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Tips on minimizing withdrawal symptoms from Effexor (aka Venlafaxine)
Depression & Anxiety | Last Active: 4 days ago | Replies (6363)Comment receiving replies
I went off Venlafaxine 4 weeks ago after being on it for several years. I tapered down from 225 to 75 myself, it was really ok. But i couldn't get down to 37.5 without getting brain zaps, nausea, headaches, insomnia, trembling, anxiety and all the rest. I went to see a psychiatrist who booked me into hospital for a couple of days to help me get off and to monitor me. For the first 2 days he put me on 37.5, then and from day 3 nothing. From day 1 though he put me on Urbanol that helped with anxiety, Aropax SR 25 mg, pain meds and nausea meds as necessary, Biotrazadone 100mg at night, Disipal that helped with the brainzaps and shaking and Inderal. Using those meds really helped a lot, i only experienced slight brain zaps, a little bit of nausea, diarrhea and vertigo, nothing as severe as when i tried to go of Venlafaxine by myself. Im off it now and adter a month i only get slight brain zaps occasionally, feeling a little weak and tired but nothing too bad. I could stop using Disipal, Inderal, pain and nausea meds.
Replies to "I went off Venlafaxine 4 weeks ago after being on it for several years. I tapered..."
Curious, where do you live? You don’t go to a psyche ward in New York unless you’re... deeply psychotic and a danger to man kind. It’s nice to read about someone who goes to a hospital to get effective treatment.
My experience sounds very similar to yours. I break the tablets up within the capsules to lower the dose extremely slowly. I’m down to a smidgeon but still get side effects if I am late with the dose. (nausea, vertigo and brain zaps) I’m limited to the doctors I can access and the ones I see just treat me as neurotic and show no interest in researching side effects other than saying you shouldn’t go cold turkey. They offer other drugs. I was put on it for hot flushes. It is a bad drug and being dished out without the proper research being conducted into the significant life changing withdrawal symptoms.
I suggest that doctors take it for a month during their training and try coming off it. It would soon disappear off the prescribed drugs list. It may save some lives by turning you into a zombie, but I bet it has taken many more. My husband said he could have told me the house burnt down and I would have replied “Oh well", and smiled. Inside I was just waiting to die. It should not be legal, especially to the young whose whole lives could be ruined. If I was going out to work at the moment I don’t know how I would cope....and all because I sort help for menopausal hot flushes.
Depression is part of life and being with family or friends and getting out of the house is the best treatment in my experience. All the very best to everyone and let’s hope this discussion and others like it prompt researchers to look more closely at the terrible withdrawal experience of many venlafaxine users.
I have cut back Effexor from 2x37.5 tabs daily now to only 1 37.5 tab, I was fine for first couple of weeks but now am having horrible headaches and stomache aches, wondering if it will get better
May I ask what you replaced it with ?
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I am new here so may be in wrong place. I take 150 mg of Effexor been on it a year now . But every since I started taking it I have battled constipation & I will sweat & have chills . I want to take it but would like reduce my dose . I would like to taper down to about 100 mg to see if that would help these symptoms . Can anyone help me ?