# Venlafaxine/Effexor



## Toedoe (Sep 19, 2007)

I started taking is on Monday. My dosage is one 75mg tab for six days, then two 75mg tabs for six days until I reach three tabs a day. After 5 days so far on 75mg, I have had slight headaches, NO appetite, dry mouth, slight trouble sleeping and sweating, drowsiness, my pupils have been dilated to 2 or 3 times their normal size, blurred vision (but that could be on account of my pupils), dizziness and a tingling sensation on my skin ( I can run my hand through my hair and my hair feels like it's moving around on my scalp.)and I yawn constantly and if I'm not yawning I'm clenching my jaws and grinding my teeth.

I have had side effects from drugs before but not to this extent. This has me worried, especially my dilated pupils, and I am thinking about call Dr. and getting switched to something else, anything else but this. Has anyone else had this severe of a reaction to this drug?


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## BetaBoy90 (Jan 5, 2010)

Side effects for me was just feeling a little sick, no nausea but had a bad feeling for the first week or so, and mild diarrhea for the first couple days. I had been started off really slowly though. I was on 37.5mg for 7 days, than bumped up to 75mg for about 2 months. Than I hit 150 for about another 2 months. Now I'm at 220mg effexor..... Don't take my word on that, it is over 200mg though. Tbh for me it seems to be working great, I'm so much more confident socially and it does a great job blocking out the negative thoughts, for the most part.


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## Ali3 (May 8, 2010)

I know what you mean toedoe. I'm on 37.5 mg for 4 days and I'm supposed to go up to 75 mg tomorrow. I don't like the symptoms I am feeling at all which are identical to yours. This is my first time on medication so I don't know the difference between others. I think I just want to get off it since the coming off is the worse part.


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## pita (Jan 17, 2004)

The jaw-clenching and pupil-dilation were totally ridiculous for me while I was taking effexor. I also had insane dreams every single night and experienced discontinuation symptoms if I missed my dose by as little as an hour. The effexor didn't actually 'work' until I was taking 225 mg, but at 225 mg, I found the side effects to be pretty unmanageable.

Oh, and NIGHT SWEATS. I never got that crap in my life until I started taking effexor. Even after I stopped taking that crap, the night sweats continued. Even now, several years later, I still get them sometimes.


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## korey (Apr 25, 2006)

The pupil dilation and drowsiness never went away for me until I stopped taking Effexor.


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## skipjames2k (May 8, 2010)

toedoe:

your side effects are just like mine. for me, the side effects went away on their own after a few weeks -- and then the positive benefits were VERY apparent. if you do decide to give up, however, make sure you discontinue gradually and on your doctor's advice.


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## Thomasjs81 (Jan 3, 2009)

The first few days on Effexor, I felt mildly high; then a few days of feeling the brain zaps. Since then I've had a few night sweats but that's pretty much the extent of the side effects and I've been on it for 15 months. I love this drug.


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## Makaveli (Jul 15, 2009)

I couldn't handle the side affects of effexor. It made me dizzy, eyes dilated and brain zaps. That was on 75. I then went on 150 and it was hard to cope and I was anxious and edgy. My psych said to stay on 150 but it was too hard to handle. If you miss a dose then your ****ed and since I can be lazy it wasn't the best.

Meds are so bloody expensive. 35 bucks for a pack of 28 celexa is a ripoff. This stuff will cost the avg person up to 50,000 over their life just to manage a ****ing mental illness.



korey said:


> The pupil dilation and drowsiness never went away for me until I stopped taking Effexor.


I had a look at how many meds you've tried and you definately have given them a good go. But what has worked, if any? This is the thing I hate abt drugs for anxiety and depression it's a lottery and I don't want to be a guinea pig and try all these bloody meds and deal with the side affects and weaning off and on all the damn time.

Nothings really consistently worked for me and at times I feel like taking nothing and just living like a depressed and anxious freak.

The meds really make you emotionless.


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