Drinking while on Pristiq?

Question

Is it ok to drink while taking pristiq? Will it just make me get drunk off way less beer or something bad could happen if i consume even little amounts of alchohol? Or what if i dont take the pill the days i drink on. Thanks.

Answer 1

"In postmarketing experience, overdose with venlafaxine (the parent drug of Pristiq) has occurred predominantly in combination with alcohol and/or other drugs. The most commonly reported events in overdosage include tachycardia, changes in level of consciousness (ranging from somnolence to coma), mydriasis, seizures, and vomiting. Electrocardiogram changes (e.g., prolongation of QT interval, bundle branch block, QRS prolongation), sinus and ventricular tachycardia, bradycardia, hypotension, rhabdomyolysis, vertigo, liver necrosis, serotonin syndrome, and death have been reported." http://www.drugs.com/pro/pristiq.html

tachycardia: racing heartrate

mydriasis: excess dilation of pupil

bradycardia: excessively slow heartrate

rhabdomyolysis: rapid breakdown of muscle resulting in kidney damage

liver necrosis: liver death

serotonin syndrome: google this one yourself...

So...it is not ok to drink on Pristiq.  There are two reasons you want to avoid this.  First is that alcohol can increase the unpleasant side effect of Pristiq  (see above)  The second reason is that alcohol is a diuretic and can dehydrate you, which is a concern with Pristiq: http://www.drugs.com/cdi/pristiq-extende...

Like most anti-depressants, Pristiq takes a while to build up in the body.  Taking pills on some days and not others is a very bad solution, please ask your doctor to explain why.