effexor for bipolar

Another thing that caught my eye is you saying Effexor is not good for Bipolar. I was diagnosed with Bipolar 4 years before the Dr. put me on the Effexor! I bet that was part of the reason I had such a hard time coming off of them IT WAS THE WORST!

I have never taken an antidepressant before. At age 73 can I take Effexor XR 37.5 for the rest of my life so that I do not go through withdrawal having to stop?

I've been taking Effexor/Venlafaxine since I was 23 (I'm going to be 30 in May). The medication was prescribed to me when I was still diagnosed as having Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). However, when I was 27, I got the diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder instead and that resonated a lot more. I noticed that my mental health improved quite considerably after that diagnosis and once I was put on mood stabilizers. My psychiatrist didn't take me off the antidepressants however.

I was recently prescribed Lamictal for depression/anxiety related symptoms. My psychiatrist thought it was worth a try because it doesn't have some of the side effects like the Effexor XR I've been taking for 5 years. Effexor works for my anxiety/depression, but I don't like the sexual side effects. Lamictal, though, seems to only be approved for treating bipolar disorder and epilepsy. I have never been diagnosed with bipolar disorder nor do I have epilepsy.

I have been taking effexor 37.5 for 6 weeks now,and besides the funny feeling i had the first week I'm feeling much better. My anxiety and stress have subsided and i feel calm. I am very concerned with my recent gambling habits and asked my doctor if it was a side effect of the medication. She told me i am just making poor decisions and it is not due to the meds. I took her word for it and said to myself that it is a decision and decided i would no longer gamble.

I am weaning off Effexor and quit after one wk at 37.5mg. I ended up in the ER with a MAJOR panic attack. I am having all of the side effects, dizziness, flu-like symptoms also. When I began weaning from 225mg Effexor I began 20mg of Prozac which I had taken several years ago. I was 3 weeks into the prozac when all of these symptoms came on. Does that mean that the Prozac isnt working bc I had such a big panic attack. I have had 3 in the last 3 days and am living in fear of the next one.

I have been dealing with medications for bipolar for twenty years now. Although everyone's bipolar is unique to them, I have bipolar I with psychotic features that only appear when I am medication free. I have been on a combo of lithium and geodon now for the good part of ten years, and a high dose of neurontin was added a while back to treat mania, anxiety and fibromyalgia.

Did you get tested for bipolar? I did, over a period of two weeks with several visits a week. That is how you know for sure. I "passed" all of the cognitive tests that indicate bipolar disorder is present have five out or the seven manic symptoms and all of the depressive symptoms. I have all of mania except sleeping around and compulsive spending.

t taken most of them. I did take Effexor for a while, but had to go off of it b/c of digestive problems. But wanted to let you know that I completely understand the anxiety disorder. I've ended up in the ER b/c of an anxiety attack before. The thing with anxiety attacks is that if you start worrying about having one you will. I have had them in the local grocery store, my bank, and at Wal-Mart. Simply trying to go back into those places sent me into major panic attacks.

I can speak for 2 of the drugs, the Effexor and the Depakote. If he has only been on the Depakote for 5 days I don't believe he will have issues coming off. The Effexor does have a withdrawal but 75 mg. is a small dose, I take 300 mg. However, I would suspect he will have some withdrawal. My concern is he will go right back into a depession or a Bipolar episode quickly.

Lately i have no patience, bored, less concentration, restless so i assume it smells ADD. I have a simple question i had mania before so dx Bipolar. I read they overlap or it's confused for ADD.

I did take Depakoate (Epilim is another name for it) for a while and although it worked on mania it did not work on depression but that's common and probably why you were prescribed venlafaxine (another name for Effexor) which is an anti-depressent. As for paranoia, Seroquel is a very effective antipsychotic (for many people although each person reacts differently to each medication) with mood stabilization properties and while I could tolerate it I found it quite helpful.

Wow I agree thats a lot..I am 51 and I have been Bipolar for over 30 years..and I have taken Effexor and Klonipin and a few others for that long...and I just dont feel right!!..This week I am going to go see the Doctor and have him take me off my Effexor ..I have read so much about it...I will be having with drawalls..and man I dont like this at all. I agree to many is to many...I hope you find something that you will be able to deal with...research all of them...ask questions!!.....

Hi there, I am on seroquel and effexor, I am also on epilim for my bipolar, for me the combination works really well although my seroquel dose is 50 mg, i think there are two strengths of seroquel. But I find that the combination of seroquel, effexor 150 and epilim 800 after a lot of tweaking, crying, mania, thrashing about finally works. i have noticed though that i have stacked on the weight, but after some research have found that these meds can do that.

I've been on effexor xr for years, and recently added abilify. I've been diagnosed with major depression and generalized anxiety, but I think I have bipolar II due to episodes of hypomania. Anyway, I haven't been on abilify very long (a month or so), but I have not noticed any side effects. Possibly excitability, but I am not sure. I switched my dose from the prescribed qhs to qam.

Yes, Effexor reduces sexual desire. I tried it and I knew that. For that, I switched it. I'm now on Pristiq which is Effexor metabolite. Pristiq is less side effects. Both may work differently. For me, Pristiq work better. Pristiq may also reduce sexual desire but not like Effexor. Also, it work differently from one to another. Google on Pristiq if it available where you live.

I have 2 questions: I'm Bipolar and I've been on medication for nearly 9 years. The one medication that I've been on for the duration of this period is Effexor XR. My first question is: Are there any known long-term side-efffects, particularly regarding inertia? Because I have absolutely no motivation; it's been like this for years. I come from a family of extremely motivated people, and even when I'm feeling great I'm still totally unmotivated, and often tired.

t being non-compliant may cause issues with your therapy. Effexor can activate Bipolar hypo/mania. It sounds like it has triggered that. When I was on Cymbalta, I was a ball of anger, extremely anxious and stressed out and even with a strong sleep med, couldn't sleep at all.

s a confusing time and its a challenge getting used to the medications..especially when you are on a few.. I would be cautious with the Effexor, anti depressants for Bipolar aren't a great idea as they can cause mania, mixed episodes and rapid cycling, where moods change very quickly. I don't want to confuse you, some pdocs treat with AD's but my pdoc won't. Effexor is brilliant for depression ( so I have heard ) but some of the side effects can be a bit heavy..

I know I come from a land down under and I dont know if that relates to my possible diagnosis of manic depression - bipolar???? I dont really know if I ahve this or not?? All i know is that August last year I had a really bad experiance which resulted in super stress, insomnia, etc etc etc and I was put on effexor tabs up to 300mg plus stillnox sleeping tabs, and I reviewed my life from childhood to current, seen specialists,doctors etc etc, off work 2nd time now in 12mths.

Does this program provide help for those afflicted with Bipolar disorder and Borderline personality disorder?

t sound like you are bipolar, and I question the use of Effexor anyway. Effexor is extremely hard to get off of, so I wouldn't recommend it if you don't need it. It's I highly suggest seeing another psychiatrist asap. If you haven't had any bipolar symptoms, and haven't had extreme highs and lows, I don't understand why he is trying to convince you that you're bipolar. I can relate to the weight gain. It *****!

I am on Abilify and Effexor and have not taken Effexor for two days and am having a meltdown today. I really do not like Seroquel nor Abilify since I have so many side effects like swollen neck glands, stiff neck, manic mania that lasts 24/7 and insomnia.

I took Effexor for quite awhile. For depression/anxiety. I sweated constantly, loss of appetite, and lowered my libido. I just recently saw an ad for Abilify I was curious about that medication. Depending on how chemically imbalanced your body is the Effexor for me worked in a matter of a few days I could tell the differnce. The doctor says it would take up too 3-weeks for me to notice a change, but I was seeing a difference as well as my family in a matter of a few days....

She is on a decent medication regimen except as the psychiatrist is probably aware that for a person with bipolar Effexor or any anti-depressent (Wellbutrin is the least likely) can often worsen mania so you might want to talk to him about seeing if that might be worsening things.

Effexor for bipolar

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