Posted by MaxTex on May 12, 2003, at 9:35:29
In reply to Re: Effexor: Better at 225 or 300??, posted by Anyu on May 11, 2003, at 16:44:30
Anyu -- I'm sure that quite a few here have been up to 300mg on Effexor XR. I was on 412.5mg a day (2 x 150mg + 75mg + 37mg). Although I've had a miserable time getting off the stuff, I never complained about side-effects while taking it over that time of one to two years. The only annoying effect was excessive perspiration. (I run well hotter than average normally, so it was quite bad!)
In my amateur opinion, the regular maintenance dose will vary greatly depending on the individual's personal biochemistry. (Some folks clearly get the same results -- good relief -- that I got at around 75mg, or about a fifth of my dose.) I think my doctor saw me as a bit of a clinical experiment and hadn't prescribed such a high dose before. (The same has been true of dentists and painkillers, etc.)
WHATEVER your maintenance dose, I would urge VERY GRADUAL AND SUPERVISED DISCONTINUATION when or if you're ready. My own doctor gave me almost no information about discontinuing. He *certainly* didn't prepare me for what happened. I'm hoping to get an appointment today in my current city. If I'm advised to go back on some dose of Effexor, I'll be CERTAIN to discontinue it by smaller reductions next time. (I went straight to 300, then 225, then 150, and briefly 75 before stopping completely after about 5 or 6 weeks of tapering off.)
Apart from tapering to a smaller terminal dose (75 to 37 and maybe to 18/19mg), I'd ask about a temporary serotonin buffer -- something with a longer half-life than Effexor.
Be well,
Max
poster:MaxTex
thread:13781
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030505/msgs/226059.html