I have missed mulitple times (seperately) and was wondering how it has affected others as well as how they overcome these effects.
Anybody experience effects of missing a dose of Effexor?
Question posted by Bsteinbrueck on 18 Jan 2010
Last updated on 5 March 2024 (9 weeks ago) by Twinkielite
70 Answers
I take 75mg. of Effexor for the past 35 years. It's wonderful, and I can miss a day here and there and it is fine. But missing a few days in a row is not a good idea. When I did that, I will get headaches and nausea. Just be sure to take your dose right away and it will go away after a few hours. But, I am the most easy going person in the world due to this medication. I love it.
It makes my optic nerve feel like it's bouncing. It's horrible
I've been taking 225 mg of Venlafaxine (Effexor) for at least 5 years now. I have almost no significant side effects while taking it, and it's been the most effective medication for my depression.
Missing even one dose though, I will get extreme withdrawal symptoms typically within 8 hours. The "brain zaps" are the absolute worst, too. Very scary hungover feeling - confusion, agitation, brain zaps, nightmares, excessive dreaming, and dry mouth. Missing a dose is horrible, and I hope one day I can taper off these meds. Being on something that can have such extreme side effects with just one missed dose does not feel "right" to me. While I know that it's provided me the support I need, I would love to be able to have all the tools I need to carry on with my life without it.
I have major depression, CPSTD from childhood/teenage trauma, anxiety, social anxiety, etc. I am hoping that with talk therapy and EMDR, I can slowly move away from being dependent on such a powerful medication. Anyways, just happy to see a community that has shared they've had similar experiences because my doctors/therapists think I'm crazy when I tell them how quickly it comes on, too.
I have had this twice recently. I missed a dose and that night I had disturbing dreams all night. I would wake up and go straight back into it, even if I got up and walked around the house I would return to the dream/nightmare. I was lucid enough to know I was dreaming and learn my way around the dream world. Next day I am feeling super anxious
I'm so glad I found this page! I take 375mg of venlafaxine (Effexor), (187.5 x 2 a day), high dose due to PTSD, anxiety and depression. I recently switched to this from 100mg amitriptyline which I didn't have issue with until the trauma happened and it just didn't cut it anymore.
I forgot to take my morning dose today, and didn't realize all day. All l afternoon I've been suffering with electric shock sensations by my eyes and nose mostly, sometimes going down my whole body to my feet. I started Googling my symptoms (briefly hyperventilated thinking it was a brain tumor) until I found the term 'brain zaps', which is caused usually by missing antidepressants. I took my missing dose around an hour or so ago and I already feel a lot better and the electric shock sensation has eased and more or less stopped. Will be speaking with my GP tomorrow as this worried me, especially after missing just one dose!! Hope my experience can help someone else, and you all start to feel better soon!!
Sitting in my dark bedroom trying to get through the darkness of hopelessness, crying, headache, brain jabs general horrible malaise etc that many others have described here. After almost 10years on Effexor I can’t believe I never researched this. I’m pretty good about taking it since I take a handful of other meds related to cancer (now cancer free but left with tons of meds) & have missed numerous! times over the years. Didn’t realize I’d forgotten meds yesterday until I got home from dentist embarrassed as hell for crying for no real reason. Thought it was my lifelong anxiety over dentists but when I got home and saw I’d missed the days meds!!! …..I take them in morning (I actually suffer debilitating dreams/nightmares when I take at night) so I am back on as of about 3hrs ago.
Starting to feel some relief (head still aches and is foggy/unfocused) after waking up deeply depressed, crying for over 2hrs straight and doing everything possible to avoid my husband and family. I now see that this has happened every time I’ve missed my medication!! I also feel like I get remorse depression after I start to feel better. I guess because I haven’t known what was causing these symptoms. I felt so lost & alone and am grateful to find this forum. I wonder if anyone has tips on how to explain to loved ones what we experience on this hardcore drug? I tend to isolate, get through, (and now! I finally!!! know what I’m going through) say “I’m fine” and let it drop into the past but I know loved ones are confused.
I’ve been on Effexor for a long time now, and Oh my Gosh…! If I miss even just two doses, I turn into a total jerk!
I get grumpy and very irritable. Honestly I’ve been on Effexor for so long now that when something unexpected happens that causes me to miss a couple of pills, I know to immediately take action, and suddenly switch myself to introvert mode, which means I must try to avoid any form of communication with pretty much everyone. If I don’t avoid people during that time, I can very easily become angry and totally Irrational over small stupid stuff. I’ll end up getting so angry that I’ll say and do things that will total embarrass me afterwards. I also risk destroying perfectly good relationships. So, with that said I try to remember to take my medicine. Which is really hard when you’re someone like me that suffers from A.D.D.
I have been taking Effexor XR for over 15 years and definitely have terrible side effects if I miss one dose at night. I take them at bedtime because they make me sick. If I miss it at nite by mid morning I am feeling extremely sad, teary, make bad decisions, and emotional, nauseous. Then I have to take it during the day to get back on track. I think it’s worse when my dosage is higher. But I sometimes request changes in dosage. Does anyone else do that?
I've taken Effexor for years. It can't harm you in general, and missing a dose our two here and there are fine for me. Just no more than 2 days. I recently haven't taken my meds for quite a few days due to a mix up, and I'm suffering. Had to be out of work for a week with rapid heart rate, headaches, nausea and it's horrible. I want to kill myself with this pain. It was like I discontinued them suddenly and it's not wise. I am beyond normal. Don't miss a dose or else. Maybe one but no more.
Yes, I began experiencing withdrawal symptoms when I missed a dosage. It was awful and I didn’t remember that I had forgotten until my partner asked me if I had remembered to take my antidepressant.
Very old post but it kinda helped me.
I’ve been on 150mg of Effexor for the past 6 months or so for my Postpartum depression & ptsd dealing with the birth of my son. I didn’t realize I had missed a dose until I woke up and had to grab a Tylenol for my pounding headache and noticed my prescription bottle. Only about 6 hours since I was supposed to have taken my dose but other symptoms I had were HORRIBLE vivid nightmares, I had sweat so much during the night, had a very dry mouth and when I stood I was really dizzy (not a normal dizzy but one I would associate to being high). Will be buying a weekly pill reminder after this!
I Immediately get terrible , constant brain zaps .
Yes, I do have side effects if I miss a dose. I take once a day and I choose to take it at bed time. Sometimes i have forgoten or maybe i was out and I noticed I was very blah the next day, my head felt off and dizzying, almost like when you have a major head cold, easily agitated as well. I noticed a pattern so I spoke to my doctor about it and apparently this is common with effexor. Suggested I set an alarm so that I never forget it and make sure I call my script In at least 2 days before I run out.
Man oh man. I did this once and learned my lesson. I forgot to take my 75mg dose for 2 consecutive days, been on it for about 6 years. I got almost every symptom of discontinuation syndrome. Brain zaps are by far the strangest sensation ever and mildly disorienting. I got a heavy feeling as if I was carrying a 200lb load with me. I was super sweaty, couldn't stop. I was extremely nauseated but thankfully no vomiting. I swore I had the flu but no... it just forgot to take my damned medicine. Ugh. I took one dose as soon as I realized and felt a ton better in about 90 minutes.
I realize this post is really old but I'm still responding in case it helps someone in a way and to just share what I've felt when missing a dose. I'm relieved that I'm not the only one that experiences horrible symptoms after missing a dose. I've been on Effexor XR 150mg for 6 months for panic attacks with generalized anxiety, no depression. I take my Effexor XR around 9am daily. Only missed a dose once before (3 months into it). Yesterday, I was so busy that I forgot to take my pill. I didn't notice anything unusual until about 4pm... All of a sudden I felt extremely depressed, extremely sad, hopeless, couldn't get off the couch (notice I don't have depression). About 5pm, I started experiencing that "whooshing, brain zap" feeling.
Someone on this post previously described it SO well when they said "It’s tough to describe exactly, but it almost feels like your mind is a half a second behind your body (head specifically) when you move. It’s uncomfortable, and a bit disorienting". I would walk around my house and it felt like my brain skipped for a second to catch up with what I was doing. It's the scariest feeling EVER. This feeling continued until this morning. Around 8pm I had a crying spell (for no reason, out of nowhere!), then I proceeded to get angry and yell at my boyfriend for not wanting to watch a show with me (this is SO not like me). Before we went to bed he told me he's going riding (they own Harleys) with his guys tomorrow for a few hours. I started to get paranoid (again, this is NOT my normal behavior!) and anxious (normal of me). My paranoia was from wondering who he's going with, why his friends wife is going but he didn't invite me (mind you I HATE riding on that damn Harley, I get TERRIFIED). I didn't share this with him obviously, glad I had some sense of reality still left in me. We went to bed... I had HORRIBLE NIGHTMARES AND NIGHT TERRORS. I woke up screaming and scared the crap out of him. He calmed me down and I went back to sleep. In my second dream I pinched his arm thinking I was fighting some woman who wanted to hurt me in my dream. (This morning he said he doesn't think I pinched him. He said I was just really tossing around and made odd sounds and I scared him and woke him up when I screamed in my sleep). I went back to sleep only to wake up at 4 am in a lucid, paranoid state thinking like someone is in our house. I turned all the lights on, laid on the couch, crying and praying to God I don't fall asleep again. I woke up at 9 am. FINALLY remembered that I did NOT take my pill yesterday. I took it immediately. It's almost 11am now. I have an upset stomach but I am starting to mentally feel better and back to normal.
Related topics
effexor, depression, bipolar disorder
Further information
- Effexor prescribing info & package insert (for Health Professionals)
- Side effects of Effexor (detailed)
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