Tips on minimizing withdrawal symptoms from Effexor (aka Venlafaxine)

@sandij- Please consider asking your doctor for help with the nausea. You have your hands full with this. Asking for a little help in getting through this is reasonable. I hate that feeling. I do just about anything to get rid of it. lol. Hang in there! You've got this.

Hi, all. Glad I found this forum. I've been on Venlafaxine XR (Effexor XR generic) for two years now for anxiety. I desperately want to get off of it. My doctor never mentioned the terrible withdrawals - or I would have never started it. My concern is that I have a very stressful corporate job, and I just can't afford to be "off kilter" for weeks at a time. I'm going to talk to my doctor this week and hopefully find a way to taper off. I'm going to suggest taking the capsules apart to slowly get lower doses.

I do have one question. Has anyone found that after being on this drug for some time, that the regular dose isn't working for you any more? I take my pill religiously, every evening before bed. But occasionally now I get withdrawal symptoms in the afternoons - hours before my daily dose is due. Has that happened to anyone else?

@decemberriver - Welcome to Mayo Connect. I am glad that you found us! As you read the posts on this topic you will see that many many people have experienced exactly what you describe. Any of the new anti depressants are very tough to get off of. Effexor among many are serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/antidepressants/art-20044970
Taking the capsules apart is the last step that many on here are taking. Please read the posts. You will get a better idea of what to do. @jakedduck1 is one person in particular who has good advice about this.
When I took Effexor XR it was for menopause symptoms- depression and hot flashes. I also found that I had built up a tolerance for it. Let me know what you plan to do. Please check with your doctor and see what he has to say.

Well I got down to taking just 37.5mg a day and was okay after a few days of feeling a little dizzy. So after two weeks of that and now running out of pills, I decided to not take any yesterday (there's no lower dose available). Big mistake! I took my pill at about noon today after waking up very confused at noon instead of before 8am. I feel awful. Weird deep bone/joint aches, light headed, headache, and sick. On top of what seems to be a very prolonged mild allergy reaction.

All I want to do is crawl back into bed. I think I might have to. I'm going to try to make an appointment for sometime soon to get a refill. I feel like a failure for not getting off from 75mg in 90 of the 37.5mg pills.

@notaround Don't beat yourself up! You are not a failure--this is a tough drug to get off of. You've just gone too fast: two weeks at 37.5mg is not that long and dropping from there to zero is a STEEP drop. Call your doctor NOW for a refill without waiting for an appointment. Ben*dryl and Dram*mine can help your withdrawal symptoms.

If you get more pills, you can try this method to taper from 37.5mg--you dissolve your dose in juice and not drink all of it. "Venlafaxine (Effexor) can be tapered … with approximately 1% dosage reduction every 3 days. Stahl (a prescriber’s guide–Stahl’s essential psychopharmacology) recommends dissolving the tablet in 100 mL of juice, discarding 1 mL and drinking the rest. After 3 days, 2 mL can be discarded, etc."–https://www.mdedge.com/psychiatry/article/103869/depression/venlafaxine-discontinuation-syndrome-prevention-and-management

The dissolve-in-juice method mentions reducing by 1mL, but you can control the taper as you wish by discarding a different amount and reducing at a different interval. Just don't bounce around all over the place–slow and steady wins this race.

hello everyone What would help with Cymbalta withdrawl? I am gonna go from 30mgs to 0 by going every other day for 4 days I have got to go off this dangerous drug once and for all I will go back on Gapention for my pain What do ya think? I have been going through withdrawal since September when I went from 60 to 30mgs all at once. No more new drugs for me. Unless I am gonna die without it. How can they get by with giving this to people?

@catcatanzaro60
I believe your trying to get off far to quickly. I wouldn’t try to get off this drug on an every other day basis. I always suggest decreasing your dose by 5-10% and take each dose for at least 2-4 weeks before reducing again. Going very slowly is the best way to get off of it.
Jake

Might want to take it more slowly. Don’t think I would skip days. Keep as much stability in your system as you can . Take baby steps. They will add up to big progress. You can do it. We’re all going to get off this stuff slowly but surely .

@decemberriver
Apologies for not getting back to you earlier. I went to eat and just remembered you.
First, what dose are you on? How long have you been taking it? You may want to split your dose, half am half pm and see if that alleviates the symptoms.
You need to understand that even if your titrations are exceedingly small, that is not a guarantee you won’t have withdrawal symptoms. Although they are usually more mild. Most doctors want to drop your dose by 50%, if so say “NO!” Most doctors believe (From what I’ve read and heard) it should only take a few weeks. If yours is one of those, again tell them “NO, I’ve heard too many horror stories getting off that fast.”
Some people have had to increase their dose but most agree anything above 375mg has no additional benefit. Some people who have tried to stop to slowly have actually increased their dose until the withdrawal symptoms went away then reduced much slower. I always suggest decreasing your dose by 5-10% and take each dose for at least 2-4 weeks before reducing again. However, the best way is to use a Compounding Pharmacy if that is a practical option for you. They will reduce your dose to exactly what you and your doctor decide. That way you will assured you get an exact dosage. But insist on reducing SLOWLY!
Going slow cannot be emphasized strongly enough!!!
Best of luck,
Jake

Thanks for your opinions This med I have gained 20lbs and I only have 4 left in my script. I am so tired of being tired Just want to get over this part of my life.