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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 6 of 6. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Holly on November 27, 2000, at 21:35:13
My husband of 10 years was in an accident and died May99 at the age of 32. This left my life in a mess. I am 31 and am raising our daughter alone. I never had problems with depression and coping until his death. I refused to be on medication for the first 8 months after his death. I was so numb anyway. After falling into the deep, dark depression hole last January, I finally went to a doctor. It was that or lose myself forever. He put me on Celexa. Until today, I have taken 10-20mg a day (I am very drug sensitive) since then and it helped me tremendously. The only problem is I have gained around 25 pounds since Feb. Today my doctor gave me Effexor XR to try. I am to take the 37.5mg daily for 2-3 weeks then have a check-up to see if I need to go to the 75mg. My problem is that I am VERY drug sensitive and after reading about all the side effects from this web site, I am scared to death to start it. My life does not allow time to try something out. I can not take the risk of being sick for days or not being able to cope due to side effects. I am a mother and teach high school English part time and am currently working on my masters at the local university, not to mention work around 20 hours at another job. I need some honest advice. Do I start this or just stay fat and happy on Celexa? I think my doctor put me on Effexor because of the weight gain and lack of energy I have been experiencing lately. But a lot of people write about being sleepy all the time!????????????Help!!!!
Posted by Shell on November 27, 2000, at 22:07:59
In reply to Need Some Advice, posted by Holly on November 27, 2000, at 21:35:13
> My husband of 10 years was in an accident and died May99 at the age of 32. This left my life in a mess. I am 31 and am raising our daughter alone. I never had problems with depression and coping until his death. I refused to be on medication for the first 8 months after his death. I was so numb anyway. After falling into the deep, dark depression hole last January, I finally went to a doctor. It was that or lose myself forever. He put me on Celexa. Until today, I have taken 10-20mg a day (I am very drug sensitive) since then and it helped me tremendously. The only problem is I have gained around 25 pounds since Feb. Today my doctor gave me Effexor XR to try. I am to take the 37.5mg daily for 2-3 weeks then have a check-up to see if I need to go to the 75mg. My problem is that I am VERY drug sensitive and after reading about all the side effects from this web site, I am scared to death to start it. My life does not allow time to try something out. I can not take the risk of being sick for days or not being able to cope due to side effects. I am a mother and teach high school English part time and am currently working on my masters at the local university, not to mention work around 20 hours at another job. I need some honest advice. Do I start this or just stay fat and happy on Celexa? I think my doctor put me on Effexor because of the weight gain and lack of energy I have been experiencing lately. But a lot of people write about being sleepy all the time!????????????Help!!!!
First of all, please let me tell you how sorry I am that you have lost your husband. My husband is the same age, and I can only imagine what you must have been through in the past year and a half. I think the fact that you have survived what you have AND are raising a child who has lost her father AND go to grad school AND work TWO jobs all while dealing with depression is nothing short of amazing.
I would hope that you do not let all of what you read on this board influence you negatively towards a medication your doctor thinks may be helpful for you. When reading on this board, I always try to keep in mind that most of the people posting are the ones who are having problems with side effects and/or their medications are not working for them. You rarely hear from those whose medication helps them with few or no side effects. They have little incentive to post here; they are probably too busy doing other things.
Having said that, I do acknowledge that all medications have side effects for at least some of the people who take them. The trick is finding one that works for you that has either no side effects at all (yes, this can happen) or at least the side effects are tolerable. I wish there were an easier, painless way to find the best medication the first time. I still haven't found it (although there is some debate about the methods of Dr. Jensen, who has written about how he can find the right medication the first time...lots of posts about that in the archives).
I do think that Effexor XR tends to be more activating and less likely to cause weight gain, however, this tends to be at higher dosages. At low doses, it is similar to the other SSRIs. For me (but it is different for everyone), Effexor doesn't make any difference in energy level or appetite/weight gain, but also doesn't have side effects. I had the best results with both energy and weight loss while on Prozac; a relative lost lots on Paxil (which is supposed to be associated with weight gain). Everyone is different and you really won't know what will work until you try.
If the thought of a switch really concerns you, you may want to continue the Celexa since it works so well for you. You didn't say if you are still gaining or if the gaining had stopped. Sometimes, once your body adjusts to the medication, the weight gain may taper off. You may find the 25 extra pounds to be worth the peace of mind for now; perhaps later after you are done with school, you could consider a switch.
I'm sorry I can't really give you a better answer. You really know what you can and cannot tolerate better than I or your doctor do. I think you will make the right decision for you. If you change your mind, there is no reason why you can't make (or undo) a change then.
Shell
Posted by NikkiT2 on November 28, 2000, at 4:24:07
In reply to Need Some Advice, posted by Holly on November 27, 2000, at 21:35:13
Just another little thing to help you make your decision. put on 30lb on Paxil, and have since moved to Effexor - I haven't lost an ounce!! Luckily, Effexor works for me, where as paxil made me worse.
I think fat and happy is alot better than anything else. I did have quite a few start up side effects fromt he effexor, but also started to feel mentally alot better quite quickly. If the celexa is working, I'd stick to it!!
hope thats some jhelp
Nikki xx
Posted by Noa on November 28, 2000, at 16:50:14
In reply to Re: Need Some Advice » Holly, posted by NikkiT2 on November 28, 2000, at 4:24:07
I, too want to express my condolences--you have really been hit with a terrible tragedy. But you sound like someone who is very determined to keep on going.
If the only reason to switch is the weight gain, I would be cautious about it. There have been reports here of weight gain with effexxor, too. I have gained a lot of weight while on effexor, but I cannot necessarily attribute it to the effexor.
If you are stable and well (except for the weight gain) on celexa, I would caution to be conservative about changing. Finding a med that really addresses the depression and that you can tolerate is not something to let go of lightly.
Posted by natg on November 29, 2000, at 0:37:03
In reply to Re: Need Some Advice, posted by Noa on November 28, 2000, at 16:50:14
Dear Holly:
I have lost both my parents in the last 5 years and a husband to drug- addiction. I'm so sorry for your loss, I know how hard it can be.
As far as advice regarding weight gain on meds. everybody is different. However, my personal experience has been the following, I have gained weight on all the AD's I've been on (Paxil, Prozac, Effexor, and Zoloft) BUT the good news is that it does taper off in time. I'm finally able to lose weight after having gained about 20- 25 lbs in the last 3 years or so.
I personally would stick to Celexa. Like Noa suggested you can always make a switch later on when you are not undergoing so much stress.Just my opinion.
I wish you all the best. Hang in there, it does get better!Nat
Posted by Jen111111111 on November 29, 2000, at 20:54:31
In reply to Need Some Advice, posted by Holly on November 27, 2000, at 21:35:13
Holly
Just to let you know, I was on Celexa for a year. It did wonders for me, but suddenly stopped working. Unlike you, I had the opposite effect. I lost weight on Celexa. When it stopped working all the weight came back. I was switched to Effexor and my depression is back under control(after a rough beginning). I've lost 5 lbs since switching. I just think every one's body reacts differently.I also feel for you in regards to the loss of your husband. I have lost both my brother and father so I feel your pain. But, time heals all wounds however deep. Sometimes it just takes longer than we would like. I look at it this way (mainly because it keeps me going). When you lose someone you love, you can either give up on life or fight to become a stonger person. I'm aiming at being a stronger person and growing from my experiences. It not only effects your life, but defines who you are. If I can become wiser from my experiences, then I feel fortunate. Just a simple thought from someone who has been there....
My thoughts are with you,
Jen
This is the end of the thread.
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