Cerberus Posted February 17, 2014 Share Posted February 17, 2014 I've been on a high dose of Effexor XR (450mg) for years because it's the only thing that's ever touched my double depression. Twice I've had to endure withdrawal (no picnic, the way the landing at Normandy was no picnic) so I have always had a pretty good sense of how long it would take trouble to start brewing if I missed my meds. Usually, it would take two to three missed days before brain shocks would set in, and another day until the nausea. Over the last couple of months, however, I've discovered that brain shocks have started after a single missed day, with nausea following close on the heels of the shocks. It also now takes longer for the side effects to subside once I've taken a dose. Has anyone experienced a similar shortening of duration between missed dose and onset of withdrawal? I'm concerned that it may be an indicator that I'm becoming so habituated to it that I can no longer tolerate its absence in my system, or worse, that it's gradually losing its effectiveness. I can't go any higher, and if it stops working, I'll be deeply, profoundly, and abidingly fucked. I'm having brain shocks as I write this: *~zap~* *~zap~* *~zap~* Usually in sets of two to four for some reason... I've decided that the cause of my brain shocks must be little guys like Reddy Kilowatt here, running around inside my skull: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnnaBanana Posted February 17, 2014 Share Posted February 17, 2014 I was on it and never had that problem, but I have had people tell me that within hours of missing their dose, they had the brain zaps and nausea, so I think it's perfectly normal for that to happen. I hope it doesn't stop working for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paranoidling Posted February 17, 2014 Share Posted February 17, 2014 (edited) - Edited May 1, 2022 by Paranoidling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saveyoursanity Posted April 8, 2014 Share Posted April 8, 2014 Cerb, not to be a shit, but have you tried Cymbalta? Savella, reboxetine (I know it's not available in the USA), Strattera? If the NRI effect of Effexor wears off, there are a LOT of other meds you can add. Wellbutrin even, if your psychiatrist is fairly straitlaced! I've feared poop-out my entire life, and I'm hoping that's not what you have to deal with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted April 8, 2014 Author Share Posted April 8, 2014 SYS - I can't take Wellbutrin; I get wiggy, wiggy wiggy. You mention the NRI effect of Effexor, but actually that's not what I take it for. Effexor is an MRI because it evidently manipulates serotonin at the low dosage range, norepinephrine at the mid dosage range, and dopamine at the high dosage range. The low to mid dosages did bupkis for me, and I've been taking an absolute maximum allowable dose for years now, along with an Adderall chaser because the Adderall is a dopamine release agent. So I'm pretty sure Effexor's useful effect on me is as a dopamine reuptake inhibitor. My working hypothesis is that my brain's dopamine system simply doesn't work. If the Effexor is about to keel over, I'm definitely going to have to find something else... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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