Posted by deirdrehbrt on October 28, 2003, at 8:55:52
In reply to I would like to get off Effexor but can't, posted by philthethrill on October 27, 2003, at 20:03:47
Hi, Philthethrill,
This thread will probably be redirected to the meds board, but I think that it is just as much, if not more, about you and your father.
Obviously, no-one here knows the dynamics between you and your father, although I think I could safely assume that you did experience some sort of crisis that caused you to see a psychiatrist.
I think that your Dad wants you to be safe, and I think that he assumes that continuing your meds will help that.
You should also know that many meds have short-term side effects; side effects that will last for a number of weeks. Also, many meds will take a number of weeks before they begin to work.
You also didn't mention whether or not you are seeing a therapist, or if you did, I failed to see it. For most people, a combination of talk-therapy and medication work better than either alone.
Meds aren't a magic thing that cures everyone, and neither is psychotherapy. I think that for either of these to really work, there needs to exist a strong desire to get well. That desire comes about through the realization that one is in need of healing.
To be completly honest, it sounds to me that your Dad wants to keep you safe, and he is afraid of what will happen if you stop your meds. The only time that I ever stopped without the co-operation of my psychiatrist was when I was heading down-hill. I only did that once.
If I am having a problem with the side-effects of a med, I will thell the prescribing physician about it. If it is severe, and the next appointment is far off, I will call their office. I have always given meds a chance to work though.
I hope that I don't sound to preachy, but I want you to know that if you have been on effexor for only a short while, that you don't really know how it will work, and you don't know that the drowsiness won't pass. I'm on 300mg of effexor per day, and it does work for me. I am also on a number of other meds, and together they manage to keep me out of the hospital, or worse. I do still crash at times, but it would be much much worse without them.
Please take care of yourself, and don't rush to decisions that can cause you trouble.
Love,
Dee
poster:deirdrehbrt
thread:274065
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20031011/msgs/274221.html