User Reviews for Pristiq oral

This medication should be taken off the market in the USA and world-wide. Pristiq is 100% pure poison prescribed by doctors prescribing this to human beings that ingest a medication with side effects with could cause death. There are very minimal advantages for taking Pristiq for any mental health disorders compared to the disadvantages with the harmful side effects and potential for death. I took Pristiq for less than two weeks because my depression got intensely worse-borderline suicidal. I became increasingly anxious and having periodic panic attacks, intense anger and irritability, nonstop crying, slurred speech, unsteady balance, blurred vision, dry mouth, severe fatigue. I constantly felt like I was dying a slow death because of all of symptoms and my continual mental and physical decline.Read More Read Less

Effective medication for depression, absolute nightmare of withdrawal symptoms that occur within 24 hours of missing a dose. Honestly wish I never started taking this. It did work for me in combination with abilify and buspar. I then started ketamine therapy and it changed my life. I finally felt like I could taper off of the antidepressants. I stopped taking abilify and buspar with no side effects. Then I started to taper off pristiq… absolute nightmare. The ‘brain zaps’ as they call them, left me unable to think, unable to function. Muscle spasms, nausea. This is not ok. The worst part is my doctor never warned me about this at all, and when I asked her about how to ease these symptoms she simply told me not to miss my dose. I explained that $124/ month makes it hard to not miss a dose occasionally. This medication has a half life of 11 hours. That means withdrawal symptoms can (and do) occur within 11 hours of taking this. There have been multiple times I just simply couldn’t afford it for a couple of days and it is truly unbearable. Please ask as many questions as you can before going on this medication. I have been on many other antidepressants and they all have withdrawal symptoms but this one is borderline unsafe. Read More Read Less

This medicine has saved me. I felt like a new person after 3ish weeks of taking it. Been taking it for 10-11 months and won’t stop! Last summer even after 8 mo of counseling I lost it and couldn’t function from anxiety. This medicine gave me the boost I needed to be able to Iive again. As I understand it’s just giving my brain what it should have but doesn’t! I had minor side effects on and off for 2 wks or so- headaches and a general nauseous feeling in my stomach. I could still eat fine, eating didn’t make it worse or better so it was a slight annoyance more than anything. I noticed some reviews say they can’t sleep- my Dr said take it in the morning! I have no problems with sleeping. Also don’t forget to take it- I did that once and had a bad headache that night! I just set a reminder. :) Read More Read Less

This medication is extremely dangerous. 13 days into my treatment I started feeling very strange. I was unable to sleep and was very agitated. I woke up to talk my dog on her morning walk and was in a trance like state. I started walking towards oncoming traffic on a local bypass with thoughts of suicide. My jaw and neck felt tight. Extreme nausea and confusion. My body was aching and felt out of control. Somehow I snapped myself back to walk home. I got home to throw up and had to lay down. I ceased the medication and contacted my prescriber to state that this medication is not suitable for my body, even after a Gene/DNA study stated that there should not be any reactions. This medication should not be available as a treatment for CPTSD and I urge the FDA to pull the contract for the US. I have no idea how I snapped myself out of it before I walked into oncoming traffic. I had to call into work, because I was too afraid to operate an automobile. I was too afraid to even try to walk anywhere. Today I am feeling like I have the flu and I am having severe headaches from it. I have no appetite and I am extremely fatigued. Chronic diarrhea is not stopping and an overall sense of being very unsettled in my body. If this medication got into the wrong hands I fear that someone would commit suicide unwillingly, because I just about did. I am now in worse condition than I was prior to taking pristiq. I am told that I do not qualify for disability, but yet I am told to try to function on a medication like this and work a job. This medication is not SAFE and I want others to know that this could potentially cause you great harm-your life. I would not recommend taking this medication as the side effects absolutely do not outweigh the risks. This medication is banned in Europe and I urge the FDA to ban it in the US. I have been harmed by this medication and I am quite uncertain if the side effects will cease or continue long term. Read More Read Less

Can't concentrate with it, cant sleep, constipation, stomach aches, the list goes on. Theres a reason this medication is banned in europe.

I was given this for anxiety and depression after struggling horribly with Zoloft (50mg) and significantly with Lexapro (10mg). At 50mg of Pristiq, I initially found it to be much less "heavy" than Zoloft and a bit less than Lexapro. (That is to say it gave me less of the drowsiness, mental fog, apathy that I had with those SSRIs. Yet there were difficult side effects: sexual difficulties, weight gain, not feeling clear or like myself, lack of motivation, low energy. But none of them were insurmountable. The problem was that it felt like it was doing nothing for my anxiety or depression. My provider increased the dosage to 100mg and nothing changed on that end, but the side effects got way worse. All the previously listed ones increased dramatically and I completely lost myself. Combine that with the fact that it wasn't helping my mental health and I felt horrible. I'm currently in the process of weaning off and that's proven to be challenging as well, with a bunch of the symptoms listed, most notably extreme dizziness. It's scary. I'm being careful and haven't fainted, but I have to lower myself to the ground sometimes to prevent it. Bottom line is, different people have different responses to these medications. BUT Pfizer states on their own website that 100mg was no more effective than 50mg in their studies and that side effects could increase. They make the med and that is very true to my experience. Please don't let your provider put you on that dose. Mixing 50mg of Pristiq with another option could be a better option, but for me I'm just trying to get my life back after the mess the drugs have caused to my med sensitive brain.Read More Read Less

First of all, I have ADHD and had a work related cognitive breakdown and was immediately put on pristiq. Started at 25mg and quickly titrated to 100mg daily. I stopped after 7 months because it didn't work. It's been 3 days and the brain zaps, fatigue, and vertigo are unbearable but I refuse to go back on any antidepressant now. My depression is a co-morbid symptom of my ADHD. My stupid company was the most toxic and abusive workplace ever, which caused my ADHD -related breakdown.

I started Pristiq in September and somehow i’m coming off of it even worse then I was going on it. Definitely different for everyone, I had a very poor past few months and was extremely impulsive and had many depressive episodes. I’m coming off right now and the withdraw has been absolutely horrendous. Supposed to start with Auvelity soon but i’m a bit traumatized. What works for one person does not always work for someone else. I did well on Lexapro and Welbutrin.

I found it has been less effective than Lexapro. Started on 50mg and it helped, but as it was not great my GP recommended increasing to 100mg stating many people are on this dose. The increased dose has increased the side-effects but no change in effectiveness in controlling my mental wellbeing. I have since seen that evidence suggests that 100mg is not more effective than 50mg.

I continue to be very tired, low energy, and I am very unmotivated. I also cannot sleep well.

Pristiq has worked well for me. Keeps me grounded, allows me to think with my head, and not my heart. Beneficial with emotional issues. Still do get mild depression , but it's manageable, not long lasting. I'm more positive

I have been on many different medications and they didn't work. I started this medicine and it has finally helped me live my life. I have been on it a long time, and at highest dose allowed. Now I have to try something else and I'm kind of scared.

I was prescribed this for PMDD along with Loryna (birth control). I found that the combo did help with my intense emotional symptoms, however was not very effective towards my Generalized Anxiety Disorder. I sometimes feel time but other times I have intense anxiety that is hard to control. I have not experienced any side effects, which is the only reason I think it works fine for me.

The worst side effects. Sweating. In winter even. Fatigue headaches and loss of appetite and not being able to organise.

What's the "End Game" for taking this? is it to always have to rely on this because I cant be Undepressed? I get to live a medicated half life? There's no surgery to relieve me of this condition. I cant talk my way out of it . So I guess in order to have a life I get to have a "fake" life/ medicated life with side effects, the issue is from within not a condition that can be "cut out" or operated on

For a long time, I have been struggling with finding a good anti-depressant for me. This medication was really rough on my body for the first 2 months of taking it. I had to change my routine and eat breakfast every morning, if I missed a dose I would go through withdrawal, and I would get extremely sleepy on it. Once I leveled out and found the right dosage for me with my body getting used to it, it helped me immense amounts. No anti-depressant has worked for me at all, yet this one was able to. I have been on it for 5 almost 6 months, and I would recommend it to anyone who is struggling with a medication that will work for them. Remember, everyone's body reacts to medications differently, and what works for me might not work for you. Also, people may have side-effects that I don't have, but if I were to go on a medication that works for them, it may not work for me. Everyone's body and mind are different. Read More Read Less

I have been waiting 6 desperate months for the day that I could finally write this review and say I found a medication that works!! I have been dealing with MDD and an anxiety disorder for a large portion of my life. In my case it is genetic and not caused by any external factors. I was on Effexor for many years which save my life but unfortunately after 8 years it stopped working, however I am so grateful for those 8 years. Since then it has been trial and error for 6 months during which I dealt with panic attacks, suicidal ideation and a feeling complete hopelessness as I have everything to live for but could not control this disease( I even had to stop my job). Since 3 weeks my psychiatrist has put me on pristiq and I feel normal for the first time in a long time! I no longer have crippling anxiety, I wake up in the morning without racing thoughts and uncontrollable negative thoughts about myself. I feel that I can think clearly, concentrate and would be able to finally work again and continue living my life after one of the most difficult years I have ever had to endure. If you have not responded to many ssri’s like me, please give this a try!! From everything I see and hear this medication seems to work well for treatment refractory depression!! Don’t give up hope, I almost did!! Love to all and stay strongRead More Read Less

I have been on this med for 2 weeks. I see in the reviews that people are warning others not to use it. Listen, we are all different. You can die from eating strawberries if your body is allergic; that doesn'tmake strawberries bad. One patient's reaction is simply that--their reaction. Depression is a very, very difficult illness to treat, and no one knows what will work for them. You must try for yourself and not expect that you will have the same side affects as someone else. So far--2 weeks in--I see mild side affects with improvement. I'm hoping I continue to experience positive changes. Read More Read Less

Horrible, horrible, horrible is all I can say. It is banned in Europe for good reasons. Expect to experience every side effect listed. Withdrawal symptoms after only 90 days almost killed me. I made important decisions I never would have made while on this medication. AVOID AT ALL COSTS.

I’ve had treatment resistant Major Depressive Disorder & PTSD for over 30 years. I’ve tried every type of therapy inside and outside of doctors offices. This is the first drug that has helped me. It’s working so well (going on 5+ months) that I’m anxious to think what I’ll do if it ever stops. It has been life saving and life altering for me. Everyone who knows me can see a notable difference. I’ve had zero side effects. I’m so incredibly grateful to have found something that works.