John: Effexor withdrawal on a delay?

[HugHK]

John how are you feeling? very interesting topic.

 

A few thoughts from me:

 

1/ I feel like perhaps you underestimate the delay in withdrawal / waves after a last taper. For me, one of my largest waves didn't start until a year after I last changed the dosage. Two years since I last changed the dose and im not seeing the end of it.

 

2/ I think we all overthink massively when trying to identify the causes for waves. I genuinely think more often than not they are random in the sense they are not triggered by anything in particular. For example, I just had a window between mid November and mid Feb, which was really quite enjoyable in Jan - mid feb. Yet during this time, I had an abscess near my toe, took an antibiotic course, had local anaesthetic and the toe nail removed which was the most physical pain I'd ever felt. I was literally shaking from the nerves for half an hour after. It didn't trigger anything. And then randomly, last week, I wake up one morning and the anxiety is back. No reason. just is. I thought, like you, that I was almost out of the woods, but I wasn't. Just not my time I guess. 

 

 

[John]

Thanks for the response. Right now awful. I usually wake up ok, and within 20 minutes the anxiety comes up and I'm all sweaty, pacing, adrenaline in the legs, and extreme nervousness. Usually goes on all day, and let's up at night. Like last night after feeling horrible all day by 9pm it disappeared till this morning. 

 

I can understand that a year after feeling fine for so long after changing the dose, but this last dose I changed was only about 6 pellets, and even then added them back. The feelings now that I have are every bit as bad as in 2010 when I went cold turkey from 75mg of Effexor.  The other thing that I don't get is that I have a lot of windows like for instance this started in November, and by December 4th, it just disappeared till December 22nd, and came back, and disappeared on January 8th and came back again this past Saturday. Up and down so quick I'm wondering if this is bipolar disorder. 

[HugHK]

8 hours ago, John said:

Thanks for the response. Right now awful. I usually wake up ok, and within 20 minutes the anxiety comes up and I'm all sweaty, pacing, adrenaline in the legs, and extreme nervousness. Usually goes on all day, and let's up at night. Like last night after feeling horrible all day by 9pm it disappeared till this morning. 

 

I can understand that a year after feeling fine for so long after changing the dose, but this last dose I changed was only about 6 pellets, and even then added them back. The feelings now that I have are every bit as bad as in 2010 when I went cold turkey from 75mg of Effexor.  The other thing that I don't get is that I have a lot of windows like for instance this started in November, and by December 4th, it just disappeared till December 22nd, and came back, and disappeared on January 8th and came back again this past Saturday. Up and down so quick I'm wondering if this is bipolar disorder. 

 

 

OK so your case seems similar to mine:

 

1/ For me too I wake up feeling fine and the symptoms quickly ramp up, including anxiety, dizziness, neurological symptoms like pins and needles in my head (like a firework) and in my feet. The symptoms usually get worse after I shower, last most of the day, and ease in the evening. 

 

2/ I think you are overanalysing the reasons for the waves. The reason I say this is based on both your and my experience here plus other people's realistically. I honestly doubt that your wave was due to you last change of how ever many pellets which honestly would make only minor difference. I think it is your brain catching up on changes made over many years. the fact that it comes and goes so brutally several times means there is likely no particular trigger and seems pretty random to me. Note that one of my biggest waves started just over a year after my last dose change. No particular reason for this I believe. I felt early symptoms creep up over a few weeks without suspecting anything (occasional dizziness etc), and one morning, bam, it was there. 

 

3/ one thing I have noticed in y previous waves is that very intense symptoms doesn't mean the wave will last for long. it might do, but it might also disappear quickly one morning (like you had a few times already since the onset of the new symptoms) and not come back. 

 

4/ my tip would be to try and not overanalyse everything. someone said above, we look for definite answers all the time and never get any because there just aren't any. I've done the same (in fact to some extent im doing it now). I think it's a mechanism to reassure ourselves. It's fine, but I don't think it really helps us to be honest.