Posted by Jen2 on February 25, 2005, at 18:09:43
In reply to Please has anybody had good results with Effexor, posted by PatriciaP on February 25, 2005, at 9:58:00
I've got GAD. I've been on 75mg Effexor for a little over six weeks. The first week was hell - I felt horrible. No vomiting, but diarrhea, heart palpitations, anxiousness, dissociation, brain fog, panic, felt like I was going to die.... on and on and on. After the first week, those side effects subsided for the most part. At about day 12 I started to get some positive effects - started to feel much more calm and in control and able to handle the world.
It's been a very slow but uphill progression. For a while I felt even but low. Kind of depressed, but still able to function. About two days ago I realized that I felt really good, for the first time in a really really long time. I actually felt happy. Yes, happy. Somebody asked me how I was doing, and I said, "Fantastic. It's a beautiful day." And I was standing outside in minus 15 degree weather. But it was sunny and things felt good.
So since then I've felt even but happy. I'm quite impressed with this result. I don't know how long this will last, and I don't know if I'm going to have to up my dosage, and I don't know what the future will bring.... And I am still experiencing some side effects -- sometimes I get sweaty, I have difficulty with motivation, getting up in the morning is still really hard, I have trouble focusing and concentrating enough to get my work done, and I tend to not care very much - sort of apathetic about whether or not I get things done. But generally I'm feeling really good. I'm hoping that this new happiness will provide some of the motivation and focus that I've been missing. We'll see over the next several days.
While I know many people have had really bad experiences with Effexor, so far so good for me. Granted, it's been an uphill battle, but today things are really good. I'm not saying that this will be the case for you or anybody else, but I am saying that I'm doing pretty well. So there is hope.
As I said, the first week is really bad. This is normal. Stick it out for a little bit, but do talk with your doctor.
As always, YMMV.
Jen
poster:Jen2
thread:463205
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050222/msgs/463363.html