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410475 tn?1262942367

effexor, today for ptsd

I think I might have post tramatic stress, the dr put me on effexor today. I am suppose to start it in the morning. does anyone take this, what should I expect?
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Avatar universal
I am using it at the moment for clinical depression (sometimes referred to as melancholic depression). It works well in helping someone dig their way out of depression that has a stress component (in my case workstress from longterm overwork).

Effexor (aka venlafaxine) has two modes of action: for lower doses of around 150mg/day it acts as an SSRI; for higher doses like 300mg/day it acts as both a serotonin and a norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor. High doses tend to help more with stress and anxiety, as far as I can tell from my personal experience.

The first few step ups on effexor caused me some transient side effects, which faded away after a few months.

My psychriatist said that getting off of effexor is *strongly* advised to do it in small steps (say 37.5mg/day reductions), and to wait 4--6 weeks before the next reduction. This avoids the worst of the withdrawal and also allows the patient to see if depression is coming back or not as they reduce dosage. Personally I would risk 75mg/day reduction while above 150mg/day, but stick to 37.5mg/day reduction for each step down from 150mg/day. When it comes to antidepressants, always get doctor advice before implementing a reduction program.

As always, my comments do not constitute doctor's advice --- always see a doctor before changing any medication for stress or depression.
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Avatar universal
i was on effexor for depression and bi-polar, for about 4 yrs.  the first two were great.  but, as with any drug, your tolerance builds up after awhile and you need your dose adjusted.  my doctor had me on 300mg a day for a longtime.  i believe that i was too medicated,( because he had me on wellbutrin also.)  the only thing that i have bad to say about being on it, was the withdrawl from coming off of it.  i was physically ill for a few weeks.  and i also had the worst vertigo i've ever had.  i found out the hard way , if your doctor weans you off properly, things go a lot smoother and it wasn't that bad, coming off it the second time.( the first time i ran out before going back to the doc & thought i'd just try to stay off it.  i couldn't do it.  that's why i had a second withdrawl.)   all in all though, i'd have to say it did work well for me.  just thought i'd give you the warning of the withdrawl.  however it did stop working after awhile and i switched to cmbalta.  i'm pretty sure they're pretty similar.  this one's working pretty good---for now.
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