Reviewer: nncoffee, 65-74 on Treatment for 6 months to less than 1 year (Patient)

Comment:
I took Effexor for 6 months and it changed my personality. The longer I was on Effexor the worse the side effects got. On Effexor I started having insomnia that became so bad that I was lucky to get 2 hours of sleep a night. I became so irritable and impatient that I started having almost uncontrollable fits of anger and cussing when I was alone in my car. I also started cussing when I made a ... Show Full Comment

Comment:
I took Effexor for 6 months and it changed my personality. The longer I was on Effexor the worse the side effects got. On Effexor I started having insomnia that became so bad that I was lucky to get 2 hours of sleep a night. I became so irritable and impatient that I started having almost uncontrollable fits of anger and cussing when I was alone in my car. I also started cussing when I made a minor mistake. Before I started taking Effexor I DIDN�¢��� ;?T cuss. On Effexor I also became significantly more anxious and started experiencing compulsive behaviors that I had NEVER experienced prior to taking Effexor. I stopped taking Effexor a year ago, and I am still experiencing all of these negative changes in my personality except insomnia, Once again, I want to emphasize that I NEVER had any of these issues before I took Effexor.
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Reviewer: Momof3, 25-34 on Treatment for less than 1 month (Patient)

Comment:
I have been battling seasonal depression and this year I couldnâ??t stand it so this is my first encounter with an anti-depressant medication. Was suppose to taper up to 150mg but took 1 pill of 37mg in the evening. The next morning I woke up feeling STRUNG OUT. Ended up in the hospital. HORRIBLE feeling. Vomiting, sweating, hear racing, whole body shivers and twitching. AWFUL.

Comment:
I have been battling seasonal depression and this year I couldnâ??t stand it so this is my first encounter with an anti-depressant medication. Was suppose to taper up to 150mg but took 1 pill of 37mg in the evening. The next morning I woke up feeling STRUNG OUT. Ended up in the hospital. HORRIBLE feeling. Vomiting, sweating, hear racing, whole body shivers and twitching. AWFUL.
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Reviewer: rosie, 55-64 Female on Treatment for 6 months to less than 1 year (Patient)

Comment:
with every increase in medication, my depression worsens, not desire to eat or do anything, don't want to go out, feel anti-social - I will be seeing my doc soon and plan to have her wean me off this, I'm more anxious and depressed on it, horrible nightmares, insomnia to name a few bad side effects....I do not recommend this at all

Comment:
with every increase in medication, my depression worsens, not desire to eat or do anything, don't want to go out, feel anti-social - I will be seeing my doc soon and plan to have her wean me off this, I'm more anxious and depressed on it, horrible nightmares, insomnia to name a few bad side effects....I do not recommend this at all
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Reviewer: D1nonlysnshn, 55-64 Female on Treatment for 1 to less than 2 years (Patient)

Comment:
I have been a "highly funtioning" depressed person for many years: life of the party, witty, intelligent, charming, intelligent conversationalist, highly successful at the top of the food chain in my field, ...until I got home. Work was an escape from myself for me. If I had no weekend functions to attend I would be catatonic, only getting out of bed to use the bathroom. I had always f ... Show Full Comment

Comment:
I have been a "highly funtioning" depressed person for many years: life of the party, witty, intelligent, charming, intelligent conversationalist, highly successful at the top of the food chain in my field, ...until I got home. Work was an escape from myself for me. If I had no weekend functions to attend I would be catatonic, only getting out of bed to use the bathroom. I had always felt like an outsider, looking in on life, trying to imitate what everyone else was doing, but never getting it quite right and others sensing that I was a fake. No not suicidal-many years ago I came to the realization that I can only live once for a limited amount of time, but death is forever. Also, as long as I was alive, I always had a choice, but once I was dead, there was no coming back. About 6 years ago, it was so bad that I stopped sleeping and could not eat, dropping 40 pounds in a matter of weeks. My thoughts were chasing around in my head so much, that I thought I would jump out of the window any second just to make it stop. Decided to get help. Diagnosed with menopause related depression. Put on Effexor, 75mg. Took about 2 weeks to get used to it. Yes, head in a fog. Eventually things normalized and dosage did not have to be increased. I was supposed to be on it for about a year, to allow my body time to get used to the changes. After having left the med at work over a long holiday weekend in October, I suffered extreme withdrawal symptoms and decided to stop taking it right then and there. I also found out that it made my cholesterol go from 180 to 260. Which still has not normalized. I was able to get it down in the 230s adding phytosterols, nuts, healthy oils and seaweed. Apparently I am in the 8% percent that this happens to when taking Effexor. Unfortunately, this was not in the patient information leaflet. I always read those completely. But the prescribing physician should have seen that in the desk reference and monitored for it. Good thing: was only on it 6 mos.
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Reviewer: 45-54 Female on Treatment for 2 to less than 5 years (Patient)

Comment:
I have been taking Effexor for depression for four years and have found it to be very effective.

Comment:
I have been taking Effexor for depression for four years and have found it to be very effective.
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