Anyone tapered off Effexor and used Prozac as a bridge?

Hi @beachlion12, how is your taper off Effexor going? Did you speak to your doctor about using Prozac as a bridge?

Hi there, I’m just wondering how you do this as I’m being told to wean off but having hell, psychs just say cut fast, deal with withdrawals but the Prozac bridge seems best, I just do not know how to do it, ptsd. I can’t handle the Effexor it did nothing for me, just bad side effects trying to come off. Thanks so much. You can private message me if you like too, thanks again. I have a doc willing to prescribe but doesn’t know how exactly, liquid Prozac given but no instructions just take 5mg and wean Effexor but no info how, I’m on 112.5 at moment of Effexor xr, bead counting even too hard

There's another thread on Mayo Clinic Connect "Tips on minimising withdrawal symptoms from Effexor (aka Venlafaxine)"—it is 500+ pages, but full of good information and tips posted by people encountering withdrawal issues (or hoping not to) when trying to get off Effexor and I HIGHLY recommend all who are trying to get off, or even just reduce their Effexor to read EVERY page.

I'm not a doctor and cannot speak to the efficacy of using a Prozac bridge, nor did I try this method of withdrawing from Effexor, but some time back found and posted this link to "Tips ..." about using a Prozac bridge for others who were wondering about it and two posters there, Josheek and mikl_pls, detailed their Prozac bridge methods—https://www.depressionforums.org/forums/topic/107532-coming-off-of-effexor-with-prozac-bridge/

Please discuss these options with your doctor. Good luck with your taper and keep in mind that often doctors are more optimistic than their patients find comfortable regarding how quickly they drop and how steep the drops should be—most folks find tapering slowly is usually more successful than rushing the process.

I tried weaning from 112.5 Effexor to 75 as advised by a new psychiatrist who thinks I should never have been on it, but this was hell.

She now advises change directly to cymbalta 60mg and cut that down to 40 then 20 and off, has anyone success with this? It doesn’t have a long half life either. I go through daily withdrawals on Effexor as is Interdose, fast metaboliser. Thanks

Hello @ruth3,

Weaning off Effexor, or any other antidepressant, can be a challenge. Unfortunately, we all react to this process differently, so it is hard to make any hard/fast rules. As you said, you are a "fast metabolizer" so the way you adjust to changes in meds might be entirely different than that of another person.

When I was taking Effexor, I was taking the smallest amount that could be prescribed. As I recall, it was just 25 mg and then switched to the smallest dosage of Cymbalta (perhaps 25 mg of that as well). You might also get a second opinion, from another psychiatrist, if you are still having problems.

Pharmacists are another very good resource. They can be very helpful in dealing with meds, after all, that is all that pharmacists work with! Do you know an experienced pharmacist who might be able to work with you on this?

Thank you for your kind message, did you use cymbalta to taper off all medications then? I am trying to get advice from a pharmacist but they are reluctant to give me much info and just say go to your prescriber. One mentioned citralopram eventually today as I kept asking, to cross taper to that and maybe come off that then over a few weeks. The Effexor is so stimulating but has also burnt me out due to this. I’m wondering if anyone used this as a bridge to taper and then wean?

Hi again @ruth3,

That is a good question. No, I was not trying to taper off of other meds. I used Effexor and then Cymbalta (smallest dosage possible) to deal with pain and sleeping problems (pain and sleeping problems seem to go together). I've tried different meds to help with sleep and pain and the Cymbalta worked about the best, however, it took a longer time to be effective (maybe 3 months). I am not taking either right now.

Have you tried other forms of relaxation during this process? I'm thinking of exercise, Tai Chi, meditation, etc.

If you are taking these meds to wean from antidepressant use, perhaps you need to seek a second opinion from another psychiatrist. Have you considered another opinion?

How can we follow other members?

I

@love57, you can follow Support Groups to connect with members of the same support group. See the full directory here: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/groups/

Many start as low as 1.25 mg liquid daily try for a week and then bump up very gradually