1. < Depression & Anxiety

Tips on minimizing withdrawal symptoms from Effexor (aka Venlafaxine)

Posted by richyrich @richyrich, Nov 2, 2016

I have been taking Effexor/Venlafaxine for years and tried to get off it a few times but each time I try to give up the chemical withdrawal symptoms are a horror story and I give up giving up. Anyone got any tips or tried and tested strategies? Thank you

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dickygray | @dickygray | Dec 20, 2018
In reply to @thankful "@dickeygray- From a long time east coast surfer just wanted to say "Thumbs up and keep..." + (show)
@thankful

@dickeygray- From a long time east coast surfer just wanted to say "Thumbs up and keep your tip up". It's been many years since I last gave it a try, but that simple move of dropping in and popping up was way more difficult than I ever remembered! Watch out for those monkeys in CR! They love to steal your stuff on the beach. 🙂

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Hey dude, yes them there Monkeys ! in the 10 years Ive been coming to the Nicoya peninsula they have only really been ballsy little terrors in Montezuma. Cheers bro, take it easy.

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sandij (Sandi James) | @sandij | Dec 20, 2018

One thing I've learned about myself is "don't trust the now". Especially during tapering. But that's just my own experience. I have found, for me, that if I feel ill at ease, I do best at allowing myself time to recenter. I either succeed without intervention and at the least I'm able to make a better decision. I am training my entire self in taking right action, not reaction. It's an interesting process that is truly individual. Love and healing to every one of us.

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amalia78 | @amalia78 | Dec 20, 2018

I haven't posted in a while. I stopped tapering Effexor about a month ago when I started taking Methotrexate for rheumatoid arthritis. Didn't want to confuse my body! The new medication has been difficult as it causes nausea daily. So I am staying with my 75mg tab plus 37.5 tab of Effexor. Still an improvement over the 225 mg I started out with. Anyone who has had experience with methotrexate? Original dose of 6 tabs once a week was cut to 3 tabs due to the nausea. I can handle this better, but still unpleasant. Food is important!

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JK | @contentandwell | Dec 20, 2018
In reply to @merpreb "@JK, I think that you're right JK. Sometimes I a doctor looks at me like I'm..." + (show)
@merpreb

@jk, I think that you're right JK. Sometimes I a doctor looks at me like I'm a miracle because I know who to ask questions or know the name of an organ, lol.

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@merpreb I have had some doctors who would seem to prefer that their patients remain ignorant! I figure they must be very insecure.
JK

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1 reply
Mentor
Merry, Volunteer Mentor | @merpreb | Dec 21, 2018
In reply to @contentandwell "@merpreb I have had some doctors who would seem to prefer that their patients remain ignorant!..." + (show)
@contentandwell

@merpreb I have had some doctors who would seem to prefer that their patients remain ignorant! I figure they must be very insecure.
JK

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JK, I agree. What a sad state. It's all about power instead of health and the welfare of all humans

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1 reply
sandij (Sandi James) | @sandij | Dec 21, 2018

JK, most of my experience has been the same! Doctors want me to be ignorant, I've had one tell me not to be looking on the internet unless it's the NIH site (which ironically was where I got the information that she told me was incorrect). I'm also worked as a nurse, but I don't dare to tell them that, since "nurses make the worst patients".

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1 reply
Mentor
Merry, Volunteer Mentor | @merpreb | Dec 21, 2018

@sandij-It's a pretty sad state when we can't be honest with our own doctors because of their own opinions and ignorance. I would also tell her that you are very aware of what's going on and that you are not some ignorant fool. And if she contradicts herself let her know. This way she'll know not to treat you like she does and will be able to be honest with you.

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shellyz | @shellyz | Dec 21, 2018
In reply to @coloradogirl "So, I just finished this process with Zoloft (sertraline) and here are some things that worked..." + (show)
@coloradogirl

So, I just finished this process with Zoloft (sertraline) and here are some things that worked for me. Your mileage may vary, but hopefully these are low risk for you to try.

1) You may need to ask your doctor for a slower tapering program than other patients. Some people are just more sensitive to dosage changes. Be aware that symptoms will get better, then may reappear each time you taper. AAFMA (practice group of family physicians) says that the symptoms typically last 1-2 weeks and as long as 4 weeks, so I just kept reminding myself that it was temporary.
2) Be watchful for things that make your symptoms worse. For example, caffeine seems to trigger the brain zaps for me (still, even after being off for several weeks), so I cut back my caffeine intake. I didn't give it up completely (because I still need to function), but cut back on how much real coffee I was drinking, mixed decaf with regular, and switched to tea sometimes. In the end, I probably cut my daily caffeine intake in half, and it did help quite a lot.
3) Ibuprofen or other pain reliever can help with the flu-like body aches.
4) Benadryl helped with the brain zaps.
5) Exercise helped with both. Even if I wasn't up to a run, a few blocks of walking would settle down the symptoms for a while at least. (Then, when they come back, just take another walk. We took a lot of walks for a while there).
6) Get enough sleep. As I came down off the meds, my normal sleeping patterns returned, which was great, but it did mean that I needed to plan time to let my body rest.
7) Pay attention to your diet. Your brain uses carbs to make seratonin, so now is not the time to go on the Atkins diet. Eat well and make sure you're getting enough healthy carbs. You may crave sweets; I certainly did. I tried to counteract this by having bananas, graham crackers, and other healthy things I could snack on instead of sticking my head in a birthday cake like I seemed to want.

No lie - it's a painful process, but this did really help make it easier. Also, at a certain point, when I was down the below the normal starter dose, I just ripped off the bandaid and went to zero. At that point, it felt like each taper was just prolonging the suffering. Don't just go cold turkey from your current dose, though, as that can be dangerous. Also, don't add any supplements or substitutes for the SSRI without talking to your doctor first (also dangerous).

And of course, watch for the return of depression / anxiety type symptoms. For a while it was hard to tell whether I was tired because of the change in meds or because my depression was returning. I figured as long as I felt okay enough to function and wasn't thinking about being harmful to myself or anyone else, I could play it out and see. It turned out to be the meds and on the other side, I can see that I was more worried about it than I needed to be.

I wish you the best of luck and a healthy life.

Mardee

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Your post has given me some hope. I am on my second day of lowering my dose of Venlafaxine. I have been on 600 mg of Venlafaxine a day for about two years now. In 2016 I went through a terrible episode of depression. I have been doing well on the 600 mg. But now insurance has denied this amount of medication. They will only cover 325mg or less per day. My doctor had me start on 300 mg yesterday. Today has been bad. This morning I was dopey, lethargic, and nauseous. This evening it has really hit me. Extremely nauseous, diarrhea, tired, and the tears have started. Kind of scared. Need advice.

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4 replies
Leonard | @jakedduck1 | Dec 21, 2018
In reply to @shellyz "Your post has given me some hope. I am on my second day of lowering my..." + (show)
@shellyz

Your post has given me some hope. I am on my second day of lowering my dose of Venlafaxine. I have been on 600 mg of Venlafaxine a day for about two years now. In 2016 I went through a terrible episode of depression. I have been doing well on the 600 mg. But now insurance has denied this amount of medication. They will only cover 325mg or less per day. My doctor had me start on 300 mg yesterday. Today has been bad. This morning I was dopey, lethargic, and nauseous. This evening it has really hit me. Extremely nauseous, diarrhea, tired, and the tears have started. Kind of scared. Need advice.

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@shellyz
Hi shell,
This is only my personal opinion.
Jeez almighty what kind of quack doctor are you going to?
Good for your insurance company.
He cut your Effexor down 50%, very irresponsible even if you were on a normal dose.
Best advice I have is change doctors, yours is an idiot.
Jake

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2 replies
sandij (Sandi James) | @sandij | Dec 21, 2018
In reply to @shellyz "Your post has given me some hope. I am on my second day of lowering my..." + (show)
@shellyz

Your post has given me some hope. I am on my second day of lowering my dose of Venlafaxine. I have been on 600 mg of Venlafaxine a day for about two years now. In 2016 I went through a terrible episode of depression. I have been doing well on the 600 mg. But now insurance has denied this amount of medication. They will only cover 325mg or less per day. My doctor had me start on 300 mg yesterday. Today has been bad. This morning I was dopey, lethargic, and nauseous. This evening it has really hit me. Extremely nauseous, diarrhea, tired, and the tears have started. Kind of scared. Need advice.

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Cant tell anyone else what to do, but I would be taking a dosage closer to 600 until I could get to another doctor. And then start a reasonable taper.

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