Absorption of SSRIs & other drugs
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Absorption of SSRIs & other drugs
My apologies if this has been discussed (I'm a newby). Has anyone here had this problem? I've been taking a very low dose of Effexor XR (37.5mg) for about 12 years and it has worked fine for me. However, several months ago I started feeling like I hadn't taken it. I'd wake up in the middle of the night with that kind of strobe light in the brain feeling. I called the prescribing doc who said that some people start having it pass through their liver more quickly so he told me to double the dose. (I mentioned my GI problems to him which are as of yet still undiagnosed but sound like I belong here). I've felt fine for the last six weeks but now I'm having the same problem again -- waking up at night and feeling like I haven't taken the med. By the way, Effexor XR has a very short half life and if you skip a dose the symptoms are not much fun. Has this happened to anyone else here? I have an appt with my GI doc in a week so I'll tell him but my prescribing doc just scratched his head and told me to find another doc in my new city. Is this a malabsorption problem?
Probably. The bad news is that SSRIs have been shown to be associated with causing MC, including Effexor, (venlafaxine):Darby wrote:Is this a malabsorption problem?
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18502544
Since you are experiencing suspicious GI symptoms, also, the most likely scenario is that you may be developing either celiac disease or MC, either one of which can cause a malabsorption problem.
Also, please be aware that SSRIs are associated with a loss of mineral density, (IOW, osteoporosis) of the hip bones.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.