effexor withdrawal treatments

my doc has me on effexor 150mg and is tapering me off it to 102.5 one week then to 75 next week then 150mg wellbutrin +37.

I have been taking Effexor & verapamil for over two years now. My neurologist put me on these medications to help with my migraine headaches, which are hereditary. I have no health insurance and can no longer afford this medication and I began to cut my dose down. I was taking two 75mg tablets of Effexor daily. I KNOW what it feels like to be without this medicine and I'm going thru the same symptoms right now.

I had a good experience with Pristiq. But, I wasn't on Effexor first. Effexor is essentially the same medicine and I had to switch to it in order to taper off. That was painful and I'm now on Prozac to deal with the final withdrawal. I do think Pristiq had less side effects for me than Effexor, but I'm not sure if it's strong enough for everyone. My psych said 150mg of Effexor=50mg of Pristiq, but I don't think that is exact.

I switched from effexor to wellbutrin. I had to be on both medications at the same time for a long time because of the effexor withdrawal... it was so hard to come off the effexor, I was at the lowest dose for a very long time, 25mg, because I couldn't get off of it the withdrawal symptoms were too bad for me.

If it is Effexor withdrawal, what could a neurologist do about it? And if the psychatrist is right, what else could it be?

You suffered withdrawal from missing your Effexor dose. This med should be tapered off of slowly, as should virtually all of these kind of meds. Even tapering slowly you may suffer some withdrawal. It's normal, though uncomfortable. I don't know if there's a generic for Effexor, maybe the doc will know.

Anyway, yes there is a way to get off Effexor without most if not all the withdrawal issues. The most effective way was to take to Effexor back up to a dose the did not give them the withdrawal side effects, that ADD 20mg of Prozac to the mix for 4 weeks. then and only then we would start slowly step down off of the Effexor 37.5mg a week until off. Then after one month more cut Prozac back to 10mg for two more weeks then go completely dry.

Hey Opus, No you don't HAVE to wean off anything to go onto something else. This is a way to ensure safety is the main object. I've made it clear this is my habit for the purpose of knowing which drug does what. If you mix then you have no idea at all what is causing what. The habit was introduced to me by my long term pdoc who likes to know what is going on, as I do. If you have 4 drugs in your system, as this poster does, how would he or she know what is what?

I spoke with my doctor and tapered off the dosage of effexor and started on Prozac to help with the withdrawal symptoms. I took my last 1/4 pill of 37.5 effexor 1 week ago. I have been so sick, unable to eat, drink, crying, phobic, scared, nauseated and unable to function. I am really worried about my job as I have been emotional there and unable to do my job properly. Yesturday I felt that I just couldn't get through it, drove to work but don't know how I did it.

Withdrawal from Effexor can be brutal. I don't remeber being shor of breath though. are you out of breath when lying down or during the day too?

would not take lexapro and effexor together. for effexor withdrawal i take omega3 fish oil caps twice a day//benadryl as needed for dizzyness\\ b12 sublingualtwice a day\\st. johns wort twice a day// vitamin d3 twice a day ---ibuprofen(motrin) as needed for muscle pain. as far as i am concerned, i will never take a prescription rx. for anxiety and depression again. i also have ptsd. i am sticking to st. johns wort and omega 3 fish oil caps. both will treat depression.

I wouldn't go on Effexor to treat withdrawal. For one thing, it's also extremely difficult for many people to quit. For another, Effexor has a high side effect profile especially in the beginning. I have heard of psychiatrists using Prozac to help withdrawal, since it has a long half life in the body -- all the others have very short half lives -- making it easier to quit, and with fewer side effects.

It may be that you need an anti-depressant. I wasn't aware that the withdrawal could go on for so long, but it could be. I went off Effexor very gradually over many months. I had none of the withdrawal symptoms, but then I could not stop crying for a month. It was clear that I needed the Effexor. If you have had depression for awhile before you first went on the Effexor, you probably do need an anti-depressant.

I'm guessing you're suffering Effexor withdrawal, not Cymbalta withdrawal. It's not impossible to get a withdrawal from a short stay on a med, but unlikely. Sometimes a med just affects someone more profoundly than one would expect. But given you just came off Effexor, that being one of the hardest meds to stop taking and one that can have long withdrawals, I'm guess you didn't successfully stop it slowly enough to prevent withdrawals.

I have had problems with vision, blurred and spotty, on and off through discontinuation of Effexor...have read this to be common with withdrawal process. I am feeling terrible at best but am so hopeful and ready to be done with Effexor...I begged my doctor not to prescribe it to others without sharing some of the horrible side effects with them of the withdrawal process that is possible, with tapering off process.

Good luck, paxiled gave you the right information.

I'd like to talk more about my Effexor withdrawal. It's been over a month and the physical withdrawal is gone, however the feeling that I thought I had for just a few days is gone as well. I feel horrible. I feel worse than I did before I went on Effexor almost 5 years ago. I have been reading and searching for anything that will make how I'm feeling mentally go away. Bad news is that even people who were at 37.5 to over 300mg which is where I was, go through the same thing.

When switching from Paxil to Effexor, I lost about 20 of the 60lbs. Effexor was given to me at 75 mg per day; then to 150 mg. of Effexor per day in a.m. A new doctor changed me to Effexor XR 300 mg. per day, taken 150 mg. twice a day. Though i lost about 20 lbs. after stopping the Paxil, the weight started going back on until i was back at 60 lbs. over normal. After some time, I felt that I was doing well mentally, and I discontinued one of my Effexor pills per day.

I have 2 questions: I'm Bipolar and I've been on medication for nearly 9 years. The one medication that I've been on for the duration of this period is Effexor XR. My first question is: Are there any known long-term side-efffects, particularly regarding inertia? Because I have absolutely no motivation; it's been like this for years. I come from a family of extremely motivated people, and even when I'm feeling great I'm still totally unmotivated, and often tired.

Now since doing some research on the internet, I am wondering if he is experiencing withdrawal symptoms from the sudden onset and discontinuation of Effexor and Depakote, and maybe even serotonin syndrome from taking the Prozac with the Depakote? Please advise. Any information from another psychiatric professional would be extremely helpful!

I was hoping I could start a generic drug that may lessen the effexor withdrawal symptoms. Although, I cant afford even a doctors visit at this point. I will get insurance through work come Nov. 1.

There are differing opinions on this. On the one hand, it might ease the transition.

I personally think that the symptoms you are experiencing is withdrawal from the Effexor. You were on a large dose, and it will take quite a time to get it out of your system. If you have read other posts about withdrawal from Effexor, you will see that it is difficult. You could go back and see the doctor about this, or sit it out, and wait to feel better. Some people say it takes quite a time, but in my case, I was on 150mg daily, and did withdraw at once.

t think Prozac is In the same group as Effexor. Effexor is a SNRI, what group is Prozac in ? My doctor changed me from Effexor to citalopram to dolsulipin that was in a different group and works on a different part of the brain. That means that you go into cold turkey. When we come off too quickly like the doctors tell us to switch your brain chemistry is altered. These tablets are fat soluable so stick to fat and muscle in your body and build up depending on how many years you were on them.

I previously experience HORRIBLE side effects from sudden withdrawal of effexor. I had palpitations, pounding heart, profuse sweating, and jerking motions of arms and legs (seizure-like). So I was off it in a month and put on Celexa. My Rx co-pay went from $48 per month to $4 at Wal-Mat. I'm a happy camper.

Effexor withdrawal treatments

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