Posted , 5 users are following.
After about 10 years on Venlafaxine XR 75mg I noticed that I was becoming irritable and had a lower tolerance to stress. I tried increasing the dose to 150mg but found it too activating, making me feel on edge. I switched to Mirtazapine and am now on Sertraline.
Has anyone else experienced Venlafaxine stopping working? What did you try next?
0 likes, 11 replies
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pixie22 Guest
Posted
When Venlafaxine stopped working for me, my psychiatrist added Mirtazapine. The combination has worked well for me.
Guest pixie22
Posted
Hey Pixie,
My psychiatrist tried that but I found it made my anxiety worse although it did help my depression.
Hope you are doing well now
Ned
philip42202 Guest
Posted
Hi ed,
it's a good while ago now, but I was on Venlafaxine for something like 6 years and the last 18 months I was so on edge - an inner rage developed that I could scarcely control. I went to see a partner of my usual doctor - who wanted me to transfer to a 'newer' antidepressant, but since family members had been saying 'come off anti-depressants' for months, I stopped 'cold-turkey'. For the next 18 months to 2 years I recognised symptoms in myself, worse tha I'd had before being diagnosed. The other thing was the damage done to my digestive system while on Venlafaxine. To this day I have what the medical profession calls 'food intolerances'.
Guest philip42202
Posted
Hi Philip, that sounds similar to me. I found I was getting increasingly on edge and more irritable.
Are you on any medication now?
Hope you are well
Ed
philip42202 Guest
Posted
Hi, Ed,
no meds now - for depression anyway. I almost live on salads - very healthy but very little energy. I retired a few years ago -so I'm lucky in that regard.
Best wishes,
Philip
Guest philip42202
Posted
Thanks Philip, hope you get some energy back soon
Best wishes
Ned
irene55873 Guest
Posted
I've been on Venlafaxine for years.. decided to reduce my dose because it is frequently Out of stock or "whatever" the excuse is.. If I could go back in time I would never ever have started on this drug.. I hate it.. and the reason I was given it has long gone now.. but I'm too scared to reduce it any further at the moment.. Hope you're better now..
Guest irene55873
Posted
Hi Irene, I have a love hate relationship with Venlafaxine, I hated being on it, but it did give me about 10 years pretty much free of anxiety which was a blessing. Getting off is tricky, it is one of those drugs you have to reduce super slowly to avoid any adverse effects. All the best, Ed
irene55873 Guest
Posted
Thanks I know. reduced from 300mg a day to 150. extremely Slowly 2 years ago when it was out of supply.. took about 3 months + still on 150 and want off it as it really messes with your brain if you forget to take it. No other antidepressants have Ever had such a bad reaction on me ! I've done it myself with no GP involved I just wanted to do it my own way as I don't think they or the Pharmacy's Have a CLUE! Thanks
moe74083 Guest
Posted
hey ed how are you
hope you are doing well now
iv ben on Effexor for 10 years then i thought i got cured and decide to stop it and i did the right way
sadly after 3 month got terrific relapse so i start it all over again
now ben back on 75mg for a year and now am feeling its poop out
suddenly its keep me on mood swing for weeks and now i feel really so bad
am thinking to increase the dose to 150 hope it will get me back on the road
do you think i should stuck on 75mg for more time
am really experiencing bad tinnitus in my ears as well is thats sign that i need to increase the dose
please can anyone help by experience
Guest moe74083
Posted
HI Moe,
I'm not too bad thanks. Recently started a new drug (Sertraline) and still in the early side-effects phase.
If you experience a rebound straight after decreasing a drug, then it is probably just a temporary reaction to the change in medication. After 3 months, it sounds more like the original problem re-emerging.
With the Venlafaxine, I tried increasing the dose to 150mg for 6 weeks, but I found it made me more anxious. At 75mg Venlafaxine primarily works on serotonin but as you increase the dose it starts to work more on the norepinephrine as well, at really high doses it works a little on dopamine too. If you're taking it for anxiety you might find the same thing as I did, if you're taking it for depression then it might not be an issue.
I haven't any experience of tinnitus when on Venlafaxine. I haven't heard of that being a reason to increase or decrease dosage.
All the best,
Ed