6 years | 10/1/2007 | 3 | Panic attacks | The panic attacks stopped, ***BUT*** it gave me HORRIBLE nightmares, a **blood disorder**, constipation, sweats, lost my short term memory, walked around in a "bubble", gained 50 pounds (and I was thin all my life), and my thyroid is not functioning properly. This medicine is POISON. And getting off of it can be sheer hell. Go to this forum and read my post: "HOW TO TAPER EFFEXOR"--and--New & Better Water Taper added 11/19/05 ; there are two (2) methods listed there you could use. Here is the link directly to the message: websitetoolbox.com/tool/post/focussober/vpost?id=722041 If that doesn't work here is the homepage to the forum, remember to look for "HOW TO TAPER EFFEXOR"--NEW & BETTER WATER TAPER INFO ADDED 11/19/05: www.websitetoolbox.com/tool/mb/focussober | DON'T USE THIS POISON---THE LONG TERM PROBLEMS ARE NOT WORTH IT!!! | F | 44 | 4 years | 11/20/2005 | 3 | DEPRESSION | I HAD TO TAKE EFFEXOR BECAUSE OF MY DEPRESSION. ME BEING I DUMB THOUGHT I DIDNT NEED THE MEDS ANYMORE AND MY DOCTOR AGREED TO WEEN ME OFF. I DIDNT LIKE THE FEELING. I WAS ON 150 MG. I THEN WENT ON 75MG FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS THEN 37.5MG . BUT THE WHOLE TIME I FELT DIZZY AND IT FELT LIKE I HAD ELECTRICAL SHOCKS GOING THROUGH MY HANDS,ARMS AND HEAD. IT FELT LIKE MY HEAD WAS PULSING. I FELT SICK ALOT TOO, I JUST WANTED TO HUG THE GROUND. WELL I WAS WRONG AND I COULDNT GO OFF THE MEDS . A WEEK AFTER TOTALLY STOPPING, ALL THE SIGNS WERE BACK THAT I NEEDED ON IT .TWO MONTHS LATER I WAS BACK ON EFFEXOR XR. IM TRYING TO FIND AN ALTURNATIVE. ANY IDEAS? IVE TAKEN WELLBUTRIN . I WAS ALLERGIC TO IT AND PROZAC I GOT AMMUNE TO IT.. THANKS FOR LISTENING. | F | 32 | 2 years | 8/14/2006 | 3 | anxiety and depression | In the beginning of taking effexor xr, I had horriffic headaches(and I am not prone to headaches). My blood pressure went up, my appetite went up (so did my weight, in which I struggle with anyway), my libido went way down, I had night sweats, very vivid dreams, and the most recent thing I noticed was the clinching of my jaws while I was waking up. I hardly ever cried while on the drug as opposed to crying all the time (I am very sensitive and tender-hearted). | I really enjoyed the calmness that I experience while on effexor. I was able to think more rationally and calmly with out worring so much about everything. The feelings that everything was going to "blow up" even though life was going well seemed to vanish. I was more equipped to handle life's curve balls that was hurled at me more efficiently. My husband's insurance was cancelled and weening myself off the med. seemed the obvious answer. I felt as if I traded some things to get emotional relief. I traded my sex drive, assumed higher B.P. and weight gain, just to get a calm state of mind. Coming off of effexor has been a trip in itself. The feeling of "brain shock" is really a strange sensation. I feel dizzy and sometimes out of control. Like a movie that has been put in fast forward for a few seconds. Then I am ok. I don't regret taking this particular med. but wish that this med. could have been the end all to all my problems. | F | 45 | 1 years | 9/4/2006 | 3 | Depression and PTSD | First dosage (37.5): taste aversion, nausea, weight loss, loss of libido, inability to reach orgasm Subsequent dosages (75 and up): increased appetite, no sex drive, inability to reach orgasm, horrific, vivid nightmares, inability to sleep, nausea, light-headedness, headaches, extremely light mestrual cycle, inability to sit still, very fidgety, horrible heart palpitations, increased pulse | Overall mood was heightened upon initial use, and energy was increased. These quickly diminished, however, and I am just left with these aweful side effects. I don't know whether I should switch to another drug or continue with it. Time will tell. | F | 20 | 6 months | 8/1/2006 | 3 | depression | The intial dry mouth and headache went away in a few days. But my blood pressure (which had always been lo or lo normal) rose to 148/80 so I had to discontinue. Oh, and did I mention the vivid dreams and nightmares. Like Stephen Spielburg had moved into my head! | F | 47 | 6 weeks | 8/9/2006 | 3 | Post Partum Depression | Horrible night sweats, slight weight gain, headaches, small memory loss, inability to think of certain words. | I was put on Effexor XR 9 months after my baby girl was born. I have been on Effexor for almost a year and a half now and have had only minor side effects. I take 150mg daily. Don't ever forget to take your pill. I skipped one day a few days ago and felt completely strange. I was so dizzy I could barely walk, was nauseus, the whol nine yards. I am seriosuly considering getting off of this drug since I think my post partum has subsided by now, but am seriously scared about the side effects from coming off the med. | F | 28 | 1.5 years | 8/11/2006 | 3 | Depression/ Anxiety | Currently on Effexor XR 75mg, have tried to take my self off of it because I got pregnant, and experienced MAJOR Dizziness, nausea, mental confusion, on edge all the time, all I wanted to do was to try to sleep it off, decided I couldnt take it any longer, so thru much of my pregancy I was on it and went down to 37.5mg for the last month of my pregancy. OH, and as far as side effects to my baby? She is very healthy, but at 16 months has a hard time sleeping thru the night, dont know whether that has anything to do with the Effexor or not. | Generally is has helped me alot, my depression is mostly gone, I do have blue days, but all in all the depression is gone.....NOW for the anxiety, the meds eliminated it for a while, but it comes back now and then. I would like to some day be off Effexor, but since I am a mommy and have to keep my wits about me, so for now Effexor it is! | F | 29 | 3 years | 1/25/2006 | 3 | for mild depression/regular highs | weight gain mostly and i think my dose is too high, when i was first put on it it was just 75mg and i have gradually increased it to 300mg sometimes - now i think this high dose has caused me to have an excessive appetitte | i am worried about trying to cut down gradually as i read so much scary stuff about going off it | F | 60 | 5 days | 9/5/2005 | 3 | depression | headache, sugar cravings, nightmares, elevated blood pressure, dry mouth, nausea at the beginning and at every dosage increase - 2 or 3 days of vomitting. | The vivid dreams were interesting. The nausea was not. I finally had to discontinue the drug because it seemed to seriously raise my blood pressure. I'm not sure if it helped my depression or not. Didn't end it but might have blunted it somewhat. No sexual side effects for me. But the 40 lbs I put on while taking it affected my attitude about sex... | F | 42 | 6 months | 8/9/2006 | 3 | suicidal | anorgasmia, restlessness, nightmares, problems with concentration, abnormal vision | i could go on...but my depression was still there | F | 26 | 14 months | 9/22/2006 | 3 | depression | extreme fatigue (sleeping 16+ hours/day), dizziness, headache, itching all over, nausea, lethargy, weight gain. | After three weeks, I'm losing patience and wonder if this is worth it. I felt better for a few days, but have been sleeping constantly and feel like I have the flu. | F | 22 | 3 weeks | 9/18/2006 | 3 | severe depression/ gad | lethargy, difficulty reaching orgasm, yawning, gas, weight gain, period cessation, painful urination, frequent urination, lucid dreams. sweating. If i forget to take them i feel like my head is floating 10 feet above my shoulders & my jaw feels stiff, if i dont take them right when i start feeling that way it gets worse & i feel like i'd rather die than go on like that. | i started out on the lowest MG of effexor, but i recently got bumped up from 150mg - 225mg. i cant stay awake with the new dose, i was tired all of the time on the lower doses but the 225 makes me feel like i have narcolepsy. i feel a little better than i did, but in general my mood is still crap. the anxiety i experience when going out in public has lessened some, but not that much ... not enough to rave about it. i'm thinking about coming off the effexor, i'm tired of the wierd side effects & the fact it doesnt help me that much. i'm just kind of scared after reading horror stories about coming off it. | F | 24 | 20 months | 10/27/2006 | 3 | Panic disorder/anxiety/depression | nausea, dizziness, racing heartbeat, yawning, feeling of being jolted - my body seems to jolt suddenly from the inside out - hard to describe, but it also feels like I stop breathing at that moment or like I might be about to have a seizure (I've never seized) or like I will gag. | Started at 37.5 and then moved to 75 per day. The side effects I am experiencing are enough to make me uncomfortable on a daily basis. Most disturbing are the nausea and the jolting feeling both of which are daily occurrences. I was already having a problem with appetite and weight loss, so I'm not positive I can blame the Effexor for that. On the positive side, I do find that at times I have more energy than I used to. I do occassionally, though, have a "blurry" memory and I feel forgetful. There might be a better drug for me, but I am very afraid of quitting as the withdrawal symptoms of this drug are legend for their horror. | F | 36 | 3 days | 4/12/2006 | 3 | depression | weight gain, insomnia, thyroid nodule | Have taken 75mg daily for five years. Am considering taking capsule only every other day then quit. I am scared because I know what I feel like if I miss one day. I know the Dr. will not want me to stop but I don't want to take any other med, as I already take 100mg wellbutrin as well. Is there an official site where I can get info to bolster my agrument with my psychiatrist? | F | 46 | 5 days | 2/19/2007 | 3 | mild depression | weight gain, night sweats, dehydration, and fever. | At first the medication seem to help, after being on it awhile the above side effects seem to get worse. After a week of weaning off the effoxor xr, still suffering with the withdrawls but I was told this was normal. For some reason my body does not respond well to anti-depressant drugs. | F | 25 | 12 months | 3/20/2007 |