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bolletje: Daughter quit cold turkey for 5 days now…told her to start again immediately...


bolletje

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Hi,

 

I joined this group, because it's very difficult to get information from our GP and psychologist. Even the psychiatrist we once saw to have her medicines figured out, told her to quit in the way a lot of people, I read about on your site, say is the worst way; take a pill one day ,and then don't the next and so on….

She was so fed up with taking these drugs with no effect whatsoever (she got them in the first place for her OCD..) , that she decided all by herself not to take them at all. She only told me about that tonight and in view of all the things I've read on this website, I though it would be the best to start taking them again right away and then choose a more sensible way of reducing the dosage over a longer period. 

But she did tell me that she only had a severe headache and that the other side-effects that she had experienced on the first 2 days (nausea and tiredness , a feeling of malaise) had already gone away… 

Now I'm not so sure anymore that my advice was the right one. If the effects were already wearing out, who knows what will happen if she starts taking them again?

I hope you can all give me some reassurance as to whether I did the right thing..

Also; what are your experiences with changing from Venlafaxine Actavis to Blue Fish Venlafaxine (a capsule with smaller pills inside) in order to minimize in a simpler way as compared to counting the little balls in these Actavis capsules?

 

Hope to hear something soon.

 

A seriously worried mom...

 

 

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

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  • Moderator Emeritus

I'm heartbroken to hear that your daughter is in a position that required you to join this site.

 

There is good info here and one of the moderators should be along soon to lend a hand.

 

I'm a new member here, which means I'm not in a position of knowledge to help you out with your inquiry, but I hope you find the guidance here that you seek.

 

I can tell you already that your daughter has a fighting chance with a mom like you at her side helping her out and seeking answers.

*I'm not a doctor and don't give medical advice, just personal experience
**Off all meds since Nov. 2014. Mentally & emotionally recovered; physically not
-Dual cold turkeys off TCA & Ativan in Oct 2014. Prescribed from 2011-2014

-All meds were Rxed off-label for an autoimmune illness.  It was a MISDIAGNOSIS, but I did not find out until AFTER meds caused damage.  All med tapers/cold turkeys directed by doctors 

-Nortriptyline May 2012 - Dec 2013. Cold turkey off nortrip & cold switched to desipramine

-Desipramine Jan 2014 - Oct. 29, 2014 (rapid taper/cold turkey)

-Lorazepam 1 mg per night during 2011
-Lorazepam 1 mg per month in 2012 (or less)

-Lorazepam on & off, Dec 2013 through Aug 2014. Didn't exceed 3x a week

-Lorazepam again in Oct. 2014 to help get off of desipramine. Last dose lzpam was 1 mg, Nov. 2, 2014. Immediate paradoxical reactions to benzos after stopping TCAs 

-First muscle/dystonia side effects started on nortriptyline, but docs too stupid to figure it out. On desipramine, muscle tremors & rigidity worsened

-Two weeks after I got off all meds, I developed full-blown TD.  Tardive dystonia, dyskinesia, myoclonic jerks ALL over body, ribcage wiggles, facial tics, twitching tongue & fingers, tremors/twitches of arms, legs, cognitive impairment, throat muscles semi-paralyzed & unable to swallow solid food, brain zaps, ears ring, dizzy, everything looks too far away, insomnia, numbness & electric shocks everywhere when I try to fall asleep, jerk awake from sleep with big, gasping breaths, wake with terrors & tremors, severely depressed.  NO HISTORY OF DEPRESSION, EVER. Meds CREATED it.

-Month 7: hair falling out; no vision improvement; still tardive dystonia; facial & tongue tics returned
-Month 8: back to acute, incl. Grand Mal seizure-like episodes. New mental torment, PGAD, worse insomnia
-Month 9: tardive dystonia worse, dyskinesia returned. Unable to breathe well due to dystonia in stomach, chest, throat
-Month 13: Back to acute, brain zaps back, developed eczema & stomach problems. Left leg no longer works right due to dystonia, meaning both legs now damaged
-7 years off: Huge improvements, incl. improved dystonia

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Hi Silver star,

 

thank you for your reply, the more I read on this website ,the more I realize that a lot of the health problems she's had over the past 2 years, were not a result of her OCD, but a reaction perhaps to the Venlafaxine; I read about one member, that he'd had severe palpitations.. She had those also, so bad that she had to take beta blockers at the age of 20…. She also has had really severe rashes, that we attributed to her high amount of stress she was experiencing from het studies, but come to think of it, that could also have been something caused by these pills, who knows? We couldn't fight it through ways of anti-histamine-tablets. Her whole body was covered and it was very itchy..

I read a  lot of good things about people here that help everybody out, so I have high hopes! 

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment

Welcome. It seems very common for withdrawals to begin a month or more after stopping the medication. This happened to me as well. I felt fine for a good month then slowly began to get symptom after symptom then got slammed hard at about 5 months off. She may feel fine now but find withdrawals hit her in a few weeks time. When the moderators come please heed their advice. They have helped alot of people in your daughter's shoes. Amd again welcome. I wish my family cared as much as you do for you child.

2002-put on amitryptiline for fibromyalgia. 10mg.2004-stopped abruptly. Didn't think it helped.2006 approx.-put on Paxil for mild anxiety 20 mg.2007 upped to 40 mg. not sure why.2011- tapered from 40 to 10. went nuts and went back to 20mg2014- tapered from 20mg to 0 from April to The end of June.current meds- Metformin(type 2 diabetic) and low dose aspirin.Take multi vitamin and vit b12, vit. D and magnesium. 5 months off Paxil. Still suffering.recently added 1.2mg of Paxil to alleviate withdrawals.(Nov 30)Dropped to .9mg because having symptoms from reinstatement.(dec 23)<p>taper to .76mg-.8mg (Feb 3) approx. weight .010 to about .008-.009 on scale.
.6mg (march 19th.) .5mg(April 19th)
.4mg(April 27th)
.2 (June 27th)

0mg.  done taper at beginning of August.

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Welcome bolletje,

I'm sorry that your daughter is not feeling well after she stopped taking Venlafaxine, its not a good idea to stop taking these kinds of drugs cold turkey.  Its good you are trying to help your daughter like this.  Thank you for filling out your signature with more information.

 

Would it be possible for your daughter to use this site herself, it might be easier.

Is this the only drug your daughter has/is taken?  How is your daughter feeling now that she back on 37.5mg?

 

Here is our topic about reinstatement so you can read more about it:

 

About reinstating and stabilizing to stop withdrawal symptoms

 

Here is out link for safe tapering off Venlafaxine:

 

http://survivinganti...or-venlafaxine/

 

Once she has stabilized, which may take between one and several months, then she could begin a slow, safe taper.  Please stay in touch and let us know how your daughter is doing.

 

Petunia.

I'm not a doctor.  My comments are not medical advise. These are my opinions based on my own experience and what I've learned. Please discuss your situation with a medical practitioner who has knowledge of tapering and withdrawal...if you are lucky enough to find one.

My Introduction Thread

Full Drug and Withdrawal History

Brief Summary

Several SSRIs for 13 years starting 1997 (for mild to moderate partly situational anxiety) Xanax PRN ~ Various other drugs over the years for side effects

2 month 'taper' off Lexapro 2010

Short acute withdrawal, followed by 2 -3 months of improvement then delayed protracted withdrawal

DX ADHD followed by several years of stimulants and other drugs trying to manage increasing symptoms

Failed reinstatement of Lexapro and trial of Prozac (became suicidal)

May 2013 Found SA, learned about withdrawal, stopped taking drugs...healing begins.

Protracted withdrawal, with a very sensitized nervous system, slowly recovering as time passes

Supplements which have helped: Vitamin C, Magnesium, Taurine

Bad reactions: Many supplements but mostly fish oil and Vitamin D

June 2016 - Started daily juicing, mostly vegetables and lots of greens.

Aug 2016 - Oct 2016 Best window ever, felt almost completely recovered

Oct 2016 -Symptoms returned - bad days and less bad days.

April 2018 - No windows, but significant improvement, it feels like permanent full recovery is close.

VIDEO: Where did the chemical imbalance theory come from?



VIDEO: How are psychiatric diagnoses made?



VIDEO: Why do psychiatric drugs have withdrawal syndromes?



VIDEO: Can psychiatric drugs cause long-lasting negative effects?

VIDEO: Dr. Claire Weekes

 

 

 

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Hi worried mum , I'm happy to read that your daughter has recommenced 37.5 venlafaxine.  She should feel more settled in a few days.

Re your first post , I think you did exactly the best thing.

After this recent hiccup , she should probably stay on the same dose for month at least before reducing.    The only success stories on here seem to be from those who do it slow and steady.   

Best wishes ,   Fresh

1987-1997 pertofran , prothiaden , Prozac 1997-2002 Zoloft 2002-2004 effexor 2004-2010 Lexapro 40mg

2010-2012Cymbalta 120mg

Sept. 2012 -decreased 90mg in 6months. Care taken over by Dr Lucire in March 2013 , decreased last 30mg at 2mg per week over 3 months. July 21 , 2013- last dose of Cymbalta

Protracted withdrawal syndrome kicked in badly Jan.2014 Unrelenting akathisia until May 2014. Voluntary hosp. admission. Cocktail of Seroquel, Ativan and mirtazapine and I was well enough to go home after 14 days. Stopped all hosp. meds in next few months.

July 2014 felt v.depressed - couldn't stop crying. Started pristiq 50mg. Felt improvement within days and continued to improve, so stayed on 50mg for 8 months.

Began taper 28 Feb. 2015. Pristiq 50mg down to 45mg. Had one month of w/d symptoms. Started CES therapy in March. No w/d symptoms down to 30mg.

October 2015 , taking 25mg Pristiq. Capsules compounded with slow-release additive.

March 2016 , 21mg

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Dear Petunia,

 

yes, it's the only drug she's taking. She has now for about 2 years. It's so frustrating that you, as a patient, should tell your doctor that, what he's recommending is in fact not safe! Then, when he understood, he prescribed exactly the pills that I told him were the right amount (10 percent off), but my pharmacist refused to make those. Too much work for too little pay, he said… So much for the oath that all these medical types take at the end of their studies; they know it's not in the patient's advantage what they're doing, but still they do it… Then the doctor suggested she started taking another drug to diminish the side-effects, but she refused to take any other pills. So now here we are. 

Is there no nasty consequence of her having done this 5 days cold turkey thing? She said she didn't feel very bad, but then again she's used to having severe headaches even during the time she took the pills regularly.

Do you know of any pharmacy in Holland that would be inclined to prepare these tapered pills?

 

All the best,

 

Bolletje.

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment

Hi Petunia,

 

so what I read in this article about reinstating, suggests that if she experiences any kind of bad reactions now(after taking a pill yesterday evening) , worse than what she was experiencing after these 5 days of cold turkey, that she should again quit right away? Or just see how it works out for a few days?

About your suggestion for her to use this forum herself; she doesn't want to occupy herself with it as much as this; she's studying and wants to go about business as usual… She feels quite happy if I sort it out for her (she kind of doesn't want to be reminded of it all the time I guess..)

 

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment

Could someone also react to my question about Blue Fish venlafaxine (capsules with a number of smaller pills inside instead of grains); these dosages can be diminished easier; because you don't have to count the grains. Is it a problem to switch from Venlafaxine Actavis to this drug?

By the way: I just had a pharmacist in Holland on the phone; he's busy developing a tapering strip for Venlafaxine; he estimates it's going to take another 3 months or so before it's ready...

 

 

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment
  • Administrator

Welcome, bolletje.

 

If Venlafaxine Actavis is a capsule with a lot of little beads inside, I would stay with that. Counting the tiny beads is actually an advantage. Switching to another brand or type always incurs the risk that the new type won't be as well tolerated.

 

Some people are able to quit these drugs with few symptoms for a few weeks. But in general, it's best to let the nervous system adjust slowly, to protect it from injury that might surface later.

 

It is very possible your daughter is allergic to venlafaxine in any form. Did her rash clear up now she's off it?

 

To achieve a more gradual exit from venlafaxine, what I might do is take 20 beads and see if that relieves the headaches, etc. without a rash. I'd stay on that for several weeks, then take away 2 beads every two weeks until 10 beads, then take away 1 bead every two weeks.

 

Slow down if any withdrawal symptoms occur.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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  • Moderator Emeritus

so what I read in this article about reinstating, suggests that if she experiences any kind of bad reactions now(after taking a pill yesterday evening) , worse than what she was experiencing after these 5 days of cold turkey, that she should again quit right away? Or just see how it works out for a few days?

 

Because your daughter quit only 5 days ago, its unlikely that reinstatement will cause a bad reaction, but there's always that possibility.  If it does happen that she is much worse, then I would suggest reducing the dose by opening the capsule and taking out some of the beads.

 

I'm a little confused.  Did your daughter already reinstate her whole dose of 37.5mg, or are you waiting for advice? Reinstating at a lower dose, as Altostrata suggested would be a better option in my opinion.

 

To achieve a more gradual exit from venlafaxine, what I might do is take 20 beads and see if that relieves the headaches, etc. without a rash. I'd stay on that for several weeks, then take away 2 beads every two weeks until 10 beads, then take away 1 bead every two weeks.

 

Slow down if any withdrawal symptoms occur.

I'm not a doctor.  My comments are not medical advise. These are my opinions based on my own experience and what I've learned. Please discuss your situation with a medical practitioner who has knowledge of tapering and withdrawal...if you are lucky enough to find one.

My Introduction Thread

Full Drug and Withdrawal History

Brief Summary

Several SSRIs for 13 years starting 1997 (for mild to moderate partly situational anxiety) Xanax PRN ~ Various other drugs over the years for side effects

2 month 'taper' off Lexapro 2010

Short acute withdrawal, followed by 2 -3 months of improvement then delayed protracted withdrawal

DX ADHD followed by several years of stimulants and other drugs trying to manage increasing symptoms

Failed reinstatement of Lexapro and trial of Prozac (became suicidal)

May 2013 Found SA, learned about withdrawal, stopped taking drugs...healing begins.

Protracted withdrawal, with a very sensitized nervous system, slowly recovering as time passes

Supplements which have helped: Vitamin C, Magnesium, Taurine

Bad reactions: Many supplements but mostly fish oil and Vitamin D

June 2016 - Started daily juicing, mostly vegetables and lots of greens.

Aug 2016 - Oct 2016 Best window ever, felt almost completely recovered

Oct 2016 -Symptoms returned - bad days and less bad days.

April 2018 - No windows, but significant improvement, it feels like permanent full recovery is close.

VIDEO: Where did the chemical imbalance theory come from?



VIDEO: How are psychiatric diagnoses made?



VIDEO: Why do psychiatric drugs have withdrawal syndromes?



VIDEO: Can psychiatric drugs cause long-lasting negative effects?

VIDEO: Dr. Claire Weekes

 

 

 

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  • Moderator Emeritus

I can't possibly improve on the advice you're already getting from Altostrata and Petunia, but I wanted to say hello, and I'm so sorry you have to see your daughter suffer. That's heartbreaking. I'm glad you found us.

Started on Prozac and Xanax in 1992 for PTSD after an assault. One drug led to more, the usual story. Got sicker and sicker, but believed I needed the drugs for my "underlying disease". Long story...lost everything. Life savings, home, physical and mental health, relationships, friendships, ability to work, everything. Amitryptiline, Prozac, bupropion, buspirone, flurazepam, diazepam, alprazolam, Paxil, citalopram, lamotrigine, gabapentin...probably more I've forgotten. 

Started multidrug taper in Feb 2010.  Doing a very slow microtaper, down to low doses now and feeling SO much better, getting my old personality and my brain back! Able to work full time, have a full social life, and cope with stress better than ever. Not perfect, but much better. After 23 lost years. Big Pharma has a lot to answer for. And "medicine for profit" is just not a great idea.

 

Feb 15 2010:  300 mg Neurontin  200 Lamictal   10 Celexa      0.65 Xanax   and 5 mg Ambien 

Feb 10 2014:   62 Lamictal    1.1 Celexa         0.135 Xanax    1.8 Valium

Feb 10 2015:   50 Lamictal      0.875 Celexa    0.11 Xanax      1.5 Valium

Feb 15 2016:   47.5 Lamictal   0.75 Celexa      0.0875 Xanax    1.42 Valium    

2/12/20             12                       0.045               0.007                   1 

May 2021            7                       0.01                  0.0037                1

Feb 2022            6                      0!!!                     0.00167               0.98                2.5 mg Ambien

Oct 2022       4.5 mg Lamictal    (off Celexa, off Xanax)   0.95 Valium    Ambien, 1/4 to 1/2 of a 5 mg tablet 

 

I'm not a doctor. Any advice I give is just my civilian opinion.

Link to comment

Hi, here's a little update: my daughter started taking the 37,5 mg again as of last Sunday, so after having been off them for 5 days. She's now very emotional and has a bit of a rash on her leg (but that's not half as bad as the rash she had a few weeks ago, that was all over her body and very itchy, at one points her lips were all swollen..) So she cries a lot ,I think that might have something to do with going back to this 37,5 mg?? 

I actually bought scales that weigh up to 0,5 mg (it was huge and very expensive, but I felt it's worth it…) , so I can taper in a very precise way; I thought the recommended way was to taper by 10 percent for 3 weeks and then another 3 weeks by taking 10 percent off that remaining 90 percent and so on? I just calculated that that would nearly take like a whole year?!? Is that really how long it would take or can i just taper by 3 mg every 3 weeks for example? If she can support it? Hope you can help me here, because I haven't told her this yet and I know she's going to be very discouraged by the long time it would take her .. Is the 20 beads about as much as 3 mg ?

Thanks for all your posts by the way!

 

bolletje.

 

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment
  • Moderator Emeritus

A couple of thoughts about the length of time a taper takes:

 

1. You will need to taper according to what your own body says. The 10% is just a rule of thumb. Your body is the only expert. So it's impossible to say in advance for sure how long it will take.

 

2. Most people can taper a bit faster at first, but need to slow down at the lowest doses.

 

3. When you get down to low doses, you will find the drug effect is less or almost gone completely. I have improved gradually throughout my taper and I keep reaching new, better "normal" all the time even though I am still on low doses. So she may find that tapering for a long time is not so bad, since she will be feeling so much better.

 

4. The slow tapering means that she will not be experiencing these awful withdrawal symptoms. That's worth the time and trouble, to most people.

 

Best thing to do right now is not overwhelm her with all of this, just help her to get stable now, and then to start a slow taper, carefully observing her body's reactions and adjusting accordingly. We have extensive discussion of this in the Tapering section.

Started on Prozac and Xanax in 1992 for PTSD after an assault. One drug led to more, the usual story. Got sicker and sicker, but believed I needed the drugs for my "underlying disease". Long story...lost everything. Life savings, home, physical and mental health, relationships, friendships, ability to work, everything. Amitryptiline, Prozac, bupropion, buspirone, flurazepam, diazepam, alprazolam, Paxil, citalopram, lamotrigine, gabapentin...probably more I've forgotten. 

Started multidrug taper in Feb 2010.  Doing a very slow microtaper, down to low doses now and feeling SO much better, getting my old personality and my brain back! Able to work full time, have a full social life, and cope with stress better than ever. Not perfect, but much better. After 23 lost years. Big Pharma has a lot to answer for. And "medicine for profit" is just not a great idea.

 

Feb 15 2010:  300 mg Neurontin  200 Lamictal   10 Celexa      0.65 Xanax   and 5 mg Ambien 

Feb 10 2014:   62 Lamictal    1.1 Celexa         0.135 Xanax    1.8 Valium

Feb 10 2015:   50 Lamictal      0.875 Celexa    0.11 Xanax      1.5 Valium

Feb 15 2016:   47.5 Lamictal   0.75 Celexa      0.0875 Xanax    1.42 Valium    

2/12/20             12                       0.045               0.007                   1 

May 2021            7                       0.01                  0.0037                1

Feb 2022            6                      0!!!                     0.00167               0.98                2.5 mg Ambien

Oct 2022       4.5 mg Lamictal    (off Celexa, off Xanax)   0.95 Valium    Ambien, 1/4 to 1/2 of a 5 mg tablet 

 

I'm not a doctor. Any advice I give is just my civilian opinion.

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  • Administrator

bolletje, is your daughter taking a capsule with a lot of little beads inside? (Venlafaxine Actavis?)

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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Yes , Altostrata,  she does have those. So; I've got the scales, but now I need to find all kinds of other stuff that will help me make the new dosage: utensils that allow me to handle really small amounts and get them into one of these capsules...

 

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment
  • Administrator

Counting the little beads is a very good way to taper.

 

How is your daughter's rash?

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi everyone,

 

decided to count beads after all ,after buying very expensive scales that weigh up to 0,0000 g!  But it's just so weird: every pill has a different weight? It's like the manufacturer takes an amount of venlafaxine, moulds some other material around this actual venlafaxine and this then makes up one of these beads. So sometimes there's a lot of this extra material and sometimes there isn't…. . That's the only way that they can guarantee that there's actually 37,5 mg in one pill?  So I've come to the conclusion it IS better to just count beads instead of weighing, just so you're sure you're taking away the same amount of venlafaxine from every pill...? So just did that: I took out 12 beads from every capsule and we'll see how my daughter will go on that in the coming three weeks….. (I took out 12 because that was about 10 % of the first pill I weighed, which is actually a bit stupid because the weight of the pill doesn't tell you anything :(  but well… )

 

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment
  • Moderator Emeritus

It's good to hear from you bolletje.      Did your daughter stabilize in the past month?

 

Fresh

1987-1997 pertofran , prothiaden , Prozac 1997-2002 Zoloft 2002-2004 effexor 2004-2010 Lexapro 40mg

2010-2012Cymbalta 120mg

Sept. 2012 -decreased 90mg in 6months. Care taken over by Dr Lucire in March 2013 , decreased last 30mg at 2mg per week over 3 months. July 21 , 2013- last dose of Cymbalta

Protracted withdrawal syndrome kicked in badly Jan.2014 Unrelenting akathisia until May 2014. Voluntary hosp. admission. Cocktail of Seroquel, Ativan and mirtazapine and I was well enough to go home after 14 days. Stopped all hosp. meds in next few months.

July 2014 felt v.depressed - couldn't stop crying. Started pristiq 50mg. Felt improvement within days and continued to improve, so stayed on 50mg for 8 months.

Began taper 28 Feb. 2015. Pristiq 50mg down to 45mg. Had one month of w/d symptoms. Started CES therapy in March. No w/d symptoms down to 30mg.

October 2015 , taking 25mg Pristiq. Capsules compounded with slow-release additive.

March 2016 , 21mg

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Yes Fresh, no problems there; she still has a lot of headache but that can also be caused by stress, because it's been like that from the beginning even before she had venlafaxine..

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment
  • Administrator

Correct, removing beads only approximates a precise taper. But it seems to work for most people, although the sizes of the beads vary, you're probably taking a close average amount each day.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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  • 2 weeks later...

 

Hi everyone,

 

my daughter has been taking the capsules with the reduced amount of beads (by 12) for 5 days now and already she starts worrying about a lot of things, she's feeling depressed and has severe headaches again; should I bring the number of beads back up again, but not up to the whole amount but say reduce the amount of beads not by 12 but by 10 or so? Or should she try to hang in a little longer until things start to settle down a little? It's so weird to see that such a small amount can have such a big effect already?? Plz tell me what to do!

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment
  • Administrator

Correct, the reduction may have been too much. I would restore some of the beads.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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  • Mentor

Welcome, so glad you getting wonderful advice.   Effexor has horrible side effects, however, quitting all at once, is worse!        You are both on the correct journey....   

1992 Dothiepin 375mg 8 weeks, exhaustion/depression.  Serotonin syndrome, oh yes!  seizures . Fell pregnant, 3rd baby, Nitrous Oxide, 3 weeks mental hospital pp psychosis. zoloft tegretol.

Feb 1996 ct tegretol, tapered Zoloft 8 weeks. as (unexpectedly)  pregnant. Steven died after 3 days.(Zolft HLHS baby).  98 had run in with Paxil, 2 tablets, 3 weeks taper, survived.
2005..menopause? exhausted again. Zyprexa, mad in three days, fallout....  Seroquel, Effexor, tegretol,   and 8 years of self destruction. Failed taper.
Damn 1/4 valium... nuts again! .fallout, zoloft 100mg  seroquol 400mg mirtazapine 45 mg  tegretol 400mg.  Mid 14 3 month taper. Nov 14 CRASH.
Mid 15 ....   75mg  seroquel,  3 x 1800mg SJW  2 week window end of December followed by 6 week wave
5/2 68mg seroquel, 2.5 x 1800mg SJW::::20/2 61mg seroquel, 2.5 x  SJW::: 26/2 54mg seroquel, 2 x SJW::::21/3 43mg seroquel, 1 x 2700SJW :::: 23/4 36mg seroquel 1 x 1800 SJW
15/5 33mg seroquel, 1 x SJW::::   28/5 30mg seroquel, 1 x SJW::::;  18/6 25mg seroquel 1/2 SJW::::, 11/7 21mg seroquel 1/2 SJW::, 26/7 18mg seroquel 1/2 SJW:::, 9/8 12mg seroquel :::, 16/8 6mg seroquel ;;;;, 12/9 0 jump.

23/9  3mg.....,  27/9 0mg.  Reinstated, 6mg, then 12mg.............  LIGHTBULB MOMENT,  I have  MTHFR 2x mutations.  CFS and issues with MOULD in my home. So I left home, and working 150km away during week, loving it.

Oh was hard, panic attacks first week, gone now, along with the mould issues.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi after having been on pills reduced by 10 beads for 3 weeks, we tried a new dosage taking out 20 beads. But after 3 days she felt really awful, was having headaches, experiencing nausea and overall weakness. So we went back to taking out only 15 beads, and that's just fine! So it may take a little longer but little by little she's getting rid of these nasty drugs..

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

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  • Administrator

Good to hear, bolletje. I hope your daughter is feeling more confident about the tapering process now.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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  • 2 months later...

How is your daughter?

Started Effexor August 2012 Sept'12-150mg=extreme anxiety Oct'12 cut half-75mg severe wds

Feb 2013 68.5mg. Mar'13- 65mg. Apr'13-59mg. May'13-57mg. June '13-52mg Aug'13 49.75mg.

Sep'13-48.75. Nov'13-47mg Dec'13-45..5mg

May 2014 42mg. Jun'14 40mg (depressive mood started). Aug'14 -40mg/ started brintellix 2.5mg

Oct '14 -39 Nov'14 36.89 Dec'14 34.45

Jan 2015- 31 Feb'15 29mg. Mar'15 26.72. Apr'15 24.48. May'15 22.31mg. Jun'15 20.30mg

Aug'15-18.89. Oct'15 16.96. Nov/16- 16.10. Dec/15- 15mg

Jan 2016-14.22. May'16 11.45. Aug'16-9.60. Sep/16- 8.88mg. Oct/16- 8.39mg. Nov/16- 8.13. Dec/16- 7.89

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Hi Lexy,

 

She's using pills now reduced by 30 beads. Every time we take some off, she's a bit sick and moody for a week or so, but otherwise doing fine. Alas, she's living on her own and she told me a few weeks ago she had taken the psychiatrist's advice to take a pill every other day  :( …. She felt it would take too long to do it 'my way'  and took the chance…… She's keeping me a bit in the dark as to what is going on right now, but I guess not too bad, because she would tell me when things are really bad. I hope for her sake that things I've read on this website (of re-occurring depression and anxiety even after a few weeks of thinking you're doing just great without taking any pills….) won't happen to her. It's a bit out of my hands as she has taken this initiative herself and her being almost 22….. Let's hope for the best; how's your girl? 

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

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Hi this is lexy

Doctors who don't know about withdrawal or do not know how bad it gets recommend taking dose every other day. I can tell you that when I miss a pill I can feel it the next day. These mishaps sets me back. I hope for the best for your daughter, everyone is different, she might be one of the lucky ones.

If starts to feel worsening of wds please have her read the 10% tapering plans recommended here.

Started Effexor August 2012 Sept'12-150mg=extreme anxiety Oct'12 cut half-75mg severe wds

Feb 2013 68.5mg. Mar'13- 65mg. Apr'13-59mg. May'13-57mg. June '13-52mg Aug'13 49.75mg.

Sep'13-48.75. Nov'13-47mg Dec'13-45..5mg

May 2014 42mg. Jun'14 40mg (depressive mood started). Aug'14 -40mg/ started brintellix 2.5mg

Oct '14 -39 Nov'14 36.89 Dec'14 34.45

Jan 2015- 31 Feb'15 29mg. Mar'15 26.72. Apr'15 24.48. May'15 22.31mg. Jun'15 20.30mg

Aug'15-18.89. Oct'15 16.96. Nov/16- 16.10. Dec/15- 15mg

Jan 2016-14.22. May'16 11.45. Aug'16-9.60. Sep/16- 8.88mg. Oct/16- 8.39mg. Nov/16- 8.13. Dec/16- 7.89

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  • Administrator

bolletje, if you get to advise your daughter again, you might tell her skipping doses will make her very sick again.

 

Also, if she stabilizes by taking the same dosage every day for a good while, she might reduce by 20 beads per month rather than 30. That sounds like it was going too fast.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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Hi Altostrata,

 

she told me today that she had experienced a case of sleeping paralysis this week: she had woken up and for a few minute couldn't move her arms and legs, felt pressure on het chest, and was unable to control her breathing herself, she had a ringing experience in her ears and couldn't speak either. She had read on the internet that this condition is sometimes treated with antidepressants such as Venlafaxine, so I drew the conclusion that this might be a withdrawal symptom then?

Has anyone experienced this before when tapering Venlafaxine? 

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment
  • Administrator

Ringing in the ears is a common withdrawal symptom, unfortunately.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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Yes, I've had the paralysis. It's only happened twice for a few seconds. The chest pressure and the ear ringing happen more often.

If she holds and takes her dose everyday this can stabilize.

Started Effexor August 2012 Sept'12-150mg=extreme anxiety Oct'12 cut half-75mg severe wds

Feb 2013 68.5mg. Mar'13- 65mg. Apr'13-59mg. May'13-57mg. June '13-52mg Aug'13 49.75mg.

Sep'13-48.75. Nov'13-47mg Dec'13-45..5mg

May 2014 42mg. Jun'14 40mg (depressive mood started). Aug'14 -40mg/ started brintellix 2.5mg

Oct '14 -39 Nov'14 36.89 Dec'14 34.45

Jan 2015- 31 Feb'15 29mg. Mar'15 26.72. Apr'15 24.48. May'15 22.31mg. Jun'15 20.30mg

Aug'15-18.89. Oct'15 16.96. Nov/16- 16.10. Dec/15- 15mg

Jan 2016-14.22. May'16 11.45. Aug'16-9.60. Sep/16- 8.88mg. Oct/16- 8.39mg. Nov/16- 8.13. Dec/16- 7.89

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  • 2 months later...

 

Hi everyone,

 

a small update from Holland; my daughter started taking Sertraline a few weekends ago; the tapering of Venlafaxine just took too long, still gave a lot of side-effects (even when tapering only 5 beads a time)  and in the meantime het mental state didn't look up. She had to start her studies again and had severe anxiety as of the first week in school, so a new psychiatrist we consulted advised her to switch to this medicine. I hope this one is not as difficult to get rid of when the time is there…..

 

Thank you so much for all your good advice, we tried but didn't make it this way  :unsure:

Daughter on Venlafaxine 37,5 mg for 2 years

tried to quit cold turkey

after 5 days back to 1 x 37,5 mg

advice on tapering

20-4-2015: after 5 weeks now 15 beads per capsule less

Link to comment
  • Administrator

You're welcome, bolletje. Good luck to your daughter.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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