Hi everyone, I'm new here. I've been on Dexedrine now for a couple years, only taking it when I need it, since it does a number on my body physically. A while back I saw a commercial for Strattera and decided that it might be just what I needed, a non-stimulant ADD drug that would hopefully not do what Dexedrine does to me (no appetite at all, often hard to sleep at night even if my last dose was ten or more hours ago, greasy skin, and serious irritability when it wears off). But Strattera isn't yet available in Canada (my doctor said it should maybe be out in four months or so), so we decided to try Effexor XR in the meantime (I also hoped it might help with my anxiety)--while still taking Dexedrine. I just took my first dose a couple hours ago, and I'm feeling jittery and nervous. And while I've read some stuff that says it may be helpful in the treatment of ADD, it seems like half the reported side effects are _symptoms_ of ADD (although I know that many drugs have possible side effects listed that are counter to the purpose of the drug and you can't really judge their usefulness from them). There's no Effexor forum here so I assume not that many people are taking it, although my doctor apparently has a lot of patients on it. So, anyone else on it, and if so, for ADD itself, or for depression/anxiety in conjunction with ADD? Tell me how well it's working for you.

I'm not on effexor, but am close to someone who is and she finds the drug great for her anxiety and minor depression, but I don't think it helps much with other ADD symptoms.
I take Remeron and find it helps me a lot. It increases the appetite (which I don't need) and it makes you very sleepy when you first take it, which helps with my insomnia - I can also sleep through the night without waking 5 or 6 times, which is nice. It sometimes zonks people out when they first take it (always at bedtime!), but this gets better after a little while and is actually less noticable at 30mg than it is at 15mg. It has excellent anti-anxiety properties too (which I need).
You should be able to take a stimulant at the same time as Effexor, Remeron or Strattera -they don't interact to my knowledge and it's fairly common to see people with ADD on both types of drugs.
You might want to ask your Dr about it.
Good luck
Greg

Oh, and welcome to the forum - good to see fellow Canadians here.
Also check out the web page:
http://www.crazymeds.org/
Very good source of information on psychoactive drugs, and done with a sense of humour.

Hey Greg, thanks for the welcome. I'm not depressed, so I'm sort of worried that being on a drug that affects serotonin is going to take away my normal moods which I like very much, thank you... but since it affects norepinephrine as well, which is exactly what Strattera affects, we thought it would work on the primary symptoms of ADD, which is what I need. Help with anxiety would be a bonus, but I'm perfectly willing to get on a 'real' anxiety med like clonazepam--I just have to go through the motions with taking a 'non-addictive' drug for anxiety first. I was told to take the Effexor (XR, 75mg) before bed and I assume it was because it can cause drowsiness, but I didn't sleep a wink the whole night. The next morning I opened up a capsule, emptied some out and took it (so I could change the time of day without getting any more of it in my system than I had to), and I was fine. This morning, however, I was seriously sleepy after taking it (a little Dexedrine fixed that up nicely, though). I really want to try Strattera, but I'll have to wait -- scared of the freaky side effects it might have, though. My doctor's going to try me on Adderall, though, since it was just launched in Canada a couple days ago. I was the first patient of his that he put on Dexedrine, and now he's got a lot of them on it, so now I'm going to be his guinea pig for Adderall. I don't think my doctor even knew of Dexedrine before I told him about it. He's got ADD himself. =)

I've seen the crazymeds site before, but lost my bookmarks a while back and forgot all about it, so thanks for the link.

I also take effexor, but I have co morbid disorders. Like many meds, it often takes weeks for a full strong steady dosage to be reached in your blood stream. try to hang on for a little bit, continue voicing your feelings, and keep in close contact with your doctor.

Effexor is a unique 'antidepressant' in that it addresses the dopamine issue not just the seratonin issue within the brain. I have found it to be fifty percent of my answer :)

Welcome to the ADD Forums Lexicon

I'm not depressed either - but I am a happier person when on anti-depressants. Both Effexor and Remeron have lesser effects on serotonin so they don't have the same sort of side effects - sexual problems and mood "flattening" (that's what it felt like when I was taking Paxil) are ones that a lot of people complain about.
Weight the pros and cons of the drugs after you see that they do to you , and go from there.
Greg

Hi Lexicon, and welcome to this group. Make sure you stay on board and continue to interact on a regular basis. You'll find there are people here who will help, especially other Canucks, eh.

I've been taking dexadrine for a couple of years now and have been doing OK with it. No doubt, it does improve my focus and help me avoid lethargy and daydreaming to an extent. Yet I also realize that dexadrine is just a step, a tool if you will, to start dealing with my ADD. It doesn't eliminate my tendency to procrastinate or feel overwhelmed by daily life. It doesn't improve my lack of organization.

Back in October, my doctor also prescribed Effexor (75 mg once a day after a meal) when I told him I thought I was dealing with depression. I don't know if I have ever dealt with actual depression before but I knew I was at a new low, primarily because of my marriage breakdown.

Believe me, I was nervous at the thought of taking anti-depressants, and especially wary of side effects. I carried my sample pack with me for two weeks before I took my first pill. I wonder if your early jitters are not more the result of anxiety over taking the Effexor.

After a couple of weeks, I noticed little if any difference and was still feeling despair on a regular basis. There was one noticeable side effect for me and that was a dramatic decrease in sex drive. The mind was willing but the body was dormant. I also felt like I was sweating more than usual.

After about five weeks, I finally noticed some changes. My doctor said it may not seem obvious, more like I simply decided I would not be depressed any more, almost like I had a choice, and that's basically how it happened.

I'm still on Effexor but my self-analysis continues to be complicated by my marriage breakup. I continue to live in the same home as my wife and daughter. We can't afford for me to move out until my wife finds work. We are trying to be civil with each other but you can imagine the range of emotions this is stirring.

A few weeks ago, I started feeling another onslaught of despair and depression. Worse yet, I'm also experiencing mood swings and incidents of anger. Is it my marital situation or side effects from effexor? I don't know. I do know I am still in the process of letting go and grieving over my wife.

My inclination at this point is to stop taking effexor after I finish my latest prescription and to try something else. My sex drive remains virtually dormant and that alone is unacceptable.

It appears to me, based on feedback on this forum, that different people's reactions to various medications can vary like night and day. We have to monitor our reactions and side effects closely.

Don't know how much this will help you, but since I'm on the same meds, I thought you'd be interested.

Blueguy, I'm certainly interested, it's always good to hear that we're not alone in what we go through.

I'm doing fine with the Effexor now, but it's making me yawn like mad. I do fear that the sexual side effects are going to be there, although we haven't really tested it yet--that in itself is probably proof that the effects are there!

I'm thinking about maybe asking to try switching to Wellbutrin the next time I visit my doctor--it's almost guaranteed not to cause sexual side effects. Well, not bad ones, anyway--it can *increase* sex drive, and even intensify orgasm.

Funny about the yawning - SSRI's do that to me too. I does amaze me how differently some people react to medication. I know my brother - also ADD - reacts so badly to every anti-depressant he's used that he's had to stop taking them - problems like chest pains, dizzyness, stomach problems, headaches - while I can eat the stuff like candy (maybe an overstatement) with almost no side effects (just the sexual ones from SSRI's at high doses).
Go figure

Try to keep in mind, our brain chemistry balance is all unique unto us. What i need more of, like norepis, dopamine etc, will send anothe rover the edge. Obviously you are versed in neurochemistry, so thats an added bonus for you. I also suggest looking into getting ot know other disorders, as many other disorders share a chemical background, so , you may find something that is essentially wroking for another disorder that may work for you. I was very lucky in that my sister and I fell into a doctor up in Bethpage NY who does some very strange tests that show some very interesting results. Both my sister and I,three of my nephews, have AD-HD and most of us have co morbid disorders. My younder sister is severely LD ( labeled retarded by the system) probably aspergers, my three kids are completely symptomatic of adhd, each differently surfacing. Our blood work came back showing the sister who took the blood work and I make almost no epis and nor epis, I had high aspertame which has been shown to aggravate depression and lots of other interesting data, all correlating to my then undiagnosed ADHD, BPII,OCPD and PTSD with dissociation. Our family is also riddled with alcoholism, drug addiction, depression, other kinds of abuse, artistic talent and creativity, all known connectors with these very same disorders.

I just find this stuff facinating!

I'm on day six with Effexor and it seems real nice. I had tried Wellbutrin, Adderall and Ritalin with minimal benefit.

Half an hour after the first pill I felt real woozy then took a nap and woke up feeling calmed (normally I'm dazed by a nap). It feels a bit like a pain killer to me with a certain amount of pleasurable feeling in my body and sleepiness. I sleep OK & wake up early which is good. Other minor side effects have eased over the week. I do feel a relief from worry that had me paralyzed before. It hasn't cured my focus issues but I'm actually better able to identify the ADD inattention and other things going on in my head whereas before I was too impatient to even reflect on my own mood.