Tips on minimizing withdrawal symptoms from Effexor (aka Venlafaxine)

There is a lot of information on a website called survivingantidepressants.org. It explains an experience called "waves and windows" really well - I'm still thinking your taper is too high because of the ear buzzing - but that's just me. Hang in there : )

A solid one week into 75 to 37.5. I feel better. I typically experience a few days of “withdrawal” upon dosage reduction, but it clears up and I move on. I’m very afraid of the last 37.5 but in concert with removing Effexor I have taken up meditation, I’m in therapy, I’m getting back into exercise including yoga, I can eat right when motivated, and two huge stressors (brought to me by paxil I ggeorize) are largely gone from my life. I feel confident I can beat this thing.

Good for you! I beat Effexor by counting beads. I stopped cold at 15 mg. A little tough, but doable.

Sounds like all your ducks are in a row. Great work

I have been weaning off of Venlafaxine for several months now. My usual dose was 75 mg of the er type and first weaning was down to 75 mg daily. Because of my psychiatrist being ill, I felt like I was stuck there. Not too upset about it, but I really want to get off this medication. I was put on it by a GP when I told him I didn't like how I felt on Prozac. At first I was feeling pretty good and stayed on it for several years. As I look back at that time, I really believe he did not discuss this change with a psychiatrist, but just stopped the prozac and started me on the Venlafaxine ER 75 mg twice daily. After all these years, I started seeing a MSW as a therapist because I am a hoarder. She made an appt. for me with this Psychiatrist and he told me that V...... was not the proper antidepressant for a hoarder to be on so he started weaning me from it in order to give me another medication. I have no idea what that will be, but just dropping down to taking the V........once a day instead of twice a day, I felt so much better! Finally, an employee of the place where I see the therapist spoke to the Psychiatrist who prescribed a 37.5 dose once a day. I've taken it 3 days now. I did not feel well any of those days, just a general malaise and decreased appetite. But today when I awoke I turned in bed from one side to the other and WHOA, the room was spinning at a high velocity and I wondered if I was Dorothy, in the Wizard of Oz. When I closed my eyes and kept them closed for a minute, the vertigo disappeared. But each time I moved my head when I was in a flat position, this vertigo started again. I was afraid to try to get up. When I did I was ok, I'm 80 yo and I have balance issues sometimes, and was in no mood to fall. Fortunately, I've not had the vertigo since I am upright. I am also on two new meds because of an excessively long run of A-Fib. Cardizem and Coumadin. I'm really not sure if either of those caused my unpleasant awakening this morning, but the decreased dose of venlafaxine is highly suspicious to me. Any thoughts, anyone?

Hi, @mumsydoodle- I wanted to let you know I moved your post here to an existing discussion on withdrawal from/tapering off of venlafaxine (Wellbutrin). I thought you could meet members here like @jakedduck1 @sandij @cp6401 @brightwings @ksad @shermananski and others, who might speak to the room spinning feeling you have had with the decrease in your venlafaxine.

How are you feeling today, mumsydoodle?

Hello All! I reached out to this group a couple of months ago and got great help and suggestions about getting off Effexor. I want to share an update. I was on Effexor for almost 17 years, low dose at first, then up to 150mg for the last 5-6 years. I tried weaning off several times and the withdrawl symptoms were unmanageable so I gave up. I did get myself down to 75mg. Last week I went to a psychiatrist who, unlike a lot of doctors, was VERY familiar with troubles getting off Effexor. After extensive conversation, he put me on Cymbalta. I did a straight switch to 60mgs of Cymbalta, which he says is much easier to taper from, and completely stopped the Effexor. I am only on day 5 but so far so good! I've had a few symptoms, headache, dizzy, ears ringing, but nothing like what they were before. The Cymbalta balances out the seretonin that my brain craves. Anyway, I'm hopeful for the first time in years. We have a tapering program for Cymbalta, 60mg to 40mg to 20mg then none, and I should be off everything by mid March.

I'll let you all know how it goes!

Happy for you as it sounds like you have found a way to get out of the effexor trap and can even see the end of the tunnel. Effexor users are used to coping with various bad side effects and they become the norm. That state of being, fighting to keep the misery from taking over, combined with the need for mountains of patience, are exhausting. I wonder why more drs arent using the cymbalta to help? Or are they?

Hi Lisa, I am new to the group and mayo clinic.I was unsure how to post a new conversation in this specific topic, so I just added my comment here. I found this discussion and was very excited to see more people wanting to get off Effexor.
I am working on tapering off and able to deal with the lower side effects.
My biggest question that I was unable to find in this discussion was after people tapered off Effexor and ended up not taking it anymore, how long did it take them for the side effects of withdrawal to stop? 1 week? A month? (I understand it is different for everyone, but just looking for other experiences)

Thank you!

One year and seven months ... and counting.