Effexor withdrawl and symptoms, please help _{Page 105 of 140}

Pam are you still getting dizziness or anything like the zapping or popping sensations in your head and how many days since your last dose please?

Hey MIKEMO, im not sure if you saw my last post since there have been many more posts on here n still no word from ya.. so here it is again :)

Mike-

I'm not sure what I'm at now but it is way less than 75 mg :) I have been taking 120 beads out of the 75 mg capsules for more than 2 weeks now & since there are about 180 beads in a 75 mg capsule I should only have about 60 beads left right?? So since 90 beads would equal a 37.5 capsule (180/2=90 beads) & I'm at 60 I must be taking less than a 37.5 mg amount right? LOL so confusing!! Let me know what you think! haha

Hi All:
Just checking in at 2 weeks e-free. Things are good. Some mild residual brain zaps but not debilitating. Strange body aches came and went including the neck thing that others have had. I highly recommend mikemos method of spike drop and level. Also omega 3 oil. Hang in there everyone it does get better.
Adker

Jdubsx3,

I did miss that one---sorry!

It sounds like you are at 25mg. That is assuming that every capsule you opened was a uniform 180 beads. Maybe, maybe not.

An easier way to get 25mg doses is to pour the contents into a 3 inch long 'line' and then divide it with a toothpick at the 1' marks. 3 doses of 25mg.

I would suggest trying that. Have you gotten any empty gelcaps from the healthfood store yet?

If you can divide a capsule into 3 doses like that, then you will understand the splitting method and be ready for the next step of more advanced splitting. That will get you 3 days at 25mg. After that, you will be ready for a spike drop (one day at 5mg) and then level out at 15mg for 3 or 4 days.

Are you up for trying that again? Seriously, I tries the counting of the beads, but 15 minutes per dose takes so long. Using the foldes paper with pre-measured markings I could make a weeks worth of varying doses in about 30 minutes. Plus, I KNEW exactly how much was in each capsule.

Hey MIKE,

Yup I'm up for tryin again definately, anything to get me off this drug!! I am going on vacation from this Sunday til next Sunday so I'm gonna stay at the 25 mg til I get back so I can enjoy being away & then I will get right to it with the spike drop & back up to 15 mg to level out. Do you think there are any vitamins, supplements, etc. I should start taking? I know you mentioned the Coromega before but is there anything else & if so when should I start?? Thanks again!!

5 days effexor free now and still feeling really dizzy. when will this let up do you think? its really starting to get to me. spent most of last night in a horrid mood and crying.

the otherside of neck is hurting today - the left side went away yesterday afternoon but now the right side has started. i have a continual headache - not unbearable but still not pleasent.

well at least it is the weekend hey and i can chill at home. i just want it to start dying down now. i really thought by friday i would be feeling significantly better but im not to be honest. what if the dizziness never goes and my body is dependent on effexor forever - thats what im scared about. i cant feel like im moving forever. im soooo tempted to take a bit of pill...noooo most def not. must not do that.

Hi! EJB I couldn't sleep so I spent a long time looking for answers on the same question. I read a lot of people saying that by 2 weeks things had about gone, some said symptoms hung on in a mild form for longer. Each day mine are minimizing. Today is the day 7 of no pills for me. The hot flashes left finally and I hardly had any zaps yesterday, just some wooziness. I hope people who have been off longer will answer your question. Hang in there, they keep telling me on other boards that it will get better every day.

ok good - im sure it will but i just feel a bit hopeless like waiting for something good to happen! yes im just a couple of days behind you. i guess i just have to take each day as it comes. im just scared that what if in two weeks i still feel this dizzy? coz right now im feeling dizzy all day - not just waves of dizziness but literally all the time. ive been taken travel sickness pills but no luck with them helping dizziness. grrr.

Jbuds, (and others)

You ask what else you can take to help with the withdrawl at the end, besides the fishoil (coromega).

There are two suppliments. 5-HTP or St. John's Wort.

These two work in different ways. St. John's Wort actually works in the same way effexor does, but without the synthetics that cause side effects. So, theoretically, your body should adjust to it quickly because it is already used to the system of 'serotonin allocation'.

5-HTP is a serotonin booster. Rather than affecting the 'where' of your body's seratonin, it affects the 'how much'. IMO this is the healthier way to go of the two, however, it can take a week before the results really become consistent.

You have to decide what your immediate need is:

If you are off of effexor, and having a hard time, you might want to do the St. John's Wort as a temporary crutch while your body is cleaning out of the Effexor toxins. Later, you can transition to the 5-HTP.

If you are off of effexor, and the withdrawl is going well, but you feel tinges of depression or anxiety, give the 5-HTP a try. Just keep in mind that you may not feel results for the first week. If you don't anticipate being able to make it a week, you should consider the St. John's Wort.

But remember, under no circumstances should you use more than 1 thing at a time. So if you are still taking 15mg of effexor, don't take either of these suppliments. It's dangerous. Pepole have died from 'seratonin syndrome' when the brain actually gets too much seratonin.

A very interesting experiment would be to get leveled out at 15mg and then spike drop, followed by a cold turkey quit and a good dose of St. John's Wort for a few weeks. Then you could make the switch over to 5-HTP.

(read this for St. John's WOrt dosage...this is a great website!)
http://www.sjwinfo.org/dosage.php

(read this for 5-HTP guidelines....it's not to be over used...100mg per day should be safe though---read this:
http://www.advance-health.com/5htp.html


In my opinion, anyway. You know, I'm not a doctor. :)

Very interesting article and must be seen by all of you.

blank">http://www.corporatemofo.com/stories/040229happypillz.htm

Mike, quick question on the St Johns Wort. Ive been off effexor completely for 5 days now. Would it be safe then to try the SJW now? Also, does it have any of the side effects like effexor did or i guess its diff for other people.

If anyones is using after effexor - have they found it stopped the dizziness and if so how long were they on the SJW before they stopped and when they did stop, did the dizziness just come back?

i suppose my question is should i just grin and bear the dizziness/headaches and aches and not put any more pills in my body or should i try something else.

I would only want to use the SJW literally to get rid of the withdrawal im feeling now - not for depression - i was never put on Effexor for depression in the first place. So could i say take it for a couple of weeks just to stave off withdrawals?


Thanks
Em

This link is to a doctor's statement about how he was paid by the drug company to promote Effexor to other doctors.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/23/yourmoney/wbdrug.php

If you are on the fence to either take it or just grin and bear it, then I would say that the 5-HTP is more your thing. Try it around 1:00pm each day for a few days and see how the withdrawl subsides.

Considering you've been off for 5 days, you shouldn't probably go back to the seratonin allocation system.

I've taken 5-HTP just as a healthy peson to see how I would sleep. I took it at 8:00pm. On night 2 I can tell you I slept very nicely. (serotonin has been linked to all kinds of good calm effects)

Keep in mind, I didn't have insomnia or really any problems, but I wanted to see if the effects of using it would be noticable. It was very subtle. Like the end of a good day. Not reminiscent of drugs at all. Kind of a calm, 'well I guess I'll go to bed now' feeling.

Here is a report that came out on the 27th regarding Wyeth paying lobbyists $320,000 in 07 to lobby on behalf of their interests.
blank">http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/market_news/article....

Mike, ok thanks for that - ill take a look at the 5HTP then instead. I am very tempted to take the 20mg prozac sat in my cupboard at home but am reluctant to take more drugs. after this whole experience i dont even wanna put a paracetomal in my body!! However i do want to try and make this dizziness and headache go away. at least its the weekend tho nearly!

Hey MIKE,
I am very scared to take St John's Wort or 5-HTP because of this warning on another website..

'NEVER, EVER take St. John's Wort or 5-HTP--they have serotonin in them. Mixing them with an anti-depressant or taking then after you've been off of an anti-depressant for only a year of less can lead to SEROTONIN SYNDROME - a toxic and deadly condition. Click on the following link to find out about it: http://www.antidepressantsfacts.com/...ndrome-ADF.htm' .....

Maybe it is just my anxiety but that scares me alot, I was thinking more along the lines of a good multi-vitamin, or anything you can reccommend from like GNC or Vitamin World. I'm ultimately hoping the Benedryl will help me cope through most of the withdrawal lol.

Also, any women on birth control pills should never take St. John's Wort, it will cancel out your pill altogether, fun fact my boyfriend found haha

Great website! (although your link is broken, so I wasn't able to find the quote you provided)

But neither of these suppliments have seratonin in them. But they both effect the seratonin in your brain in different ways. Taking St. Joh'ns Wort is like taking Effexor (not effexor EX). Taking 5-HTP is like boosting the amminos your body uses to make seratonin.


I agreed that you should not take these while taking effexor, but waiting a year or more is a bit much. But considering that the half life of effexor EX is much longer than regular effexor, you are probably right to play it on the safe side. For how long, though is debatable. Since 5-HTP in itself isn't seratonin, but a building block of seratonin, your body may regulate this a bit better, thus be safer for a post effexor aid.

So, if you need a bit of help after quitting, 5-HTP would likely be the safer way, but get a few days of 'effexor-free' under your belt, first. And don't over-use the 5-HTP. 100mg max per day.

BTW, most instances of seratonin syndrome are documented in overdose occurances of SSRI's and/or multiple suppliments (SSRI and St. John's wort at the same time, etc...) Just be smart, and be true to your OWN FEELINGS. Don't let me or anyone tell you what to do. But don't do anything without researching it. Good work finding that website!

From that same website:

'' We strongly persist not to take any supplements, herbs and/or synthetic vitamins until your nervous system has strengthened over time. Continue to ingest proper food, vegetables and fruit during this period. Treat your nervous system with care. As mentioned above: don't think when the better days arrive that you can charge your nervous system like you always did before. It will give you a major set-back! Be careful and monitor your body closely whilst you are ingesting a supplement or herb. ''

I'll echo that. The thing in my mind is, if the withdrawl is horrible, then clearly you aren't in danger of seratonin syndrome. But maybe that's a false logic. ANytime you take a suppliment, you need to be aware of what you are doing. If you can get through it without, that's probably wise.

Now, if you get 4 weeks out, and are fighting depression, then try a suupliment before an SSRI.

'' The Serotonin Syndrome is a potentially lethal condition caused by excessive serotonergic activity and is diagnosed by the presence of at least 3 of 10 symptoms: mental status changes (confusion, hypomania), agitation, myoclonus, hyperreflexia, diaphoresis, shivering, tremor, diarrhea, incoordination, and fever. ''

That sounds like withdrawl, too. Yet withdrawl is the opposite of Seratonin syndrome! CRAP! One requires more seratonin, the other requires less!

Hello Everyone!

I'm so happy that I found this tapering system!

Mikemo~I went a little faster with that 150 just fine, and I'm more than pleased to say that I am at 60mg!!

The only side effects I have been having is night sweats, and psychedellic dreams, but that is fine with me. I am able to function everyday. I am nervous about when I get the lowest numbers and quitting all together, but I will cross that bridge when I get there. I plan to take the 5-HTP at that time and do cleansing.

Thank you all for your stories! I will keep posted!

Mikemo, please clarify whether it is true that if you take Effexor XR it is not necessary to go down 20mg - up 15 then down 5mg. I am now down to 45mg from my 75mg capsule. I have tried the down, up, down method but have found that I do best just going down 5mg every week. I still have side effects but less intense. I have been trying to get off this drug since August and having a hard time - congratulations to all of you who have succeeded. I have read once that some will never be able to go off and I am afraid that I may be one of them....

Hello, it has been one week today since I have been Effexor Free. I feel better every day! I am feeling feelings that I haven't had for ages. Just a nice subtle feeling of connectedness, sensitivity, and hope. It's a good place to be. I was so ready to be off Effexor. I feel like an enhanced version of who I was before when I was taking it. I did a lot of work at resolving depression before I got off.

I read a lot of these effexor boards all around the internet and saw that people who did some exercise seem to have a better experience getting over and through withdrawals. I am going to try to push myself to go for some walks or to do something that resembles exercise. It's going to be hard, because when I was taking Effexor, i was usually not interested in any activity whatsoever as long as it could be avoided.

Mike thanks for posting.

Effexorfreeplease, it will be 14 days on Monday morning since I took my last dose of Effexor and that was 1/4 tab that I took. The first several days were the worst, as far as being dizzy and having brain zaps. I never had any bad headaches or nausea. I would say as of today that I'm probably about 95% or more back to my pre-Effexor self. I didn't have any depression issues to deal with so that probably helped get through the withdrawal part a little better. I slept better last night than I had in the past two weeks, but it might have been in part because I was so exhausted from the day that I had yesterday. We had to have our cat of 15 years put down and I spent a lot of my day crying. But nevertheless, I am feeling so much better than I was almost 2 weeks ago. Ems, I hope you can keep hanging with us. Know you can do it and try the products that Mikemo suggested and get to thinking about your upcoming wedding!! Where are you honeymooning? Can't wait to hear how things go for you.
Pam

I've been on 12 mg for two weeks and its been two weeks of hell with the exception of two days where I felt sort of normal.

I was supposed to go skiing today and starting last night i felt the pain in my joints and nausea again. Today I feel like crap. Needless to say we did not go and I have been sleeping on and off when the pain isn't too great.

At this point I have decided to just not take anymore. I can't imaging it gets worse than this - so I might as well just buck up and get going with it. Ill keep checking in with you guys.

Good luck to all.

Twis, we're cheering for you!

Im not sure if i said this.....but every thought counts. When someone who has been there and understands cheers you on, it means a lot and give you hope.

We are not whiners, we are victims who were given misleading information.

Say no to drugs.

Twisi

Hi All and Hello to Twisi. I finally slept. I just woke up and came to see how you are doing, Twisi.