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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 9 of 9. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Jenka on May 29, 2002, at 12:29:54
I successfully weaned myself off Effexor XR this past winter and spring. A gradual approach is the way to go. Some background: I was hospitalized for 10 days with severe depression in May, 2001. I started taking Effexor XR then. By June, 2001, I was up to 112 mgs.--a dose that seemed to work for me. I continued at 112 mgs. for six months feeling normal with no symptoms of depression. In late December, I decided to see if I could go off Effexor. My psychiatrist had been supplying me with 37.5 and 75 mg. Effexor capsules. Starting in early January, I weaned myself off Effexor by doing gradual dose reductions. I dropped from 112 mgs. to 96, to 75, to 56, to 37.5, to 19, to 12, to 6, to 3 and then off completely by late March. You can come up with fractional doses of Effexor by doing splits with the 37.5 mg. capsules. Most of my capsules contained about 90 tiny white Effexor beadlets. Doing splits with the 37.5 capsules was easy. I used dark paper, a knife, and shallow glass custard dishes to divvy the beadlets into equal portions.
The only physical symptoms I noticed during my reduction sequence that I thought might be attributable to Effexor withdrawal were mild headache, lethargy, and some lightheadedness. Aspirin easily counteracted these symptoms. In terms of positive benefits of going off Effexor, I noticed that by March I was able to get by on less sleep. During the six months of my full dosage of 112 mgs., I was typically getting 8 to 9 hours of sleep during a 24 hour period. By March I was down to 6 or 7 hours and during the day I began to feel more alert and energized. Since I began going off the medication in January, I haven't experienced any symptoms of depression. My mood, motivation, ability to complete tasks, and interact positively with others have seemed normal to me. I've been functioning fine during the past two months of being Effexor-free. Now I just need to work on taking off the 12 pounds I've gained since I began taking Effexor in May of 2001.
If I had it to do over again, knowing what I know now, I'd make a few changes. Primarily, I'd be more systematic about scheduling dose reductions. As I mentioned, the withdrawal symptoms that I felt were associated with lowering my Effexor dosage were minimal. Once someone got a fix on what their own symptom set appeared to be, a plan like this might work well: after dropping to a reduced dosage of Effexor, wait until you have at least a full 24 hour period symptom-free. Then continue at that new lowered dosage, assuming no new symptoms occur, for seven more days before attempting the next drop. I believe I stayed at 75 mgs and 37.5 mgs. too long this winter before attempting the next reduction. If I had followed a more systematic approach, I think I could have moved from 112 mgs. down to zero in two months instead of three. All in all though, I'm satisfied with how free of discomfort the entire procedure ended up being.
Hope this helps those of you who are contemplating going off Effexor. Best of luck!
Jenka
Posted by Phil on May 29, 2002, at 12:39:04
In reply to How I Got Off Effexor XR, posted by Jenka on May 29, 2002, at 12:29:54
I wish all the people w/ 'agonizing withdrawal' would read your post. So many quit Effexor cold turkey and then bitch that the meds, the docs are to blame.
Another trick as you get to a tiny dose is to take a few days of Prozac. With the long half-life, it weens you off easily.
I've never had a problem w/ Effexor or Paxil withdrawal but, to be fair, maybe some are more sensitive to it. IMHO, I doubt it.
It's easier to sue than do your homework.Good job,
Phil
Posted by skills on May 30, 2002, at 7:33:12
In reply to Re: How I Got Off Effexor XR » Jenka, posted by Phil on May 29, 2002, at 12:39:04
i had a similar problem trying to explain that to some
Posted by Steven G on January 7, 2003, at 5:08:03
In reply to Re: How I Got Off Effexor XR » Jenka, posted by Phil on May 29, 2002, at 12:39:04
I do not blame my Doctor, but this medicine is changing the rules as it goes along.It wasnt studied enough
Posted by jae on January 20, 2003, at 21:29:03
In reply to Re: How I Got Off Effexor XR, posted by Steven G on January 7, 2003, at 5:08:03
i question the fact greatly that a pharmaceutal company can create ane release a drug like effexor xr without actually knowing the side effects. i have been on effexor xr for two and a half year and i feel extremely angry and victimised by all the information that has been witheld from me by both the doctors and the organisation that created this highly addictive drug. I think it is not only a doctors responsibility i think it is their obligation to know exactly what they are prescribing to their patients.....to say that it hasn't been round long enough to know the full effects...is really not a good enough reason. i read this site and it truly makes me phsically ill all these people who have suffered because of this drug. Had everyone really known the implications of taking this drug would they have being so willing. I took effexor xr because i was naive and once used to believe that those in the medical industry were people there to help me. i do believe there are some genuine doctors out there but i with the pharmaceutical company i think they created this drug and have intentionally witheld information from the public. its the most ingenius idea to make more money .....if you have a lot of withdrawl symptoms then therefore you have to take more drugs.....unfortunately morals give way to making money. i advise everyone to do their research.....get on the net there are many articles about the way pharmaceutical companies have been doing this for years....i believe those on effexor xr are victims of this rout
Posted by skycladgrrl on January 24, 2003, at 1:27:47
In reply to Re: How I Got Off Effexor XR, posted by jae on January 20, 2003, at 21:29:03
wow, i had no idea other people were having difficulty getting off exxefor. i did get off it but it took many trials. I would get so dizzy that i would just give up and go back on. what helped me was weaning down incredibly slowly, taking 12.5 mg. a day and adding 5mg of lexapro. at the time i honestly thought i'd never get off that shit. thanks for sharing!
Posted by Sean9 on March 31, 2003, at 10:37:58
In reply to Re: How I Got Off Effexor XR, posted by skycladgrrl on January 24, 2003, at 1:27:47
Phil,
I respect your point of view, but take into consideration, we're talking how this effects society at large. Even if it was 1% of users experiencing half of what is reported, do you think its fair? How many people have to suffer before someone takes responsability? This is about degress of risk and informed consent. And in keeping with respecting viewpoints, here's mine:
It’s not fair. That’s how I feel. That a person in America could go to the doctor, get a prescription, take Effexor, and all of a sudden be unable to quit. That the doctor didn’t tell that person how difficult it would be to quit before they started medication. That the manufacturer didn’t fully disclose the degree of physical pain an average user will experience when discontinuing Effexor. That neither the doctor or the manufacturer acknowledge how serious the withdrawal symptoms are and therefore, offer no advice on treating the symptoms. Don’t get me wrong, I know there are always risks in taking drugs. But this is about being fully informed of the degree of risk associated with quitting Effexor (even gradually) and the degree of physical and emotional pain (i.e. discomfort) an average person will experience in quitting. Do you think people are being informed? Then let me ask you something:
Why are there so many people on Effexor who all claim they were not informed of the serious withdrawal and discontinuation symptoms? Why do so many people have the exact same symptoms of withdrawal, are told by their doctor that this is called “discontinuation symptoms”, and that there is nothing the doctor can do for them? And why is Effexor becoming the number one anti-depressant prescribed in America?
To ask this in another way: Would you start taking a drug knowing that many people (let’s say 20%) cannot stop taking this drug on a daily basis? Would you call such a drug non-addictive? Would such a drug become the number one prescribed anti-depressant if people were fully informed of how physically painful it is to try and quit, even if you slowly taper off? Does this sound fair to you?
I’ve done some research on the subject, and can offer opinion but not legal or medical advice on how to quit Effexor if you want to quit. Effexor is effective in treating depression, but it is very, very, very difficult to stop taking. I don’t think the makers of Effexor or the medical community have even begun to make this degree of risk of painful withdrawal apparent to the average consumer. So here’s how to quit:
First point: Don't quit cold turkey, make a tapering off plan with your doctor.
Second point: Take Benadryl to relieve your withdrawal / discontinuation symptoms. It apparently gets rid of most dizziness, nausea, brain flashes, and sensory overload feelings within an hour of taking it. I do not know if this is recommended by the medical community, rather I heard about this cure on a newsgroup. I've also read that other antihistamines (like Allegra), doctor prescribed anti-vertigo medication, and low dosages of doctor prescribed Prozac all help with withdrawal symptoms of Effexor.
Third: There is something you can do. File a report with the FDA. They regulate Effexor (which is made by Wyeth Laboratories Inc. in Philadelphia.). Help the next generation of Effexor users to be better informed by doctors and the manufacturer. You can submit a complaint to the FDA online at https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/medwatch/
The more people that report this problem, the better response we will get. You can also call in your complaint to an FDA state office (here are each state’s telephone number)
http://www.fda.gov/opacom/backgrounders/complain.html
You can also sign the petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/effexor/petition.html
Finally: Note - This is not medical or legal advice, it is only my opinion based on experience and research. I do not take Effexor, but I know someone who does, and they were tricked into taking this without being fully informed how seriously difficult it would be to stop (even through slow tapering off). And that is not fair.
Posted by Questionmark on March 31, 2003, at 22:47:55
In reply to Re: How I Got Off Effexor XR, posted by Sean9 on March 31, 2003, at 10:37:58
Sean,
EXCellent points. It is truly ridiculous. So many people-- SO many people-- thrown into addiction to this drug by their doctors, with little or no warning, with little or no information. It truly makes me sick. i'd like to scream.
Posted by Jiggitykid on November 17, 2003, at 11:08:19
In reply to How I Got Off Effexor XR, posted by Jenka on May 29, 2002, at 12:29:54
You seem to be one of the very few. I'm glad that you were able to get off of it with very little difficulty. There seem to be many more of us, however, who have a different story. Thank you for posting your story.
This is the end of the thread.
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