Effexor XR gets a 10/10 | ADHD Information
I'm not sure what circles, triangles, squares, or rectangles you're talking about, I could really care less to be honest with you, but Effexor XR is also used for ADHD. Effexor (Venlafaxine) is a member of a new class of antidepressants called "selective serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors" (SSNRI's). Most, if not all ADHD drugs, works on norephinephrine by increasing it. In fact, Wellbutrin is also used to treat ADHD, although it causes weight loss in a lot of people, something I utterly hate. I don't need medication to lose weight, it's easy enough as it is. In fact, I have to overeat just to prevent weight loss. Wellbutrin (Bupropion) has a chemical structure unrelated to any other antidepressant medication and works by increasing levels of dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine, three of the neurotransmitter chemicals that carry messages between brain nerve cells.
Grazie mille, Johnnyboi.Effexor XR by far exceeds the effectiveness of Adderall from my personal experience. Not only has it substantially improved my focus, but as well as my energy and motivation level as well. I also don't have to deal with my appetite being suppresed anymore, but in fact it has rather increased my appetite which is just another plus for Effexor XR. I started out with 75mgs, and then moved up to 150mgs where I noticed the real difference. It's a much more natural feel compared to what you feel when a stimulant kicks in. The real benefit is, it feels like you are on a stimulant, however it doesn't crash or wear off. I thought a stimulant was the answer to the will power for my day, but Effexor XR has proven me wrong. In fact, it increases your energy physically and mentally, to where a stimulant only does mentally. I literally have the energy to run a marathon on a daily basis. I don't have to deal with feeling paranoid, weak, or agitated because Effexor XR doesn't wear off! I love the way it speeds me up faster than a stimulant, without having to speed the central nervous system up at all! Effexor XR is the answer to your problems!That certainly is quite the endorsement. I feel I require an appetite suppressant--as soon as I do anything I don't want to stop (including eating)--yet i must admit, I'm intrigued . . . isn't Effexor an anti-depressant? I don't recall it's name in ADHD circles.Eddieb, I did call the Dr. and he said it was up to me to "tuff" it out or not. I was brought off of 225mgs. in a quick 3 weeks.The statistics are that effexor is in the top percentile {78%} reported major withdrawal and onset to begin 1-2 days without a pill. My post was during my 3rd week. They had me do 150mgs for 7 days,then 75mgs.,then 75 every other day. The Dr. said that effexor is the worst offender in terms of the lightning speed with which it can cause withdrawal reactions. So in essence you could miss just one dose and be having the beginning of withdrawal symptoms. The only solution he had was that we could: prolong my descent and drag it out longer...Or tuff it out. I opted to go on and deal with it, as I was only days away from having the 3 weeks completed. He started me on Cymbalta-30 mgs for 5 days-then 2 x 30 mgs. after that and will see me again in 4 weeks after starting the new meds. I am feeling better now-I began 60 mgs Cymbalta yesterday. It was pretty scary.I had fits of rage that made me see RED.
Thanks for the reply, I am feeling better now. Genie
I am glad to here you are happy with the effects of effexor XR. I am sitting here going through the worst withdrawel hell I have ever known as I try to wean off of it. All I want to tell you is to be extremely careful increasing your dose. I was at 225mgs. for the last 3 1/2 years and I too thought it was a wonderful drug...What they don't tell ya is that this is the worst for extreme side effects of withdrawel when you try to get off of it.I am at day 1 of week 4 and I would compare this to 10 times worse than chemotherapy. I have a sloshing at the speed of light in my brain,the highs and lows are so bad that it feels like bugs crawling in my veins! I am so dizzy and spinning that I can barely hold it together.If I had known that this is a common complaints-87%--I never would have took this stuff.
Good luck to you.
Effexor XR has been most beneficial to me as well as johnniboi so aptly stated and I don't need to iterate again). Currently I am rationing my dosage until I can get back on some semblence of health care (our US system can really screw up those of us on a med regimine). Not an ideal situation by any means, as I also was taking strattera (had only been on it a month, and cannot honestly speak to its effectiveness). Effexor helps with my anxiety, depression, and elements of focus - but due to my "rationing" the maximum beneficial affects are not shown.
Genie, I hope you're talking to your doc about your withdrawal symptoms, as they sound too intense for every day withdrawal from one's meds. My experience with adderal withdrawal was awful, but your description is frightening. My headaches that paralleled migraines and dizziness were tame in comparison to your description. Hope your doc can help you through this in some way.
my brother was hospitalised after he stopped taking effexor.. the withdrawls were so bad that he had a complete breakdown.. he was in hospital for over a month..
effexor is a powerful addictive anti depressant and needs care when coming off it..
Yikes!!! Good to hear/know, I guess. I had to come off Oxycontin after 9 mos. (for a hip replacement) & my psych was "afraid to warn me of the withdrawl symptoms" for fear I would "imagine" them. I never knew I was essentially coming off of Heroin and that was why I wanted to jump out of my skin & stretch my bones!
I'm glad that Effexor is working great for you. Be sure to have your blood pressure checked though. It can cause 10 to 15 mmHg increase which is dangerous for people who have hypertension.
effexorator, he wasn't on it for an overly long period of time.. a few months maybe?? worked well while he was taking them but gained a lot of weight..as i stated in a previous post, he took these for severe depression, not adhd..
There should not be clinical withdrawal from ADDerall.
There may be psychological withdrawal, but then that's why we're on it.
Effexor is sneaky. I was on it for 3 years @ 600 mg/day. When I'd run out on a trip, I'd trip. I'd have to call the doctor and he'd wire me a 'script, but the insurance wouldn't pay the /day, so I would, and I couldn't write it off 'cuz my per diem was only . Then the side Effex were life threatening. Hyperperfusion, so I was on hyocyathine to counteract that. Hypertension, so I was on Indural to mitigate that. Hyposex, so I was on viagra to counteract that. HyperFAT, cuz it laid the wait on me. So, doc finally took me off it to Cymbalta, and the spins I had with the detox weaning was dangerous. I had 3 fender benders while on Effexor. My bp skied to 190/150. When I was finally off it, but still on the indural, my bp torped to 90/50. ("He's dead, Jim").
Be careful, and learn to take your own bp. Oh, it is not a mainline AD/HD med. It is used if depression is a co-morbid condition, but won't stand alone unless the AD is slight.
UsesVenlafaxine is used primarily for the treatment of depression, generalized anxiety disorder, and social anxiety disorder in adults. It is known as one of the most activating or energizing of the newer antidepressants. While this can be helpful to some, as many depressed patients report feeling exhausted and unmotivated, to others it poses the risk of increased anxiety and agitation.
Venlafaxine is an effective antidepressant for many persons; however, it seems to be especially effective for those with treatment-resistant depression. Some of these persons have taken two or more antidepressants prior to venlafaxine with no relief. It has also been found to reduce the severity of 'hot-flashes' in menopausal women
Mechanism of ActionVenlafaxine is a bicyclic antidepressant, and is usually categorized as a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, but it has been referred to as a serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor.[3] It works by blocking the transporter "reuptake" proteins for key neurotransmitters affecting mood, thereby leaving more active in the synapse. At low dosages, venlafaxine blocks serotonin reuptake, similarly to a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). At medium dosages, venlafaxine blocks the reuptake of norepinephrine as well as serotonin. At about 225 mg/day, venlafaxine blocks the reuptake of serotonin and norepinephrine, and blocks dopamine reuptake at doses of 300 mg/day or higher.
As with most antidepressants, lack of sexual desire can be a very disturbing side-effect for some persons. Venlafaxine can raise blood pressure at high doses, so it is usually not the drug of choice for persons with high blood pressure. Venlafaxine should not be used in children. Caution should also be used in those with a seizure disorder.
Venlafaxine is sometimes used for the treatment of depressive phases of bipolar disorder. However, this has some potential danger, as venlafaxine can induce mania, mixed states, rapid cycling and/or psychosis in some bipolar patients, particularly if they are not also being treated with a mood stabilizer.
Common side effects include:
Nausea Dizziness Sleepiness Sexual Dysfunction Sweating Dry mouth Vivid Dreams Increase of Blood PressureLess-Common side-effects include:
Gas or stomach pain Abnormal vision Nervousness Insomnia Loss of appetite Constipation Confusion/agitation Tremor Drowsiness VertigoVenlafaxine is somewhat notorious for its potentially severe withdrawal symptoms upon sudden discontinuation. (The recommended discontinuation is a drop of 35 mg a week, and sudden stops are usually advised only in emergencies.) Wyeth-Ayerst refers to these severe withdrawal symptoms in its literature as "severe discontinuation syndrome". These have a tendency to be stronger than the withdrawal effects of many antidepressants, but are similar in nature to those of tricyclic antidepressants and SSRIs such as Paroxetine (PaxilŽ). These effects may include headache, nausea, fatigue, and "brain shivers". Rarer withdrawal symptoms include shaking legs, dizziness and dysphoria. "Brain shivers" have been described as electric-like shocks in the brain causing pounding headaches and disorientation, increasing over time before abating. Although "Brain shivers" aren't exactly painful they can severe enough to be disabling. Antidepressant withdrawal effects do not indicate addiction, but are rather the results of the brain attempting to reach neurochemical stability. These can be minimalized or avoided by tapering off of the medication over a period of weeks. However, studies by Wyeth-Ayerst and others have reported very rare cases of withdrawal symptoms severe enough to require permanent use. In some of these cases, successful discontinuation was eventually achieved by the addition of fluoxetine, which was later discontinued itself without difficulty.
Brookelea;
How long was your brother on Effexor? Do you happen to know how strong his dosage was? I'm on my second pill so far (37.5mg) I am starting to see my attention span narrowing and coming more in focus. But nothing extreme. I do seem to get very jittery though. I assume that will wear down over time as my body adjusts. I'm starting to question if I will need the 75mg dosage. Especially with some of these withdrawl issues.
Hi,
I'm just starting my way down the road to beat my ADHD and depression. I have my first box of EFFEXOR XR starting the first week with 37.5 then to follow 75mg, though my doctor assures me I have nothing to worry about. Before I trust her opinion though, I've learned to get as much information on my own first before trusting someone else. I look forward to seeing results like JonnyBoi seen. I don't like the idea of having to take a pill for the rest of my life to cope with the spytoms. Not too mention what "could" happen if you want to quit using it. I wonder if that happens to more people. So is it worth taking it? I want to cure the issue, but I don't want to make matters worse later. Just curious what peoples thoughts are.
Thanks
YEAH . . . Now I want to know the withdrawls from Adderall XR. I know everyone posts that you won't withdraw from it because it's in & out of your system quickly, but how can it be so different from Effexor??? davidOrnado, johnnyboi--where are you? Help!Well Terri, I had some mean headaches with lightheadedness when I stopped using adderal xr. My sense though is that everyone reacts differently depending on so many factors...I felt that I had plateaud (using a noun as a verb here) with adderal, so the docs are seeing how strattera does in conjunction with the effexor. I'm unconvinced of strattera's benefits as compared to adderal - like keeping me focused. However, since I used it only for 1 month the jury may still be out....
I sure know when I'm not on my meds, and how "lost in space" I am without my meds. I"m hoping in the next month my life stabilizes, particularly in the health arena so I can feel slightly more in synch than I currently do
Effexor was horrible for me. It gave me extreme constipation, night sweats, and I couldn't stay asleep.A slight correction:
Effexor improperly used over 75mg sounds like it can be dangerous
I was on 600mg Effexor daily (almost 10 times 75mg/day) and it helped me a lot. It was when I went off it, or was weaned off it, that some problems arose. The Offexor Effex.
As for the side effects, not all users will have the same reactions, if at all.
My side effects were mitigated by other medications, which in the absence of alternatives was worth it for the effects Effexor effected.
Ok, I want to post my week 1 results incase this may be of some help to someone else. I was diagnosed as having anxiety both social and genralized, and ADHD. I've taken the first 7 days of Effexor XR, the first 3 days were terrible. I had felt very jittery and had a hard time sleeping through the night. Also my sex drive has dwindled. The plus side is the anxiety is pretty much gone and I'm able to focus a little more. I've been cutting back on how much I take it, per my doctors permission. I will take one pill every other day and my body seems to have accepted it more now and for the first time in a long time I'm feeling normal. The sex drive still is not where it was though. I think Effexor can be a good drug in small doses but anything over 75MG sounds like it can be dangerous. I hope this helps someone who wants to know what Effexor "can do". It just depends on the person.