Be Very Cautious Mixing Alcohol With Viibryd!! (Top voted first)

This is a warning to you all... A little bit about me first: I'm 6'3" and only 130 pounds. Naturally I am very susceptible to side effects of any drug. I also didn't have my first taste of alcohol until October 2011, which is when I turned 23.

Throughout November 2011 I took Cymbalta. I also drank occasionally, but not often and not much. Cymbalta gave me a lot side effects such as an upset stomach, dizzyness, inability to sleep, etc. About mid-December I switched to Prozac, and took it through February. Throughout this time I drank a lot. Very often, and sometimes I'd get incredibly drunk, but I didn't have any bad experiences with mixing Prozac and alcohol. At the beginning of March 2012 I started taking Viibryd because Prozac wasn't giving me the results I desired. The first time I drank while taking Viibryd was on March 14th. That night was also my first and only ride in an ambulance. I drank a good bit of alcohol that night, but it wasn't the most I've ever drank. I also drank a little too fast. I ended up throwing up everything, then stomach juices, then dry heaving all the way to the hospital.

Since then I've only gotten drunk once while on Viibryd, and I did it slowly. I took about 10 shots of vodka but over a four hour period. I didn't feel any bad effects that night, and thought that maybe if I was just careful with my drinking that I could still get drunk while taking Viibryd. But the next day I was miserable. After havingstopped drinking at 11pm the night before, I was still drunk at 8am and unable to drive. The entire day I was sick and on the verge of passing out. I couldn't function at all. And the effects even carried over slightly to the following day.

I would just like to warn you all. It wouldn't suprise me at all if someone could end up dead due to an accident of mixing Viibryd and alcohol...

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I'm a 27 year old female and I have been on Viibryd for 2 weeks now. It has made a TREMENDOUS difference. I feel so much more energy and I've lost 10 pounds :) It has changed my appetite so I'm not eating as much and I get fuller faster. More than anything it has given me back my peace of mind. I give this medicine 2 thumbs up!!

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I read all the previous post.. I WOULD NEVER recommend drinking alcohol while taking anti depression medication. The warning is there for a reason!! My fiancé was a drinker.. He went on to Viibryd on June 8th. He passed away on June 18th. Doctors tell me the medication didn't have enough time in his system to cause this... However, I knew him, and from the time he started taking it until he died.. He was a different person. He was irritable, very moody. I would just really encourage anyone going onto a new medication.. Especially one with warnings all over it, to have follow up appointments weekly to make sure your doing okay on the medication. I should mention that he committed suicide... He was not suicidal prior to the meds!!!!!! Just please do your homework prior to starting medications!

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Does anyone know if its Okay to have a couple beers while taking ViiBryd?

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Hey guys I am 21 year old male I began Viibryd baout 5 weeks ago. I have tried Celexa, Prozac, and Lexapro I think I would have to say that Viibryd is working best. The side effects and posts I read were quite scary at first but it gets better with time. I am now up to 30mg a day, no serious side effects that I have noticed. I have more energy for the gym and actually have never been as strong and in shape as I am now.

This weekend I plan on attending a house party. I am sick of not going out and drinking with my friends just because I am on this medication. I have only drank one time since being on Viibryd. I had 5 beers over a couple hours and didn't get much of a buzz. BUT, the next day I did not get out of bed until 6PM and felt like crap. How is this possible? I have drank 3x that amount and got up feeling fine. I plan on drinking maybe 12 beers throughout the night this coming Sunday so hopefully Monday morning I am still alive.

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I started Viibryd 8 days ago, and I am now up to 20mg on the starter pack. I have had alcohol two times, and have been fine each time. The only problem is that when I drink alcohol I don't sleep well, and that makes me feel bad the next day. I don't do 10 shots of vodka, though :) Last night I had two martinis and a long island iced tea over a 4-hour period. I felt tipsy/drunk, but not overly drunk. I do not drink every day, especially not hard alcohol. So far I have not felt negative effects that are strictly from Viibryd. I just try to watch my alcohol consumption; I do not want to overdo it. "Everything in moderation" is my motto.

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10 shots of vodka over a 4 hour period would not constitute drinking slowly for me and I'm 6'2" and 220 lbs. This is a warning to you...you drink too much!

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Well, I must say I thought due to the mention of multiple "shots" and the fact that you sounded like a party animal that it was probably due to excessive intake of alcohol that you had this issue. HOWEVER, I am on only my 3rd day of Viibryd, still only 10 mgs, and I am quite accustomed to drinking at age 45 (Polish and Irish :). So WASN'T I surprised when after only 3 drinks and 1 shot last night, I woke up at 3:30AM sick as dog, dry heaving. It lasted only 5-10 minutes, but then at 9AM, I felt somewhat drunk, hungover, with a headache. Just like you said! By 9:30AM I was fine, but I believe you may be on to something here!
I have tried probably 5 different anti depressants over the years and have NEVER had a problem mixing with alcohol, but it indeed may be a big concern with Viibryd.
I too am only 130 pounds, 5'6".
On the positive side, I was severely depressed and I felt 100% better after the first 10mg dose. Just the loose gastrointestinal side effect for 4 hours after each dose, and even that has lessened each day. So I am amazed at how well it worked so quickly. I believe I will stay on 10mgs, rather than moving up and see how that works. And I'll have to watch the drinking side effects carefully and decide next steps.

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I'm glad they're working for you! I also forgot to mention in my initial post that Viibryd has worked very well for me too. I tend to have fairly frequent stomach problems while on Viibryd but it's worth it in my opinion. I used 10mg for a week, then 20mg for a week, and now I'm taking 40mg a day and the effects have been better than anything I've gotten from Cymbalta or Prozac.

Since my bad experiences with alcohol, if I choose to drink I usually stop about the first moment I feel a buzz. I'm usually alright for the rest of the night and the hangover isn't unbearable. Good luck to anybody who chooses to drink while on Viibryd.

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Oh, I should mention that Viibryd is awesome as far as curbing suicidal thoughts, depression, and anxiety. I don't get anxious as much anymore. I give Viibryd credit for my finding a new job because I didn't get nervous for the interviews at all. (At all!!!!) I noticed amazing differences very soon and was incredibly happy about it.

But then I put on a bunch of weight, and the mental effects of me gaining weight have rendered Viibryd's wonderful effects moot. The weight gain is a big issue in and of itself. My prescriber put me on this med specifically because it does not cause weight gain, but it certainly has for me.

I read somewhere on the net yesterday that 2-3% of people taking Viibryd experience this unchecked increase in appetite. They really ought to inform all of the prescribers out there!

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Hey everyone, my name is Stephen, I've been taking viibryd since March 2011, I started the 10mg for a week, then went to the 20mg for a week then the 40mg tablets. I know sooo much about this medication. Before I got on viibryd, I had extreme anxiety from smoking spice. Thats a whole different subject :)..But anyways, I Do experience stomach nausea, I havent vomited ever, I figured out that a lot of the way this medication works is the type of food you eat determines how your body metabolizes the medication. Also you must eat atleast 300 calories with the medication or your body will not absorb properly. Also fruits and vegetables act as a natural serotonin inhibitor. Your body needs to have the proper nutrition to minimize side effects. I found this out when I got a job at whole foods market. I eat nothing but healthy foods and do not drink anymore, I had a severe hyperventilation attack the day after I drank only a 6pk of budlight in 3 or so hrs. Alcohol strips your body of nutrition, and strips the viibryd from your body, so that's why the next day you feel do bad. Its like not taking the medication at all for a day. I have zero side effects since I changed my diet. I used to get bad stomach cramps, dizziness upon standing, irregular heart beat, heart palpitations, cold sweats at night, and trouble sleeping. Now im so happy:).. Again! You must eat atleast 300 calories with viibryd or you will definatly have stomach pains. Food and water minimize the effects, the reason for this is, your brain draws 80 percent of all serotonin from your stomach (Gut). Your body can only produce so much serotonin without food, once it runs out, your stomach starts to hurt because its lacking serotonin, serotonin also controls vomiting!! I read a lot on wikipedia and learned quite a bit about serotonin and dopamine production in the body.

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I would urge you not to drink 12 beers... unless maybe you drink them slowly... I wish you the best of luck.

For anybody still reading this thread, I recently had another run in with Viibryd. Apparently Viibryd has as a potential side effec of inhibiting the natural constriction of your blood vessels when you stand up. Our body constricts the blood vessels in order to keep our blood pressure high because our blood falls to our feet. I had taken a doe of prescribed hydrocodone cough syrup one night. And I took the recommended dose on the bottle. I ended up passing out in a restaurant's restroom floor and hitting my head hard on the tile floor. And I then threw up everything in the parking lot before making it to the hospital.

I think the lesson to be learned from that is to never take painkillers unless you're going to be relaxing the rest of the day and taking it easy...

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I started taking vibryd about 3 weeks ago and have noticed that whenever I drink beer I get a headache and start feeling really crappy. Just annoyed and irritable, and that continues on until the next morning, I love beer so this is a shame, but just a heads up.

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I have begun to gain weight actually :/ ... it seems as though my stomach has gained a little weight and I've jumped up 10 pounds recently. It could be a coincidence, but I'm not entirely sure...

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Ashley first let my say how extremely sorry I am for your loss. My deepest condolences!

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Officially, Viibryd does not cause weight gain. But, I have been on it for 3 months and have gained 20 lbs. I am always painfully aware of my weight, and any gaining causes intense stress, anxiety, and despair. I do not have an eating disorder or anything (I am 5'3" and perfectly happy at 125 lbs... though now I am 145), but I take pride in my shape and size.

What I found is that Viibryd has made me incredibly hungry. I mean I am STARVING, and I have mad cravings for sweets. This is incredibly unlike me. I will wake up in the middle of the night in serious pain because I am so hungry. I have never in my life had that issue!

I spoke to my prescriber and she scoffed at the idea that Viibryd is to blame because "it DOESN'T cause weight gain." She told me to eat lots of protein, which is harder to digest, and then I won't feel so hungry so soon after eating. So... I am eating all kinds of wonderful protein as well as burning at least 300 calories on the treadmill per day in hopes of controlling my weight problem that she has so easily convinced me is *my own fault*.

...yet still I am starving. I eat my high protein breakfast at about 6:30 am, and by 7:30 am I am starving. But no, I am forcing myself to wait until 9am before I can have that high protein snack. And I starve. And I watch the clock. And I starve. And then I eat my snack, and I force myself to wait until 11:30 before I eat my high protein sandwich, which does not make me feel satisfied at all, but because I am watching my calories I must not eat too much at any one sitting or I will get even fatter.

So I starve some more, and I have another high protein snack at 2, and by the time I get home at 4:15 I am STARVING to death, and I wind up eating a nice filling dinner and then I hate myself for going over my calories for the day.

This sucks.

And I ought to mention that I might as well not be on any medication at this point because the weight issue has caused some serious self-loathing. I won't let my fiance touch me, I can actually feel the fat jiggling when I walk, I can feel the fat bulging in my jeans when I am sitting (so basically every waking moment, I am aware that I am too large), and then the suicidal thoughts kick in again. I am ready to stop taking Viibryd. I would rather not take medication at all and succumb to unchecked PTSD than live with this baggage.

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I've been a drinker for years, and started Viibryd a month ago after it became obvious that Zoloft had stopped working (after 8 years on it). I didn't see the warning on Viibryd about alcohol until this morning, and have been drinking my usual amount since starting Viibryd (a couple beers or a glass of wine each night, lots more on the weekends). Long story short, no problems here that I've noticed. The warning I saw this morning worried me about having a medical emergency due to my drinking, but it sounds like it's more of killer hangovers/nausea/etc. Interestingly enough, I did get drunk on my birthday a couple days ago, and had terrible restless legs when I went to bed. I suspected it may have had to do with the Viibryd, but I took 12.5mg of Xanax and was able to sleep well.

I am having the crazy stomach issues though: constipation for 3-4 days, diarrhea with urgency (like need to find a bathroom ASAP when the cramps start coming). As for the depression.....I feel like a new person! Motivated, great mood, far less irritable. I'm hopeful it stays this way. But based on the warning, I'm definitely going to cut back on the booze. No more than 1 or 2 per night going forward. It's just not worth it.

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i am 37 years old, in 2005 i was feel anxiety, i was use many anxiolitic , but in 2007 i was visit Militry hospital thy prescribe me Bromazepam , Ecitalopram etc but 6 wweek no response,
after six month on maximum dose medicine response me . Now after 7 years now i am Using Bromazepam 1.5 mg bd & Ecitalopram 5mg.
i can not enjoy the life due to shoulder pain , restless position etc etc
what should i do ?

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After taking Viibryd for 3 months now I, sadly, no longer feel the effects I use to from it :( ... except a consistent constipation and stomach bloating. It really depresses me because Viibryd use to work so well. I had motivation and was happy to get up in the morning and go throughout my day. Now I'm just depressed at nights again. Maybe I'll try a different medication when I visit my psychiatrist again because the stomach problems aren't worth it anymore...

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I have been on Viibryd for a few months now & it does seem to help. I just wish it would motivate me more. Anyway, I forgot 1-2 doses & i felt like I was crawling out of my skin! My palms were itching and driving me crazy! Long story short, I realized last night that I had forgotten to take my Viibryd so I took it before dinner. My issue was that I had had some wine with dinner and became so nauseated that I had to leave the table. I normally take my meds first thing in the morning and can have wine with dinner with no problems. Also, just curious does anyone else have problems sleeping while taking Viibryd?

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The medication can take a while to start working fully. My psychiatrist told me to take .25 mg klonopin in the evenings, if I was having anxiety while starting Viibryd, until it is at full effectivity. I am on day 10, and I my Dr. told me that until the full week of 20mg pills is over I may still have anxiety periodically. It is normal to have anxiety sometimes, especially if there is stress happening in one's life. I try to identify what the stress is, and also identify how to control that stress. I ask myself, "What can I do about this stress?" If I can fix it, I decide to do that. If I have no control over it, I don't worry about it and just accept it. Sometimes that helps me deal with panic attacks.

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