Anyone taking EFFEXOR??? Anyone STOPPED IT?

Question

Need any and all info. on coming off this medication. I have been on a year....but would like to know of any side effects????

Answer 1

whatever you do, do NOT just stop it. You need to taper Effexor very Very slowly. It has a very long half life in the body. I tapered off over the course of five months last year. But had to go back on it, I have endogenous depression and every once in a while when the antidepressant works well, I think I don't need it anymore and my doctor being very understanding helps me taper off safely and then writes a new prescription when I realize that hey, yes I do need the med. This is a common occurence among the chronically depressed by the way. You may want to consider this before you try to taper off. Side effects of sudden withdrawal include potential seizures, coma and death. Also, nervous agitiation, muscular aches and pains, anorexia, and parasthesias (tingling and numbness in the extremeties). A slow taper has few side effects until the depression begins to rear it's ugly head, then you have the apathy, the inevitable sadness, the body aches and the circular thinking leading to suicidal ideation.

Answer 2

Im taking effexor, and have taken it in the past. Advise your doctor that you are wanting to go off of the medication, because they will provide you a down grade dosage that will let your body adjust to the lower grams so that you can carefully stop, you should not however, just quit taking it. You could harm your body. I never had any side effects after down grading my dose when I quit taking the medication. But I take it now, and its working for me again.

Best wishes - but do talk to your doctor or whomever prescribed you the medication!

Answer 3

if it is anything like paxil, you have to wean yourself slowly by cutting back no more than 20% per week or you get very bad side effects.