Tips on minimizing withdrawal symptoms from Effexor (aka Venlafaxine)

@anne2019
Keep in mind being impatient may actually prolong your taper. Although some people are able to taper quicker I understand why you’d try it as many others have. Some have had to increase their dose back to where it was and restart their taper.
Good luck,
Jake

Hi, @shaker1956 - just wondering if you switched to another antidepressant after tapering off the venlafaxine (Effexor)? If so, what are you taking now, and how's it going?

Hi there Lisa. I have been off Ven since Jun 2017. I recently started taking Bupropion 150 about 6 weeks ago. I do believe I need to up the dosage as I feel its not working as well as a few weeks ago. I have been done Chemo for 9 months now and that may be playing a factor in this also. Fingers crossed and hope all works out. Thanks for asking!!!!

I didn’t know it had a name but I get pulsatile tinnitus when my blood pressure is high. Has nothing to do with Effexor in my case. But! My constant static (not pulsating) Gets louder when My depression kicks in. And it Recently kicked in when I went from 150 mg to 112 mg. It has subsided.

Good evening @shermananski, I am not a medically trained clinician. I do have Tinnitus, and have been coping with it for a couple of years. Do you hink this is what you are calling "static"? H

Here is the link for information from Mayo Clinic. Let me know if we are headed in the right direction. Have a safe and restful sleep. Chris
https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayo-clinic-q-and-a-understanding-tinnitus/

Thank you. I assume this is what I’m experiencing, and I wouldn’t doubt it’s related to blood pressure. But what’s strange is it’s comorbidity with depression.

<p>I’m tapering off Effexor and I’m starting to experience ear noise, not ringing, per se, but a static. I get this static when I’m deeply depressed and I’m concerned that i will start to relapse. Just in time for the holidays. Does anyone else have experience with ear static? I’ve read a little about it being related to anxiety.</p><p>PS I find it hard to navigate this forum on my iPhone. So... it’s hard to follow the comments etc. when it gets to be a long thread.</p><p>Hope all is well this evening.</p>

Hi, @shermananski - wanted to let you know I moved your post on ear noise/static to this thread on side effects when tapering off on venlafaxine (Effexor) so you can talk with many more members who have experienced side effects in this process. I'd like to tag @sandij @brightwings @anne2019 @jakedduck1 in particular, among others, to comment on whether they or others they know may have had ear noises like you describe in the venlafaxine taper process.

Have you found anything that relieves this side effect, shermanski?

I’ve always had a bit of tinnitus ( shotgun blasts without ear protection when I was younger).....but since withdrawing from Effexor, it seems to have ramped up dramatically. Not to mention headaches. No doubt that anxiety increases blood pressure. Just one more thing to put up with. I’m just over 2weeks into my taper, with many weeks to go. Hanging on.

I had/have some tinnitus or whooshing, not sure how to describe it. It's like how your ears feel after you've been at a really loud concert and then you leave. For me it could be hearing loss, I guess, I just haven't gotten it checked out. There are so many strange reactions to this medication it's really not helpful for me to go to the doctor for anything and get misdiagnosed with something that just might be related to withdrawal.