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

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Depression & Anxiety Support Group.

spec | @spec | Nov 15, 2019
In reply to @sandij "Try taking 37.5 daily to see if you improve. Then cut your daily dosage down instead..." + (show)
@sandij

Try taking 37.5 daily to see if you improve. Then cut your daily dosage down instead of doing the every other day idea.

Jump to this post

Thanks, Sandi James. I only have the 37.5 mg capsules and I have to say I'm not too keen on opening one of these things. Seems like others do it alright.

REPLY
2 replies
Leonard | @jakedduck1 | Nov 15, 2019
In reply to @spec "Thanks, Sandi James. I only have the 37.5 mg capsules and I have to say I'm..." + (show)
@spec

Thanks, Sandi James. I only have the 37.5 mg capsules and I have to say I'm not too keen on opening one of these things. Seems like others do it alright.

Jump to this post

@spec
Better removing beads than suffering withdrawal symptoms. You could ask your doctor about going to a Compounding pharmacy.
Jake

REPLY
Leonard | @jakedduck1 | Nov 15, 2019
In reply to @spec "I've been taking Effexor for 16 or 17 years. It stopped working 2 years ago. I've..." + (show)
@spec

I've been taking Effexor for 16 or 17 years. It stopped working 2 years ago. I've been weaning down from 300 mg of Effexor for over a year now. I'm at 37.5 every other day and it's been rough. Flu like symptoms and the electric shocks and of course anxiety. My plan has been wean down a step, hold steady at this dose for 4 weeks, then wean down again, hold stead for 4 weeks etc. I am taking a truck load of other meds to help with the weaning: Cymbalta, Buspirone and Gabapentin. They seem to help. At my current rate, I'll be off Effexor mid Feb 2020. Then hopefully drop some of these other meds after my body adjusts to the new normal. I imagine I'll be taking Cymbalta for like, ever. My problem is anxiety primarily but depression is a close second.

Jump to this post

@spec
You need to keep in mind you have been on this drug a very long time which is very important to understand especially being on a high dose too. You need to come off it slower. I wouldn't plan on stopping by February. You took this medication for 16 or 17 years, what's the big hurry to get off. Your going to have nitrate down on your others made too. I don't believe you're figuring that into the equation. Wouldn't it have been better to reduce much slower and uneventfully than to rely on even more drugs?
Just my 2 cents.
Jake

REPLY
texasduchess | @texasduchess | Nov 16, 2019

@spec
I agree with @sandij about taking the 37.5mg daily--Effexor has a very short half-life in the body; ping-ponging on/off from one day to the next is putting you into withdrawal over and over.

@jakedduck1 is right, too, about going slower because of the high dose you were on and the many years you took it. The big clue is you're taking three other medications for anxiety that AREN'T managing it. I was only ever on 25mg for 18 years for hot flashes--not mental/emotional issues--and the anxiety coming off was VERY distressing even from that small a dose.

Is your doctor the one managing your withdrawal? If he isn't, get him onboard.

If he is, very few doctors have any idea how to get a patient off Effexor and usually recommend far too quick tapers. If you read all the posts on this forum, the most successful way to get off Effexor is to go very slowly–which means tapering by very small reductions (5-10%, or even less) and staying at each new level for weeks, or months before tapering again. You need to let him know that your anxiety and depression are not being controlled.

REPLY
anne2019 | @anne2019 | Nov 16, 2019
In reply to @spec "Thanks, Sandi James. I only have the 37.5 mg capsules and I have to say I'm..." + (show)
@spec

Thanks, Sandi James. I only have the 37.5 mg capsules and I have to say I'm not too keen on opening one of these things. Seems like others do it alright.

Jump to this post

I agree with Sandi here. I tried taking 37.5 every other day and I felt awful. Dizzy, emotional, off balance physically, with a ton of brain fog. I learned a ton from being on this blog and I've since gone back up to 75mgs to stabalize here. Once I've done that for 3-4 weeks I'm going to pull those stupid little pills apart and take out 5-7 beads and stay at that dose for a few weeks. Then do it all again until I'm down to a few beads, then none. Doing the dramatic drops that the doctor recommended felt absolutely horrible. Please trust the folks on this blog who've done this. Slow is definitely your friend when it comes to Effexor!!

REPLY
1 reply
doorman | @doorman | Nov 16, 2019
In reply to @anne2019 "I agree with Sandi here. I tried taking 37.5 every other day and I felt awful...." + (show)
@anne2019

I agree with Sandi here. I tried taking 37.5 every other day and I felt awful. Dizzy, emotional, off balance physically, with a ton of brain fog. I learned a ton from being on this blog and I've since gone back up to 75mgs to stabalize here. Once I've done that for 3-4 weeks I'm going to pull those stupid little pills apart and take out 5-7 beads and stay at that dose for a few weeks. Then do it all again until I'm down to a few beads, then none. Doing the dramatic drops that the doctor recommended felt absolutely horrible. Please trust the folks on this blog who've done this. Slow is definitely your friend when it comes to Effexor!!

Jump to this post

Each pill does not have the exact number of beads. Count out the numbers in 3 or 4 , and take an average. Then make sure you count WHAT YOU HAVE, NOT WHATS LEFT! It’s the only way to be accurate.

REPLY
1 reply
anne2019 | @anne2019 | Nov 16, 2019
In reply to @doorman "Each pill does not have the exact number of beads. Count out the numbers in 3..." + (show)
@doorman

Each pill does not have the exact number of beads. Count out the numbers in 3 or 4 , and take an average. Then make sure you count WHAT YOU HAVE, NOT WHATS LEFT! It’s the only way to be accurate.

Jump to this post

Sorry I don't understand...count what you have, not what's left. What does that mean?

REPLY
1 reply
doorman | @doorman | Nov 16, 2019
In reply to @anne2019 "Sorry I don't understand...count what you have, not what's left. What does that mean?" + (show)
@anne2019

Sorry I don't understand...count what you have, not what's left. What does that mean?

Jump to this post

Effexor xr has approx. 75 beads in a 75 mg. Capsule. That means 1mg. Per bead. Count out the number of beads YOU HAVE, after getting an average, and take that number as your starting point. I’m going down about one bead every few days. That way, 73 beads means 73 mg. 69 beads equals 69 mg. And so on. I hope this is not too confusing! You see, if you START WITH different numbers, you’ll always be going up and down.

REPLY
2 replies
Lisa Lucier | @lisalucier | Nov 16, 2019
In reply to @notaround "Just wanted to say I've been venlafaxine free for about 2 months now. Prozac bridge worked..." + (show)
@notaround

Just wanted to say I've been venlafaxine free for about 2 months now. Prozac bridge worked for me: I started 20mg of Prozac while still on 37.5mg of venlafaxine, and after two weeks of both, stopped venlafaxine. And the first couple of days were rough but not nearly as bad as trying it before. I stayed on the Prozac for a month but couldn't stand the diarrhea it caused, so talked to my doctor and switched to Cymbalta. It seems to work...slightly. Had a dose increase starting a week ago and it might be helping. No noticeable side effects - yay.

I'm still very depressed but I have a tiny bit more energy when I'm not getting sucked into a depression vortex. So my bad days are just as bad, but my not-bad days are almost okay. It's an improvement, even if it isn't enough.

I think a big obstacle is my allergies. (synthetic scents, and as severe as people think of peanut allergies) The isolation (and almost daily getting pummeled by my immune system) hits me hard. I just got rejected for two jobs explicitly because of it. I have a lot of times I think I can't stand living like this. I'm still here though and haven't made an attempt in a year or so now.

Jump to this post

Hi, @notaround - just wanted to check in and see how you are doing? How is the duloxetine (Cymbalta) that your doctor switched you to? Has it been effective for you?

REPLY
doorman | @doorman | Nov 16, 2019
In reply to @doorman "Effexor xr has approx. 75 beads in a 75 mg. Capsule. That means 1mg. Per bead...." + (show)
@doorman

Effexor xr has approx. 75 beads in a 75 mg. Capsule. That means 1mg. Per bead. Count out the number of beads YOU HAVE, after getting an average, and take that number as your starting point. I’m going down about one bead every few days. That way, 73 beads means 73 mg. 69 beads equals 69 mg. And so on. I hope this is not too confusing! You see, if you START WITH different numbers, you’ll always be going up and down.

Jump to this post

Of course, this means you have to count every capsule, instead of simply removing beads.

REPLY
View MoreView Less
Please sign in or register to post a reply.