Venlafaxine update

[Lycankitty]

hi all
A couple of weeks ago I asked if venlafaxine would effect my sex drive and cause me to gain weight. I though I'd give an update.

Sex drive seems to be fine, I do get turned on and we're still having sex so... yay.
As for the weight gain, it's the opposite. I've actually lost 9lbs in weight but I've also been watching what I eat and getting a little more exercise. Which is nice because depression made me gain loads of weight.

I'm only on venlafaxine modified release 37.5mg for the next three weeks until I see my doctor. It definitely needs to be upped (like my psychiatrist wanted) as I'm still anxious. I do feel like it's making a little difference, I've gone from extreme 11/10 anxiety to an 8/10 anxiety with it being worse in the morning. I know it takes some time to fully work so things can only get better. I hope. I've even been looking at college courses that start later in the year. I'll apply in a couple of months once the meds are fully in my system and I know if they're helping or not but I'm hopefully for the first time in years.

Thanks for reading. If you have any questions please feel free to ask.

[ana]

Thank you for letting us know about how you're getting on with the medication. I've recently started Venlafaxine as Escitalopram wasn't enough to keep my depersonalisation and panic attacks in check. I'm just wondering whether or not depersonalisation has been an issue for you and if it has,is Venlafaxine helping you feel better?

[MyNameIsTerry]

That's great to hear!

You are on such a low dose that any improvement is a good sign it can help you as some wouldn't feel anything that low. There is plenty of scope for increase and it's really only acting as a SSRI until you get to 150mg.