Anyone faint on effexor?

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Member_of_the_Club
Member_of_the_Club Member Posts: 3,646
edited June 2014 in Mental Health: Because Cancer Doesn't Just Affect Your Breasts

Cause I came very close last night.  I've had the thing where you get a bit dizzy when you stand up too quickly since I went back on effexor.  Last night I bumped my knee -- not injured but very painful -- and I jumped up and then got a wave of nausea followed by dizziness and a feeling like I was going to faint.  I lay down and started sweating profusely.  Then in a few minutes it passed.  I've read that fainting can be a rare side effect of effexor, even though I'm on a low dose (37.5 -- should be subclinical but it definitely helps my mood).  I'm going to ask my psychiatrist about this.

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  • leaf
    leaf Member Posts: 8,188
    edited November 2009

    It does sound like its rare.

    Here's a case report with hypotension http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18208934

    In this study of people >=60 yo, "Twenty-nine percent (95% CI: 14.6%-43.4%) of participants developed orthostatic hypotension."http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16943176

    Hope this helps.

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  • lexislove
    lexislove Member Posts: 2,645
    edited November 2009

    I was on 75mg of Effexor for a little over 6 months. I found that I was light headed,

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  • CrunchyPoodleMama
    CrunchyPoodleMama Member Posts: 1,220
    edited November 2009

    I never did while I was on Effexor (I was on it for about three years), but I did get faint if I forgot to take it a day or two. (MASSIVE withdrawal effects coming off of Effexor... hopefully your doctor explained all that.)

    Interesting study that leaf found, though. I did have that almost-blacking-out-when-you-stand-up thing and near-fainting reactions when I used to have low blood pressure. Sounds like Effexor could be lowering your blood pressure.

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  • NativeMainer
    NativeMainer Member Posts: 10,462
    edited November 2009

    Member--fainting may be rare with Effexor, but your system may be more sensitive than the typical person's.  Add to that the physiological changes that occur with sudden, severe pain that can cause nausea, sweating, and a drop in blood pressure and you get just what you felt.  It sounds like you came very near to fainting.  While that would have been frightening (like what you went through wasn,t, right?) it probably wouldn't have caused any harm.  Definately talk to your psychiatrist, and take a complete list of ALL your medications with you when you do.  Many drugs interact with other drugs to cause orthostatic hypotension (significant drop in blood pressure when moving from sitting to standing, or lying to sitting).  Another drug in your regimen may want to be decreased to help offset this effect. 

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  • pabbie
    pabbie Member Posts: 370
    edited November 2009

    Hi-Effexor activated me which alot of the anti-depressants do; so I'm only able to tolerate a very low dose. (I now take zoloft) Take care.

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