Effexor and Not Caring

[Marzipan]

TL;DR

- Anxiety got so bad that I couldn't walk properly.

- Went on Effexor in December (on 150 mg)

- I have failed several major exams and no damns were given. I have no emotions (pos or neg) about failing them.

- I guess I have some emotions overall, but mostly just anger.

- Doctor won't answer her damn phone.

Anyways, has any one else had this problem with effexor? Anyone have a 'cure' for it?

I've been on a host of other drugs over the years (prozac, lexapro and something else) but I stopped once I felt like I was in a good enough place to control my anxiety on my own. I don't feel like I'm ready to quit but with me not caring about failing exams, I think it may be worth the risk.

Opinions?

[LunaRufina]

I don't know if you've tried benzodiazepines, but that might be an option you could discuss with your doctor. They make some people tired, but if your anxiety is bad enough, they probably won't, plus it's a side effect that tends to subside anyway.

Beta blockers can help with physical symptoms of anxiety for some people which in turn can help with the mental symptoms. I find the beta blocker I'm taking to be preferable over a benzodiazepine. I just feel more comfortable and like it manages it better. SO that's something else you could mention to your doctor?

I mention these because you didn't mention either of them and they are often used for anxiety. Maybe you have something else going on, or maybe anxiety is your main concern, I don't know. But something's not working and perhaps you need to step away from monotherapy.

Don't try to just drop the effexor all at once or drop it on your own. For some people it can be rough getting off of it. Try to be patient and wait for your doctor to get back to you. Just keep on top of it.

I hope you get a hold of her soon.

[Aurochs]

This is a common issue with SSRIs and SNRIs. As far as I know, there's really no way to deal with it save discontinuing the drug. I agree that not caring about failing exams is a big problem, and you really need to get ahold of your doctor and discuss other treatment options.

[Anna]

yes, these side effects are not uncommon for this class of drug. I do think maybe some other choices for anxiety might be better.

I am a big BiG fan of neurontin for anxiety. It doesn't make me spacy or unmotivated, I don't need to increase the dose, and it doesn't have really any side effects (for me). Lots of docs hate neurontin due to the snake oil thing that happened where the drug manufacturer was basically running around saying everything up to it curing cancer with no back up data (slight hyperbole).

but, for anxiety, this is one of the things this drug really DOES work for. I also find it helps my mood slightly. It completely CURED my panic attacks. I've been on it a long time, and I would not get rid of it. I'm temporarily on benzos, but that's due to some REALLY SEVERE life stressors. For the most part, when things aren't total shit, neurontin does the trick for me.

The benzos and beta blockers are also totally reasonable options. If mood is an issue too, you could look at combining a different anti anxiety drug with something more activating like WB (but be prepared for some possible slight anxiety on start up, which often goes away...)

Good luck!

Anna

[dedoubt]

I am a big BiG fan of neurontin for anxiety.

Me too, for when my life isn't constantly blowing up in my face. I've been on it for over three years, and I really love it. In the first week or so of starting it or increasing, I feel like I am stoned, but that goes away. I think that gabapentin (Neurontin) was one of the major reasons I stopped being such a raging bitch all of the time. There was even about a year & a half that it was my only daily med, which helped my anxiety be low enough that I could keep my moods stable. When I had a particularly rough day, I would take clonazepam.

The only side effects I've had are slight weight gain, and after being on it a long while I needed to increase the dose, which affected my cognition. If I taper it for some reason, there is crabbiness & headache, but that goes away. The cognitive effects are *nothing* *nothing* nothing* to most other meds I've taken. Lithium for instance. The stupid drug. (tangent Do you know how hard it is to lecture a 14 year old about consistent behavior when one can't remember that word "consistent"? I had to ask him what word I was looking for. Sigh. end tangent)

[Marzipan]

I don't know if you've tried benzodiazepines, but that might be an option you could discuss with your doctor. They make some people tired, but if your anxiety is bad enough, they probably won't, plus it's a side effect that tends to subside anyway.

Beta blockers can help with physical symptoms of anxiety for some people which in turn can help with the mental symptoms. I find the beta blocker I'm taking to be preferable over a benzodiazepine. I just feel more comfortable and like it manages it better. SO that's something else you could mention to your doctor?

Thanks for the reply, I haven't been on either of those and was looking at a benzos but as a chemist, they bother me. I'm judgmental (yes, I judge molecules ) of anything that has a benzene in it.

yes, these side effects are not uncommon for this class of drug. I do think maybe some other choices for anxiety might be better.

I am a big BiG fan of neurontin for anxiety. It doesn't make me spacy or unmotivated, I don't need to increase the dose, and it doesn't have really any side effects (for me). Lots of docs hate neurontin due to the snake oil thing that happened where the drug manufacturer was basically running around saying everything up to it curing cancer with no back up data (slight hyperbole).

Thank you so much for bringing up neutontin, I will defiantly bring this up. I finally got a phone appointment and I think this may be the one for me.

I am a big BiG fan of neurontin for anxiety.

Me too, for when my life isn't constantly blowing up in my face. I've been on it for over three years, and I really love it. In the first week or so of starting it or increasing, I feel like I am stoned, but that goes away. I think that gabapentin (Neurontin) was one of the major reasons I stopped being such a raging bitch all of the time. There was even about a year & a half that it was my only daily med, which helped my anxiety be low enough that I could keep my moods stable. When I had a particularly rough day, I would take clonazepam.

The only side effects I've had are slight weight gain, and after being on it a long while I needed to increase the dose, which affected my cognition. If I taper it for some reason, there is crabbiness & headache, but that goes away. The cognitive effects are *nothing* *nothing* nothing* to most other meds I've taken. Lithium for instance. The stupid drug. (tangent Do you know how hard it is to lecture a 14 year old about consistent behavior when one can't remember that word "consistent"? I had to ask him what word I was looking for. Sigh. end tangent)

I've been on birth control for a few years now and I was hoping that it would take away the ranging hormones that never got the memo that I'm no longer a teenager. Sadly, it didn't. I'm really excited about neurontin.

[Aurochs]

I don't know if you've tried benzodiazepines, but that might be an option you could discuss with your doctor. They make some people tired, but if your anxiety is bad enough, they probably won't, plus it's a side effect that tends to subside anyway.

Beta blockers can help with physical symptoms of anxiety for some people which in turn can help with the mental symptoms. I find the beta blocker I'm taking to be preferable over a benzodiazepine. I just feel more comfortable and like it manages it better. SO that's something else you could mention to your doctor?

Thanks for the reply, I haven't been on either of those and was looking at a benzos but as a chemist, they bother me. I'm judgmental (yes, I judge molecules ) of anything that has a benzene in it.

Uhh... Dude, EFFEXOR has a benzene ring in it. Damn near every drug on the market does. So does every catecholamine. So do phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan - amino acids that are common in pretty much every form of protein you might find. This is asinine. A piece of pure lithium reacts violently with water, does that mean we shouldn't be taking lithium carbonate? I haven't heard a single report of anybody blowing up or even suffering minor artery damage because of lithium treatment.

EDIT: As a chemist, you should appreciate that a benzene ring is an incredibly strong structural element, and can help make other functional groups much more useful. Benzene the chemical is pretty toxic, but it doesn't follow that any of the millions of organic molecules that incorporate benzene rings are the least bit toxic.

[Marzipan]

I don't know if you've tried benzodiazepines, but that might be an option you could discuss with your doctor. They make some people tired, but if your anxiety is bad enough, they probably won't, plus it's a side effect that tends to subside anyway.

Beta blockers can help with physical symptoms of anxiety for some people which in turn can help with the mental symptoms. I find the beta blocker I'm taking to be preferable over a benzodiazepine. I just feel more comfortable and like it manages it better. SO that's something else you could mention to your doctor?

Thanks for the reply, I haven't been on either of those and was looking at a benzos but as a chemist, they bother me. I'm judgmental (yes, I judge molecules ) of anything that has a benzene in it.

Uhh... Dude, EFFEXOR has a benzene ring in it. Damn near every drug on the market does. So does every catecholamine. So do phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan - amino acids that are common in pretty much every form of protein you might find. This is asinine. A piece of pure lithium reacts violently with water, does that mean we shouldn't be taking lithium carbonate? I haven't heard a single report of anybody blowing up or even suffering minor artery damage because of lithium treatment.

EDIT: As a chemist, you should appreciate that a benzene ring is an incredibly strong structural element, and can help make other functional groups much more useful. Benzene the chemical is pretty toxic, but it doesn't follow that any of the millions of organic molecules that incorporate benzene rings are the least bit toxic.

It was a joke. Benzene can be a pain in the ass to work with in the lab and I never meant it as I would never touch the stuff. Obviously, I have.

Thanks for the reply, I haven't been on either of those and was looking at a benzos but as a chemist, they bother me. I'm judgmental (yes, I judge molecules ) of anything that has a benzene in it.

That makes no sense. That's likes saying you won't drink water because it has explosive hydrogen in it. Chlorine gas will kill you and elemental sodium causes fires in the presence of water. But sodium chloride is necessary for life. Imagine that.

Benzene the chemical is not the same as a benzene ring functional group.

Show me any evidence that benzodiazepines are carcinogenic or whatever problem you have with benzene rings and I'll give you a dollar.

Have you taken organic chemistry yet?

It was meant as a joke. I completed ochem last year. I never said that they were carcinogenic.

[dedoubt]

Carry on. Does benzene fry your gonads?

I took a benzene one time and I haven't had a kid since! Dockker say is cuz I have a eyeoodee but I KNOW it was that BENSENE!!!