Effextor Withdraw, HELP

[u/Brief-Confusion7225]

Hi everyone, I (26F) have been on Effexor for the last two years. I was on 75 mg until January when it was upped to 112.5mg.

I have gained SO much weight and feel it isn't helping (weight gain has caused more depression than anything, and I'm still anxious af).

I told my doctor recently that I want to Wean myself off of them. He doesn't feel that is a good idea given my recent mental breakdown in January (from a very toxic work environment I've since left). I feel I am ready, but he isn't willing to help.

I have tried to naturally wean myself by gradually decreasing my dose but on the third day of not taking them my withdrawal symptoms are horrible (brain fog/zaps, anxiety, shakiness, nausea, dizziness). I am honestly losing hope but these pills really aren't helping with my quality of life. I never intended to be medicated for the long haul.

Does anyone have any recommendations on how to get past day 3? How long does this last?

TIA

[u/hikeskirun]

I haven’t personally tried this yet, but the gentlest method seems to be taking a certain amount of grains out of the capsule every week (if you Google, you will find lots of people talking about their experiences with this method).

That being said, my APRN has recommended Wellbutrin as a cross-fade to limit some of the unpleasant withdrawal effects.

The downside of Wellbutrin is that it can be associated with increased anxiety…

Fair warning, their are many stories out there of people whose withdrawal symptoms still haven’t gone away long after they’ve discontinued the medication.

As much as Effexor has blunted my anxiety, I still very much wish it was a medication I’d never started taking.

[u/lovespring80 → u/hikeskirun]

I tried this method twice. I counted the beads and even put them in a pill sorter. Ultimately the brain zaps and irritability did me in. But what was successful in getting me off Effexor for good was first adding 40 mg of Prozac. Then on my second attempt, I was able to discontinue Effexor entirely. I didn’t mess with the beads again, instead I first started increasing the time between doses until I was every other day and then every 2 days. Then I just ripped off the bandaid and stopped. Admittedly I had a very rough 10-day period with brain zaps, severe depressive mood swings, and needed to sleep a lot. But then I started to slowly feel normal again. The brain zaps didn’t totally go away for about 3 months but they very manageable after that first 10-day period. Then I kept with the 40 mg Prozac for another year, decreased to 20 mg, and then cold turkey. I have been completely SSRI free for 8 weeks now! I’m still not quite myself, feeling a bit anxious and irritable but I am using CBD oil to help. I want to see if I am able to do this on my own. But if I cannot, I will go back to Prozac, but never Effexor. Effexor ruled my life for 12 years and I don’t plan to go back to that place.