Posted by nevergiveup1962 on March 15, 2002, at 16:57:29
In reply to Re: ANGEL GIRL, WE ARE HERE FOR YOU!!!!, posted by Angel Girl on March 14, 2002, at 22:27:45
Effexor doesn't need to be tapered up as slowly as other anti-depressants because it has such a short half-life. Effexor is not an SSRI or a tricyclic, it is in a class by itself. You did the right thing to insist your doc bump you up immediately. I went from 150 to 300 within 5 days and it made a world of difference.
Are you on any additional anti-depressants? Sounds like you could use a booster. You could stay on your Effexor at a relatively low dose (e.g. 150mg) but add a "booster rocket" like trazedone, which amplifies the anti-depressant effect of the Effexor, but also help you sleep and relax at night
I finally reached this combination after several years of experimentation and it has been good. On the other hand, I never had the twitching problem.
> Hi! I'm here and I'm ok, well sorta. I'm sorry I worried anybody. I've been through 3 med changes in the last 2 weeks. I was on Effexor XR 150mg 2 weeks ago and wasn't feeling any better about my depression at all. I was extremely suicidal then and just wanted to give up. Nothing was working for me. I told my dr to either try something else or drastically increase the dosage, no more increases of just 37.5mg at a time, that was not doing anything for me and I couldn't go on feeling that way anymore. So, he increased it from 150mg to 225mg. Immediately on the first day I FINALLY felt my mood drastically change for the better. It's not like I was happy, I'm not even sure I even know what that is anymore, I don't know that I have ever been happy my entire life but at least I was seeing there actually was a light at the end of the tunnel. But with the relief from my depression came severe muscle twitches/jerks so unbearable that I made another appt with my dr and he decreased me back to 150mg to try and get rid of the twitches. That worked but I went back into deep depression. After 3 days of that and fighting to stay alive I went back to the dr and he increased it by 37.5mg hoping that a slower increase would hinder the twitches from returning, which it did but still no relief from the depression. So, back to the dr again a few days ago and now I'm back up to 225mg as of today. No twitches yet but still no change in my depression either. :( I am having an extremely difficult time dealing with people. I come away from every conversation with feeling very hurt or full of anger. I've had major fights with friends, family and management at work. My job is hanging on by a thread and they are now only paying me for hours worked instead of full pay because I've missed so many days due to the depression. I can't pay my bills anymore, hench my desperation post. I saw no resolution to my problem. I had no interest in calling a crisis hotline. I didn't want anybody to talk me out of it, I just wanted to die. There was nothing anybody could say to me to fix my problem short of handing me over money to pay my bills. I am living alone so it's a single income and I have nobody to help me. But as you can see I didn't do it. Some of my friends got concerned and called the police who searched for me. They called every hospital in my city and searched my apartment but I wasn't at home. I'm just not coping with life at all anymore. I don't know what to do. I'm desperatly waiting for the Effexor to kick in again. I'm not in therapy yet, it starts next Friday. I've had major problems finding anybody to take me on because I have multiple traumas and too many problems. Nobody has felt qualified to deal with me. Makes me feel real good. NOT!!!! I've been told I'm untreatable. Can you imagine a psychatrist telling a suicidal person they are untreatable????? :( Anyway, like I said I'm still here at least physically, hanging on by a bare thread and very anxious for the Effexor to work again and to start my therapy next week. I'm just so tired of all of this. Sorry to leave y'all hanging so long. I've been struggling just to stay alive the last few days.
>
> Angel Girl
poster:nevergiveup1962
thread:13781
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020313/msgs/98186.html