***how to get off effexor symptom free***

[Pam]

Hi Wellagain, your major meltdown sounds like you are still dealing with the effects of the Effexor. I also had a major melt down in the beginning but it does get better. I am starting to feel more like a normal person and my thinking is no longer fogey and much clearer. Big bonus too is that I have lost 5 pounds since going off Effexor. Could never loose weight while on it and just continued to gain weight. So there is hope!!!

[Maggme]

Hi all, I'm down to 37.5 mg effexor! Yippee! I've had mild mood swings but mostly on the upside, which is good. I've also noticed my appetite decrease. Good luck to everyone who is coping with this medication. I know it doesn't work for me.

[been there done that]

check paxilprogress.org for withdrawal support it has all kinds of antidepressants support and info.
For specifically effexor side effect long term use ect
effexoractivist.org read only
tribe.net effexoractivist live

I am 23 months into cold turkey and not out of the woods yet. DO NOT cold turkey it is dangerous my withdrawal was so bad my life stopped but then again the drug made me so sick and crazy I had lost everything I own and my life had stopped anyway. I was very ill when I quit it was quit or die that is how I felt do not let it get to that point it is way too hard. The drug was making me sick I am improving.
Good luck to you all.

[been there done that]

5%- 10% decrease if current dose is recommended stay at that dose 4-6 wk or until you feel stable..
going pill every other day is bad as effexor has a short half life.

Withdrawal the hard withdrawal can take a month or two to really hit home. Slow and easy is the safe responsible way which apparently allows people to still have a life unlike cold turkey where your life as you know it will stop.

[Mike]

As you all know effexor is terrible when you want to stop taking it. I was taking 75mg for 2 years and then 37.5mg for a year. I tried to to come off of it a few times with no success but more recently I have weaned myself down to 6 "beads" a day. The first week when the withdrawal symptoms hit you is like death. I thought I had the flu, then I thought I was anemic, etc. When it hits yous, it hits you hard. I went to the doctor for blood tests because I didnt realize how crazy the withdrawal symptoms were and of course each time I was fine.

If I could give any advice... prepare yourself if you want to stop because it is VERY hard. Wean yourself down as slowly as possible and make it easy on yourself... take time off school/work if you need to, force yourself to do things (as hard as it may seem...gets your mind off of it), do things that you like, eat things that you like, get fresh air and sun, go to your doctor and let them know whats going on (if you havent), and talk to someone (I have noticed that when I was feeling like crap talking to someone I trusted and letting them what I was going through made me feel a little better).
Just know that it isnt going to last forever. The first week...especially the first 4-5 days, are the hardest. After that you will feel a little better everyday.

Good Luck

[been there done that]

Tell somebody what you are doing and that withdrawal may take a couple of months to hit you. Inform them of what to watch for the inform yourself too.
effexoractivist.org
paxilprogress.org
Know not everybody is the same some folks have a much worse time withdrawing than others listen to your own body and slow it down if it gets too rough.

[stacey]

I am so grateful for this site.I no longer feel as if Iam alone in this nightmare.I am reducing by the bead method but have stayed at 30 grains .The reason being the past week I have been very low, feeling tearful extremely sensitive, petty ,unable to cope, scared that I am not strong enough to cope with life feeling sorry for mtself,resentful of everyone, withdrawing into myself.It feels as if my depression is back with a vengiounce .I know this is all withdrawel and it will pass.I hope this helps someone who may be struggling like me

[xgypsygoddessx]

I have been taking Effexor for over three years now. I've gotten to a point in my life now where I feel I can manage my Anxiety and Depression and I no longer need to take Effexor.
After reading up about Effexor withdrawal and trying once to go off of it, I ended up back on it within weeks. For these three years I've been taking one 150mg a tablet a day. I've been so scared of the withdrawal from it that it has kept me on it for longer than I ever wanted to be on it.
Over the last few months I have begun weaning myself off of the tablets again. I went from 150mg a day to 75mg and this was where I noticed the biggest difference. I was incredibly moody, had difficulty sleeping and experienced increased Anxiety and Depression. After a month or so on 75mg I went down to 37.5mg. I was expecting hell....a hell that never came. I barely noticed any side effects. My only complaint could be some nausea and headaches.
I'm now down to taking 37.5mg every second day and experiencing some headaches, nausea and dizziness. This is obviously only experienced on the days when I do not take the tablet.
I'm skipping my tablet again tomorrow and taking it on the third day. Wish me luck! I can't wait to be off of this stuff for life.
Good luck to anyone else that is going through the same thing. I thought I'd post my story here because there are so many horror stories (some of which just scared me into thinking I'd take Effexor forever). I wanted to let people know that there is hope.
Good luck.

[bear]

xgypsygoddessx
I bet you stupid doctor told you to take your med one day and not the next ? This does not work! It will put you in and out off withdrawal.Go back and read the old posts on this forum you will find some good advice about withdrawing.The one most people finds that works is to open the capsules and gradually reduce the beads inside.You will get sick if you keep trying one day on one day off.Good luck and take care.

[Brian]

I have been on Effexor XR for 8 years. I was on 75mg until May of 2005 then went to 150mg when my father died. I was on 150mg until July of this year when I went up to 225mg. I was anxious of a 25th high school reunion so my Dr. bumped me up. Never talked about taking it back down. I put myself back down to 150mg a month ago. No problems. I have 2 150mg tablets left and I plan on using my left over 75mg's for 30 days. I intend to tell my doctor to give me 37.5mg tablets this week in case I can't move down to 75mg easily. I think I'll be fine down to 37.5. Once I do that I'm going to move to the bead method although I plan on slowly extending the time in hours between doses and the amount of the dosage. Hopefully I'll wean off. I've missed three doses with some weird side effects the fourth day was horrible. I was stuck overseas and I couldn't get a prescription refilled. Nothing like an 8hr plane ride in effexor withdrawl.

So basically the half life of the med is 5hrs. So if I can keep cutting the dosage in half and slowly extending the time between dosage I might be ok. Otherwise I might just take 1/8 a dose every 8 hours etc. etc. etc.

[xgypsygoddessx]

Bear:
Yes, my Doctor told me to do this. I've been weaning for months now and surprisingly even though I was taking the tablet every second day I was experiencing minimal side effects. I stopped taking them completely three days ago and still have minimal side effects. My only complaints so far are a little dizziness, irritability and fatigue.
Needless to say though... I'm NEVER going on these tablets again. I haven't felt this good in years.

[btdt]

taste of fda ohrms rest can found at link

http://www.fda.gov/OHRMS/DOCKETS/AC/06/transc...

5 commit robberies. Dipsomania, an uncontrollable
6 urge to drink alcohol. Nymphomania and erotomania,
7 sexual compulsion, a pathological preoccupation
8 with sexual fantasies and activities.
9 Child sex abuse has increased
10 dramatically, with even female teachers going manic
11 on these drugs and seducing students.
12 The head of the Sex Abuse Treatment
13 Program for Utah estimated 80 percent of the sex
14 crime perpetrators were on antidepressants at the
15 time of the crime while Karl von Kleist, an ex-LAPD
16 officer and leading polygraph expert estimated
17 90 percent strong evidence of manic sexual
18 compulsions that demand attention.
19 Diabetes has skyrocketed and has been
20 linked to antidepressants. Blood sugar imbalances
21 have long been suspected as the cause of mania or
22 bipolar.

[btdt]

xgypsygoddessx wrote:

Bear:
Yes, my Doctor told me to do this. I've been weaning for months now and surprisingly even though I was taking the tablet every second day I was experiencing minimal side effects. I stopped taking them completely three days ago and still have minimal side effects. My only complaints so far are a little dizziness, irritability and fatigue.
Needless to say though... I'm NEVER going on these tablets again. I haven't felt this good in years.

It can take six wks or more to know if you wean was successful or not if it was too fast you may need to go back on the last effective dose then count the beeds. You will know.

[xgypsygoddessx]

Thanks for the info Btdt! Day Four now and I'm doing well. I woke up without being dizzy and I feel fine.

[Maggme]

Thank you all who post here! I'm finally feeling so much better. The bread method works! I'm still reducing from 37.5, not rushing, even though I want to. I stay concsience of my moods and emotions during this time because I know it's just the withdrawl. I was so numb before and didn't even realize it, or maybe I did and didn't care. Good luck to every one and take care!!!

[chris]

75 mg per day for 6 7 8 years

good luck everyone withdrawal shit but the help this drug gives surly outweighs the shit before it.

Good drug helped /helps me

will quit it soon, bead counting seams plausible

once again good luck everyone

[Wellagain]

stacey wrote:

I am so grateful for this site.I no longer feel as if Iam alone in this nightmare.I am reducing by the bead method but have stayed at 30 grains .The reason being the past week I have been very low, feeling tearful extremely sensitive, petty ,unable to cope, scared that I am not strong enough to cope with life feeling sorry for mtself,resentful of everyone, withdrawing into myself.It feels as if my depression is back with a vengiounce .I know this is all withdrawel and it will pass.I hope this helps someone who may be struggling like me

Hi Stacey,
How are you doing, I have weened off Effexor and fell very low lately on and off negative thinking, etc....i have been isolating so much, nothing seems to work, I don't know if this means I need to as they say, "Pull myself up by the boot straps" or what...

With the holidays coming I need to guard against these feelings, as they are magnified this time of year... let me know how you are doing!

Kathy..

[Wellagain]

Pam wrote:

Hi Wellagain, your major meltdown sounds like you are still dealing with the effects of the Effexor. I also had a major melt down in the beginning but it does get better. I am starting to feel more like a normal person and my thinking is no longer fogey and much clearer. Big bonus too is that I have lost 5 pounds since going off Effexor. Could never loose weight while on it and just continued to gain weight. So there is hope!!!

Hi Pam,,Thanks,

I am taking 40 Prozac and 200 Wellbutrin, I feel very negative (my head), don't want to see people. teary. I don't know if this is temporary, or do I need to snap out of it...call my doc....advise.. thanks, feeling alone,.Kathy

[xgypsygoddessx]

It's been 10 days for me and I'm now side effect free and feeling fine. I'm sleeping just as well as I was when on Effexor and noticing some anxiety but it's nothing life altering. I'm quite happy and doing well.
I'm very thankful the side effects were minimal for me however I did wean over a period of months.

[Pam]

Wellagain wrote:

<quoted text> Hi Pam,,Thanks,
I am taking 40 Prozac and 200 Wellbutrin, I feel very negative (my head), don't want to see people. teary. I don't know if this is temporary, or do I need to snap out of it...call my doc....advise.. thanks, feeling alone,.Kathy

Hi Kathy, Sorry to hear that you are feeling so badly, it will take a while to start feeling better again but you probably should go and see your doctor if you continue to feel this way. Hope you feel better soon and hang in there, there is light at the end of the tunnel:)