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Coming off Venlazaxine to start a family - Day 3 and support needed

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aby12276
aby12276

This is my first time on a forum so I don't know if anyone will even see this but I need to speak to people who have been through Venlafxine withdrawal as I'm so confused.

I have been on 225mg Venlafaxine and 45mg Mirtazapine (for recurrent depression and anxiety after being on many different different drugs since teenage years - now 31) for 5 years.

I want to start a family and I want to be drug free for pregnancy so went to see my psychiatrist (a new one to me) who told me to get pregnant and THEN come off tablets. He told me there were no side effects to taking the drugs apart from weight gain and the effects of coming off the drugs to be no worse than the morning after drinking a glass of wine.  I questioned this with him as I once missed 2 days tablets by mistake and experienced awful flu like shakes, sweats and nausea - he told me I probably contracted flu at that time and mistook the symptoms.  He told me I would be fine and to come off them all the day I found out I was pregnant.

I didn't quite believe him and wanted to come off them BEFORE getting pregnant as I want this time to not be clouded with the extra worry and pressure of having to come off quickly.

I have been halving the amount of Venlafaxine every week and 3 days ago I took my last tablet but I'm finding it unbareable and my options are to go back on the tablets and face not having children at the moment (though I don't know when I'll feel strong enough to go through this again), ride it out (but I've been reading it could be for months and I'm self employed and can't afford months off at the moment as I have committments) I cannot get support from the doctor as he has told me he doesn't BELIEVE in withdrawal symptoms, it is all in the head. I really tried to have that attitude too but I'm struggling.

I really want to get clean and some good news, positive stories would really mean a lot to me right now.

0 likes, 5 replies

5 Replies

  • reasoning51
    reasoning51 aby12276

    Posted

    Having came off Venlafxine before from a dose the same as you i can certainly say there are withdrawls, and at the final pil stopping stage they are the worst. However, my doc prescribed me a couple weeks worth of low dose Prozac to help and amzingly it did. I had no withdrawl effects at all once i took them (they enter your blood quickly) and because i only took them for two weeks i was able to just stop and suffer no ill effects. Now, for this, your going to have to ask your doctor outright I'd imagine, to prescribe them and hopefully he will/should..

    I can assure you, i felt the exact same and these did me wonders

    • aby12276
      aby12276 reasoning51

      Posted

      Thanks for this, I know you can only answer from a personal point of view but did you not suffer coming off the Prozac at all? I'm reluctant to involve any other medication as I don't want to come off one to then have another to deal with.

      It sounds like the effects were ok after a few weeks for you?

    • reasoning51
      reasoning51 aby12276

      Posted

      No, no problmes coming off the prozaqc as it wassmall dose (10mg) and was only for a couple weeks. Without it i couldnt have came off the Ven totally
  • rob18613
    rob18613 aby12276

    Posted

    Sorry to hear your situation Aby. First thing ditch the doctor!! He is clueless and will not help your situation. I have come off Ven approx 3 months ago after 20 years on but only had that. I had intensive councelling for the last year which I think was the clinch for me. I was in the right place and so slowly came off, but near the end got side effects so doc told me to go cold turkey. It was a very emotional time with crying easily. I wobbled for 2 weeks and then it has gradually eased but getting there, still a bit tearful but not sure if I am just a big softie or cos I have been through so many traumatic family issues recently. The big thing I did different ( which I read on one of these threads) was to take a cocktail of vitamins with varying benefits which may or may not have helped but I feel a lot better for it. You take care and hope this has helped
    • aby12276
      aby12276 rob18613

      Posted

      Thank you so much Rob, this has really helped. You've done so well to come off after 20 years, such a big decision but I agree with you about the counseling - this has also helped me and I feel in the right place to come off.

      I wish the doctors could listen to patients and share the advice that so many people are saying on these forums, it could save a lot of bad times for people.

      I will definitely look into the vitamins - many thanks, I wish you all the best,

      from a fellow "big softie" ;-)

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