Question posted by pinkdove on 6 March 2017
Last updated on 6 March 2017 by janiebme
I have been on antidepressants for 7 years now, and Effexor for 5 years, was up to 150 mg, and have reduced to 37,5 mg with no side effects, I have done this really slowly, and have been on 37.5 mg XL tablets for 8 months, and can't stop completely. today i thought i would take one every second day, and within a few hours of missing the dose, i had a horrible dizzy turn, so i took the tablet.
I cant half the tablet as it is XL, any advice would be appreciated. thanks in advance.
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Hi Pinkdove-
I was only on Effexor for 2 months, had to stop it due to bad side effects. It took a month of every other day at 37.5 XL mg and I still had withdrawal symptoms. I went every other day to every two days, then three days, then I quit and tuffed it out for a week. I cannot imagine coming off of it after 7 years. I have read where others used prozac to help with coming off of it, as it has a longer half life and is easier to come off of.
If it gets too bad you can talk to your doctor about it.
Hope you get better soon.
Unfortunately, the only way to get completely off is to just stop Effexor XR since you've weaned off to such a low dose. I just finished weaning off Effexor XR!! I was on double the FDA recommended max, which was 450mg!! My psychiatrist had me take 75mg less each week until I was completely off. It was hell, but I wanted to feel better, so I made myself do it for the motivation to get on the right meds. I feel so much better now. If I would've known how awful it was to come off, I wouldn't have ever started it. I Was on it 8 years and the dosage kept getting upped... So... you may feel miserable or very agitated, want to sleep away to escape the discomfort, have insomnia, sweats, and depression, etc... but once you adjust, you'll feel less weighed down and lighter. Depending on your diagnoses or diagnosis, you may need to replace it with something... but you can go the natural way and simply take St.
John's Wort, Cod liver oil and Gaba, which can be found at any health food store or even Walmart. I hope this is helpful!
Thanks for the reply HPoole, I need to do this slowly, as I dont want to rebound back into depression, my Gp has advised me to take one every other day for a couple of weeks, then one a couple of times a week, then stop, I never would have started this med if i knew how hard it was to get off, and above all the weight i have gained on it, having said that it has gave me my life back, and really helped when i needed it most, just feel i want to be med free now.
That's a very valid desire--to be med free... but if you need a little push to be functional and if it increases your quality of life--I wouldn't fret too much... have you tried anything natural for depression or anxiety or insomnia? All natural supplements can be helpful. For example: St. John's Wort, 5-HTP, and/or Gaba? In college 2004-2007 I was on all those and the all natural supplements did wonders for me. Just a suggestion! I wish you the best!
I did a little research. There's a 25 mg IR version. Maybe you could take half of that twice a day for a while and then just 12.5 once a day, then nothing.
Hi sidekick, I'm in the UK, and i thought 37.5mg was the lowest dose, If this is available in the UK this would help a lot, thanks for the reply
Hi PinkDove,
Best to skip one day, in other words, take one every other day for several weeks, then try adding more time in between even if it is half a day... this drug requires a s l o w weaning. Good job getting this far without withdrawal symptoms! You are almost there!
Hi, pinkdove! Discontinuation from Effexor should only be attempted under the monitoring and supervision of your prescribing physician.
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