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coming off venlafaxine?

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talulabelle1982
talulabelle1982

I have been taking venlafaxine for over 7 years and can admit that it saved my life a few times in the early stages. I have tried to come off them numerous times,during the past 3 years but have failed every time. The gp honestly dosent know how to help, cut down slowly, miss every other dose...I've tried everything. The side effects of withdrawal are horrendous...shaking, sweating, panic attacks, sickness, violent outbursts, suicidal thoughts. Ive read all the horror stories and truly feel sorry for anyone who has ever taken ven. I'm desperate to quit them but it seems impossible. Any advice would be much appreciated!

13 likes, 362 replies

362 Replies

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  • damian310
    damian310 talulabelle1982

    Posted

    just a little update. i've coming off venlafaxine since summer. i've just reduced from 2 x 37.5mg a day and now having just 1 37.5mg tablet in the morning and before bed i take half of a 37.5mg which is 18.75mg so thats a new total of 56.25mg daily. i've been on this dose for about 4 days now. i try to reduce every 2 weeks or longer if i feel i'm not ready yet.

    i started off at 375mg and during my reductions i've not had too much to deal with. i do feel very stressed a lot of the time feeling very fed up with life though. a week after a couple of my reductions i did get quite low which lasted a couple of days each time. at the start of these reductions i started to det a rining in my ears which i still have, i saw my gp about this and i have some fluid behing my ear drums which could be to blame and the brain zaps are less frequent, even after my last 25% drop. all in all it's been ok just feels like its taking forever.

    does anyone else have any updates on their progress.

    • betsy0603
      betsy0603 damian310

      Posted

      I'm at 27.4 mg and doing very well with it.  I am microtapering since I am focusing my efforts on reducing mirtazapine right now and it is not adviseable to taper two drugs at once.  So, I weigh out my beads every other week, put them in empty capsules, and shave off 1 mg gross weight (includes fillers) each time.  

      When you get to 37.5 mg, that is when receptor occupancy begins to fall off precipitously with small dosage changes, so that is when you will really need to listen to your body and NOT reduce while having any symptoms.  It is really not recommended to reduce more than 10% of the previous dose any more often than 3 weeks.  Doing so will cause the cuts to add up and WD to hit hard as the nervous system falls behind in adjusting.

      It is frustrating to have to go any slower, but listening to your body and slowing things down when needed is the way to succeed in getting off this drug!

  • thinkingpositiv
    thinkingpositiv talulabelle1982

    Posted

    I have just reached the point of no venlafaxine. Thought life would get easier but nothing prepared me for this sad is there anything that anyone can suggest can be done to help how I feel because right now it's awful 
    • betsy0603
      betsy0603 thinkingpositiv

      Posted

      Hi thinkingpositiv, I like your handle!

      What did your taper look like in terms of dosage cuts and frequency?  The only thing that can help withdrawal is the drug you are withdrawing from and/or time, unfortunately.  How did you feel during your taper before jumping off, and what dosage did you jump off from?  How long have you been off now?

      Once I know more about how you did it, I can help you figure out a plan.  

    • thinkingpositiv
      thinkingpositiv betsy0603

      Posted

      Thanks for the reply. I have been on slow release 225mg for several years.  Dropped down by 37.5 mg every fortnight and now on 0. Have been off a week and all side effects still going full belt. 
    • betsy0603
      betsy0603 thinkingpositiv

      Posted

      I'm afraid to say that your taper was much too fast.  Those cuts were too big and then only giving a fortnight for healing in between was too short.  The most conservative taper is 10% every four weeks, based on the previous dosage.  Even at the larger cuts of 37.5 mg you should allow much longer in between.  Your nervous system pushes back against the action of the drug to bring about homeostasis, and these physiological nerve changes are what cause the withdrawal.  It takes a long time for the nerves to adapt back, so your rate of taper and size of cuts far outpaced your nervous system's ability to adapt back.  37.5 mg, the minimum effective dose, still blocks 80% of your receptors, so just imagine what dropping to zero does to you!  I'll PM you a link to a research article that shows how the occupancy changes with slight dosage changes, really illustrates why a SLOW taper is necessary!

      Your best bet is to reinstate 37.5 mg and stay there for a couple of months to get stabilized, and then resume tapering with much smaller drops!  Does your extended release contain little balls within the capsules?  This makes smaller cuts much easier.  Each little ball has its own time release coating, so it is ok to take them out of the capsule.  More on that after you stabilize!

    • thinkingpositiv
      thinkingpositiv betsy0603

      Posted

      Sadly I've been too smart for my own good here! All meds gone. And by time I get back to go and explain, again, the situation almost another week will have passed. I will see psychiatrist the week after. 

      Th slow release was tablet form rather than the capsules you are taking about. I have some time off work so am just going to keep things very low key here. 

      Thanks again for your help - it's much appreciated 

  • dolores10636
    dolores10636 talulabelle1982

    Posted

    I hope this advice helps. I am coming off venlafaxine very slowly. I was on 75 mg 2x a day. With a pill splitter, I then took 75 am and 37.50 in pm for 1 week. Then took 37.50 am and pm for 1 week then 37.50 am and 18.75,

    then 18.75 for am and pm for 5 days, now I am on 18.75 and have introduced 10 mg of fluoxetine for 5 days. When I am off the venlafaxine, I will continue on the fluoxetine until my system wants more. This is all done

    with the direction of my doctor. So far so good! 

     

  • DonnaSwim
    DonnaSwim talulabelle1982

    Posted

    Hello,

    I am currently weening off Venlafaxine. I feel very very dizzy. It's to the point where i feel like I've had a glass of wine. How long might this dizziness last? Do you know?

    • dolores10636
      dolores10636 DonnaSwim

      Posted

      I have a slight dizziness then I take my Fluoxitine 30 mg and a triple strength of turmeric  and curcumin 900 mg . It works I take this 2xa day.
  • shelley72440
    shelley72440 talulabelle1982

    Posted

    Hi

    I have been on this medication for two years and have finally been comming of the pills but the side affect are horrible I have been tablet free for seven days I have beaten up my kitchen cubored and I have thrown a dish at the wall in temper and tearful is an understatement I hope this gets Easyer

  • kyber10774
    kyber10774 talulabelle1982

    Posted

    I was prescribed Efexor for depression about 6 years ago. Initially all seemed OK. Then I started to feel uncomfortable and advised my GP - many times. He just sluffed it off. In April this year I was hospitalized. I viewed the patient information charts and my symptoms were more in line with bipolar than depression.  I challenged the attending physician and he agreed. Effexor is more of a problem for depression than help and should not be prescribed. He admitted having to occasionally admit patients for effexor withdrawal.

    I have been weaned off it and prescribed a med that is more in line with treating bipolar. The withdrawals from efexor have been  AWFUL. Everywhere I search I see the same complaints.  I'm told that normality will return. Soon I hope.

    Good luck.

  • norootslass
    norootslass talulabelle1982

    Posted

    Hello talulabelle1982 and all

    I know this post is over a year old, but I couldn't help but ask how you are all doing today.I really do hope that you're all well and better no matter what you are on.

    Also, Thank you for this forum! I figured all these symptoms were from withdrawal as I had to stop taking so many different types of prescription meds throughout my life.

    I've been on 112.5of Ven for about a month and before that I was on Sertraline [but when I talked to my GP that I was feeling suicidal she prescribed Ven.

    I have a major operation on my back this Saturday, and already went for my pre-assessment where I had to explain that my family were begging me to get of the antidepressants before the op -mainly because of the stories they'd heard about people not waking up from the anesthesia because of the antidepressants- I went back to 75mg for a week, 37.5 almost all of last week, and on Thursday I was feeling confident I could stop them completely. It's Sunday today and all the symptoms everyone has described on here have taken shape and getting worse.

    I don't know why I am writing about myself on here. Sorry about the ramblings.

    But thank you all. Yes, Thank you. May you all have the strength to get through this.

    Hope you are all in good health and spirits!

  • jacqueline69942
    jacqueline69942 talulabelle1982

    Posted

    For 14 years I have been taking 225 mg of Venlafaxine.  I told my doctor I want to get off of it..It makes me sweat way too much...He prescribed 150 mg. for 7 days, then 75 mg for seven days and finally 37.5 for 7 days. I am currently on my 7 days of 75 mgs. and I am fine.  No withdrawal symptoms...Hopefully, when I get to the 37.5 mgs. I will also have no symptoms...So far it has been easy...
  • iyoga
    iyoga talulabelle1982

    Posted

    It definitely saved my life too. Guess I thought any sideffects was better than down & desperate and down right not wanting to be alive. I started off on 75mg and increased to 150mg. I tried a few anti depressants and it did help me eventually, motivated but still agitated which settled.

    I have currently cut from 150 mg to 75mg over 3 weeks by going from 150mg to 137.5mg, essentially 25 percent less. Now I'm on 50 percent less is 75mg for another 3weeks, the half again till I'm no longer taking it. I have been fine so far!

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