Tapering off of Effexor?!
Question: I'm waiting on a call from my doctor about tapering off of this horrible antidepressant. I've been on it over a year now. I take the 75 mg capsules once a day. Sometimes I will forget to take it for a day and I feel awful. I'm completely out of my medicine now and I haven't had any since Sunday night and I'm starting to feel light headed, dizzy, and jittery. I'm hoping my doctor will give me a prescription for the 37.5 mg pills.. but when I start taking those am I going to have really bad withdrawals still since I will only be getting half the dosage? I wish I never started this medicine. Have any of you had issues with it??
Answers: I'm waiting on a call from my doctor about tapering off of this horrible antidepressant. I've been on it over a year now. I take the 75 mg capsules once a day. Sometimes I will forget to take it for a day and I feel awful. I'm completely out of my medicine now and I haven't had any since Sunday night and I'm starting to feel light headed, dizzy, and jittery. I'm hoping my doctor will give me a prescription for the 37.5 mg pills.. but when I start taking those am I going to have really bad withdrawals still since I will only be getting half the dosage? I wish I never started this medicine. Have any of you had issues with it??
In a study over 8 days, I think 78% of the people on Effexor showed withdrawal symptoms. Since it has such a short half-life (5hrs) it may only take a single missed dose for many people to start feeling the onset of withdrawal. So...
The main point is not to panic, and get stressed about what you think 'may' happen. This is a common experience, and some reading & research for you - and often your nearest and dearest - can help in tackling the worry about the process, since you will be informed and aware of the do's and don't's. It's amazing how comforting knowing what is going on can be, then you can simply assess, and adjust the taper if required.
People who are severely affected by withdrawal, have the option to taper by opening the capsules and counting the beads within. By doing this you can drop quite accurately by a mg or two at a time - so, again, nothing to worry about. You don't have to go from 37.5 mg to zero, or from 75mg to 37.5mg - it may be a bit fiddly, but the process is controllable.
If you would like to read a book which deals solely with withdrawal from these antidepressants, then I can recommend Dr Joseph Glenmullen's 'The Antidepressant Solution'. Factual, easy to read, tells you what you need to know, and what pitfalls to avoid (the 'miss-a-day' withdrawal tapers) and why (the short half-life of the drugs). Once you've read that, you'll be well armed with knowledge, and will know how to tackle various withdrawal scenarios, including the bead counting method.
If you do experience a bad reaction to a dose drop, simply go back, stabilise, then reduce by a smaller amount. You will find that some look to reduce by no more than 10% of the current dose at any one time. Others come down by even smaller amounts. Again, consider doing a little reading homework. Ignorance, with regard to antidepressant withdrawal, isn't bliss. I found that out the hard way.
Oh yes, the dizziness/light-headedness is standard withdrawal, as is the jitteriness, and the two together show a mix of physical and psychiatric withdrawal symptoms. That's one way of distinguishing withdrawal from return of the 'original problem'. Because of the short half-life of the drug, 90% is eliminated in a day, and typical withdrawal onset is seen on Day 1-2 post dose drop. I've linked to Glenmullen's withdrawal checklist so you can follow your progression - fully explained in the book.
When I was in Junior High and high school my mom made me take all sorts of anti-depressents and effexor was one of them. I had the same type of feeling. I hate medicine. To be honest I haven't taken any since I was about 18 and I have been happier than ever. I still have bad mood days but really I feel like myself and I don't feel like a huge zombie feeling strange out of body staring and tired all the time. My advice would be to do just that. Taper off of the drugs slowly and safely and stay in regular contact with a counselour to discuss your feelings and then try other options like exercise, meditation, and hobbies. If you are still depressed than try something that isn't as strong or addictive. Good luck. I feel your sorrow girl! I've been there Keep your head high you will overcome it!
I think part of your symptoms are mental. My meaning is, you are concerned about withdrawal, and thus , have them (symptoms)..
i have a friend who took the same dosage for 3 years, and just stopped. He noticed NO side effects, but everyone is different.
Even though they are capsules, you could open them up, and divvy the amount yourself.
This way, you Don't have to wait on the Doc, just start the taper yourself.
Also, I would highly recommend a technique called EFT. I thought it was a "snake-oil" hype, but it works. Yahoo, or Google search, Emotional Freedom Technique. There are free beginner's lessons available for you to start. TRUST ME, this can work for you, and you can eliminate the Pills...
Best wishes...