Bubbly1 Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 (edited) Hi, I'm Angela from Sydney!I started taking Effexor XR 150mg 10years For major Depression.I barely had anxiety issues until 7 years of taking the Effexor.At that time I had tried to decrease my meds slowy, But I crashed and fell to the floor thinking I was going to die.I never knew what a panic attack was before I experienced ot for the fist time I fell down.Ambulance came and got me and I wasnt sure what was happening to me. They told me I was havving a panic attack.This was the first for me, after my first attack, one week turned into two weeks then three months went by and and during that entire time I wasnt sleeping nor eating and having continous panic attacks.Nothing put me to sleep.eventually I went three ebtire days without sleep and couldnt take it any longer..I got on google and looked up Chinese medicine, and went to see and acupuncturist who also prescribed me herbals..After the first treatment I went home and slept that night.. woke up the next morning and was like the withdrawal didnt even exist.It been three years and I am still seeying my acupuncturist.I feel I am ready to come off my medication soon.. Ot took so long because I jadnt put any dietary adjustments in place yet.Now that I understand that diet and healthy lifestyle changes along with TCM and acupuncture, I believe in my heart that I will be ok soon.(Acupuncture must be performed by a professional practitioner with experience, and in no way is this post intended to encourage people to quit AD medication cold turkey).Thank you! Edited September 20, 2016 by scallywag tags added 2006 I had severe depression. I was put on Zoloft but after two weeks I became more depressed and severely suicidal. So then my Doc put me on Effexor XR 150 mg daily. It worked excellent until the 6 year mark. I decided to taper slowly over three months from 150mg down to 37.5 daily. After one week on 37.5mg, I had my first panic attack which put me in emergency. The panic continued for three more months along with chronic insomnia. I over came the insomnia and anxiety with chinese medicine. But its been 4 years and I am still not 100% confident to go lower even with acupuncture because of what happened last time. There is no doubt in my mind that I amam 90% better than before due to TCM but I believe I still need to try a strict diet plan to get to where I need to be.. That alongside Acupuncture and TCM. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus ChessieCat Posted September 17, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted September 17, 2016 Hi Angela, Welcome to SA. Another Aussie. It is possible to get off antidepressant drugs. SA recommends a taper of no more than 10% of the previous dose followed by a holding period of between at least 3-4 weeks to allow the brain to adapt to not getting as much of the drug. When members join we ask them to Please put your Withdrawal History in Signature. Please include all drugs, dates, doses for the last 12-18 months and a summary of anything prior. Having this information in the signature allows us to see it at a glance without having to read through a member's topic. Please update as you make changes so it remains current. Thank you. I'm giving you some links to check out and you can ask questions here in you Intro/Update topic and journal your progress. Click "Follow" top right and you will be notified when someone responds. Before you begin tapering what you need to knowWhy taper by 10% of my dosage? What should I expect from my doctor about withdrawal symptoms? How do you talk to a doctor about tapering and withdrawal? These helped me to understand SA's recommendations and have also helped me to stay patient and not try and taper too quickly: Brain Remodelling (Rhi's Description of Brain Healing) Video: Healing From Antidepressants - Patterns of Recovery There is a lot of excellent information on this site. The best way to search is to use a search engine and type in survivingantidepressants.org + topic. If you can't find what you are looking for, please don't hesitate to ask here in your topic. * NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA * MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: (6 year taper) 0mg Pristiq on 13th November 2021 ADs since ~1992: 25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq: 50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity) Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021 LAST DOSE 0.0025mg Post 0 updates start here My tapering program My Intro (goes to tapering graph) VIDEO: Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus ChessieCat Posted September 17, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted September 17, 2016 Many, or possibly all, of the topics you mentioned in your initial post Natural Therapy for AD withdrawal! (AUSTRALIA) (quoted below) already have their own topics. As stated in my previous post it is best to use google or check out the Symptoms: Important topics about symptoms Come and share some experiences that you may have regarding antidepressant withdrawal via (Homeopathy, Acupuncture, DBT, CBT, Strict diet changes I.e Quitting Sugar, caffeine, Smoking, Traditional chinese medine or Naturopathy. * NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA * MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: (6 year taper) 0mg Pristiq on 13th November 2021 ADs since ~1992: 25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq: 50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity) Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021 LAST DOSE 0.0025mg Post 0 updates start here My tapering program My Intro (goes to tapering graph) VIDEO: Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus bubble Posted September 18, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted September 18, 2016 Hello Bubbly, I would just want to check something: you have been on 37.5 mg of Effexor for 4 years? What kind of symptoms do you still have? Current: 9/2022 Xanax 0.08, Lexapro 2 2020 Xanax 0.26 (down from 2 mg in 2013), Lexapro 2.85 mg (down from 5 mg 2013) Amitriptyline (tricyclic AD) and clonazepam for 3 months to treat headache in 1996 1999. - present Xanax prn up to 3 mg. 2000-2005 Prozac CT twice, 2005-2010 Zoloft CT 3 times, 2010-2013 Escitalopram 10 mg went from 2.5 to zero on 7 Aug 2013, bad crash 40 days afterreinstated to 5 mg Escitalopram 4Oct 2013 and holding liquid Xanax every 5 hours 28 Jan 2014 Xanax 1.9, 18 Apr 2015 1 mg, 25 June 2015 Lex 4.8, 6 Aug Lexapro 4.6, 1 Jan 2016 0.64 Xanax 9 month hold 24 Sept 2016 4.5 Lex, 17 Oct 4.4 Lex (Nov 0.63 Xanax, Dec 0.625 Xanax), 1 Jan 2017 4.3 Lex, 24 Jan 4.2, 5 Feb 4.1, 24 Mar 4 mg, 10 Apr 3.9 mg, May 3.85, June 3.8, July 3.75, 22 July 3.7, 15 Aug 3.65, 17 Sept 3.6, 1 Jan 2018 3.55, 19 Jan 3.5, 16 Mar 3.4, 14 Apr 3.3, 23 May 3.2, 16 June 3.15, 15 Jul 3.1, 31 Jul 3, 21 Aug 2.9 26 Sept 2.85, 14 Nov Xan 0.61, 1 Dec 0.59, 19 Dec 0.58, 4 Jan 0.565, 6 Feb 0.55, 20 Feb 0.535, 1 Mar 0.505, 10 Mar 0.475, 14 Mar 0.45, 4 Apr 0.415, 13 Apr 0.37, 21 Apr 0.33, 29 Apr 0.29, 10 May 0.27, 17 May 0.25, 28 May 0.22, 19 June 0.22, 21 Jun updose to 0.24, 24 Jun updose to 0.26 Supplements: Omega 3 + Vit E, Vit C, D, magnesium, Taurine, probiotic I'm not a medical professional. Any advice I give is based on my own experience and reading. Link to comment
Bubbly1 Posted September 20, 2016 Author Share Posted September 20, 2016 Hi Bubble, I have been on effexor for 10years.. four years? I wish lol. Started at 150 for about 4 years then shifted between 150mg and 75 mg for 5 years and now in the last year have come down to 37.5 mg from 75mg. I find it extremely jard to concentrate, I get nervous, aggressive toward general public because i think people r against me in some way? I get periodic insomnia.. oll be fine for a momth then out of the blue I wont sleep for 3-4 days soLid. Usually insomnia passes after a few weeks. I have no energy, I cant get up in the morning, I still get anxious and never even had anxiety before I started this medication. My first panic attack was years ago and due to fluctuation on my meds dosage.. I grind my teeth alot and my mind feels confused alot. Sorry about all that but yeah, Im sure there r alot more issues thats I didn't state.. like lower back pain... Are you on effexor Bubble? Regards Bubbly1 2006 I had severe depression. I was put on Zoloft but after two weeks I became more depressed and severely suicidal. So then my Doc put me on Effexor XR 150 mg daily. It worked excellent until the 6 year mark. I decided to taper slowly over three months from 150mg down to 37.5 daily. After one week on 37.5mg, I had my first panic attack which put me in emergency. The panic continued for three more months along with chronic insomnia. I over came the insomnia and anxiety with chinese medicine. But its been 4 years and I am still not 100% confident to go lower even with acupuncture because of what happened last time. There is no doubt in my mind that I amam 90% better than before due to TCM but I believe I still need to try a strict diet plan to get to where I need to be.. That alongside Acupuncture and TCM. Link to comment
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