Effexor Side Effects and Menopause
Effexor is a prescription medication typically prescribed for severe cases of depression. So if your gynecologist is prescribing it in order to relieve your menopausal hot flashes, you might be wondering what's going on.
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History
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In the past, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) was prescribed for perimenopausal and menopausal women. As time passed and medical science improved, however, the increased risks of breast cancer, stroke and heart disease made HRT an undesirable option. On the other hand, those hot flashes and mood changes are no picnic, either. Enter antidepressants. Some clinical trials offered evidence that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI's) and serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI's) were effective in relieving hot flashes. Because they are formulated to treat depression, they are consequently helpful in relieving mood swings as well.
Off-Label Prescriptions
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Since the FDA has not specifically approved these medications for use as menopausal symptom relievers, when antidepressants are prescribed for that purpose it is called an "off-label" prescription. This is considered legal (except in connection with controlled substances), but ethically questionable. Yet many health care providers do so as a matter of course. The most common antidepressants prescribed for menopausal symptom relief are Paxil, Prozac and Effexor. The first two are SSRI's, and the latter is an SNRI.
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Benefits
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Serotonin regulates body temperature, mood, appetite and sleep. Norepinephrine is a stress hormone that controls attention, the ability to focus and the body's physiological reaction to stress. The reason a "reuptake inhibitor" is part of the medication is that these chemicals transmit their messages to the appropriate brain cells, then naturally sit on the nerve endings and wait to be recycled. The inhibitors block the recycling process, so the chemicals remain sitting between the nerve cells, immediately available to transmit more messages. This means that the body responds more quickly, and in the case of menopausal symptoms, nerve pain, hot flashes and emotional stress are relieved.
Side Effects
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The list of possible side effects connected with taking Effexor is quite lengthy, and includes headache, blurred vision, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, trouble sleeping, panic attacks, increased blood pressure and severe mood changes. But another problem with taking a prescription antidepressant is that, when you stop taking it, the withdrawal symptoms can be frightening. These can include nausea and flu-like symptoms, insomnia, dizziness, hyperarousal and sensory disturbances. And some patients have experienced persistent adverse effects for years after discontinuing the drug.
Prevention/Solution
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So if you are having menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and mood swings, you will want to consider whether the discomfort you are experiencing is severe enough to offset the risks associated with taking Effexor before you fill that prescription.
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