Effexor XL > Reviews (17)

Firstly a brief explanation as to why I was taking anti depressants.

For a long time I suffered from bouts of clinical depression brought about from anxiety induced paranoia. Basically I was always anxious/ on edge, which would manifest itself in paranoia when dealing with people, this situation obviously upset me and left me depressed.
In November 2002 the depression got too much for me to deal with so I went to my local GP who prescribed me 75mg daily of Effexor.

What is Effexor?

Effexor is an anti depressant.

Does it work?

Yes within one month of taking Effexor I began to see results; I was less anxious which made my dealings with other people easier and less fraught; my paranoia eased and eventually went; I began to recover from my depression.

Were there any side effects?

For the first few weeks of taking Effexor I experienced a strange numb/ tingling/ dizzy sensation in my head, not very technical but it’s the best way I can describe it. As time progressed I experienced a decrease in sex drive and a difficulty in achieving orgasm, which is never fun. The main problems came on days I forgot to take my tablet.
As the day went on I would begin to experience a dizzy sensation akin to vertigo that would get worse until after I took my next tablet. As I took the tablets for longer this withdrawal became more pronounced each time that I forgot a tablet.

Coming off Effexor

In April 2003 I felt recovered enough to stop taking Effexor, this decision was helped by the fact that the withdrawal symptoms I was getting were becoming worse. I visited my GP and discussed this with him. My GP prescribed me a half dose of Effexor 35mg daily to take for a week and then to try stopping taking the Drug. As I had a week off work I decided that would be a good time to come off Effexor. I took the half dose for a week then stopped taking the tablets.
After 5 days of severe vertigo and violent mood swings my wife forced me to go back to the doctors. I was advised to start taking the reduced dose again. I was also told that withdrawal symptoms were rare from Effexor, which meant you could only get 35mg tablets and not lower doses to gradually come off them. I was advised to take the 35mg dose for a week then try cutting the tablets in half to take an approximate 17.5mg dose for a week before trying again.
I actually prolonged the length of time is reduced the dosage to over 6 weeks and reduced the dosage more gradually down to half a tablet every two days. I stopped taking the tablets 10 days ago. I am still suffering from spells of dizziness although these are lessening in intensity and duration.
I should also point out that my concentration was so reduced from this that I have had problems at work (fortunately my employer is supportive) and on more than one occasion come very close to crashing my car.

Should I consider Effexor?

I cannot overstate the fact that Effexor worked for me and over a relatively short time scale. However the withdrawal process has been particularly nasty and if I hadn’t had the support from my wife and friends could have easily been enough to lead me back into depression.
The reason I have written this opinion is not to try to put you off anti depressants, I you are depressed I cannot advise you strongly enough to get help from your GP. The reason I have written this opinion is to warn you of the side effects and withdrawal symptoms, which I have found severe and to suggest you talk over with your GP how you will come off the tablets after they have helped you before you begin taking them.