EFFEXOR XR Reviews (VENLAFAXINE HYDROCHLORIDE)

Average Rating: 3.0 (2225 Ratings)

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 ANTIDEPRESSANTS

 Type: Rx Drug

  

EFFEXOR XR  (VENLAFAXINE HYDROCHLORIDE):  Venlafaxine is used to treat depression, anxiety, panic attacks, and social anxiety disorder (social phobia). It may improve your mood and energy level and may help restore your interest in daily living. It may also decrease fear, anxiety, unwanted thoughts, and the number of panic attacks. Venlafaxine is known as a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI). It works by helping to restore the balance of certain natural substances (serotonin and norepinephrine) in the brain.   FDA Approval Date: 1997-10-20 (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)

  

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Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.)
5=HIGH (this medicine cured me or helped me a great deal.)

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More on EFFEXOR XR: Reviews Summary  |  Drug Safety Information

RATING  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR EFFEXOR XRCOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 5  anxiety delayed ejaculation(actually as it turns out a more good than bad side effect), fatigue(my wife thinks I am just lazy), high blood pressure??, lack of inhibitions, blurry vision??, nausea, motion sickness??, brain shivers if I miss a dose. I started taking effexor xr 150mg about 7-8 years ago for anxiety. At first I thought it was a miracle drug. For the first time in my life I felt normal-maybe a little bit better than normal. After about 9 months that better than normal wore off and I was left anxiety free and feeling normal. I quit after about 2 years. I ran out of my percription and was to lazy(one of the side effects) to get it refilled. I quit cold turkey. Some will say that the withdrawals are absolutely hellish and they would be right. But for me after 2 days of cold turkey the brain shivers went away and I felt pretty normal-if not a little cranky. Now the problem-my anxiety came back. I have tried every non drug remedy there is and they do not work in my case. So after being effexor free about 1 year I started taking it again. My only complaint is it makes me lazy and the brain shivers if I miss a dose, but other than that it is a wonder drug and I have no fear of the withdrawals if I ever quit M 44 6 years
7/10/2007
 1  anxiety-depression no desire,tired,restless It is the worst medication to try and discontinue! I have tried several times to no avail. Each time I have the crying spells, irrational behavior, severe dizziness, brain zaps, just simply can not function. I am down to 37.5 for the last year and still can not manage to go off. It worked in the very beginning; however, stopped pretty quickly. It is not worth it. It is an awful drug! F 32 8 years
7/10/2007
 5  anxiety and depression impossible to reach orgasm during intercourse (other ways are possible), weight loss, yawning for the first three weeks then that went away, flatulence I love this drug. It has changed my life. It is undescribable. No more depression (I was mostly just grumpy and irritable all the time), and I look at life through completely different eyes. Anxiety significantly decreased--primarily more confident at work and don't worry about all of the little things anymore. Much more able to concentrate. Rumination is mostly gone. As for weight loss, I don't think it is the drug itself, but I think the weight loss is from decreased anxiety---and I was mostly "nervous eating" the mind numbing type. I didn't realize how affected I was by these symptoms of anxiety/depression until they were gone. I just thought that was how life was. I am a different person. I will deal with withdrawal when the time comes ( I would like to get pregnant eventually)--but, I was on paxil once and found that the only withdrawal side effect was dizziness when standing rapidly. I have tried several AD's--could not tolerate the side effects (hyped up feel F 30 4 months
7/8/2007
 1  anxiety/depression high blood pressure and high pulse Though the literature says these are rare side effects, it happens. Before starting Effexor, my BP was 120/80, pulse 75. While on 225 mg Effexor, BP averaged 140/80 and pulse ranged from 85 to 105--resting rate! Lost 7 lbs the 3 months I was on it; must have sped up my metabolism too. These numbers only added to my anxiety. F 51 3 months
7/8/2007
 5  Depression, Anxiety Other than being sleepy more than ususal, I've had no side effects. Being sleepy has been a good thing though, cause now I don't stay up as late (1-2am) before the next work day. A lifesaver. F 57 2 months
7/7/2007
 3  Severe Depression Random heatwaves with excessive sweating. Premature ejaculation I had been very depressed for I don't know how long, and my zoloft wasn't helping much. I switched doctors and was eventually put on 150mg of effexor. The results were great as far as the depression goes, but at least 3 times a day I get overheated and begin sweating excessively. I also notice if I miss one dose I can be a real a** to people, and I've had premature ejaculation too. Overall I think the cons outweigh the positives and I'm going to ask about an alternative medicine. M 17 2 months
7/7/2007
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 1  anxiety and menopause rapid heartbeat,sore neck,anemia,fatigue,jitteriness,dizzy,sleep sweats,hot flashes,vivid dreams,weakness in legs.weight gain,chills,muscle spasms,very dry mouth,trouble sleeping. I WISH I HAD NEVER TAKEN IT. SIDE AFFECTS ARE HELL TO TRY AND LIVE WITH!!!! F 55 6 months
7/6/2007
 2  Depression Head pain that moved around my head and wouldn't respond to ibuprofen (not a normal headache kind of pain and it would sometimes last all day); nausea; blurred vision, constipation, even vomited a few times. Thank you to the person who posted the "removing beads" method to get off this medication without withdrawal. I started by removing 4, then I decided to try 10 more per day, now I'm taking out 20 at a time. I'm opening my capsule and removing about 104 beads tonight. I should be off this stuff in about 12-15 more days. I'd rather go with an SSRI than this stuff if these side effects are what I'm supposed to put up with! I'm not nearly as depressed as I was, but that might have more to do with an awesome support network of family and friends and good counseling than the medication... F 39 7 weeks
7/5/2007
 5  Anxiety Initial side effects were relatively minor, dry mouth, vivid dreams, feeling lethargic but after a month or so it was like I had been a bird in a cage and someone let me out. I would not have been able to be as successful and confident in my career and travel the way I do had I not started taking something. I suffered for almost 20 years trying natural herbal remedies that just weren't capable of working like Effexor does. I took 75mg Effexor XR for the first couple of years and then increased it to 150mg which I've been on for the last 4 years or so. It has been very successful for me and have no desire to stop. Unfortunately the reality is that all drugs have risks and side effects and you have to determine if the results are worth it to you. F 42 6 years
7/4/2007
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 4  Anxiety disorder and depression No libido, very delayed orgasm, agitation, sleep disturbance - difficulty getting to sleep and very restless sleep, hot flushes/sweating, dilated pupils. I am on only 75mg for panic and anxiety, which has been very effective in stopping panic/anxiety attacks. I find that if I miss a day or two it takes me a week or so to get back to no panic and get rid of the weird, dissociative feelings. Lower dose has definitely been better for anxiety. Have previously been on 375mg for severe depression and anxiety, but was too agitated to continue. Hideous withdrawal! I needed to take a week off of work to withdraw. F 25 2 months
7/3/2007
 3  Depression headache, nausea for the first few weeks, lightheadedness, dizziness, dry mouth, lots of crying, insommnia, then would sleep for 16+ hours and would wake up exhausted, no energy, loss of appetite, lost about 15 pounds (from 107lbs to 93), felt spaced out, forgetfulness, and horrible nightmares, yawning, and felt spaced out all the time. Also, this med. is addictive. If you forget a dose you get horrible headaches, nausea, dizziness to a point where its hard to stand or walk, and you can feel the blood pulsing through your head, chest, etc. I was taking Effexor with Lithium for my bi-polar. I didn't like the side effects I had so I switched to Cymbalta. F 18 2 years
7/3/2007
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 3  Bipolar Headaches Effexor worked for me for a long time, but the withdrawal from this drug is horrible. I tried 3 times before I was finally able to completely wean off of it. I had brain zaps, nausea, crying jags, dizziness, and couldn't even walk straight. F 31 8 years
7/3/2007
 3  Major Depression Headache, tremors in hands, gas, constipation, not able to have orgasam, night sweats and sleeplessness, anger thoughts of death. I have raised my dosage 3 times, each is a little better for a while then needs to be raised again. When it stops working I feel worse than before I started. If I don't take a dose I am dizzy and feel very confused, and have bad short term memory. F 25 3 months
7/2/2007
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 5  Fibromyalgia, Depression First few weeks sleepy, constipation, shivers. Causes strange dreams! Fibromyalgia disappeared after first week which was a huge improvement for me. Anxiety and depression decreased greatly as well, but I feel less motivated. Started on low dose and increased to 75mg. I was fearful of this med. because I am very sensitive to medication but I have had no other problems while on it. F 49 3 months
7/1/2007
 4  severe depression & anxiety none really, thankfully.. after reading other peoples experiences, i was scared, but now I'm not too worried. I have headaches, but I had those before taking Effexor XR...same thing with fatigue. My doctor told me to up my dose on the 3rd day, which I did, and I still feel fine..so far. F 30 4 days
7/1/2007
 5  Depression i yawnd a lot, was dissy, tearful, tired and had neusea for the first 7 to 14 day of being on the pills. During the time i have been on EFFEXOR XR (75mg) i have noticed decreased to no sex drive and i beleive i have had to fight against my weight the majority of the time. When i went on EFFEXOR XR i struggled to keep the weight on then i struggled to keep the wieght off for the remainder of the treatment time. I am coming off the medication now, the side effects include: dissyness, triedness, extreme excietment( beyound the norm.). In the short term the medication helped me keep my husband, which i was very close to loosing from my abusive out spurts and my negitive out look on life (He was alway wrong even when he was right). In the long term, it has helped me find myself again and indoing this i am able to return to work after loosing my job. (long story, but i should have taken it to the unfair desmisal board). Fianlly and most importantly, i am strong enough to start trying for a child again after having several miscarragies (early in preg.). Although i am having side effects coming off the medication i am glad i did something about my problem. BUT I WILL SAY THIS: "REALLY THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE DOING BEFORE GOING ON THE MEDICATION AND GOING OFF IT. MAKE SURE THERE IS NOT ANY OTHER WAY OF HELPING YOURSELF BEFORE GOING ON ANY ANTI-DEPRESSANT AS ITDOES MESS WITH YOUR BODY AND YOU CAN'T JUST DECIDE TO GO OFF THEM OR HAVE A FAMILY OR ANYTHING THAT REQUEST YOU TO BE OFF THEM". "GOOD LUCK IN YOUR F 27 7 months
6/30/2007
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 5  Anxiety and insomnia 75mgs has really helped, and I think it is a wonderful medication for me. I have had restless legs at night, but that goes away quite quickly, and I am not sure it is related. Have slept well since starting it. I did not suffer from depression, so I can't comment, but it has done the trick without any negatives. F 56 5 months
6/29/2007
 5  Depression/panic attacks loss of sexual drive, slight brain zap This drug has worked tremendously for me. At lower doses it did not really affect me. I had taken 75mg for 2 years but really noticed a difference when I increased to 225mg. Now on 300 and I feel the world better. M 25 6 years
6/27/2007
 3  symptoms from Tamoxifen Weight gain (40lbs over 5 years, but could be Tamoxifen too), loss of interest in sex. Brain shocks and dizziness if missed a dose. Withdrawals are HORRIBLE. I started taking Effexor after I had breast cancer at age 33. Standard treatment after chemo/radiation is 5 years of Tamoxifen, which put me into early menopause...it was ugly! My oncologist put me on Effexor after I told him I couldn't stand myself and didn't know how anyone else could stand me either! Worked well for the 5 years I've been on it (except for weight gain and loss of interest in sex...my poor husband), but the withdrawals now are HELL. I was on 75mg daily, stepped down to 37.5mg for 4 days, then 37.5mg every other day for two pills. I have my last dose tonight. I've been dizzy, vomiting, have brain shocks, and feel like I have the flu. Wish I had known at the beginning that it would be so hard to stop...maybe there would have been another way to go. F 38 5 years
6/27/2007
 1  Depression WEIGHT GAIN 100+ LBS!!!, NIGHTMARES, NIGHT SWEATS, LOSS OF SEX DRIVE, I WOULD WAKE UP SCREAMING IN POOLS OF SWEAT. I WENT FROM 160 LBS TO 268 IS A MATTER OF 1 YEAR. I WAS TAKING 150MG A DAY. AND THEN THERE WAS THE WITHDRAWS IT IS TRUE YOU WILL HAVE THEM! STAY AWAY THIS DRUG IS EVIL!!! F 37
6/26/2007

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