going off effexor-xr 75mg

sable_032592 · #1 (**permalink**) 11-23-2009, 10:40 PM

on december 14th, i'm seeing my GP and he's going to change my effexor-xr of 75mg to something else and i've been looking into which one would be better... i'm also on desipramine 25mg at night and i can't mix any other SSRI or Tri (can't remember the full words but it means the way the pills work)...

anyway, don't concentrate on that info, but mainly for a new anti-depressant pill... i think some of you may remember my post from a few weeks ago shows that i'm looking for something to help...

any help here would be wonderful!

fgummett · #2 (**permalink**) 11-24-2009, 04:49 AM

Can't advise on the other meds but I do know that you are best not to stop Effexor quickly... it is better tailed off slowly. I hope you find something that helps

belyro · #3 (**permalink**) 11-24-2009, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fgummett

Can't advise on the other meds but I do know that you are best not to stop Effexor quickly... it is better tailed off slowly. I hope you find something that helps

I'm going to respectfully disagree here. Because of effexor's short half-life, if you start taking it less frequently in order to wean yourself off of it, you're just going to have withdrawal symptoms for longer and prolong the experience. I went off of effexor 1.5 years ago and did it cold turkey. It made for a few days of misery (I think days 3 and 4 were the worst) but within a week I was feeling pretty good. I was fairly sensitive to taking a late dose or missing a dose, so if I had drawn out the withdrawal process I probably would have felt miserable for a lot longer. Your situation could be different.

That said, if you're able to get down to a lower dose before you go off of it altogether, that might be easier (which may be what fgummet meant too). When I went off of it I was on 35mg.

My understanding is that certain other antidepressants do make the withdrawal period significantly easier, so if you're switching, you might not have it too bad.

Feel free to PM me if you want any more info on my withdrawal experience.

Good luck!

fgummett · #4 (**permalink**) 11-24-2009, 10:13 AM

I did indeed mean to gradually reduce the dose, rather than skip doses

belyro · #5 (**permalink**) 11-24-2009, 10:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fgummett

I did indeed mean to gradually reduce the dose, rather than skip doses

Then I respectfully AGREE with you.

I've heard some people suggest to take it every other day for a while, and that just sounds like a miserable way to do it, if you ask me. Quick like a band-aid is what I say!

sable_032592 · #6 (**permalink**) 11-24-2009, 06:49 PM

when i said i was going off effexor, i meant that i was switching it for another med on dec. 14th when i see my GP... the meds just aren't doing what they used to... when i first started on them, i felt lighter and felt like i wanted to have fun again, go out, laugh with friends and family... but now, i hit rock bottom a few weeks ago and i had actually written my letter, i have such a large family that i wanted them all to know how i felt about them and not to blame themselves...

i've missed one dose once in my life and it was over 2 years ago, and even on my worst day, i still took the meds... i just want to be myself again, and if it wasn't for the odds of higher BS with cymbalta, i would ask for those... i have bipolar people in my family, so i don't know if genetics have something to do with this...

anyway, thanks for the advice, when i get my meds changed, i'll taper them on and taper off the effexor so my body can get used to it... maybe it has something to do with the desipramine i'm taking for my neuropathy, but i only take 25mg of that one at night and for psychotics (it's an antipsychotic, i was told), it's in large doses like 250 and up...

thanks again... now to get my butt in gear and work on christmas cards...