[craggle58]

I was taking venlafaxine for 12 years at 150mg. I also take quetiapine and mirtazapine. After stopping drinking last year I decided to stop taking venlafaxine without consulting the psychiatrist. It was really tough(electric shocks , mood problems etc) but managed to come off it and eventually felt reasonably normal for first time in 10 years. Even when I first went onto venlafaxine I knew this was a nasty drug. I used to take seroxat (fluoxetine) many years ago and both are working on a neurological level that the professionals and especially the manufacturers have know real knowledge about.

I was feeling great after about a year without it but suffered a relapse recently due to external issues totally unconnected with the medication. I confessed to the psychiatrist that I had independently come off venlafaxine but he told me to go back on it for this difficult period. This is all well and good but anybody who has experienced this kind of SSRI withdrawal will tell you that coming off is an achievement in itself and the disruption of going back on it (difficult though not as bad as coming off) and potentially having to come off it again seemed like a mistake and waste of a year's hard work.

I have also recently had a few stomach pain problems and my GP has told me that venlafaxine can cause stomach lining problems. Infact I have lost count of the number of times I have been to my GP with different problems only to be told this is ANOTHER side effect of one or more of my psychiatric meds. I think SSRIs are a negligence timebomb which will eventually be up there with thalidomide.

Anyway, I eventually half heartedly started taking venlafaxine with irregular inconsistent doses of between 75 and 150mg for about three to four weeks. This was dumb I know. The problem is that I have completely stopped taking them again now (none for 3 days) and am having terrible nausea and mild stomach pains and sweating. Interestingly I am not experiencing the electric shock type neorological symptoms that I had with the last cold turkey. Can I attribute the nausea to withdrawal or is it likely to be something physically wrong? Any help would be great as I dont want to go to the GP for a potential endoscopy if I dont need it.

Any help would be very much appreciated as I tend to obsess about physical health problems uncontrollably.

[live2ski66]

If you tend to obsess about physical health problems you should have consulted with your PDoc about Effexor and been up front about not wanting to take it. There are plenty of other meds the doc can prescribe. I would suggest you go back to the PDoc and tell him the truth.

[-jimi-]

I totally understand you did not want to restart the effexor after having nasty withdrawals and I feel bad that the doc did not understand that.

These meds are finicky. There are many studies about efficacy in antidepressants the second time you take them, and a consensus is that they do not usually work as well as the first time. One of the reasons to really think over coming off a med of this type. Of course some people can go on the same med and have the same effect but the trend is that it might not happen.

Because the effect might be different the second time around, so can the withdrawals. So yea, it is possible to have mostly mental withdrawals one time and more physical the next.

The thing with venlafaxine in particular is that at higher doses the mechanism of action [how precisely it works in the brain and what neurotransmitters it affects] is a bit different than when it is taken at lower dosages.

It is generally agreed that this cut off happens right around 150mg. So, I mean one reason, in theory, for why you may be having a significantly different kind of withdrawal is that the first time you were on a consistent dosage of 150mg for over a decade.

Whereas the second time, you were on an inconsistent dose- sometimes dipping below that 150, sometimes not taking it at all, for a much shorter time period. Which means it wasn't working the same way in your brain, so in theory you wouldn't have the same withdrawal, if, ya know... everything aligned just right according to this explanation haha.

But really, that could possibly be what is going on.

Also- what jimi said- meds don't always work the same the second time around. That is certainly another factor.

Hope you feel better soon.
There are a lot of choices to treat depression at this point. Venlafaxine is one of many many options. SNRIs and SSRIs are only two of a few classes. A combination of an SSRI [venlafaxine is actually an SNRI, and a lot of people- though not all- find them more difficult than SSRIs to come off of] and an anticonvulsant or low dose AP is sometimes helpful. There are a lot of options, sometimes non pharmaceutical ones.

I hope you find something that works for you.

[sewerrats]

EFFEXOR SNRI not SSRI

Originally Posted by sewerrats

EFFEXOR SNRI not SSRI

...yep. That's correct.

[doglover1979]

I have heard good things from 2 different people who went from effexor to cymbalta. Maybe that can be an option to talk to your doctor about.The only thing is that insurance doesn't like to cover it, but if you have tried other stuff and it hasn't worked sometimes they will pay for it.

Sorry that you are going through this. I just posted in another thread about what the discontinuation is like. I know how bad it can be, I take 187.5 mgs daily. I missed a dose one day and it is something I will never do again. It was terrible.

I hope you find something that works for you soon and feel better.

[Altered Moment]

I have been on and off Effexor a number of times. Never had withdrawals but I always started a new one right away so it is debatable whether I would get withdrawals or not. It was very effective at first which is why I kept going back to it. No bueno. Once it poops it poops. I did go to Pristiq for a year with a little better results. Supposed to be exactly the same as Effexor but it actually is different. Active metabolites and complicated stuff.

I recently switched from Effexor to Fetzima, the newest SSNRI. It has been very effective. I can't believe it. Never had one work this good.

SSNRI's
Effexor
Pristiq
Fetzima
Cymbalta

I believe that is it. At least as far as commonly used ones.

[sewerrats]

Originally Posted by zinco14532323

I have been on and off Effexor a number of times. Never had withdrawals but I always started a new one right away so it is debatable whether I would get withdrawals or not. It was very effective at first which is why I kept going back to it. No bueno. Once it poops it poops. I did go to Pristiq for a year with a little better results. Supposed to be exactly the same as Effexor but it actually is different. Active metabolites and complicated stuff.

I recently switched from Effexor to Fetzima, the newest SSNRI. It has been very effective. I can't believe it. Never had one work this good.

SSNRI's
Effexor
Pristiq
Fetzima
Cymbalta

I believe that is it. At least as far as commonly used ones.

I no people been on Effexor 10 -15 years at 150mg its the least likely med to poop out , which is a good job with the nightmare withdrawal , they still have hiccups in the med, but in a week or so its back up and running, sometimes normal downer,s every on gets triggers people into believing there med is not working .We must understand we still get low,s like the normal when on meds , NOTHING GAN STOP THEM THERE PART OF LIFE.

[Altered Moment]

For me it pooped. No doubt about it. I still get my cyclical depressions on any med.

[craggle58]

Thanks for feedback on this. I spoke to my psychologist and we are looking to to come off or lower all the meds soon for a trial period. I am mainly concerned about the long and short term physical effects of the meds particularly effexor.As I say when I go to my doctor about various physical things (eg stomach aches/sweating) he always says that will be one or other of the meds.I just think long term effects of SSRI/SNRI is pretty much a grey area.

I have stayed off venlafaxine all week now and have started getting the electric shocks thing again. The sick feeling and stomach pain are the most alarming because I dont remember having this quite so much after previous withdrawals. Just feel really nauseous and weak most off the time. Its tempting to start taking it again but I'm hopefully over the worst soon. Besides, tapering has similar side effects (albeit less acute) over a very protracted timeframe. Thanks again for help.

[craggle58]

Forgot to mention that I ended up having my first pack of cigarettes for 2 months yesterday due to withdrawal symptoms. Probably as good a reason as any not to recommend cold turkeying venlafaxine.

[craggle58]

Back on venlafaxine. Had to go back to my folks due to withdrawal illness and was told by them to start taking the tablets again or hospital. Another victory for Effexor. Looking forward to all the attendant pleasures of this wonderfull drug-mania,obsessive eating /drinking /smoking and endless apathy to name a few. Seriously, anyone should really look at all the options before agreeing to take the venlafaxine route in the first place. I cant blame it for all my problems but still resent the endless saga that is side-effexor.

[-jimi-]

Yea, I wish I had known what kind of drug it was from the beginning. It's a very scary med.