2006-12-14 03:28:08 · 9 answers · asked by k.padgett 1 in Health ➔ Mental Health
I have heard that this is the hardest anti-depressant to come off of. Talk to your doc if symptoms are bad. Good luck hun.
2006-12-14 03:30:16 · answer #1 · answered by IMHO 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
How to Stop Taking Effexor:
Your doctor should be recommending that you reduce your dosage by 37.5mg a day every week if you need to stop taking it, if not more slowly than that. You shouldn't be doing it any faster than that unless it's an emergency. Yes, that means if you've maxed out at 375mg a day it'll take 10 weeks to get off of Effexor (venlafaxine hydrochloride). Believe me, it's better that way. Also, once you get down to that last 37.5mg a day, ask your doctor for a Prozac (fluoxetine) prescription or samples. Generic fluoxetine will even do. 10mg a day is all you need. Even with the proper discontinuation stopping the last 37.5mg can be hellish. Taking two weeks worth of Prozac (fluoxetine) will make the discontinuation a lot easier. So when you're off of Effexor and you cannot function, get on the Prozac for a week or two, then stop taking the Prozac. You'll find you'll have either no discontinuation syndrome, or it won't be nearly as bad.
If you've worked your way up to a particular dosage, it's usually best to spend this many days at the next lowest dosage before going down the next lowest dosage before that and so forth. This is the least sucky way to avoid problems when stopping any psychiatric medication. Presuming you have the option of slowly tapering off them.
2006-12-14 05:05:48 · answer #2 · answered by Altruist 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I had a lot of difficulty getting off of the Effexor. I had taken it for 4 years and decided that it wasn't doing much for me. My doctor gave me sample packets to gradually ween myself off of it. I followed all of the directions, but I was still feeling dizzy and out of it taking the lowest dosage prescribed. When I tried quitting altogether, I would get very sick after about 48 hours. I would suggest that you break the tablets into halves or quarters (or even smaller), and take the smallest dose possible to avoid the withdrawals. You should probably check with your doctor first to make sure this would be right for you. My doctor suggested this idea to me, because even the 37.5 mg tablets were too strong for me to stop taking cold turkey. Personally, I didn't want to take another medication to help ween myself off of this drug, so this worked for me. The whole process of quitting this medication took about 6 weeks for me.
2006-12-16 18:26:19 · answer #3 · answered by g 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I had the same trouble when I stopped taking Effexor. I would suggest a lighter drug, such as zoloft, to wean yourself down from the dependency on Effexor.
That sure is a powerful drug. I'm thankful for the good that it did, but man, it was hard to get off that drug.
2006-12-14 03:54:49 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'll tell you straight up, it's not fun to come off of any antidepressant. Believe me, I've been on almost every one out there until I found Paxil.
I've had to come off of antidepressants many times (in order to get one out of my system so I could try a new one) and my doc tapered me off. But even tapering off sucks. I felt dizzy, sick, and spaced out for about three days.
This is not a good way to handle it from a medical standpoint, but this is the way I dealt with it:
I slept. I took a sleeping pill or some Nyquil when I felt the worst, and just slept through the toughest part of withdrawals.
Good Luck, hon.
2006-12-14 04:00:01 · answer #5 · answered by ladygodivva2004 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It has horrible withdraw. I have been through it. Even with tapering slowly, it is hard to go through. It is normal. Unfortunaltly, there is just not a lot that can be done other than getting through it. You can sometimes take something to help with the nausea ans dizziness, but only you know they symptoms.
2006-12-14 03:47:42 · answer #6 · answered by behr28 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why are you going through withdrawals? The dosage is supposed to be tapered off to prevent this complication. Talk to your doctor.
2006-12-14 03:31:12 · answer #7 · answered by Firespider 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Have you quit without gradually tapering off? You shouldn't be going through withdrawals. That is dangerous. Contact the Doctor who prescribed it right away. Please
2006-12-14 03:55:37 · answer #8 · answered by stargazer 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
if it's an SSRI, your symptoms are going to be similar to Paxil's--
withdrawal info can be found here:
http://www.quitpaxil.info/Main/symptoms.htm
If you'd like to contact others who are withdrawing or ask if your symptoms are common, please visit their message boards:
http://quitpaxil.info/chatboard/index.php
2006-12-14 04:42:33 · answer #9 · answered by Violet Pearl 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋