When taking Effexor and Strattera, do both drugs fight for the norepinephrine, weakening each drug's effect?
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Strattera (also known as atomoxetine) is a selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor.  It works by inhibiting the pre-synaptic norepinephrine transporter.  In normal English, Strattera stops your neuron from taking back the norepinephrine it had just released, so the patient ends up having more norepinephrine hanging around outside to act on the next neuron for a longer period of time.  This is thought to  help Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).\n\nEffexor (also known as venlafaxine) is a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor.  It works by inhibiting the reuptake transporters of serotonin and norepinephrine.  This drug not only stops your neurons from taking back norepinephrine, but it also stops your neurons from taking back serotonin.  So the patient ends up with more serotonin and norepinephrine hanging around outside to stimulate the next neuron for a longer time.  Increased serotonin helps Depression and Anxiety Disorders.\n\nIf you take both drugs at the same time, the question is whether they would fight for the same REUPTAKE TRANSPORTERS, not norepinephrine.  \n\nI think if you take both drugs, their effect on norepinephrine would INCREASE, not decrease.  You have the Strattera binding to the reuptake transporters, specifically preventing norepinephrine from re-entering the neuron.  And you also have the Effexor binding to more reuptake transporters, preventing both serotonin and norepinephrine from re-entering the neuron.  So there's less chance for norepinephrine to come back in to the pre-synaptic neuron, and the effect on norepinephrine is actually  strengthened.  \n\nI have to say the interaction between Effexor and Strattera is only my theory, and you need someone who knows exactly how these 2 drugs bind on the reuptake transporter to know if they would inhibit each other, as well as the given dosage of each drug, but the reuptake transporter part of my answer is textbook information.
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i also took effexor. my experience was a positive one. i found that the toughts that usually made me sad were now just processed as a regular thought i did find it to be difficult to cry but who can complain right? anyway i would recommend taking this drug it helped me very much and i took it for two years through an abusive relationship. but i found that it did help numb a majority of the pain. but in your case i beleive it will help you function normally without bursting into tears at every thought. \ni'm sorry for you loss good luck this should work!
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With a concern this serious, you should be relying on the advice of your doctor and pharmacist, and not on the advice of some unknown Yahoo! Answers user. Respondents who respond to this question could be knowledgeable, or they could be unintentionally (or perhaps even intentionally) offering misleading, and even potentially dangerous advice.\n\nThe online literature for Concerta (an ADHD drug) warns about using the drug with so-called "pressor" agents (drugs intended to increase your blood pressure like dopamine or epinephrine). Further, there is evidence that Concerta may inhibit the metabolism of various anticoagulants, anticonvulsants, and some antidepressants (tricyclics and selective serotonin uptake inhibitors). Serious effects have been reported when using both Concerta and clonidine drugs.\n\nProzac is a serotonin uptake inhibitor with significant associated warnings that must be understood by any young child's caregivers.\n\nCall your doctor or pharmacist immediately if you have any concerns about possible interactions between drugs. Don't rely on the good/bad or possibly indifferent advice of the people here.
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Effexor, Zoloft, Celexa, and Lexapro all caused me sexual side effects including decreased libido. Generally, the SSRI's (the last 3 I named plus Prozac, Paxil, etc) are known for it.
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Adrenaline.\n\n\nBtw-----Luvox, Lexapro and Effexor are SUPERB for controlling Panic Attacks and/or Dissassocative(De-realization) symptoms.
585434
I was put on Citalopram (Cipramil) as the first medication for my depression. I was on it for about a year and then I think my system just got used to it. Unfortunatley I was then put on Efexor, which caused some very bad side effects.\n\nI have now tried every anti-depressant available to me (I'm 24) and for me, Seroxat works.\n\nIf you really want to give up, here is what I recommend - I tried to do this and it reduced the electric shock sensations in my head and sickness of withdrawal.\nAsk your docotr to prescribe you a low dose of Prozac instead of the Cipramil. Prozac is quite non-aggressive to come off of, so after your system has got used to the Prozac, you can then come off it.\n\nWorked for me...til I had to go back on meds, but hopefully you can do it. Good luck!!
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Yes, most likely.  I have been told by different professionals that it is like being diabetic--one who has to take meds all their life.  It's just something you get used to.\n\nI take an anti-depressant along with an anti-manic agent.  Effexor and Eskalith.  For the long run.  And I'm okay with that.
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I am not sure about Effexor but I am taking another SRI medication and I start to feel the withdrawl after about 3 days. I'm not sure your husband's situation or why he is ont he medication but I would suggest seeing if maybe you can go to a local pharmacy and see if they will sell you a couple of pills to tie you over. There was a time when I had run out of refills on my prescription and the pharmacy let me buy 2 pills only to give me time to see my doctor and come back with a new order. The withdrawl symptoms that I had weren't huge but they were definitely noticeable--I couldn't focus, had headaches, felt lethargic. I'm not sure what it would be like in your husband's case....food for thought anyways.
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It's great that you are paying attention to your medication and it is important to understand a doctor's decision about your medication. I might be able to offer a bit of a clue to your question.\n\nFluoxetine (prozac) is more widely used than citalopram because it has been around for a much longer period than citalopram and as a result has the trust of the medical profession. Also beware of statistics which you may find in pharmaceutical product sheets. Different clinical studies are structured in different ways which can affect the statistical outcome. It's very hard to draw comparisions from these alone, rather than looking at head to head studies which can provide a better understanding. This is not to say fluoxetine isn't a good medication.\n\nIt's also important to know that different antidepressants target your neuroreceptors slightly differently and thus affect your symptoms in different ways. Your doctor may have felt you would benefit from citalopram more than fluoxetine. In your info above, you've said they both seem to work for the same issues you are experiencing. For many people with depression, there are symptoms which are experienced by all but just in different levels for each person. It's essentially a spectrum. Some people can't get out of bed, others can't sleep and even more are in the middle. In deciding which antidepressant is best for you, your doctor has to pinpoint where you are on the spectrum which isn't always clear.\n\nSee how you go with your new medication. If you notice side effects or you are concerned about how you feel, go back to your doctor and clarify the situation. \n\nBest of luck!
435095
If you is on Effexor you is getting help for depression. Go back to your GP and tell him/her what you wrote here and they will get you PROPER help
724873
There is Effexor and Effexor XR- (Extended Release.) A typo is probably the answer, but if you aren't sure check www.webmd.com.
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They are both related to the imbalance of serotonin in your brain. Thus similar medications treat both.\n\n"An organic compound, C10H12N2O, formed from tryptophan and found in animal and human tissue, especially the brain, blood serum, and gastric mucous membranes, and active as a neurotransmitter and in vasoconstriction, stimulation of the smooth muscles, and regulation of cyclic body processes."
610125
Effexor made my vision blurry.  I'd rather be depressed than not be able to see.
615907
Mirtazapine, an antidepressant or mood elevator, is used to treat depression.  Although the precise mechanism of action of this class of antidepressants is not known, it is believed to increase the amount of norepinephrine and serotonin in the brain. Norepinephrine and serotonin are neurotransmitters, chemicals that nerves use to communicate with each other.
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The newest SSRI is Cymbalta or (generic Duloxetine) and it is actually a SNRI (serotonic/ norepinephrine retuptake inhibitor)\n\nMechanism of action: Duloxetine is a potent inhibitor of neuronal serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake and a weak inhibitor of dopamine reuptake. Duloxetine has no significant activity for muscarinic cholinergic, H1-histaminergic, or alpha2-adrenergic receptors. Duloxetine does not possess MAO-inhibitory activity.\n\nThere are other SSRI like Citalopram, escitolapram, fluoxetine, paroxetine, fluvoxemine, setraline.
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It's different for everyone. Your body will react to a drug differently than the next person.\n\nI tried it once and it did not help. There is a lawsuit against GlaxoSmithKline, producers of Paxil, where many patients have died due to complications with the medication.
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The depression might be making you more tired than usual. However, it might be a side effect of the medication. Many times..medication has to be adjusted in dosage or changed all together if the side effects aren't tolerable for the patient. Please speak to your prescribing doctor about this.\n\nI had a client taking Effexor, and she often complained that she would have frequent sweating.