[BA-XT]

Originally Posted by Grega

i also suffer from ED being on Effexor. mate believe me you are absolutely not alone in that regard. alot of guys suffer from some form of erectile ****up they just don't talk about it - thats all.

mr_ba --> alot of the things you speak of I struggle with as well. i don't do big crowds (or if i do i limit my exposure) - i also struggle with light. to sleep i have to have pitch black. even a soft LED will keep me awake.

for someone who doesn't suffer from A&D its easy for them to say join groups travel etc - problem is it brings more anxiety - so not easily done.

the key with A&D is finding out what your triggers are. you'll find they will tie back to something thats happened in your life or a program you are running (eg : you mentioned the fight/flight bit) - its ****ing hard to figure this **** out because you will be blocking it out as hard as you can.

true story. i saw a psych a few months back and he ****ed me off royally with what he said at the time. in the space i am in now ; he was right. the thing that stuck with me the most is he said there is nothing wrong you with you, you don't need any pills to fix you. i figured out what he meant last week - pills don't fix a lonely & broken heart.

Effexor... god I forgot about that tablet. Was on it for 3 weeks in feb 2001.... had horrible, horrible side effects. Eventually went off it and switched over to my Cipramil but also Lithium - even though I am not bipolar... was to stop the episodes. Fun side effect of that is water retention, weight gain and thirsty all the time. Drinking 3 litres of milk and at least a liter of juice was an average day. Then there's the tiredness... which I still have but not as bad. I'd fall asleep at the wheel. Really bad.

I still need naps during the day sometimes. Gym exhausts me. Some people find it refreshing and gives them a boost.... I don't. I don't really get enjoyment but I don't want to go back to how I was.

Apart from the erectile dysfunction.... my brain is in a fog. It's not as bad now I'm on a lower dose.

I don't like being in places I can't get out of. Planes for example. I'm in Queensland and got through it without a Valium... don't mention boats.

Anxiety causes the brain to tick over. What ifs become a way of life. fear of being alone... it really just hasnt stopped the past few months. But I always think that there are people far worse. The erectile dysfunction part for me is the most annoying. From teenager to now... I don't want to sound graphic but what guy either straight or gay doesn't like oral. Me. I mean WTF. I don't get much out of it and it gets me down emotionally. I'm just so lucky I have an understanding partner.

But the reality is that it's probably cost me the chance of having a family. I tried with the ex wife. Didn't work. I kept this hidden for a long long time. My depression and anxiety, and the side effects. Now I figure that if someone comes across this thread in a day month or year, it might give them hope that they realise that they aren't alone.