Jump to content
SurvivingAntidepressants.org is temporarily closed to new registrations until 1 April ×

wildchild93: Long term Effexor use, is there hope?


wildchild93

Recommended Posts

23 minutes ago, wildchild93 said:

I increased to 150mg (my pretaper dose) and am sticking with the tms. I still cry a good bit, but the akisthesia went away and has yet to come back. After the first couple of nights, I’ve been sleeping much better and am actually kind of sleepy during the day which is a good thing for me. I’m still working through some depressive symptoms, but it feels good to be able to wake up, drive, watch tv without feeling like someone’s shoving caffeine into my veins. I’m still suffering, but don’t feel like I’m being tortured now if that makes sense. I’m going to be patient and stick with this dose and see if things improve. Getting rid of the akisthesia was huge for me. I feel like I can finally breath again. 

 

Wow that sounds very positive. Very happy for you, give it a good long time to settle, but I would say that already seeing improvements is a great sign of things to come. 

2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016.
January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro.
March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off.
June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs
August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
October 1st  - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs 

September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018)

November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs

April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs

Link to comment
34 minutes ago, DaveB said:

 

Wow that sounds very positive. Very happy for you, give it a good long time to settle, but I would say that already seeing improvements is a great sign of things to come. 

Yea, I wish that I could have stuck with the 75mg and stabilized there, but I think that it would have taken a really long time, longer than I was willing to wait and suffer. Not saying that I won’t ever try again one day, but I have to give myself the best shot at stability right now so i can move on with my life, my career, my relationships, and my future. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
3 minutes ago, wildchild93 said:

Yea, I wish that I could have stuck with the 75mg and stabilized there, but I think that it would have taken a really long time, longer than I was willing to wait and suffer. Not saying that I won’t ever try again one day, but I have to give myself the best shot at stability right now so i can move on with my life, my career, my relationships, and my future. 

 

I am not going to disagree with that, judging by your quick response, I would say you made the right move. It was risky, but it looks like it worked out. Hopefully you can find quick stability now at this dose and things will just get better from here. 

2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016.
January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro.
March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off.
June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs
August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
October 1st  - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs 

September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018)

November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs

April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs

Link to comment
5 hours ago, DaveB said:

am not going to disagree with that, judging by your quick response, I would say you made the right move. It was risky, but it looks like it worked out. Hopefully you can find quick stability now at this dose and things will just get better from here. 

Maybe, could just be the placebo these first couple of days. The first day that I increased it, I swear my head was clear as day. It was amazing! That feeling didn’t quite stay. Getting hit with a good bit of anxiety this evening, but still no akisthesia/agitation or whatever. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
51 minutes ago, wildchild93 said:

Maybe, could just be the placebo these first couple of days. The first day that I increased it, I swear my head was clear as day. It was amazing! That feeling didn’t quite stay. Getting hit with a good bit of anxiety this evening, but still no akisthesia/agitation or whatever. 

Yeah I have done that, where the 1st few days felt great, then kind of back to a baseline of crappy. However, I think the fact your initial reaction was positive means it will be a beneficial, but it may take to stabilize.  

2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016.
January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro.
March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off.
June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs
August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
October 1st  - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs 

September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018)

November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs

April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs

Link to comment

I’ve never taken lithium before, but just got blood drawn and my serum lithium was less than 0.1. The normal range says 0.6-1.2. Should I be worried? Could this be contributing to my problems? 

 

Do lithium levels show show up in the blood only for people who are actively receiving lithium?

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
23 hours ago, wildchild93 said:

I’ve never taken lithium before, but just got blood drawn and my serum lithium was less than 0.1. The normal range says 0.6-1.2. Should I be worried? Could this be contributing to my problems? 

 

Do lithium levels show show up in the blood only for people who are actively receiving lithium?

 

I am bumping this cause I don't know the answer. How are you doing now on the higher dose?

2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016.
January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro.
March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off.
June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs
August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
October 1st  - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs 

September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018)

November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs

April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs

Link to comment

Hello. I was reading your thread and had a question about the serum lithium blood test.   Is this a separate blood test? It's not included in CBC or CMP blood test?. Why did they do this blood test?

In June 2014 I was taking Celexa for 2 days, 25 mg zoloft 8 weeks, 10 mg Paxil 3 months and 10 mg Lexapro 1 month tapered off in 2 wks.. Was on a total of 6 months had side effects to them all. Went off and had my first panic attack a month later in January 2015. In March 2015 was having stomach issues and was put on Xanax for a week Dr. Said it was anxiety. End of that week woke up heart racing so was put back on Lexapro 5 MG and the next night is when my sleep got messed up. Literally not sleeping

Was it the Xanax or lexapro?? Went off sleep on and off and taking Xanax on and off. The end of April 2015 tried Buspar for 2 days and had side effects and could not sleep at all. Middle of May 2015 went on Ambien and lexapro again. Inner vibration started. Switched to paxil. Went off Ambien in June 2015 and off Paxil July 2015. October 2015 got worse went of zoloft 12.5 mg through December 2015. I was tolerating what I was going through January and February 2016. Then March got worse with horrible panic. Tried hypnotherapy in May 2016 a couple times couldn't Relax when she started counting backwards it freaked me out. Started not sleeping again in May. Went back on Xanax for 2 months May-July 2016. Tried liquid Prozac 5 mg then 10 mg side effects July - August then switched Zoloft 12.5 mg August - September 2016. Been off antidepressants since September 5, 2016. Been off Xanax since July 28, 2016, but I have taken it 8 other times since then through May 2017. Have symptoms going on with agoraphobia. Is this withdrawal??

May 2017 feeling horrible and more intense symptoms.

Link to comment
2 hours ago, DaveB said:

 

I am bumping this cause I don't know the answer. How are you doing now on the higher dose?

 

1 hour ago, BAT said:

Hello. I was reading your thread and had a question about the serum lithium blood test.   Is this a separate blood test? It's not included in CBC or CMP blood test?. Why did they do this blood test?

No it wasn’t included with those, it was separate. I don’t really know why they did it. I thought that was only applicable for people who take lithium regularly. It kind of scared me for a second until I realized that everyone’s level would be low and that was a dumb question. 

 

And Dave, I’m doing about the same. Still a struggle for me to sleep. The tms doesn’t seem to be helping as much this time around. I bounce back and forth between not sleeping followed by low mood, brain fog, low anxiety, loss of appetite to sleeping maybe 5 hours with massive anxiety, adrenaline rushes, not as depressed, ok appetite, but just overall uncomfortable. I got a little break yesterday towards the end of the day when I was kind of coming out of depression, but not quite getting the super intense anxiety yet. I wish that I could apply for a job and push myself to earn some type of paycheck, but that’s really hard to do when my sleep is so erratic. Sometimes I think about asking for something else besides klonopin and seroquel for sleep so that I could work, but I really don’t want to do that. Idk it’s so hard. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment

So I have been having random muscle spasms, twitches, and hypnotic jerks when trying to relax or go to sleep. Has this happened to anyone else? The akisthesia is much better now, but now I have all of these asymmetric twitches in my limbs and sometimes my face. They don’t hurt, they’re just a nuisance and sometimes wake me up (especially the body jerks at night).

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
On 4/10/2018 at 6:16 PM, wildchild93 said:

So I have been having random muscle spasms, twitches, and hypnotic jerks when trying to relax or go to sleep. Has this happened to anyone else? The akisthesia is much better now, but now I have all of these asymmetric twitches in my limbs and sometimes my face. They don’t hurt, they’re just a nuisance and sometimes wake me up (especially the body jerks at night).

 

I have had these, they will go away, could be from your updose. How are you doing?

2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016.
January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro.
March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off.
June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs
August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
October 1st  - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs 

September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018)

November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs

April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs

Link to comment
2 minutes ago, DaveB said:

 

I have had these, they will go away, could be from your updose. How are you doing?

Yea, i think they were. Maybe that and TMS. They have gotten a lot better and almost disappeared. 

 

I’m ok. I want to work at a local gym in the summer and am about to go for an interview. Since I am going to try to work again, I wanted to see how I would be without the TMS treatments. My last one was on Friday and I was feeling pretty good and still sleeping. Then yesterday I was an absolute mess. Crying and suicidal thoughts like I haven’t had in a while. The good thing is that so far, I am still sleeping and haven’t had to worry about the akisthesia since I increased the dose. Hopefully it was just a bad day and I won’t have to take too many steps back after stoppping the tms. 

 

Now I’ll check on your page and see how you’re doing lol. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
  • 2 weeks later...

How do you know that you are ready to start tapering again after trying to stabilize from a too fast taper? 

 

I don’t feel as good as I did before trying to come off of the effexor, but I feel like I’m more apathetic than anxious most days. I also am experiencing a lot of the side effects again (weight gain, dry mouth, increased thirst, ibs, sweats, feeling hot, and decreased libido) since increasing. my dose from 75mg to 150mg March 29, 2018. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
1 hour ago, wildchild93 said:

How do you know that you are ready to start tapering again after trying to stabilize from a too fast taper? 

 

I don’t feel as good as I did before trying to come off of the effexor, but I feel like I’m more apathetic than anxious most days. I also am experiencing a lot of the side effects again (weight gain, dry mouth, increased thirst, ibs, sweats, feeling hot, and decreased libido) since increasing. my dose from 75mg to 150mg March 29, 2018. 

 

Wow, that seems like great news. I would give it a good while to feel stable. The side effects suck, but no reason to rock the boat too early if the sea is starting to settle. Just my opinion, sounds like a great update though from you.

2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016.
January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro.
March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off.
June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs
August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
October 1st  - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs 

September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018)

November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs

April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs

Link to comment
16 hours ago, DaveB said:

 

Wow, that seems like great news. I would give it a good while to feel stable. The side effects suck, but no reason to rock the boat too early if the sea is starting to settle. Just my opinion, sounds like a great update though from you.

Yea never mind. I started having trouble sleeping again these last two nights. I’ll lay down around 10pm, but won’t fall asleep until 4am. Hopefully just a wave. I exercised pretty intensely last night so maybe my body just needed a little longer to calm down after that. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment

Never mind. I am now back to sleeping 2-3 hours per night and not wanting to do anything during the day. God, when will this end? Doesn’t your body have to start shutting down at some point?!?!

 

I have been doing a lifeguard/cpr class these last couple of days and that has been going pretty well. Sometimes my anxiety gets really high and I have trouble concentrating on the videos or think that if I try to say something, that it will come out wrong so I don’t say much. So far, no one seems to notice that I am struggling. Actually, the rescues and in the pool stuff is better for my anxiety than the classroom. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment

STARTING MY TAPER from 150mg EFFEXOR XR THIS SATURDAY 5/12/18

 

Going to cut back 10% to 135mg and hold for AT LEAST a month. 

 

For the last 2 weeks, I have been feeling very spacey and out of it. I hardly have any anxiety, but I don’t have a whole lot of anything else either. My motivation and drive is very low and I find myself laying around the house, watching tv, and losing track of time. I haven’t been able to exercise as much as I would like because I keep getting very hot, sweaty, and short of breath whenever I try to do any moderate to strenuous physical activity. I’m talking dripping sweat, like entire shirt is covered. It’s disgusting and takes the enjoyment out of running and working out. I feel very flat emotionally, like I could care less about everything and that is not me AT ALL. Libido is non existent at the moment which is strange to me because I’ve never lost that before. Bowel movements are happening daily thankfully, but are slow. Sleep is not the best, but I have been getting at least 5 hours a night so I’ll take it. Just feeling very foggy and zombie-like in general like I’m trying to come out of anesthesia but can’t. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
1 hour ago, wildchild93 said:

STARTING MY TAPER from 150mg EFFEXOR XR THIS SATURDAY 5/12/18

 

Going to cut back 10% to 135mg and hold for AT LEAST a month. 

 

For the last 2 weeks, I have been feeling very spacey and out of it. I hardly have any anxiety, but I don’t have a whole lot of anything else either. My motivation and drive is very low and I find myself laying around the house, watching tv, and losing track of time. I haven’t been able to exercise as much as I would like because I keep getting very hot, sweaty, and short of breath whenever I try to do any moderate to strenuous physical activity. I’m talking dripping sweat, like entire shirt is covered. It’s disgusting and takes the enjoyment out of running and working out. I feel very flat emotionally, like I could care less about everything and that is not me AT ALL. Libido is non existent at the moment which is strange to me because I’ve never lost that before. Bowel movements are happening daily thankfully, but are slow. Sleep is not the best, but I have been getting at least 5 hours a night so I’ll take it. Just feeling very foggy and zombie-like in general like I’m trying to come out of anesthesia but can’t. 

 

Sounds like the move up to 150mgs was the correct one for you. From everything I have seen feeling muted is very common and should improve with a taper. Be careful not to go to fast. Would you agree that these new issues are more bearable than what you were experiencing before with the anxiety? You certainly "sound" better. 

2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016.
January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro.
March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off.
June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs
August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
October 1st  - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs 

September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018)

November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs

April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs

Link to comment
2 hours ago, DaveB said:

Sounds like the move up to 150mgs was the correct one for you. From everything I have seen feeling muted is very common and should improve with a taper. Be careful not to go to fast. Would you agree that these new issues are more bearable than what you were experiencing before with the anxiety? You certainly "sound" better. 

Lets hope so. I know I will be tempered to move fast, but I’m going to ask my parents to help keep me accountable. 

 

Theyre definitely more comfortable to sit with than the anxiety or akisthesia. Effexor’s side effects are still rough and I feel like a fat, sweaty, unproductive blob that’s half brain dead; but don’t feel like I’m being tortured like before. Hopefully i can keep it that way throughout the taper. Heck, I’ll even stop the taper if I start feeling good and like me again. My plan is to weigh the beads with a jewer’s scale. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
2 hours ago, DaveB said:

 

Sounds like the move up to 150mgs was the correct one for you. From everything I have seen feeling muted is very common and should improve with a taper. Be careful not to go to fast. Would you agree that these new issues are more bearable than what you were experiencing before with the anxiety? You certainly "sound" better. 

Also, thank you for the encouragement. It does seem like the increase to 150 THAT TIME helped. Crazy how the two times that I tried to increased back to 150 last year didn’t seem to work. Or my brain was still to shocked and rattled to even register what was happening. It’s like I had to suffer on 75mg for a while and get my head zapped multiple times for it to finally take again. Who knows. Hopefully this is it and I won’t have to experimce anything close to the torture that my brain went through last year. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment

Remember and hold at 150mg if you do not feel confident and strong enough for the dip to 135mg.

I am on another hold just now, and have done them before - sometimes for several weeks.

The pain and grief is not worth it when you are overambitious.

Best wishes!

Born 1945. 

1999 - First Effexor/Venlafaxine

2016 Withdrawal research. Effexor.  13Jul - 212.5mg;  6Aug - 200.0mg;  24Aug - 187.5mg;  13Sep - 175.0mg;  3Oct - 162.5mg;  26Oct - 150mg 

2017  9Jan - 150.00mg;  23Mar - 137.50mg;  24Apr - 125.00mg;  31May - 112.50mg holding;  3Sep - 100.00mg;  20Sep - 93.75mg;  20Oct - 87.5mg;  12Nov - 81.25mg;  13 Dec - 75.00mg

2018  18Jan - 69.1mg; 16Feb - 62.5mg; 16March - 57.5mg (-8%); 22Apr - 56.3mg(-2%); CRASHED - Updose 29May - 62.5mg; Updose - 1Jul - 75.0mg. Updose - 2Aug - 87.5mg. Updose - 27Aug - 100.0mg. Updose - 11Oct 112.5mg. Updose - 6Nov 125.00mg

2019 Updoses 19 Jan - 150.0mg. 1April - 162.5mg. 24 April - Feeling better - doing tasks, getting outside.  7 May - usual depression questionnaire gives "probably no depression" result.

Supps/Vits  Omega 3;  Chelated Magnesium;  Prebiotics/Probiotics, Vit D3. 

Link to comment
On 5/11/2018 at 6:31 AM, peng said:

Remember and hold at 150mg if you do not feel confident and strong enough for the dip to 135mg.

I am on another hold just now, and have done them before - sometimes for several weeks.

The pain and grief is not worth it when you are overambitious.

Best wishes!

I know, i have to watch out for that. Just wish some of these side effects would ease off a bit at least so I can workout again because that is one of my passions.  I dipped to 135mg this morning. Weighed and measured two weeks worth of that. I plan on holding for at least a month (especially paying attention to any additional anxiety or trouble sleeping) seeing how I feel, and then reavaluating. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment

Please do not work out too hard.

If you read posts on that subject you will find it is mostly counterproductive and you will probably flounder afterwards.

Slow and steady - your body will appreciate that more, I would suggest.

Born 1945. 

1999 - First Effexor/Venlafaxine

2016 Withdrawal research. Effexor.  13Jul - 212.5mg;  6Aug - 200.0mg;  24Aug - 187.5mg;  13Sep - 175.0mg;  3Oct - 162.5mg;  26Oct - 150mg 

2017  9Jan - 150.00mg;  23Mar - 137.50mg;  24Apr - 125.00mg;  31May - 112.50mg holding;  3Sep - 100.00mg;  20Sep - 93.75mg;  20Oct - 87.5mg;  12Nov - 81.25mg;  13 Dec - 75.00mg

2018  18Jan - 69.1mg; 16Feb - 62.5mg; 16March - 57.5mg (-8%); 22Apr - 56.3mg(-2%); CRASHED - Updose 29May - 62.5mg; Updose - 1Jul - 75.0mg. Updose - 2Aug - 87.5mg. Updose - 27Aug - 100.0mg. Updose - 11Oct 112.5mg. Updose - 6Nov 125.00mg

2019 Updoses 19 Jan - 150.0mg. 1April - 162.5mg. 24 April - Feeling better - doing tasks, getting outside.  7 May - usual depression questionnaire gives "probably no depression" result.

Supps/Vits  Omega 3;  Chelated Magnesium;  Prebiotics/Probiotics, Vit D3. 

Link to comment

Is it a bad sign that I’m experimcing a lot of anxiety/restless energy since my first 10% cut on May 12th? Is this normal? Didn’t think I would get hit quite this hard so soon. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
  • Moderator

That's fitting the typical pattern very closely.  After a drop the symptoms usually kick up between one to five days. They then take several days to a few weeks to stabilize and then drop off back to your WDNormal baseline. For future drops you may want to consider using the Brassmonkey Slide Method.  It was developed to reduce the severity of the symptoms from the initial decrease but still maintain a fairly fast taper schedule.

 

The Brassmonkey Slide Method of Micro-tapering

20 years on Paxil starting at 20mg and working up to 40mg. Sept 2011 started 10% every 6 weeks taper (2.5% every week for 4 weeks then hold for 2 additional weeks), currently at 7.9mg. Oct 2011 CTed 15oz vodka a night, to only drinking 2 beers most nights, totally sober Feb 2013.

Since I wrote this I have continued to decrease my dose by 10% every 6 weeks (2.5% every week for 4 weeks and then hold for an additional 2 weeks). I added in an extra 6 week hold when I hit 10mg to let things settle out even more. When I hit 3mgpw it became hard to split the drop into 4 parts so I switched to dropping 1mgpw (pill weight) every week for 3 weeks and then holding for another 3 weeks.  The 3 + 3 schedule turned out to be too harsh so I cut back to dropping 1mgpw every 4 weeks which is working better.

Final Dose 0.016mg.     Current dose 0.000mg 04-15-2017

 

"It's also important not to become angry, no matter how difficult life is, because you can loose all hope if you can't laugh at yourself and at life in general."  Stephen Hawking

Link to comment
20 hours ago, brassmonkey said:

That's fitting the typical pattern very closely.  After a drop the symptoms usually kick up between one to five days. They then take several days to a few weeks to stabilize and then drop off back to your WDNormal baseline. For future drops you may want to consider using the Brassmonkey Slide Method.  It was developed to reduce the severity of the symptoms from the initial decrease but still maintain a fairly fast taper schedule.

Thanks. That is helpful. I’m not as concerned about the speed of my taper since I am in good physical health and don’t have any medical reason to get off quickly (although the side effects are driving me nuts) I’m more concerned about making too big of a cut and not being able to stabilize again. This is day 5 with the decrease so I’m probably right in the thick of it now. 

 

I will look more into the Brass Monkey taper. I thought it seemed more complex at first and I wanted to keep things as simple as possible, but if it will help to take the edge off of some of this agitation than it might be worth the extra time and effort. 

 

 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
26 minutes ago, wildchild93 said:

Thanks. That is helpful. I’m not as concerned about the speed of my taper since I am in good physical health and don’t have any medical reason to get off quickly (although the side effects are driving me nuts) I’m more concerned about making too big of a cut and not being able to stabilize again. This is day 5 with the decrease so I’m probably right in the thick of it now. 

 

I will look more into the Brass Monkey taper. I thought it seemed more complex at first and I wanted to keep things as simple as possible, but if it will help to take the edge off of some of this agitation than it might be worth the extra time and effort. 

 

 

 

Sounds like you are doing much better Wild Child. I am happy for you!

2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016.
January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro.
March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off.
June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs
August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
October 1st  - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs 

September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018)

November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs

April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs

Link to comment
20 minutes ago, DaveB said:

 

Sounds like you are doing much better Wild Child. I am happy for you!

I’m surviving (= 

 

Your time will come too when you can start to taper. If memory serves me right, I think our timelines were pretty similar and we crashed around the same time. 

 

Are you still taking the zyprexia? 

 

 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
6 minutes ago, wildchild93 said:

I’m surviving (= 

 

Your time will come too when you can start to taper. If memory serves me right, I think our timelines were pretty similar and we crashed around the same time. 

 

Are you still taking the zyprexia? 

 

 

 

Yes I am still taking the Zyprexa...unfortunately. I am doing ok as well, surviving...not stable enough to start my taper as I still swing hard to the bad, but I feel I am getting there.

2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016.
January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro.
March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off.
June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs
August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
October 1st  - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs
November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs 

September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018)

November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs

February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs

April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs

Link to comment
8 minutes ago, DaveB said:

Yes I am still taking the Zyprexa...unfortunately. I am doing ok as well, surviving...not stable enough to start my taper as I still swing hard to the bad, but I feel I am getting there.

Gotcha. After this week, I’m not so sure that I was stable enough to start either. I don’t really know how people know. I didn’t feel nearly as good and stable as I did before I tried to come off originally, but didnt feel nearly as labile as I had been either. I feel like it’s hard to know after so many failed reinstatements and over a year of constant emotional turmoil and sleepless nights. 

 

Its weird that the withdrawl hit within a week of this “small” taper, when last year I tried, I didn’t experience any signs of withdrawl for 2 1/2 months. Funny how our bodies and nervous systems change after what we’ve been through.

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment

Very little anxiety at all this morning. Back to feeling very lazy and tired today. This is day 6 of my first 10% decrease @brassmonkey is a wizard. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
  • 3 weeks later...

So I know I just started, but I think that i already fucked up my taper. For pretty much the entire month of May, I felt out of it and was feeling very little emotions good or bad. I also was experiencing very little anxiety or depression. On May 13, I decreased my Effexor XR from 150mg to 135mg (10%). I had a rough wave of anxiety 2-3 days after which seemed to resolve later on in the week. I was still getting frusturated that I was experiencing so many side effects from the effexor and was unable to feel anything for my boyfriend that I jumped the gun and decreased by another 10% (down to 121mg) on May 27th. After this decrease, much like the first, I had a rough stretch 2-3 days later where I felt very agitated, teary, and restless, and then it seemed to resolve again. However, the following week (about 7 days after my second decrease) my mood began to plummet very rapidly and I have been experiencing intense crying spells (feel very crazy and out of control), overwhelming anxiety that lasts all day and makes it hard to think or communicate with other people, episodes of intrusive thoughts and or thoughts of suicide (usually right before I cry or when I lay down to sleep). Last night was the first night in a long time where I did not sleep at all. Currently, I feel very out of control and am considering leaving my boyfriend because I’m tired of being a burden and want to set him free from this mess. 

 

I know that I messed up and jumped the gun by at least 2 weeks. I don’t really have a good reason for doing so except that the side effects were making me sick and I didn’t like feeling like a zombie. Anyways, I am wondering what to do now. I really don’t think that I can handle going back to not sleeping every night again. That will wreck me especially now that I have a job and responsibilies for this summer. 

 

I thought the withdrawl symptoms would be the most instense 2-5 days after the decrease and then even out again. Mine seemed to have evened out and then dropped off completely sending me back into a very dark and scary place.

 

Should I continue to hold at 121mg or increase to 130 or even back to 135? 

 

 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
  • Moderator

If the symptoms are really unbearable then a small increase might help take the edge off probably 125mgai would be a good place to start.  An increase frequently will give some relief in a day or so, but it can take several weeks for things to sort themselves out so it will still be a rocky time for a while.  If possible just riding it out would be best because the more changes the more confused the body becomes and the longer it takes to stabilize.

 

While a person is in ADWD is the worst time to make important decisions there is.  All the negative feelings you have toward your boy friend are being caused by the drug and are not your true emotions.  Please don't jump to conclusions and make a big mistake because of the way you're feeling ATM.  Talk to him and get his take on the matter, and thank him for being so supportive while you're going through this.  All the feelings are still there, just not accessible, but they will reappear as you continue your taper.

20 years on Paxil starting at 20mg and working up to 40mg. Sept 2011 started 10% every 6 weeks taper (2.5% every week for 4 weeks then hold for 2 additional weeks), currently at 7.9mg. Oct 2011 CTed 15oz vodka a night, to only drinking 2 beers most nights, totally sober Feb 2013.

Since I wrote this I have continued to decrease my dose by 10% every 6 weeks (2.5% every week for 4 weeks and then hold for an additional 2 weeks). I added in an extra 6 week hold when I hit 10mg to let things settle out even more. When I hit 3mgpw it became hard to split the drop into 4 parts so I switched to dropping 1mgpw (pill weight) every week for 3 weeks and then holding for another 3 weeks.  The 3 + 3 schedule turned out to be too harsh so I cut back to dropping 1mgpw every 4 weeks which is working better.

Final Dose 0.016mg.     Current dose 0.000mg 04-15-2017

 

"It's also important not to become angry, no matter how difficult life is, because you can loose all hope if you can't laugh at yourself and at life in general."  Stephen Hawking

Link to comment

@brassmonkey Thank you for your quick response. I will continue to hold for this week and see how it goes. Next time that I make a decrease, I will try the brass monkey method and wait for the full 6 weeks. 

 

I went to the gym after my crying spell this morning and interestingly the sweating seems much less and my body temperature feels cooler. Hoping I can push through this one because besides the not sleeping part, I feel better physically at this dose.

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
  • 2 weeks later...

Question about sleep.

 

Mood wise, I seem to be doing fairly well. The crying only lasted 2-3 days and then stopped and I’ve been having full days with no anxiety whatsoever (although I’m more tired these days and need to take more breaks during the day due to lack of sleep).

 

When a I lay down to go to bed at night, I am tired and not restless, but the sleep just doesn’t come or takes hours for me to finally switch into sleep mode and it’s very fractured. How do I know if this is a withdrawl symptoms or a side effect of reinstating the medication? If everything else seems pretty stable and the sleep is the only thing that is off, then is it ok to proceed with the taper even if I’m only getting 3-4 hours each night? I know that I am not ready to decrease again for awhile, just wondering. if anyone else has had a similar experience. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment
  • 4 weeks later...

Well that was a fail. I made it to 121mg. Stayed there for about a month and things started getting a lot worse and I had to updose to 130mg. I am still experiencing very bad withdrawl like symptoms on this dose and am going back up to 150mg tomorrow. I will not be tapering off anytime soon. My nervous system is still too fragile and I’m barely getting by day to day. Thanks everyone for all of the information. I will take everything into consideration in the future if I ever try to taper again. 

6 years old- 23 years old Effexor XR 75-150mg 

March-May 2017  3-month taper of Effexor XR from 150mg down to 37.5 and then 0.  

After a week reinstated Effexor at 37.5 and quickly worked your way up to 150.

Mid-May increased to 187.5.

End of July to mid-October switched to 50-200mg Zoloft

Nov. to present  switched back to Effexor 75 mg

March 29, 2018 Increased Effexor dose to 150mg (original dose). 

May 12, 2018 Began a 10% AT LEAST monthly taper off of 150mg Effexor XR.

Link to comment

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Terms of Use Privacy Policy