Almost 2 months On effexor

  • Thread starter Thread starter Lourage
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Lourage

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.. and just like the regular SSRi's i have tried.. NOTHING for anxiety relief. Started at 75 for about a month, and now 150 mg for another month. Well except the side effect of not sleeping, which is getting worse every night. I didn't fall asleep until 8 in the morning today and was up again at 10, feel back to sleep for about another hour. This is what goes on every night. I have to admit though, it has helped me with some OCD'ish behavior, especially with my health anxiety and stressing over my blood pressure, but i'm also on Propranolol which is helping my BP spikes. I still have the anxious feeling in my body. Propranolol doesn't do CRAP for my sweating, and i'm taking 40 mg! which is a lot, and i still sweat right through it. it has helped with the facial blushing though, atleast i think it has. Sometimes it feels like it does, then other times i feel like it doesn't.

I'm starting to think that these meRAB cannot help social anxiety and the only way to get through it is CBT. I need to find a medication though to take the edge off. I guess next up is a benzo, which of course will be prescribed in too low of a dose to do anything, so i'm sure i'll have yo go back to the doctor again and again. Check list of what hasn't worked so far :)

lexapro
Paxil
Effexor
atenolol
Propranolol

I'm thinking make an appointment this week, tell my doctor to just get me off the effexor and i'll try something else. I don't care what it is, i'll try anything, i'm great when it comes to tolerance to medication and have no real problems, well cept the insomnia. I just don't know what i should bring up next to try?

I was thinking Buspar and trazodone for sleep. Maybe Prozac? None of this Generalized anxiety medications, a medication for Social anxiety and some OCD. :dizzy:
 
It can take 4 to 6 weeks to notice any real change with meRAB. I know on Effexor I would see some slight inprovement with my anxiety around the 3 to 4 week mark. My pdoc would then increase me at the 6 week mark. Overall, the Effexor would help my anxiety but finally after about 9 months and up to 450mg and being referred to a new pdoc who is an anxiety specialist I am now off Effexor and started recently on Prozac.

Pdoc wants to try Prozac because it is an older one and the studies apparently have shown it works well for GAD/anxiety. I am also on Seroquel for anxiety & agitation and Buspar for my anxiety. But my new pdoc is going to be taking me off those eventually. He said the Prozac "should" eventually be enough. RIght now with my med changes and being so "flipped" out, I have ativan to take daily to help take the edge off.

Unfortunately, you have to give the Effexor more time to work and you will need to go to higher doses to really know if they will work. To feel the true full effects of most of these drugs can take up to a year. I know with Prozac the studies said around 10 months once at maximum dose. Therefore, for me it will take over a year to know for sure if it will really work completely on my anxiety.

Therapy is also an option. I am currently in DBT and will be starting in an anxiety group that meets 2 times a week sometime in March/April.

You will have to give the meRAB more time....and possibly higher doses.

A good book you could buy also is called the Anxiety and Phobia Workbook.
 
Yea, your right lonelygurl :) i was just having a bad day today. I think and the lack of sleep is REALLY starting to drive me crazy. I know i just need to give the meRAB more time and maybe up the dosage before calling it quits on the effexor. I just hope i can get something to help with sleep if it doesn't get any better. I'm going on like 8 months that i haven't got a full nights sleep without waking up atleast 5 times a night.

I'm starting to think the reason my sleeping is getting worse is cause of the late night before bed dose of propranolol that i started taking. I'll see what my doc says when i go their next. Thanks so much for the advice and i hope everything goes great for you as well :wave:
 
Ask your doctor if you can take a small dosage of Seroquel (I took 25 mgs. at night). That's what I took with the Effexor and it helped immensely. I slept 7-8 hours a night after going sleepless with Effexor alone. Good luck!
Peace,
Susan
 
Think that would help, is it another anti-depressant? Non habit forming i hope? See i know for a fact trazodone is non habit forming, I don't want to take anything like arabien. Just something that helps me sleep! I'll read up on the Seroquel right now. Thanks for the suggestion :)
 
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