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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 20 of 20. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 20:52:02
I keep thinking, "Do I really need this medication?". It's strange because I don't think I even have enough, but sometimes I don't remember what I'm like without them. Oh sure I was anxious and depressed, and hallucinating a little, but is that so bad? hee,hee I'm still anxious a lot. I mentioned to my therapist that I thought maybe it was the effexor that makes me anxious. He did not agree.
Posted by TamaraJ on June 18, 2005, at 22:18:32
In reply to anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 20:52:02
I had never used medication until I was about 35, and that is when I had my first major depression. I went on Paxil, and within a month or so, I was feeling like my old self. I made the mistake of stopping the small maintenance dose I had been taking, and, when I got sick I became depressed again and have been on the med merry-go-round for months and months and months now. When I am on an AD that works, and works well, I feel a lot like I did before my first depression (which really went untreated for well over a year).
As for the Effexor, listen to your instincts. I, too, experienced continual apprehension and just feeling on edge or anxious the whole time I was on it. It was a very unpleasant feeling. I also had wicked night sweats and irregular periods and horrid myoclonus. But, none of these were caused by Effexor. Oh no!! My pdoc just kept upping the dose, and it wasn't until I got incredibily sick from Depo that he changed my AD (Effexor didn't even make a dent in the Depo depression). And, funnily, the anxiety subsided somewhat, the night sweats and myoclonus stopped, and, once the Depo wore off, my periods were back to normal. Hmmmm, wonder who was right about the Effexor side effects? Not my pdoc, that's for sure. Sorry, I am still a bit pissed about it because if he had listened to me instead of telling me I was perimenopausal, I would not have ended up getting the Depo shot.
Tamara
> I keep thinking, "Do I really need this medication?". It's strange because I don't think I even have enough, but sometimes I don't remember what I'm like without them. Oh sure I was anxious and depressed, and hallucinating a little, but is that so bad? hee,hee I'm still anxious a lot. I mentioned to my therapist that I thought maybe it was the effexor that makes me anxious. He did not agree.
Posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 22:40:15
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds? » sleepygirl, posted by TamaraJ on June 18, 2005, at 22:18:32
Yes, you know I wonder sometimes. I swear, I mean I know sometimes I've experienced effects related to meds (small things) that my Dr didn't attribute to the medication, but I'm pretty sure I was right. I'm not one to be hypochondrical, or be preoccupied with little things and thus perhaps imagine things. I might bring up the idea of trying another antidepressant soon. I wish I had an MD.
I am quite sure that doctors don't appreciate a lot of the experiences people report on these medications.
The thing is though, that I've always been anxious. It's hard to weed out what's me and what's the medication. It feels like a whole lot of trial and error.
I'm sorry you had to go through all of that to get relief. It's a horrible route to go through to finally feel like you were right. Thanks for the response. Sorry about the fruit flies. :-)
-sleepy
Posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 22:40:55
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds? » sleepygirl, posted by TamaraJ on June 18, 2005, at 22:18:32
Effexor was terrable for my anxiety, just terrable. It increased my ruminations about fearfull situations.
Medications have made periodic dents from time to time. On the whole however, I was just anxious and a little blue before meds. Now I am anxious, very depressed, and have a whole host of other weird unexplainable psychiatric problems.
Who knows
Linkadge
Posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 22:48:24
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 22:40:55
Ruminations! My goodness do I ruminate, racing and ruminating, doesn't that suck?
Posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 23:09:27
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 22:48:24
But it wasn't just rumination. I have always been afraid of doing labs for this one class I am taking. When I was on effexor, it was as if my mind never left the classroom. It made me angry that I couldn't let it go.
The swich back to celexa helped a little.
Linkadge
Posted by TamaraJ on June 18, 2005, at 23:14:03
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 23:09:27
It was the same for me when I was on Effexor. It was like there was this constant little voice saying "Be afraid, be very afraid" over and over again. I was constantly apprehensive while I was on Effexor. It wasn't the usual anxiety that I have experienced.
Posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 23:15:34
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 23:09:27
I've been like that about work, although the recent addition of Seroquel has lessened that. I mean I've been obsessed with work, haven't been able to stop thinking about it for a long, long time. I've just been hoping it would lessen. I'm really interested in what a change in AD might do.
Posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 23:25:56
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 23:15:34
Posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 23:47:57
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 23:15:34
I noticed that when a beta blocker was added to the effexor it really helped. It was like I was myself for a moment, and I was in my own room by myself, and I didn't have to be anyone else than myself.
Linkadge
Posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 23:53:30
In reply to going Mon to doc-will discuss effexoranxiety (nm), posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 23:25:56
Hopefully you won't run into the same issues that I have.
I told the doctors that the effexor was making the anxiety worse, and they don't believe me and kept upping it, I new my own body and only took what I felt I could handle. When I was in the hopsital, I met a lady who was prescribed paxil for anxiety.
She kept telling the doctor it wasn't helping and was making things worse. The doctor keeped upping the dose to 80 mg !!!. That is insane if you ask me, becuase paxil is a darn strong SSRI. 20mg made my body kink up like a prezil. Anyhow, she had a seizure and after that they took her off of it. Crazy.
Linkadge
Posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 23:53:32
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 23:47:57
sounds good, I like the sound of that feeling
Posted by ed_uk on June 19, 2005, at 9:38:28
In reply to Re: going Mon to doc-will discuss effexoranxiety, posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 23:53:30
>That is insane if you ask me, becuase paxil is a darn strong SSRI.
I've always felt that Paxil was a very potent SSRI. I was on 40mg Paxil for a couple of years - it seemed quite a bit more 'serotonergic' than Celexa 60mg. 60mg Paxil was good for OCD but it made me very drowsy!
~Ed
Posted by Phillipa on June 19, 2005, at 18:19:02
In reply to Re: going Mon to doc-will discuss effexoranxiety » linkadge, posted by ed_uk on June 19, 2005, at 9:38:28
Before meds. That;s a long time ago. I used to selfmedicate with alchohol. Then when I started on low dose benzos I felt well. Well enough to change my life. Back to school, a divorce that should have happened years before it did, moved to VA Beach and bought my own condo for summers. Traveled Europe. And then I crashed due to my inability to not have my own way. I kicked him out and it's been downhill ever since. I wonder where he is today? His family were millionaires too and lived in Switzerland. My favorite country. Then I kept moving South drinking more until my thyroid went and it's been AD's every since. I should have listened to the pdoc I had in Ct when he said I didn't know how to accept good things happening to me. Oh I remarried the rich one. Not to say money will make you happy, but he worshipped the ground I walked on. Fondly, Phillipa
Posted by 4WD on June 20, 2005, at 0:09:30
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds? » linkadge, posted by TamaraJ on June 18, 2005, at 23:14:03
> It was the same for me when I was on Effexor. It was like there was this constant little voice saying "Be afraid, be very afraid" over and over again. I was constantly apprehensive while I was on Effexor. It wasn't the usual anxiety that I have experienced.
This is further proof how different we all are. For me, Effexor almost completely removed my ruminations. I was so smooth and without anxiety. (Too smooth, blank almost). Weird. And Prozac caused rumination and anxiety for me.Marsha
Posted by 4WD on June 20, 2005, at 0:16:04
In reply to Re: going Mon to doc-will discuss effexoranxiety, posted by linkadge on June 18, 2005, at 23:53:30
> Hopefully you won't run into the same issues that I have.
>
> I told the doctors that the effexor was making the anxiety worse, and they don't believe me and kept upping it, I new my own body and only took what I felt I could handle. When I was in the hopsital, I met a lady who was prescribed paxil for anxiety.
> She kept telling the doctor it wasn't helping and was making things worse. The doctor keeped upping the dose to 80 mg !!!. That is insane if you ask me, becuase paxil is a darn strong SSRI. 20mg made my body kink up like a prezil. Anyhow, she had a seizure and after that they took her off of it. Crazy.
>
>
> LinkadgeThey probably told her it was "just" startup side effects.
When you say you kinked up like a pretzle, do you mean you had painful muscle spasms? For me, most SSRIs (Prozac, Celexa, Lexapro, Zoloft) caused extreme muscle tension in my neck and upper back, to the point that I had constant severe pain in my neck and big knots under the skin along my shoulder blades in the back. I went to chiropractors, had trigger point injections, cervical epidurals, prolotherapy, everything, thinking there was something wrong with my neck (which there is but not that major). When I switched to Effexor, the pain in my neck pretty much just went away. Everytime I'd switch back to Celexa, etc. the pain would come back and when I'd switch back to Effexor, it would go away again. My doctors kept telling me that it was "not a side effect of ssris." Funny, though, Paxil was the one SSRI that didn't do that.
Marsha
Posted by linkadge on June 20, 2005, at 6:41:27
In reply to Re: paxil and kinking up like a pretzle » linkadge, posted by 4WD on June 20, 2005, at 0:16:04
Mainly terrable akathesia. Jaw clenching, trouble writing, contsantly stiff muscles, trouble moving head etc, all the SSRI's do this to me to some degree
Linkadge
Posted by sedona on June 20, 2005, at 19:30:10
In reply to anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by sleepygirl on June 18, 2005, at 20:52:02
I ask myself that question sometimes. My main complaint is not that I think I have changed on medication or become a different person. I just don't think they have worked well for me. And I know that is not true for other people. For some, medications help them a great deal.
In my case, as I start my 14th medication, I have found that in the big picture I am not better for them. Manyy of the side-effects of medication, in particular, have worked against me. Two of the main offenders, lethargy and apathy, have plagued me both in depression and as side-effects of drugs. I generally ask myself the question: is it worth it for me to take these drugs?
Of course I am in no way suggesting that people stop taking medications- this has just been my own experience.
Posted by cockeyed on June 21, 2005, at 0:13:57
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds? » sleepygirl, posted by sedona on June 20, 2005, at 19:30:10
I became disabled by heart disease in '98. My condition was probably initially mis-diagnosed because I was able to "pass" a stress test. After an Angioplasty in 5/98 during which I was completely aenesthesized, my personality seemed to change. To a point that my everythought seemed to be re: death, futility, misery, useless-ness. etc. If not for meds and therapy I seem to cycle into periods of intense and constant depression. It's as if my mind were attempting to consume itself. With meds I can almost face the morning. I hate getting up. I now function best late at nite and feel comfortable going to sleep at 3-4 AM. One thing I notice: my family seems to prefer me depressed. Maybe I'm nuts, but when I feel good I like to do my own thing...I'm not much of a family person. I especially enjoy hyper cycles because I don't give a s**t about stuff I agonize over when I'm down in the hole. B4 meds Iwas constantly haunted by the death of everything and the worthlessness of living. I recently had a bad experience with generic lexapro and have gone back to prozac. cockeyed.
Posted by Phillipa on June 21, 2005, at 17:12:55
In reply to Re: anyone remember what they were like B4 meds?, posted by cockeyed on June 21, 2005, at 0:13:57
Jeez, You sound like me minus the cardiac thing. Mine started with Lyme's disease, misdx of fibromyalgia, menopause, slipped disc,. See my Thread below. Just started it. Fondly,Phillipa
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