Effexor XR Withdrawal

I am currently taking effexor xr, 150 mg./day. Like most medicaitons, it has not helped me at all!!!

I go to my doctor today and I am sure she will put me on something else. She will have me wean myself off the effexor. I have heard some pretty bad things about effexor withdrawal. Does anyone have any suggestions????? I would appreciate it!

Talked to my friend, and she says not to try to stop the Effexor without discussing it with your doctor.
She gave it up on a gradual basis over a period of eight weeks. Giving it up slowly was the answer for her. She was on a 150mg daily dose at the time. She is now off the drug entirely.

These changes should never be made on your own. Also because one person has a problem, onother may have a totally different experience with the medication. As far as I know, there is no hard and fast answer as to how you personally will be affected.

Good luck, and keep talking.

Shari04

I have just joined and your messages are the first I read. I am on Effexor XR (300mg) and have been (on & off) for 3 years. I believe your doctor is giving you some bad information.

First of all, for her to have you stop the Effexor 'cold-turkey' is inappropriate. I had to do this when being treated for something else and it was a big mistake. The side-effects are much more than simply 'dizziness" they include physical symptoms much like having the flu. In addition, they may cause your depression to become much worse (this was definately true in my case and reputable doctors/psychologists fully know this to be a reaction to such an event). Gradual reduction is the best way. You can take reduced amounts of Effexor while on Zyprexa. Talk to another doctor (hopefully a psychologist). The reduction should take a week or ten days and will substantially decrease the side effects.

I did'nt have a positive reaction to Effexor until I increased my dose from 150 to 300. I won't say it's a total fix but it does provide relief from the 'lower depths'. Of course, there are so many other factors involved in any depression. I really recommend you seek therapy in conjunction with medication. Once you find the right med combination, you will have some stability and a basis from which to get better. My therapy includes Congnative treatment.

In terms of taking Zyprexa, I have done this also. I took it while taking Zoloft. Neither of of these had any effect. I may be wrong but I don't think Zyprexa is supposed to be taken by itself as a treatment for depression. It is a 'mood stabilizer' (hence bi-polar, schitz, treatment) and doesn't neccessarily treat the physical aspects of the depression. Again, this is all my 'lay person' information based on my own experiences. Find a reputable resource.

Finally, your doctor shouldn't have told you that no medication will bring you 'complete relief' from depression. This is a highly morose concept, an inconsiderate remark to make to someone suffering depression, and frankly, inaccurate. We will always have 'ups and downs' in our lives. Once you find the right medication(s), you will know and see such a complete (positive) difference. Dealing with the normal events in life is possible. The right meds will bring you stability and clear thinking. Your doctor was wrong about 'periodically slipping back into your depression' no matter what meds you were taking.

Finding the right medications can be really exhausting and often there are so many side effects. Despit this, it is truly a matter of life and death. It's worth it. I have felt what its like on the 'other side' (albeit only briefly in my life) and it was so much easier. Life actually made sense and I had real hope and dreams.

Keep trying.

Hi

I'm on effexor XR with a dose of 300mg per day. I find that it gets me to a level where I can cope but its not a miracle cure (for me anyways).

Unfortunately due to money issues I've occasionally missed medication in the past. It was a very weird experience. The first thing I noticed was a feeling almost like electric shocks in my fingers and up my arms. I felt like when I moved quickly, it took a few seconds for my brain to follow. I also became depressed again very quickly.

As far as I know, because it affects the chemistry of your brain, its a really bad idea to stop any mental health drug cold turkey. Thats a really big shock for your system that is likely to be harmful.

Hello everyone,
Everyone of you have some great advice to give concerning Effexor XR. I took, ready for this, 375 mg. per day for two years. That's 75 mg. above the recommended daily dose. I have treatment resistant depression so I have to take quite a bit of medication to feel better. Not perfect, just better. I'm usually on four meds at one time. I'd rather go through life feeling better than worry too much about meds. Don't get me wrong though. I do my research before starting a new med. I do have an excellent Dr. though. He saves his professional journals for me. The journals are ahead of what you hear on the "streets" so to speak.

I switched from Effexor XR to 250 mg. Zoloft. I did this very very slowly. It took me 24 days. I would drop 37.5 mg's over a period of four days; then drop another 37.5 mg. until I was to zero. I did have some withdrawal symptoms but mild. Now, if I had stopped cold turkey, I believe it would have been pretty unbearable! In my opinion, when quitting a drug like Effexor XR, it should slowly be replaced by another med that you and your Psychiatrist agree on. In fact, I think any med taken over a long period of time should be tapered. Afterall, your brain needs to re-adjust back to it's previous state; (meaning, before the med was started.)

If your doctor neglects to tell you about common side effects of meds, then personnally I would look for another Psychiatrist.

From Greg.

I was on Effexor 150 mg a day for a few years. If I even missed one day, I would have horrible dizziness and these weird electric "zaps" in my head all the time. When I switched from Effexor to Zoloft I had to do it gradually over about two months.

 

I have done such stupid thing!  I have realized over the past few days that I too am going through the withdrawls from Effexor...stupid stupid..

I should have known better than to just stop taking this drug..it helps me..geesh...but I ran out...and then the pharmacy was closed...and then it was Holy Week...and work was chaotic...

Then all of a sudden I realized oh my it has been a week...without Effexor...

Why am I feeling so so ill...well I think I just found my answer...I have a Dr. appointment in a half hour and will fill him in on what I have done....boy do I feel guilty...bout bringing this on...and having my family to deal with me with the flu like symptoms....it is like going through hell...I am curious to see how the Dr. will react....

Thanks for letting me vent...

Colleen

I asked my doctor about getting off celexa and he said to do it very gradually over as long a period as possible.

I went off of Effexor cold turkey, and was the worst mistake I ever made.  I had blinding headaches, flu symptoms as other people have said, and extreme depression; much worse than I had experienced before.  This lasted two weeks.  I swore I wouldn't take Effexor again, tried Paxil; but it didn't work; so I'm back on Effexor, Remeron and Klonipan. 

My doctor told me 150 mg was the max dosage of Effexor one could take.  From reading the posts, I see it can be increased.  By taking a larger dose, have any of you started feeling better?  Because what I'm taking is not doing much at all for my depression and anxiety. 

Well, I didn't make it. After day 4 I had to get back on my medication. I don't know why I occassionaly think I can and should get off my medication. I must say, the Effexor XR has been the most effective medication I have tried. It works on the seretonin and norepinephrine levels both where most SRIs just work on one or the other. I am doing well again. Good luck........ 

I was on 300mg of Effexor PLUS 20 mg of Lexapro. Didn't feel much better, but the addition of Lexapro started changing the way I think. I started making desperate choices, rather dumb ones, and my wife saw it, I saw it, and it took me about 3-4 weeks to get off the stuff.

By the way, Rock Lobster, those strange feelings you experienced are called "Brain shivers" and I was having them even on a daily dose. Those would be the last effects I felt on that stuff.

I have been off the stuff for about 4 months and I noticed little difference on my happy meter.

Hi all,

I am taking Effexor now 75mg. I first started out for 5 days on 37.5mgs and then my Dr bumped me up to 75mgs. I used to take Zoloft, but that didn't seem to help. So far, i've been on the Effexor for a month now. how long does it normally take for me to feel better so to speak? Should I ask to be bumped up more if I'm still feeling the same? I have my moments still when I get depressed and have anxiety. i am scared to ask my dr to give me Xanax or Ativan, which I've had before, btu I dont want her to tell me no. At times I feel like I need something to calm my nerves,but I'm scared she'll say, "No, that's what the Effexor is for"
Any ideas on how long it takes for me to feel the difference? Should I ask for anxiety meds on the side too?

Thanks WeepingWillow. I will talk to her about it and just explain my situation again to her. Like you siad, the worst she can say is no. and i've got nothing to lose in asking.