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HELP

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Jojocull
Jojocull

I'm writing this out of utter desperation hoping someone on here can help me. I am going through unbearable venlafaxine withdrawels and last night I went to the hospital here in NZ and waited. I was taken home by two nurses and was told there was nothing they can do. I woke up and felt really terrible (panicky, confused, scared, disorientated), and I rang the doctors to see what I should take and they just wouldn't answer so I took 75mg of ven instead of the 37.5 I'm supposed to because I just want to feel better. Anyway my partner lost it at me and shouted I should be in a respite facility going through this and calling me crazy and scaring my two kids which made my withdrawel symptoms even worse and I wanted to help my daughter who was upset and I just couldn't. Now I have taken quietiapene to sleep as its too mentally painful to be awake especially when I'm frightened of my partner. An occupational therapist rung me and was so condescending and didn't know what was going on with my medication so I told him he was not qualified to be giving me instructions on what I should be doing or how I should be feeling and he argued wth me. I'm TOTALLY OVER IT ALL. I'm going to do it my way as the whole set up here in Tauranga is screwed up, they don't know anything much about venlafaxine withdrawels, they have my notes all screwed up and they are all telling me different things!! You guys on here know more about all this than the doctors and psychiatrists here!!! It's s joke. I'm from Auckland but born in the uk and ven in Auckland I'm pretty sure I would never have been treated like this there. Anyway do I continue going through hell and take 37.5mg until they are gone which is three more days. If I do will I feel better then or will I still feel bad withdrawels. I want this over with quick as I want to desperately live my life normally and be a happy mother to my kids like I used to be. Thanks everyone

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  • pat90688
    pat90688 Jojocull

    Posted

    I just wanted to say how helpful it has been to me to read the discussion you started, and I do hope you are continuing to feel better.  If so it could give me some hope.  I am a long-term depressive and my medication was changed on to venlafaxine about 15 months ago.  After a few months I finally came to realise that my excessive sweating was almost certainly caused by the drug.  This caused me not to want to go out as I do not drive so can only get around by walking or public transport.  About 8 weeks ago I said I wanted to come off venlafaxine before the sweating got worse in the summer.  I cut down from 150mg a day by one 37.5 tablet and then by another 37.5 two weeks later.  The first cut-down I could cope with but after the second I began to feel much more depressed so didn't cut down further.  I've seen the doctor a couple of times since and keep changing my mind about what to do.  At one point she said if I wanted to come off to just stop taking the remaining 75mg but I was really scared about how I would feel if I did this as I already felt very down and was finding it difficult to cope with everyday things.  I don't have any family anywhere near and my partner died just over two years ago after some years of illness so I guess we just retired in on ourselves.  I do have one good friend whom I can phone but I mustn't trouble her too much.

    I feel if I stay on the venlafaxine I won't want to go anywhere - even just down to the local cafe for a coffee - because of the sweating, but am scared to come off totally as I feel pretty depressed at present and couldn't bear for it to get worse with so little support around. 

    I did try a couple of weeks ago but then couldn't sleep, which my original good psychiatrist (now retired) said was crucially important.  My doctor doesn't seem to have any suggestions to cope with how I can sleep without something to replace the venflafaxine, and also to help bring me up again from really a pretty low state of depression - not quite the worst I've ever been but very difficult to bear.  I just feel trapped - damned if I stay on venlafaxine with perhaps becoming a bit of a hermit, or facing unknown and maybe even worse depression if I come off. 

    I've done quite a lot of internet research and have found that NICE, the body charged with promoting clinical excellence in the UK, does specifically say in their guidelines on depression that people should be warned before being prescribed venlafaxine that they could face withdrawal side-effects if they decide to come off.  Needless to say, my doctor never mentioned this to me when first prescribing the drug, and I may have to work quite hard not to show her that basically I feel tricked.  I have come off a number of other antidepressants over the years and never had any problems changing over before this.

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