Pristiq withdrawals

[ascendingstars]

I'm not 100% sure if my back pain and the fact that I missed one dose of Pristiq is correlated but at the moment it feels as if my back is on fire - I missed my usual dose yesterday by accident, and started up again today. I was fine until I got to work half an hour later and whenever I'd take a breath I'd feel sharp stabbing pains in my back. I took some ibuprofen & codeine and the pain eased but now it's back.

I've read of others complaining of flu like symptoms and body aches after missing a Pristiq dose scattered on the net, but I was curious if anyone here has had this happen?

[KathySue]

I have never missed a dose but this is a very good question!!

[Rowdygenius]

Okay. A couple of quick things, then a question for me to ask. Pristiq was developed by Pfizer Pharmaceuticals as an answer to issues consumers were having with Effexor XR. It provided consumers (don't know why I'm in Italics and I can't turn it off) with an alternative to the dramatic withdrawals Effexor XR was displaying. Additionally, it was to give males less sexual side effects. Insurance companies feel Effexor XR is just plain good enough and consumers should just deal with it. You have to jump through hoops and you and your doctor have to convince the insurance company that you really need the Pristiq. If approved, your hit with a higher than usual co-pay. 

Additionally, Pristiq is an SSNI, not an SSRI. Effexor XR is also an SSNI, as is Cymbalta. Examples of SSRIs are Zoloft, Prozac, and Lexapro. There is a big difference. Depression can be brought on when brain chemicals called neurotransmitters become unbalanced (no Italics, hurray!). Antidepressant drugs attempt to bring these neurotransmitters back into balance and alleviate the symptoms of depression.

Depression causes imbalances in three basic hormones; Dopamine, Nor-epinephrine, and Serotonin. An SSRI and an SNRI both affect absorption of Serotonin, but an SNRI also affects Nor-epinephrine levels in the brain.

Another difference between an SSRI and an SNRI is simply that SNRIs are more recent and may reflect more progressive research into the brain chemistry of depressed individuals. Again, insurance companies have not caught up with this concept.

NOW FOR MY QUESTION...I cannot remember if I took my Pristiq this evening. Should I take another one "just to be safe", or skip it all together? Thanks for reading and helping.