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 |
| 4 | Crying, Anxiety & Depression | Major weight gain(30+lbs), lack of energy and motivation, constanting sleeping(12+hrs/day), increased sweating, high sex drive, mild anxiety continues, will not leave house for days, mild suicidal thoughts are returning | Effexor has helped me to stop crying and stopped my depression. I continue to have mild anxiety but for the most part it has improved majorly. I am very disappointed in the weight gain but that always comes with mental meds. I do like how laid back and relaxed it makes me feel. I have good and bad days still but more like a normal person now. For the most part the meds are satisfactory but I'm sick of being fat but I am scared to go off the drug. We'll see what my doctor says when I see her this week...wish we luck to be weened off lol :-) | F | 29 | 1.5 years | 1/29/2007 | 2 | depression | BRAIN SHIVERS, night sweats/bizarre dreams, restlessness, dry mouth, weightloss, panic attacks | i've only been on it for a few months and i'm wishing my doctor had never given it to me. if i don't take it at the same exact time every day, the brain shivers start, and sometimes they're so bad i pass out for a few seconds and wake up on the ground. i dread withdrawal from this drug and i'm scared to get off it, but i think that i'd better before things get any worse... THINK TWICE BEFORE TAKING IT the short half-life is not worth it, regardless of how effective it is in treating your depression/anxiety/whatever else you have | F | 19 | 2 months | 1/28/2007 | 1 | Depression | Decreased libido, constipation | Effexor XR worked quite well for me, except that I didn't really feel much of anything at all, but because of this I didn't care. I have been off this medicine for three weeks now, and it has been indescribably hard! I not only feel awful emotionally, I also was physically ill-- diarrhea, "brain shocks", very nauseous. I am now over most of the physical problems, but the emotional problems are still as bad as ever. I am on 4 different medications now to counteract the withdrawal. Even people who take this medication for a short time have a hard time getting off this drug. I would only suggest this drug as a last resort. | F | 32 | 7 years | 1/25/2007 | 4 | Depression for PTSD | rapid heart beat, loss of appetite, and bruising. Occasional sleeplessness. | I have been taking this medication for the past 2 months now. It is helping me greatly! I have however noticed, if I have skipped a few doses, I have dizziness and nausea. | F | 23 | 2 months | 1/24/2007 | 2 | depression | weight gain, increased need to smoke ciggarettes, constantly doing puzzle books, eating all the time - always needing something in my mouth. | It did make me feel better but I couldn't stop smoking or eating. Now I am off of it and almost hardly ever smoke. | F | 42 | 6 days | 1/24/2007 | 1 | depression | None, thank God | THANK YOU FOR THIS SITE. MY DOCTOR PERSCRIBED THIS FOR ME AND BEFORE TAKING IT, I FOUND THIS SITE. I THREW THE STUFF OUT. I PREFER LIVING WITH THE DEPRESSION THAN EXPERIENCE A FRACTION OF THE SIDE EFFECTS DESCRIBED. THANK YOU!!!!! | F | 45 | 1 days | 1/24/2007 | 5 | Major Depression | In the beginning not any to comment about. I have been taking 300mg per day for 12 months. Cannot recall when they hit but it is like I am at the movies when I am asleep, I dream true to life. No sex drive. My coordination is out, as in I come home from work with bruises anywhere. I wake up feeling tired, I put that down to being at the movies all night (dreaming). I also yawn heaps. | This medication has worked wonders for me. The side effects are worth putting up with to be able to get back into the work force, socialise and enjoy life again | F | 55 | 18 months | 1/22/2007 | 5 | Depression, Panic Attacks, | The first week I had slight headaches on effexor xr (150 mg). I had originally been on Welbutrin and Zoloft for clincial depression and sucide. I was worse than ever on those two drugs. I had no energy; it was all I could do just to take a shower everyday, could not work. | Effexor XR has truly been a life saver for me! I'm now confident, do not have panic attacks, and my sex life is better than ever, which I believe is attributed to the increase level in my self-confidence. I have to travel with my job to other countries and rent cars and drive out into the middle of nowhere with little or no directions on how to get there. The panic attacks became so bad that I would have to pull off the road because I was crying and could not breathe. My attitude and moods were horrible. This is what prompted me to go back to my doctor for something after being off the Welbutrin and Zoloft for about a year. He prescribed the Effexor XR (150mg)and I truly can't express enough how much this drug has helped me. My husband says he has the "old but new me" back. Sex drive is thru the roof, I'm happy, confident, and at peace with God. Thank you God for my husband, my doctor, and Effexor XR! | F | 48 | 4 months | 1/21/2007 | 4 | depression, stress, anxiety attacks | sweating, insomnia | I feel so much better on this. I'm happy about everything again. I was on Paxil, Serequel before and they just weren't doing much. I can't stand the side affects though. Only on 75 mgs | F | 25 | 2 weeks | 1/21/2007 | 1 | Depression, arthritis pain | Horrible - within a few hours: nausea, extreme tiredness, muscle weakness as though I'd been to the gym for hours, shakes, acid stomach, diahorrea, bad taste in mouth, no appetite. | The day after starting the medication I had a 2 hr sleep after work, went out for 3 hrs that night, came home & slept 13hrs. Next day I was up for 4 hrs then slept 3 more, before 12hrs more that night. Next day was worse. I had no energy, felt confused & dizzy and couldn't wake up. No appetite. Walking down steps my muscles were shaking & I had no co-ordination. Bad nausea and upset stomach. By day 4, heart racing (I have a mitral prolapse) & constant shakes all over. I was on Aurorix a couple of years ago & never had any of this. Stopped 2 days ago & still shaking & no appetite. | F | 40 | 4 days | 1/21/2007 | 1 | GAD | Constipation, dry mouth, complete loss of sex drive, INCREASED ANXIETY, trembling, agitation, horrific nightmares, rapid weight gain of ten pounds in two months (not typical for me). | This drug helped for about a week, then my anxiety got worse. WAY worse. Doctor increased my dose and anxiety (constant shaking, trembling, tremors) became unbearable. She insisted I give it more time, I insisted on quitting the drug. I have tried to taper off, got down to 37.5, now stuck and feel like a heroine addict. The worst has been the 'brain zaps.' I feel like I'm wearing an electric shock collar and someone keeps pushing the button. I am so desperate to get off this crap that I am taking the capsules apart and counting the granules, trying to wean off one granule at a time. Naturally, my doctor parrots what the drug company says. "This is not a known side effect." "I've never heard of it being as severe as you say." Yada yada yada. I may kill myself before I get off of this stuff. THIS DRUG IS DANGEROUS. If your doctor tries to force it on you, find another doctor. They get kickbacks from the drug company, you get a life in hell. | F | 45 | 3 months | 1/20/2007 | 4 | depression | The electrical sensation that someone mentioned is generally from "withdrawal"; Effexor (even the XR) has a very short half-life, and as the concentration decreases during the day, the "electric shocks" increase; for me, it's particularly noticeable when I turn my head (e.g., backing up a car), and when I'm tired. I take the Effexor XR in the morning and at lunchtime, and my doctor and I recently added 10 mg of Prozac in the morning. Because Prozac has a long half-life and similar metabolites, it can decrease the withdrawal phenomena. | M | 41 | 4 years | 1/19/2007 | 4 | Depression, Anxiety, Bipolar | Jittery, restless somewhat, sexual disfunction, sleep disorders | I felt a difference on the second day. I feel a little shakey at times but I'm told this will pass. The great thing is that I view things with more optimism and seem to have a reduction of the mental inertia that was dragging me down. I have more energy and feel more focused. This is only the beginning, but so far, so good. I've had very bad experiences with SSRI's and other drugs. Keeping my fingers crossed!! | F | 43 | 6 days | 1/19/2007 | 1 | panic attacks | brain zaps numb face constipation so sex drive (and for me that is way oppisite of normal) i actually feel dumb and lost. I forget what i am doing alot i don't like anyone, rage, paranoia, headaches, insomnia, then some days can slep 20 hrs. | I WISH I COULD SUE THE COMPANY AND MY DR.!!!! Anone feel free to email me with how long your withdrawl symptoms were. I had to literall take out 2 dots from the capsule every day until the 150mg capsule was gone. All the side effects I listed are still prevalent and bad. I feel like I am going crazy. Some days I wish i didn't even wake up they are so bad. I don't think this should be on the market at all! My Dr. even had the gall to tell me it was not addictive at all. I am afraid to go see him now because I think I might severely hurt him. My poor boyfriend has about had it with my anger and my not caring about anything any more. My business i made is going to crap b/c of this med. I am normally very active and motivated. I also Gained 40 pounds. I didn't even gain that much while pregnant. DON'T TAKE THIS DRUG THE WITHDRAWL IS WORSE THAN A MY PANIC ATACKS THAT SOMETIMES USED TO HOSPITALIZE ME. | F | 28 | 1 years | 1/18/2007 | 1 | Social Anxiety Disorder | After taking it almost a year began to have short term memory loss, which turned into complete amnesia. Then 2 months later started fainting about 8 times a day and then started having seizures. Then started having psychotic episodes where I thought people were coming to get me. It also caused my sister to gain about 50 pounds. | This is a horrible medication. When I was put in a mental hospital, in May, for the psychotic episodes it caused, the doctor took me off of it right away. I have been much much better since I have been off of it and all of the side effects have gone away. And I never even saw a change in my anxiety while on it. It was just awful. | F | 17 | 18 months | 1/15/2007 | 3 | depression, anxiety | muscle spasms, weird dreams, night sweats in the beginning, anxiety started to increase the longer I was on it, slightly blurred vision, brain and motor skills didn't always work together. | Worked great for my depression and it did increase my appetite some, but it was controllable and very tolerable. I liked Paxil better, but the increase in appetite was impossible to live with. | F | 38 | 45 days | 1/12/2007 | 1 | Severe PMS Mood Swings | Not too many at first but then Headache (especially when late with a dose), diarrhea then achiness, flat mood, severe itching when my skin got cold resulting in bruising. | Was prescribed 37.5 mg for severe PMS mood swings. My doctor told me to take it a week before my period when I noticed PMS symptoms and then to stop after menstruation. She then advised I should take it all the time. Had been on for about 5 months and over that time noticed side effects getting worse to the point where I decided that I would rather suffer through PMS than to take this med. any longer. I stopped cold turkey when I started bruising easily from itching, my mood was very flat and it seemed to change me as a person. Also noticed severe headaches when I was late with a dose. The withdrawal is crazy. I feel terrible for those who are trying to get off a high dose. Extreme electric shock or brain fuzz, crying for no reason, severe moodiness, migraines, nausea, muscle soreness and still the itchiness and bruising. Was not able to function for a few days and it has been 2 weeks and still getting the brain fuzz/vertigo, headaches etc. Doctors should be made to disclose n | F | 34 | 5 months | 1/10/2007 | 1 | Severe PMS Mood Swings | Not too many at first but then Headache (especially when late with a dose), diarrhea then achiness, flat mood, severe itching when my skin got cold resulting in bruising. | Was prescribed 37.5 mg for severe PMS mood swings. My doctor told me to take it a week before my period when I noticed PMS symptoms and then to stop after menstruation. She then advised I should take it all the time. Had been on for about 5 months and over that time noticed side effects getting worse to the point where I decided that I would rather suffer through PMS than to take this med. any longer. I stopped cold turkey when I started bruising easily from itching, my mood was very flat and it seemed to change me as a person. Also noticed severe headaches when I was late with a dose. The withdrawal is crazy. I feel terrible for those who are trying to get off a high dose. Extreme electric shock or brain fuzz, crying for no reason, severe moodiness, migraines, nausea, muscle soreness and still the itchiness and bruising. Was not able to function for a few days and it has been 2 weeks and still getting the brain fuzz/vertigo, headaches etc. Doctors should be made to disclose n | F | 34 | 5 months | 1/10/2007 | 1 | Depression | I went on this medication too fast. From 75 to 150. Coming off of it was the worst experience ever. Brain shivers and more anxiety from just lowering it. Try going off slowly.. This medication is ruining my life. | F | 17 | 11 months | 1/9/2007 | 3 | axiety - panic attacks | none | just harsh coming off, must do gradually | F | 33 | 2 months | 1/8/2007 |