Re: Which meds next - please help
Originally Posted by
welshdory
Hi all, I moved to venlafaxine 150mg 2 months ago after being on escitralopram for years.
...Main side effects on ven is jittery, feeling flat/numb and emotional and bloating/constipation.
Antidepressants (ADs) typically take up the 12 weeks to kick in and this is especially so with depression which tends to take longer to resolve with SSRIs than anxiety (despite what it says on the box, venlafaxine is really only a SSRI, not a SNRI). The dose is also moderate. The recommended max is 375mg/day so there is still considerable dosing headroom. That said, the side-effects may persist long-term so switching to another AD might be a better option than upping the venlafaxine dose. Have you discussed the side-effects with your GP? If so what did the GP suggest?
I've put on a few stone over the years so ideally one that doesn't cause weight gain.
Then you may be interested in: How to control weight gain when prescribing antidepressants (PDF). It is written for doctors, but is a fairly straight forward explanation of the issues and how to deal with them.
I'm having bereavement counselling but would like a med suggestion that might help to
Fluoxetine and sertraline are likely to be the best SSRI choices. While fluoxetine is a little less likely to cause weight gain than sertraline it isn't the best SSRI to switch to from venlafaxine. The problem is fluoxetine has a very long half-life and venlafaxine has the shortest which complicates the switch so I'd try sertraline first. The usually weight neutral SSRI fluvoxamine (Luvox) is another possibly, however, it interacts with many meds which can be a problem if you're taking meds for other conditions.
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