Please, Help! I have a friend who abruptly stopped taking Venlafaxine

Posted by victorlucasg @victorlucasg, Nov 8, 2022

...and very soon developed a chronic anxiety. He is in a constant state of afflction, can't relax and doesnt respond to any treatment (not even going back to venlafaxine in several dosages or other antidepressants, humor regulators, even cetamine infusion he tried). It's been two years since he stopped venlafaxine and his discontinuation symptons never improved one bit. He is very hopeless and thinking of commiting suicide, but he really doesnt want to. Is there anyone here who experienced something similar and manage to get away with it?

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Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Nov 8, 2022

@victorlucasg, welcome. You are right to be concerned about your friend. You only have to read a few of the messages in this discussion to hear the stories of people who stopped cold turkey or tapered too quickly.
- Tips on minimizing withdrawal symptoms from Effexor (aka Venlafaxine) https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/tips-on-minimising-withdrawal-symptoms-from-effexor-aka-venlafaxine/

Members like @texasduchess @sears @mothergoose76 and others share some tips in these related discussions:
- How did you cope with Effexor discontinuation symptoms? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/effexor-discontinuation-symptoms/
- Avoiding discontinuation syndrome during removal of Venlafaxine XR: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/avoiding-discontinuation-syndrome-during-removal-of-venlafaxine-xr/

This must be very stressful worrying about your friend's well being and feeling the threat of suicide looming. How are you coping?