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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 3 of 3. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by fluff on October 17, 2006, at 7:11:37
Hi! I'm new to this board. I've been on Effexor XR 150mg for 3 years (for anxiety which occurred when I started going through perimenopause; the same thing happened to me post-partum). It's worked wonderfully for me, but I would like to see if I can get by on a lower dose. I'm not sure when, or if, I'd like to be off it completely.
I tried tapering once by going from 150 to 112.5, had a severe migraine and vomiting on day 4, followed by free-floating anxiety on day 7; I got scared that I was relapsing (hadn't heard of withdrawal symptoms) and went back to 150 for another year. Two weeks ago, I decided to try tapering, by dumping only 10 beads out of my 150 mg. capsule, planning to increase by another 10 beads every week or so. By day 5, I felt as if I was walking through jello. This was accompanied by mild anxiety. I couldn't imagine walking around with that "suspended in jello" feeling for the 3 months that it would take me to taper this way to get to 112.5mg. So I was wondering, is it possible to taper too slowly? In some ways, this felt worse than my rapid jump down the first time (although the anxiety was not as bad). Any thoughts/suggestions? I am one of those "exquisitely sensitive to medication" types. Had a lot of trouble starting Effexor, too. Thanks in advance!
Posted by SLS on October 17, 2006, at 8:50:12
In reply to Effexor XR--tapering questions, posted by fluff on October 17, 2006, at 7:11:37
I guess, in a way, it is possible to taper a drug too slowly if it means prolonging the process and it doesn't substantially reduce the severity of the withdrawal symptoms. It is frustrating to hear about cases like yours because it is difficult to know what to do. Still, I would probably try once more to reduce the dosage by perhaps 5 pellets to see what happens.
One thing that might work is to try taking diphenhydramine (Benadryl) to smooth out the withdrawal symptoms until you reach your target dose. The only real drawback to this approach is that diphenhydramine can be sedating. It can work, though.
Do you experience the withdrawal symptoms to the same degree all day long, or are they worst towards the end of the dosing period? If it is worst towards the end of the dosing period, you might want to get a prescription for 75mg and take Effexor twice a day.
If you decide at some point to discontinue Effexor, I would recommend speaking to your doctor about crossing-over to Prozac. Prozac can act as a temporary substitute for Effexor and help prevent a withdrawal syndrome from occurring. It is usually much easier to taper and discontinue the Prozac.
- Scott
Posted by fluff on October 17, 2006, at 16:18:51
In reply to Re: Effexor XR--tapering questions, posted by SLS on October 17, 2006, at 8:50:12
I was also thinking that if I ever wanted to go off Effexor completely, I would ask for Prozac to smooth things out. I guess that, although I feel fine now, I just wanted to see if I could also feel fine on a lower dose, but maybe that it unrealistic. I appreciate your responding to my post, Scott.
This is the end of the thread.
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