# Effexor for IBS



## Charbeaner (Jun 2, 2003)

My GI doc yesterday prescribed Effexor XR to see if it would help my chronic "D". This morning I took 20mg of Bentyl and my Lomotil. Then an hour later took the 75mg Effexor XR. After about two hours, I had some inflammed-type gut pain and had definite nausea for awhile. Has anyone taken this and are these side effects transitory? I also take a .50 Ativan at nite.Thanx for your help.


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## california123 (Jun 8, 2003)

I would be surprised if the Effexor made you feel bad that quickly, but who knows. When I started the Effexor ER, the only side effect I had was short headaches that went away in 10 minutes, and those subsided after a couple of weeks. If you stick with it, odds are the problem will go away as your body adjusts. Effexor is supposed to be constipating. PS I also take .25 of Xanax morning and night for extra help with my anxiety. Take care.


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## Charbeaner (Jun 2, 2003)

I have never been able to take SSRI anti-depressants--they all give me terrible gut pain. I have even tried starting with just a drop first with the ones that come in liquid form. I am hoping to be able to "tuff it out" and maybe this will stop the "D" and I won't have to take all these pills. It makes alittle nervous to take bentyl 3 x a day, Lomotil 2 or 3 times a day, hormones, Ativan and now Effexor. Did you go off any meds after the Xanax and Effexor worked for you? Were you on a bunch more meds when you first started the Antidepressants?Thanx for your help.


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## california123 (Jun 8, 2003)

I wasn't on any medication when I started taking the Xanax and now along with the Effexor XR those are the only two meds I take.


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## juck (Nov 6, 2003)

hi there i have been on 37.5 effexor for 12 days now for ibs and anxiety it seems to help the anxiety a bit but i still have nausea and gas from it i think it it fading a bit now though.i also quit smoking 3 months ago and it put me through the wringer(the quit),anyway i am going to ride the effexor out another week or two.


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## Charbeaner (Jun 2, 2003)

Hi:I took my 2nd Effexor today and also had a decent-sized breakfast first. This second pill has not bothered me as much as the first one yesterday. I will give it a few more days to see if I adjust.I did wake up at 4:30 a.m. this morning and could not go back to sleep. I see that insomnia can be a side effect, but hopefully it will subside. Has anyone else experienced this?Juck: How are you doing with yours?


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## IBSNemesis2 (Mar 30, 2003)

I've been on Effexor XR (started at 75mg a day and went up to 150mg) for about 3 years now.I had weird side effects for the first couple of weeks (tingling in my fingers and felt like I was going to vomit every time I yawned) but that all passed. It really helped my anxiety and negative rumination. I'm going to the psychiatrist on Monday because I had a panic attack the other day and think I may need some tranqs but otherwise I've had a good experience with it.


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## Charbeaner (Jun 2, 2003)

Moira:Hope your doc can help with the panic attacks. I took my 3rd pill just now with food and hope I can stick with this and go off some of the other meds. I have a headache and have experienced nausea and cramping, but I have 4 days off work and I'm going to try to stick it out. I am really having trouble with insomnia with this pill (Effexor XR) and am up at 4:30 a.m. every day now. Do you think that will pass eventually?Thanx for your input and help.


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## IBSNemesis2 (Mar 30, 2003)

Chad:Some people do experience some insomnia when they start on effexor but it usually goes away within a couple of weeks. It takes your body some time to adjust to the medication.Hang in there buddy.


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## kas (Apr 24, 2000)

I have been takin Effexor for some months now. I really like it. It is the only anti-anxiety drug that has set well with me. Most of them make me feel grouchy. Also, I guess I am opposite of most people because I take mine at night. It helps me relax to sleep better. Go figure. Sometimes it can take up to 2 weeks to know if a medication is going to work. Everyone's body is different and only you can tell if something is right for you. Good luck!!!!!!!!!!


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## Charbeaner (Jun 2, 2003)

It's interesting how we are all different. If I took my Effexor at night I would get no sleep at all. Actually the med makes me alittle nervous/high strung. Do you think this side effect can go away as well as the insomnia in time? Today is only day 4 for me. I sure do have to take it with a bunch of food and it tears my gut up. Even with the food, I still feel the cramps a bit.Is anyone out there on Effexor, and also Bentyl, Lomotil or Ativan. I really feel that I'm on too much stuff, but I guess I have to wait to see if the Effexor will be at all constipating.Just to live a normal life again would be so wonderful.Char


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## Chezzy (Oct 12, 2003)

Hi







I'm on my fourth day with effexor and also take benytyl. I take the effexor (75mg) at night. I have no problem sleeping but then again I take sleeping tablets (zopiclone). The tears seem to be drying up now but I have had the shakes and been feeling s**t but I think this is because I have come off the Remeron (60mg)which the doctor has replaced with effexor. I am hopeful about effexor because I have read many positive comments on the forum


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## Charbeaner (Jun 2, 2003)

Hi --I sure have had alot of good things about effexor as well. Also, this is the first time I have been able to stay on an SSRI this long (a whole 4 days). I take 75 mg (sustained release). I took it about 8:00 a.m with alot of food and right about now I am extremely nervous like I took a diet pill. I hope this goes away and I can sleep at nite as well. I still can't believe I am taking an SSRI and not in agony. I have not had any relief with my "D", tho. If I stopped my Bentyl and Lomotil I would be in trouble. I sure hope I don't have to take all these pills forever.


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## IBSNemesis2 (Mar 30, 2003)

Charlease give the Effexor time to adjust to your body. I also felt sort of hyper-vigilant when I first went on it. Like I was nervous and my eyes were opened too wide. But those symptoms all subsided in a few weeks and then I felt better than ever before.


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## Charbeaner (Jun 2, 2003)

Moiraid the Effexor help at all with "d"? He said he gave it to me because it can make you constipated and he is trying to stop my "d" and hoping this will help. I have anxiety as well and maybe one will help the other.


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## LyndaG (Nov 27, 2002)

Hi Charbeaner -I've been taking Effexor XR (75mg) for about a month and a half now. (first thing in the morning after my L-Glutamine.)It's absolutely the best anti-depressant I've tried so far!I was on Luvox for about a year...didn't quite resolve the depression & certainly had a negative effect on my libido.Tried Remeron for about 2 months....horrible experience...just not the drug for me. Made me really irritable & more depressed, along with never feeling 'awake' or rested...and the added insult of increasing my appetite...felt like a fat, lazy lump!







Anyway...please try to stick with the Effexor XR for at least a month if you possibly can...the side effects really do wind down.For about the first 3 weeks I had dilated pupils, problems with not being able to sleep till really late & then up early, and I felt 'buzzed' most of the time. Sometimes if I'd stand up too quickly I'd feel a bit dizzy.But these things all gradually went away...I sleep fine now & awake feeling really refreshed and the 'buzzy' feeling isn't there now. And the reason I started trying new AD's in the first place...my libido is starting to return to normal! Yipee!!







As for my IBS-D...<knocking on wood here>...things have been (dare I say it) very normal for at least a month now! Mind you, I haven't had any recent crisis or stress-inducer incidents lately...but heck, when those happen I find that absolutely nothing works till it cycles through anyway.I know we're all different & our IBS & the effects of med's are all so individual as well...but try to give the Effexor a fair shot...I truly hope it works as well for you as it has for me.Good luck & take care,Lynda


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## Charbeaner (Jun 2, 2003)

Hi all: Went downtown (Chicago) with friends today and it is day 5 of the Effexor XR. I felt AWFUL. I am nauseated (not alot) and have no appetite (had two pieces of bread, some water and about two bites of chicken for lunch). Have any of you experienced that with this drug? I am really trying to stick it out, but ALSO I don't think it is making me constipated in the least--in fact maybe the opposite. Did any of you experience that in the beginning? I am willing to stick with it, but I truly felt better before going on it. I will try to stay on it for the 30 days, tho.


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