“How likely is it to develop tolerance to Effexor?”
I'm 37, and I'm taking Effexor to help with my depression. I've been taking it for a year, maybe a little less. Is it possible to develop a tolerance to my antidepressant Effexor?
6 Answers
As a person remains adherent to a medication such as Effexor, there may be times when an increase in dosage is necessary. Certain circumstances (such as sudden loss, unexpected trauma) may cause the person to experience more depressive symptoms, requiring an increase in the medication dosage.
People are typically not known to develop a tolerance to Effexor. One of the most common issues with Effexor is withdrawal symptoms if a person is not consistently taking the medication everyday.
This is a good time to discuss with the psychiatrist or prescriber about the clinical indications for the current dose of medication that is addressing the depressive symptoms.
People are typically not known to develop a tolerance to Effexor. One of the most common issues with Effexor is withdrawal symptoms if a person is not consistently taking the medication everyday.
This is a good time to discuss with the psychiatrist or prescriber about the clinical indications for the current dose of medication that is addressing the depressive symptoms.
We have seen a loss of efficacy with drugs that affect serotonin after 6-8 months. That doesn't mean the medication won't work, but your prescriber may want to increase the dosage some.
Hello,
Although the exact mechanism by which it occurs is not well understood, it appears that it is possible to develop tolerance to any antidepressant. Tolerance is by no means inevitable: however, for some patients, after taking medication for an extended period of time (more than a year), the medication becomes less effective. I cannot give you any specific medical advice. I can say that for a patient who has been taking an antidepressant for less than a year, the usual next step is to increase the dose to achieve greater efficacy. It is not necessarily tolerance when the medication becomes ineffective in less than a year.
Although the exact mechanism by which it occurs is not well understood, it appears that it is possible to develop tolerance to any antidepressant. Tolerance is by no means inevitable: however, for some patients, after taking medication for an extended period of time (more than a year), the medication becomes less effective. I cannot give you any specific medical advice. I can say that for a patient who has been taking an antidepressant for less than a year, the usual next step is to increase the dose to achieve greater efficacy. It is not necessarily tolerance when the medication becomes ineffective in less than a year.
I have seen this develop once.
Not common to develop a tolerance.
No. It's not possible. However, what I have seen with my patients is that there are times when certain triggers happen and the current dosage doesn’t help, which then we need to increase the dosage.
