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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]Shown: posts 1 to 7 of 7. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by JM-in-OZ on December 28, 2003, at 22:57:51
I've found reading this group to be pretty depressing, and thought I should add something slightly positive.
I was on Effexor (75 mg/d) for over six years. For the past several years, I have wanted to get off it, but was scared by what I had read on the web about withdrawal, confirmed by my own experiences after missing the odd tablet. For various reasons, I finally decided it was time to bitet he bullet and get off the stuff. I took about six weeks to taper down from 75 mg/d to 1/4 of a 37.5 mg tablet. During the process, I experienced some minor dizziness and slight 'electric shock' sensations, but nothing too bad.
After this tapering period, I reckoned that I couldn't possibly suffer withdrawal from the less than 10 mg/d that I was taking, so I went cold turkey. Day 1 was OK, some slight sensations. The following couple of days were not great: dizzy, electric shocks, nausea, extreme irritability etc.: I was not a happy chappy. I tried to manage the withdrawal symptoms with panadol, about all I have access to, short of going back to Effexor, but I don't think it helped much.
After about a week, the symptoms began to diminish. Now, four weeks after stopping, I feel pretty reasonable, and have for a couple of weeks. (I wanted to be sure things were OK before I posted anything.) I will say that over the past month I've been pretty irritable and have experienced some depressive thoughts (which was VERY rare while I was on Effexor). However, I'm feeling pretty good now and I'm hoping that things will stay that way.
So, I just wanted to point out that not everyone's experience in coming off Effexor will be as bad as those discussed in this group. I certainly don't mean to deny that lots of Effexor users have pretty horrible experiences getting off the stuff, but would say that people with less negative experiences are probably under-represented in this group. I consider myself lucky to have had an easy go of it (and I'll think long and hard before I go back onto Effexor).
I hope this has been of some encouragement to people contemplating stopping their Effexor.
JM-in-OZ
Posted by Utopia on December 29, 2003, at 13:56:24
In reply to Effexor withdrawal - not all bad news, posted by JM-in-OZ on December 28, 2003, at 22:57:51
I fail to see into which discussion group regarding depression, particularly difficult to treat treat depression like Bipolar Syndrome, will you be likely to find joy and happiness?
These are people that are frustrated that modern medicine has let them down, suffering from the very ravages of the disease that even doctors struggle to treat.
I'm impressed at your self-sufficiency but much less at your compassion.
Posted by Dr. Bob on December 29, 2003, at 16:44:08
In reply to Re: I'm happy you're happy, posted by Utopia on December 29, 2003, at 13:56:24
> I'm impressed at your self-sufficiency but much less at your compassion.
I'm sorry if you're feeling frustrated, but please don't post anything that could lead others to feel accused or put down:
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/faq.html#civil
Thanks,
Bob
PS: Follow-ups regarding posting policies, and complaints about posts, should be redirected to Psycho-Babble Administration.
Posted by rompy on December 29, 2003, at 19:24:53
In reply to Effexor withdrawal - not all bad news, posted by JM-in-OZ on December 28, 2003, at 22:57:51
What do mean by electric shocks?
Do you mean what other people describe as "brain freeze" or do you mean you feel actual electric currents here and there on your body?
I get that. Hang in there and don't go back to Effexor!
Posted by socialdeviantjeff on December 29, 2003, at 20:46:32
In reply to Re: Effexor withdrawal - not all bad news, posted by rompy on December 29, 2003, at 19:24:53
I'm getting off the Effexor train pretty son. With my given hypersensitivity to meds, I've been really worried. Thanks for your story.
I do think that people without med issues are somewhat under represented, but that is the nature of the the board in my opinion.
Good to hear you're off. Good luck.
Posted by wsj on December 29, 2003, at 22:26:25
In reply to Effexor withdrawal - not all bad news, posted by JM-in-OZ on December 28, 2003, at 22:57:51
when i came off effexor i felt pretty much like you described. but at about the two month off mark i went down hill. so i would caution you that your not out of the woods yet!
best to you!
wsj
Posted by Bananafish on December 30, 2003, at 13:53:48
In reply to Effexor withdrawal - not all bad news, posted by JM-in-OZ on December 28, 2003, at 22:57:51
You make a good point. Not everyone has severe withdrawal symptoms from Effexor. I have taken 150mg/day for several years, and several times I have stopped cold-turkey because I didn't have the money to refill my prescription. I went weeks without it, and had no withdrawal syndrome at all (except my mood started to fall apart after about 10 days). It all depends on your body chemistry and how you react to the drug.
This is the end of the thread.
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