Hi all,

I was on Lexapro for 10+ years and it worked very well for me. Reduced my anxiety significantly and allowed me to live my life normally. Unfortunately it stopped working. I then was recommended to wean off Lexapro which I did for a three week period and then start Effexor. I was on Effexor for three weeks which didn't help and after doing a gene's test, I was recommended to go on to Pristiq.

I am on my second week of Pristiq (SNRI) for anxiety and my anxiety is at all time highs. I have not had any other side effects apart from severe anxiety and panic - more so than I had before starting this.

My question is - is it normal to have really strong anxiety for the first few weeks until it starts to work, or is this a sign that this medication may not be for me?

In other words, is it common for the anxiety to get worse before it gets better?

I have spoken to many doctor's who have all said different things (most saying I need to wait at least 4-6 weeks before seeing if it works for me or not) so wanting to get feedback from this community from people who have actually taken SNRI's.