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Hello! I have been on varying doses of venlafaxine since 2001 and after trying to reduce sseveral times have managed to get stuck at 112.5mg, which I've been on for several years. I'm hoping that with the help fo the information on here I can eventually come off it completely. Thanks for reading!

Hi! I (28f) quit venlafaxine 6 months ago and I’m still suffering from withdrawal symptoms. I will give some context. Around 2018 I took escitalopram for a year for depression. It had no effect on me (with the exception of sexual dysfunction). I quit cold turkey and had no WD. In September 2022 I started venlafaxine for anxiety. I steadily increased the dose up to 225mg in steps of 37,5 each time experiencing various symptoms that would subside after a couple of weeks at which point I would increase the dose again. This continued until January when I reached 225mg, stayed on that for 6 weeks and decided to start coming off it since it wasn’t helping me. I reduced the dose in steps of 37,5mg until I was at 75mg in May. I had withdrawal symptoms after every step with nausea and motion sickness. The step down to 75mg was scary enough that I decided to stay at that dose for a while. The WD from that last step did get better after a couple of weeks and I returned back to normal. In June I broke up with my partner and was experiencing some really intense emotional pain. The next day the same symptoms returned. For the next few months the symptoms would come and go without any pattern that I could tell. On the good days I felt completely normal, on the bad days the symptoms varied in severity. My main symptoms were dizziness, motion sickness, headaches, a strange sensation in my hands, drowsiness, weakness, no concentration, brain fog, difficulty breathing, sensitivity to light and sound, chills, anxiety, confusion. The symptoms were always worse around midday/afternoon. In September I tried taking 20mg of Fluoxetine for 10 days as suggested by my psychiatrist. I didn’t see any difference. I thought I might as well get on with it and reduced my venlafaxine down to 37,5mg. The next 2 weeks were really bad. I had the symptoms I mentioned above at a pretty extreme intensity and lasted the whole day. I could barely eat and I couldn’t get out of bed and was not really present mentally. I was sleeping more than usual (10 hours). After the 2 weeks the situation was starting to improve, so I quit completely (this was in October). I was in bed for the next 3 weeks and then there was a gradual improvement for a few more weeks. I thought that would be the end of it. I felt pretty much normal for like 2 months. I did however have very stressful things happening in December and January. At some point in January my symptoms came back in full and I’m still dealing with them. There was an exception in March when I had a cold and had no symptoms for 2 weeks. One interesting pattern that I’ve noticed consistently, is that if I don’t get enough sleep (not more than 6 hours), I have no symptoms. I feel very sleep deprived but otherwise normal. So this is my experience with venlafaxine. I’ve never taken any other psychiatric meds other that what I mentioned here. I’ve suffered with extremely low energy and insulin resistance all of my adult life. I struggled with depression and anxiety since I was a child.

Today is Day 5 of withdrawals. I couldn’t do much over the weekend when I finally figured out what was going on with me. I was watching myself observe the thoughts, telling myself they’re just thoughts and they will eventually pass, then they turn into sensations… too hot, too cold, sweating, dizzy, sharp pain… escape into sleep, short nightmare, escape into waking up, more thoughts, more dizziness, tears, arguing with reality, knowing it will pass… not sure how long it will take, sobs, repeat! my mother died suddenly in July last year, at the age of 64. Between grief and stress, I started experiencing about 10 migraines a month which eventually took me to a neurologist. The neurologist put me on Venlafaxine in Dec (4 months ago), starting with 37.5mg XR and then tripling that amount. When I saw him a month ago and told him nothing had changed, he told me to taper off within the next month… so I did. Wednesday last week was my last 37.5mg dose. By Thursday, I was feeling all of the symptoms, unsure of what was going on. By Friday, I started to look up venlafaxine withdrawal. By Saturday, I called my doc’s office to speak to the on-call doc, and was told that the they would be notified and would call me back. 1.5 hours later, a doc calls me back and says she’ll check in with someone else and will call me back. 2 hours later I called her back and I’m told they’re the in-patient on-call docs and not out-patient so they can’t help me. I start the process all over again and finally got hold of the on-call neurologist who told me that he doesn’t have much experience with venlafaxine and doesn’t think there’s anything he can do to help me 🤦🏻‍♀️ His only suggestions were start taking it again until I can get hold of my neurologist on Monday, even at the risk of having to go through this withdrawal all over again… or just ride it out. He says: I can write you a prescription for 25 mg… I say: Ok, do you know of any pharmacies open now? (It was 7pm) He says: They’re all open. I say: I just googled pharmacies near me and they’re all closed. He says: I don’t know what to tell you. Me: So where are you going to send the script to? Him: I don’t know. Me: Can you just send it to me and I will figure it out? … Me: Are you writing it for extended release or immediate release? Him: Immediate release. Me: But I was on XR? What happens if I take it and 8 hours later, I’m in the same boat when it wears off? Him: Take it again. Me: That means I would possibly be on 50mg when I had already tapered down to 37.5 mg. Is there someone you can call and ask? him: No. by Sunday (yesterday), I start to look for support groups on fb. I have had great experiences with iron deficiency fb groups so I thought I’d give it a go. I joined the tapering off Venlafaxine group. I posted a message with a double negative (English grammar that the moderator wasn’t familiar with stating that “I’m not NOT open to reinstating”). despite me repeating over and over again that I AM open to reinstating and that I can rewrite the message (in fact, from everything I have read over the past few days, I think this might be the only way out of this hell, but I need help and support). I tell the moderator that I am afraid, and that she’s misunderstanding me. She tells me she has never heard of a double negative. I told her, I’m not trying to argue about grammar, that I am seeking support and can rewrite my post so that it clarifies. I tell her that I understand that she runs this group and shares her knowledge freely which I appreciate. I tell her that I respect that she’s doing her due diligence to keep the group functional, but that she didn’t understand me. I think maybe my messages are not landing so I send her a voice note so she can hear me. This seems to only irritate her further, and she blocks me. once again back to square one. So here I am looking for some support, some shared experience to know that I’m not alone, and some help to know how to reinstate, I.e. at what dose. I realize there are no hard and fast rules, but it would be super helpful to talk to someone else who has been here, who can tell me what they tried, and that it’s going to be ok. Some general peer to peer compassion.

Hi all, I am new to this site. A little background info. I have been on Venlafaxine for the past 8 or so years. I got off of the medication 5 years ago (somewhat abruptly) and had terrible withdrawl symptoms. I stayed off of the medication for four months before I finally reinstated, along with 7.5 mg of remeron and 1 mg of Klonopin. I was on the klonopin for a year and tapered off the mg over the span of a year. I had been on 150 mg of Venlafaxine. I sucessfuly tapered down to 112.5 over the span of six months. I did so well on this that my wife and I decided we would do a 3 month taper for the second quarter. I did okay on this and was on 75 mg for two weeks. Then I started having really bad anxiety/ocd/insomnia. We quickly reinstated to 112.5 mg which is what I have been on the past three months. I was also prescribed klonopin, again, as needed. I am taking .5 mg of klonopin four nights a week to help sleep. I have been having muscle spasms, increased ocd symptoms, GI symptoms, and more muscular pain which seems to only get worse the longer I am on the Effexor. I did a DNA Test and it turns out I am a poor metabolizer of CYP2D6-which is the enzyme used in metabolizing Venlafaxine and a lot of other SSRI/SNRI's. Desvenlafaxine is one SNRI that is not metabolized by CYP2D6. I am wondering if anybody has sucessfuly cross tapered from Venlafaxine to Desfenlafaxine. Any advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Hi everyone, first of all, I want to thank every contributor to this website which is a huge source of advices and hope. I started to read some interesting threads, and I regret so much to discover them only after my (awful) withdrawal. Here is my short story: terrible panic attacks started in 2008 when I was a young adult. At that time, social medias were not developed like now, psychiatric matters were still very taboo. Information was not spread like today. I guess this is why I spent several months alone in the darkness, without understanding what was happening to me. I finally found a psychiatrist who started an analytic psychotherapy with me. This man was calamitous. His 'therapy' ruined me during several months, reinforcing my anxiety at so high levels. Then, I found another psychiatrist who saved my life: he started a CBT which lowered my anxiety by at least 50% in a few weeks. But he also decided to prescribe me Effexor (Venlafaxine) as a 'medicinal crutch'. Well, it worked and offered me a pretty good quality of life during 15 years. I recently stopped Venlafaxine because I had to pass a medical exam for work. I knew they would seek for illicit substances in blood and urine samples (cannabis, cocaine, etc...). I was not sure about antidepressants (not really forbidden but it could have unnecessarily complicated my case) but I preferred to withdraw the medication. It was also time to try to stop after 15 years (I never understood why antidepressants are prescribed all life long). My psychiatrist supported me and told me to stop abruptly (my daily dose was 75 mg + 37.5 mg). I knew I am sensitive to discontinuation (brain zaps in my past when I forgot my medication for a day or a week-end outside). So I decided to taper myself during 1 month and a half. Of course I was not aware about survivingantidepressants.org so my plan was way too much optimistic ! From 75+37.5 to 50 mg no problem. Slight physical symptoms + weird dreams + a few anxious peaks. But below 25 mg, the hell began. The intense physical symptoms lasted 2 weeks. Severe brain zaps, nausea, diarrhea, dizziness. My psychiatrist told me I was his FIRST patient with so long and accute withdrawal syndrom ! I couldn't believe my eyes. I trusted this guy at 100% before. I was furious against him. But I read on internet that yes, it is unbelievable, but this frequent severe withdrawal syndrom was never studied by the pharmaceutical labs, psychiatrists seem to ignore it, etc... Well, after the physical symptoms ceased (2 weeks after 0 mg), I started to feel bad emotionally: drop in mood, no envy for anything, growth of anxiety, very bad sleep and weird feeling in the legs every evening, like slow waves of electricity, very disturbing for sleeping. I understand that return of anxiety is logical. But this drop in mood, this feeling of empty head and those weird feelings in the leg with very bad sleeps are very new. I've stopped Venlafaxine 1 month and a half now and it's getting worse. So I am wondering, is this a 'relapse' as they call it ? Or still the effect of the too much suddain withdrawal ? Should I reinstate this damn drug or should I try to survive without it now it's done ? Of course I was certain that without this 'medicinal crutch' I could meet anxious moments like I had 15 years ago. But while I was taking Venlafaxine several years ago, I already had 2 major anxious periodes. So, feeling so bad immediately after the withdrawal, plus the unusual symptoms, is it only a coincidence ? It was so hard to stop this drug that I want to try continuing without it now. Eventually with the help of benzos time to time (I never tried it) rather than reinstating such devastating antidepressants. I know that every case is unique but I would appreciate to know your opinion about my description

I hope you are well. I am on Escitalopram 10mg reduced overnight from 20mg. After being on this specific medication for 7 months and having been on Citalopram from the age of 22. Meaning I have been on an SSRI for 22 years. Last year after my breakdown in April (I’m actually thinking it might have been my medication stopping working that caused all this) I was put on Venlafaxine immediately without any tapering off citalopram for 2 weeks (Actually wanted to commit suicide due to that drugs side effects) I was then put on Sertraline without any tapering off Venlafaxine. That caused incredibly unpleasant side effects. In August without tapering again I was put on Escitalopram 10mg then two months later upped to 20mg to “give it a go” by psychiatrists. Not one of these medications have worked and have made me worse. Come more recently I suggested I wanted to wean off Escitalopram because I felt constantly in fight or flight. That was about a month ago. I was then prescribed buspirone 5mg x 3 a day and had my Escitalopram reduced to 10mg overnight, no tapering. A week into that regime I stopped Buspirone of my own accord and am currently on just the 10mg of Escitalopram that hadn’t been working in the first place. I actually think I’ve been withdrawing from all the antidepressants since April in some peculiar way. Since I first started antidepressants in 2002 I haven’t once had a doctor review my medication, not once have they asked me about coming off, the only time things changed is to up my medication or “give another” on a go. Today I have chronic muscle twitches, that don’t stop. My mind is clearer bizarrely and less brain fog but my physical symptoms are another matter, I’m aching considerably, I wake up shaking in the morning, and the cold makes my body shiver uncontrollably. The muscle twitches in my legs are 24 hours a day every minute. I try to go to the gym but it’s hard as my calves cramp. I have contacted a nutritionist as I’ve had dozens of blood tests thinking something must be out of sync, deficient. I’m on a good diet plan of protein and high fibre. And supplements. I currently don't know where to turn or what to do, as I am now on 10mg Escitalopram only, I don't know whether to go up gradually to try and resolve these physical constant muscle spasms/twitches even though the medication itself offered me no relief from anxiety/depression etc and actually made me 100 times worse, or to taper down. Either way I'm stuck. My body is a mess, that was once absolutely fine, it's now all over the place. Something that’s keeping me going is knowing someone is highlighting the daily struggle of these drugs and the complete disregard for the patients that are prescribed them. I hope this email reaches you all in good health.

I am tapering venlaflaxine at 5% monthly and I am at 17.50mg now. Been on antidepressant for 30 years

Hi, I'm a long term anti-depressant user, I've been on them since I was 13 and am now 31. Here's a breakdown of my drug history. Fluoxitine 2006 (13 yrs old) - 2011 Citalopram 2011 - 2016 Fluoxitine 2016 - 2017 Venlafaxine/Effexor 125mg 2017 - 2023 Venlafaxine/Effexor 75mg 2023 - 2024 Withdrawal from 75mg Effexor Feb 2024 I've had varying degress of success with them throughout the years but because of anxiety and ADHD I've had periods where I have just lived with the depression and anxiety symptoms they were supposed to be helping with. However, recently I've taken steps to actually pay attention and attempt to 'fix' my brain and get better. I didn't feel able to do this until I was in a stable job, relationship and living situation which I felt I was finally in June last year. At that time I'd not had a depressive episode for a full year and my anxiety was at an all time low. I decided to speak to my GP about this and we both decided that dropping down to 75mg Effexor would be beneficial. We decided this because while the depression and anxiety was low I felt that my cognitive abilities were being hampered by the Effexor. I would often experience brain fog, memory issues, very low motivation, almost zombie-like states where I'd just go through the motions of each day not really taking anything in and I wanted that to stop. After the drop down to 75mg between June 2023 and Jan/Feb 2024 I've felt a slight return in my emotions (Both positive and negative ones), less brain fog and more general alertness and actually 'experiencing' life again. I'd continued to not have any adverse side effects and very few episodes of depression/anxiety, especially nothing like I'd experienced in the past. After speaking to my GP again they suggested I come off Effexor completely and I agreed, as many do, without doing any research. In Jan they told me to start tapering off by alternating the days I take my medication until stopping after a month. I've done that now and stopped taking my last pill of 75mg prolonged-release capsules of venlafaxine hydrochloride on 2nd Feb 2024. It's now a month later and after feeling very little adverse side effects, no brain zaps, anxiety or depression, slight headaches, slight dizziness and slight tinitus I've suddenly as of last week started feeling intense anxiety and some depression continuously since then. I've tried to manage this with Propranolol which has slightly helped by not entirely removed the anxiety. I have been through therapy multiple times and have some coping techniques but this mostly seems like GAD rather than me worrying or being down about anything in particular. I first put a thread up on Reddit to see what I'd done wrong and was pointed to this community and introduced to the concept of microdose reinstating and that how my GP recommended I come off Effexor was bad. Hopefully I can get some more advice on what to do as I appear to be on the cusp of it being too late to reinstate and that possibly just riding out the withdrawal symptoms would be best. Any advice would be greatly appreciated and I'm happy to answer any questions you might have.

Hello everyone. I'm a 42-year-old man living in Wales, UK. I've decided to join the site after recently watching the BBC Panorama documentary on antidepressants. Watching the documentary made me realise that I've been living in self-denial for more than a decade about the negative, lasting impact that SSRIs and SNRIs have had on my health and wellbeing. I believe it's my public duty to document my experience, which I hope can be used as further evidence of the damaging side effects of these medications and help my children's generation make an informed choice - something that I was denied. I was first prescribed Citalopram in 2011 following a diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder. I was reluctant to start taking antidepressants. I remember expressing this reluctance to my doctor and his blunt response was: "well, what else do you expect me to do?". His message was clear: antidepressant medication was the only option available. There was no discussion about psychological therapy. What's more, the doctor did not explain the risk of potential side effects or difficulties with withdrawal before I started antidepressants. I was implicitly led to believe there were no downsides, only benefits. I therefore relented and began taking Citalopram. As it turned out, I didn't experience any noticeable side effects on Citalopram. However, I didn't experience any noticeable benefits either. In fact, between 2011 and 2018 my depression worsened over time. The medical community's response was to incrementally increase the dosage of Citalopram, but it didn't make any difference. The only reason I continued with antidepressants was because I'd finally found a doctor I'd trusted. Her view, which she said was based on evidence from medical research, was that a combination of medication and psychotherapy was shown to have the best results for depression. I took her advice. Things changed suddenly and drastically in early 2018 when I experienced an acute mental breakdown. I was admitted to a specialist inpatient psychiatric unit. The first thing the consultant psychiatrist did was review my medication history and immediately switched me to Venlafaxine. Again, I was not informed about the risk of potential side effects or difficulties with withdrawal. I wasn't given a choice, nevermind given the opportunity to make an informed choice. Unlike my experience with Citalopram, I started experiencing side effects almost immediately with Venlafaxine. My general sexual arousal was severely diminished and I struggled to achieve a full erection whether on my own or with a partner. I found this distressing, more so than my depression. I informed my doctor who told me sexual dysfunction was a common side effect of antidepressants. This was the first time since I’d started taking antidepressants seven years earlier that a medical professional had revealed there were potential risks in taking these medications. My doctor prescribed me Sildenafil, which while I accept did help, the quality of my sex life was far below what it was before. Sexual activity was no longer fun and spontaneous, but something to be managed and planned carefully. It was around 2019 when I decided that the detrimental impact of Venlafaxine on my sex life had become too severe and that I would come off it. I don’t recall the exact details of how I tapered, but I did so over about a period of 18 months from 225mg to 0mg. It was hell on earth. An experience that was completely unexpected and for which I was wholly unprepared. The withdrawal symptoms I experienced included: Severe headaches Disorientation Brain fog Lethargy Anxiety Diarrhea Despite the struggle I had with withdrawal from Venlafaxine, I persisted with tapering off. The eventual prize of a renewed and healthy sex life was too great to ignore. But… ...weeks and months passed after the Venlafaxine had left my system and I was still experiencing the same sexual dysfunction. I was devastated. Not only had the medical community failed to inform me of the risk of sexual side effects from taking antidepressants, but they’d also failed to inform me of the risk those sexual side effects could persist after tapering off them completely. Resigned to my sex life being ruined forever, I went back on Venlafaxine in 2021 on the advice of my doctor. I came off it in January 2023 after another long, painful tapering period beset by the same side effects as before. I was antidepressant-free between January 2023 and October 2023, but another mental health crisis sent me back to psychiatric care and I was given two new prescriptions of Vortioxetine (10mg) and Quetiapine (25mg). I stumbled across the BBC Panorama documentary just before Christmas. I was shocked, appalled and filled with rage. Why hadn’t the medical community explained any of this to me before I started taking antidepressants more than 10 years ago? I was denied the opportunity to make an informed choice. It’s a global scandal. After watching BBC Panorama, I made the firm decision to come off antidepressants/psychiatric medication for good. I tapered off Quetiapine first (25mg to 0mg) then tapered off the Vortioxetine (10mg, to 5mg, to 0mg). I did this over a period of about eight weeks. I took my final 5mg dose of Vortioxetine two weeks ago today. Thankfully, I’ve not experienced the same kind of severe withdrawal symptoms as I did with Venlafaxine. I’m having some trouble sleeping, but I wouldn’t describe it as severe. My sexual dysfunction persists. I’m coming to a place of acceptance that I may never fully recover the healthy, happy sex life I once enjoyed. But I live in hope. ---------------- Citalopram (2011 to 2018) Venlafaxine (2018 to Jan 2023) Quetiapine (Oct 2023 to Jan 2024 - tapered from 25mg to 0mg). Vortioxetine (Oct 2023 to Feb 2024 - tapered from 10mg, to 5mg to 0mg)

I’ve been weaning Venlafaxine XR since August 2023. I’m currently down to 37.5 plus 31 beads. The biggest symptom I’m experiencing lately is paranoia. Or maybe they are delusions. Insomnia is slowly improving, dizziness has improved. I’m not eating much, have diarrhea a lot and these intrusive thoughts are overwhelming my brain! I’m wondering how long this will last. I previously weaned off Klonopin and experienced paranoia while weaning as well. Is paranoia a common withdrawal symptom when weaning from antidepressants, as it’s not listed on the checklist. My husband calls what I’m experiencing delusions, so maybe that’s what they are more than paranoia. It seems like it’s much worse in the evenings. Maybe when the Venlafaxine has worn off? I take my daily dose nightly at 10pm.

I’m unsure on the right terminology because I’m not sure what I believe anymore so please bear with me. last year after ten years on citalopram I had a sudden relapse in depression and anxiety (you could say I pooped out but who knows). The relapse has crippled me and it’s immeasurably worse than the first time around. It’s consumed me and I feel like I’ve lost my identity. Through this period the doctor changed me to sertraline and again to venlafaxine. Both of which had zero effect. I wanted to look at exploring more naturalistic remedies (not sure how appropriate it is to discuss this on this format so I will leave that there- but happy to hear people’s stories and experiences of doing that) but I’ve had a really tough Fortnight and when I went back to the docs this week he wanted me to try mirtazipine. I have taken that for two nights but after a chat with my therapist this morning who’s very critical of medications and the role of seretonin in all this I’m questioning if it’s the right thing. It’s all so hard when you are extremely desperate and just want relief really interested to hear everyone’s views and experiences

Not sure what to write…. I tried an unsuccessful tapering around 4 years ago, 2020, I was 60, crashed so badly, reinstated again, built my life up again. After some research I tried again tapering off last year 2023, did the tapering twice as long, over 6 months, not much information out there for getting off meds…. So wish I had this site then, did not know the tapering should be so slow!! Anyways, serious withdrawal symptoms that have destroyed my life again, now I live with horrible anxiety, physical pain, stomach issues, and mental anguish! Lost my whole lifestyle….I question daily “why did I do this to myself? Why am I putting myself through this suffering? On the Meds, my life wasn’t so bad, not like what some of you have. Yes, I slept 12 to 15 hours a day, mental fog, emotional numbness, but I had the strength to live, hobbies, reasons to be. now I’m just so lost…. There are days when I think I should reinstate but from reading here I’m afraid of different symptoms. I have been drug free 6 months,…. Something stops me from going back on…. Like if I do then this last year of suffering will be for nothing…. reading stories here is scary for me cause I didn’t know it would take so long for my brain, body, mind to heal. But it also the most real truthful place I found. I do a lot of daily walking, deep breathing, listening to healing videos, it is helping some…. But I have no meaning, no value in living, the real world outside of my home scares me, I feel like I don’t belong anymore. Now I live in an environment that I dislike immensely, which makes it even harder to build from. anyways, that’s it for now…. Now how to add the signature part of med history…

Hello everyone, I’m so pleased to have found you all and very happy to be signed up to SA 😊 I’m here for my mum who was born in 1947 and is 76 years old. It’s taken me a while to get round to writing this, (massive), introduction, and some of the details are a little sketchy as mum’s memory of events aren’t always too clear. I really need some insight and advice so that I can help my mum so please let me give you some history and background – I’ll try to keep it brief! My mum has lived most of her life between Ireland and Scotland. I live in Scotland and, up until the end of 2013, my mum would split her time between her own home in Ireland and my home in Scotland. In 2013 she went to her doctor (GP) in Ireland and was referred to psychiatry and prescribed sertraline (50mg initially) for low mood and anxiety. Mum continued to take sertraline for the next three years (2013 – 2016) and was, at some point prescribed risperidone for 3 days but it made mum feel drowsy - we don’t know quite when or why this antipsychotic was prescribed but we are waiting to receive her medical records and should have a clearer picture then. I’m not sure after this date (2016) if there were any changes to mum’s meds but in February 2017 – May 2017, mum was admitted to the local psychiatric hospital presenting as catatonic and then delirious / psychotic. During her stay at the hospital, she was diagnosed with psychotic depression and received seven ECT sessions, her sertraline was increased to 200mg and olanzapine was introduced at 10mg twice a day (20mg in total) From 2017 – 2018 her drugs remained the same. In March 2018 mood dipped and we think her olanzapine may have been increased. In June 2019 re-admission to the psychiatric hospital was considered due to earlier catatonic symptoms reappearing. She avoided admission and recovered, her sertraline was switched to venlafaxine 150mg and then increased to 225mg. In November 2019 Mirtazapine (15mg) was added and in February 2020 pregabalin was introduced for anxiety (initially at 25mg twice a day but then upped to 50mg twice a day) As far as we are aware there were no changes to mum’s psychiatric meds until 2023. I should also add that she is on several other meds for other medical conditions – please see drug signature. Between 2014 and 2022 my mum remained in Ireland and, although she seemed well a good deal of the time, there would be periods where her mood was very low, and her anxiety really heightened. Sometimes when mum was like this the doctor would prescribe diazepam to help reduce the severe anxiety. When mum’s mood was low she would become increasingly anxious about everything and anything and, when spending time with my brother and his two younger children, she was very anxious that they would injure themselves or come to some harm. It was clear to me and my brother that this debilitating anxiety and constant worry was stopping her from being able to enjoy life and her grandchildren (she has always found most joy when being around her children and grandchildren). We could also see that mum’s physical health was deteriorating and we decided, in 2022, and with mum’s agreement, that it would be best if she permanently moved over to Scotland to be close to me so that I could support and be with her on a much more regular, daily basis. Mum’s mood and anxiety continued to fluctuate throughout 2022 and, due to other external factors, we couldn’t move her over here quite as quickly as we’d hoped. At the end of September 2022 she was, once again, in a very anxious/ catatonic state and narrowly avoided being admitted to the psychiatric hospital. She went to stay with my brother and his family for a week while we organized her coming over here. Although we’re not entirely certain, (as mum was living on her own), it does seem, prior to these more severe unwell periods, that mum was falling into a very anxious state and would stop eating, sleeping and we think perhaps stop taking her meds for maybe one or two doses. Mum was now living in Scotland with me, and her mood started to improve throughout October. She was offered a flat within the retirement housing complex, just a 10 minute walk away from me. With mum in Scotland we began to see a definite pattern to her mood - she would be well for around a month and then her mood would drop, out of nowhere and with no obvious trigger, and she would be super anxious with low mood for around 2 weeks and then would slowly start to improve again. In January 2023 I printed off a mood chart and we filled it in daily. In February 2023 mum had her first appointment with her new psychiatrist, (I have always been present during these appointments). I expressed concerns around seeing what I thought were some mild signs of tardive dyskinesia and mum was happy to start reducing her olanzapine with her psychiatrist’s support. The psychiatrist did not warn us about withdrawal effects or warn us to look out for anything and I, much to my deep regret, was completely unaware of the impact and dangers around dose changes in psychiatric drugs. Mum was on 15mg olanzapine, which was initially reduced to 10mg for 3 months, then to 7.5mg for 3 months, then to 5mg for 3 months. During the summer of 2023 mum experienced pain in her hip which her GP prescribed additional pregabalin for, increasing her daily dose of 50mg twice a day to 50mg twice a day with the addition of 100mg twice a day to help the pain (thereby taking her daily dose potentially up to 300mg). Mum did experience some dizziness around this time which we put down to the increased pregabalin dose. Throughout 2023 mum’s pattern continued in the same fashion as before and I noticed nothing untoward. Mum had an excellent October, remaining well for almost the entire month and I felt sure I was seeing a reduction in the tardive dyskinesia mouth movements. On October the 23rd mum’s olanzapine was further reduced from 5mg to 2.5mg. On the 26th of October mum was given her combined covid and flu vaccination – the very next day, (27th October,) she felt nauseous, dizzy, freezing cold and had general flu-like symptoms. After reading the patient info leaflet from the jag we assumed these symptoms were a side effect of the vaccination and didn’t for one moment consider that they could be related to the drop in her olanzapine dosage just a few days before… After 3 – 4 days she felt physically better but her mood had dipped - we weren’t surprised, she’d had a good month of feeling well and her mood was due to dip anyway, according to her pattern. Although mum had a tough week her mood seemed to be lifting and we went off to her psychiatry appointment. The psychiatrist asked mum how she was and she said she was OK and her mood was lifting – he asked her if she ever felt suicidal and she said no (she has never felt suicidal) he also asked if she suffered from SAD and she said no – she, like me, actually enjoys winter and the festive season very much. The psychiatrist told her to finish off her new 4 week prescription of olanzapine at 2.5mg and then she would be finished with olanzapine for good. That evening, around 6.30pm I said goodnight to mum, took a bag of her washing home with me that she asked me to do and said I’d see her tomorrow. I didn’t get any response from mum to my early morning text and, at 11.15am I decided to go and see where she was and what she was up to. I found mum unconscious in her living room – at some point during the night before she must have slipped into a delusional state and she had taken all of her month’s supply of tablets and all of the extra pregabalin that she had been prescribed. She also left a bizarre note about not wanting to be a big lady which made no sense. Mum was rushed by ambulance to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at a local hospital and my brother and I were told to prepare ourselves for the worst – she was not expected to survive. Remarkably, and against all the odds, my wee mum survived this terrible ordeal of which she has no memory, (she also has no memory of her stay at the psychiatric hospital in 2017 when she experienced psychosis). It was at this time that I started to become aware of the damaging effect of these drugs and I became convinced that what had happened to mum was most likely due to a too rapid reduction in her olanzapine. During her stay at hospital her psychiatrist visited her and as good as reprimanded her for trying to take her own life. She was experiencing an extremely low mood, confusion and some delirium at this time, she was also classed as an adult without capacity. Despite this, her psychiatrist decided to cold turkey her from all of her psychiatric meds (olanzapine, venlafaxine, mirtazapine and pregabalin) without discussing this with any family member. He did not believe that mum was experiencing withdrawal symptoms and said that any withdrawal symptoms would be long past by now. I was now also learning the dangers of abruptly stopping psychiatric meds and I became very worried for my mum’s health and this new course of action. After a phone call with me, the psychiatrist did agree to reinstate mum’s olanzapine at 5mg, at my request, and her venlafaxine, but only at 75mg. I was still worried and could see that mum was deteriorating – mum was transferred to the local psychiatric hospital and the new psychiatrist was not willing to consider my request of reinstating her mirtazapine and venlafaxine at 225mg but she did agree to increase her venlafaxine to 150mg. A few days later and, after seeing no improvement in mum she decided that mum was having paranoid thoughts so she increased mum’s olanzapine to 7.5mg without discussing this with me – she also suggested that if mum was to experience withdrawal symptoms, like I suggested she was, she would treat them with lorazepam! She, like the other psychiatrist did not agree that mum was experiencing withdrawal and she also said that any withdrawal would be over by now. I was upset to discover that mum’s care was in the hands of another psychiatrist who wasn’t following the NICE guidelines on withdrawing psychiatric meds and was in denial about the severity or seriousness of possible withdrawal effects. I would love nothing more than for my mum to be off all of these meds but I knew that this cold turkey method could be incredibly damaging. From the day her original psychiatrist made the decision to cold turkey her It took me a total of 18 days and a formal complaint before mum’s meds were reinstated on the 11th of December, at her previous dosage and the olanzapine reduced back to 5mg (I had great support from the mental Welfare Commission, by the way, just in case anyone else needs support). I don’t yet know if I did the right thing, but it was difficult to find advice. Within a week mum’s mood was back to being really good, her memory was dramatically improved, and all confusion was gone. She continued to improve over the next couple of weeks and was officially discharged from hospital on the 3rd of January - no one in the hospital could believe how well and quickly she had recovered. Apparently, according to one of the nurses, the average stay in the psychiatric hospital is 6 – 12 months. Mum was there for just 4 1/2 weeks and spent the best part of those caring for her fellow patients! So, we find ourselves almost back to square one. Mum came home and stayed with me from the 3rd of January 2024 until the 11th – she then went home but was, unfortunately only well for one day and night and the following day her mood dipped again – I was anxious about what had previously happened so brought her back to stay with us until her mood improved or until I had “GrannyCam” (Echo Show) installed so that I could keep a closer eye on her. Mum has only just gone back to her wee flat (29th January 2024) and she is still pretty anxious although she is improving slowly. And this is where we find ourselves. Many, many thanks for reading so far…😊 I am really hoping that I can help support mum to get her off her psychiatric meds – she and I are under no illusions and, given the dosage and time that she has been on this hellish cocktail of meds we are aware that there is an extremely long road ahead of her. I am hoping, initially, that you guys can help me specifically with the following questions: · Would you recommend that mum take her tablets at different times throughout the day (she has morning and evening meds - venlafaxine and pregabalin are taken in the morning and olanzapine, pregabalin and mirtazapine in the evening), and if so, when would you suggest? · I feel that the first drug to taper should be the remaining 5mg of Olanzapine – do you think this is right? · When do you think it would be the right time to restart the olanzapine taper? And does anyone know if I can source taper strips in the UK on the NHS? · Has anyone ever experienced these periods of wellness and then periods of low mood and severe anxiety in a pattern such as I’ve described? Could these be some kind of Waves and Windows, bearing in mind that she was experiencing them prior to starting any kind of drug reduction · What can I do to help mum with this terrible anxiety? I have very recently bought her some chelated magnesium and she has had a couple of low doses of that over the last few days (but has avoided taking them 2 hours before or after her pregabalin, as per the SA advice on magnesium) · I am obviously very worried that there may be a repeat of what happened to mum on the evening of the 9th of November given that, aside from the flu like symptoms, there wasn’t much to warn me to be on the look out for such a severe reaction. Do you think that now that I know a little about what to look out for with withdrawal symptoms I will be able to pick up on times like this should they arise in the future when mum is tapering from her meds? Any and all advice will be extremely welcome – thank you all so much in advance and my apologies for the massive essay! Chris (tine) 😊💚 x x

Hello everybody, I have a bit of a history with depression. It seems largely situational for me, I have a history of being abused and having low self-esteem. I have also been through homelessness and transitioning at the same time, which did a number on my mental health. It was at that time that I was prescribed my first antidepressant, paroxetine. I quit it cold-turkey after one month because it seemed inefficient -- all it was doing was numbing my emotions but I still felt like ****. At the same time, helping me gain stable housing would have been way more helpful than throwing pills at me, but all they had to offer was "apply for social housing and maaaaaaaaaybe receive an apartment after waiting for 10 years". I'm not even exaggerating, this is the situation of social housing in my country. I eventually managed to get to a more stable situation, but depression was still around, so I have a bit of a history of trying different things. In December 2020 and January 2021, I was prescribed vortioxetine, and it wasn't particularly effective, so I ended up quitting that cold turkey too. Later, throughout February-March 2021, I was prescribed fluoxetine. After a while, it started causing me insomnia, so I got scared and quit it cold-turkey, again. Throughout 2021-2022, I also tried edibles and psychedelics. I was taking edibles once a week, sometimes twice. At first I found that they helped keep depression at bay, but after a while it was less effective. Retrospectively I think it might also have made things worse by causing or worsening some imbalance. I took a break of one month in April 2022 and it was pretty ugly: bouts of insomnia, intense depression, and so on. In October 2022, I tried vortioxetine again, but it immediately gave me insomnia. In retrospect I think this is a sign that my brain was destabilized or sensitivized in some way, because the first time I tried vortioxetine it didn't give me any insomnia. In November 2022, following a particularly bad depressive crisis, I wanted to try antidepressants again, and was prescribed venlafaxine. I had to get through 40+ days of insomnia when I started it. Regardless, I felt that it had immediate efficacy, which might be another sign I was dealing with some form of imbalance at that moment? Regardless, venlafaxine greatly helped me in that it gave me time and space to pursue therapy and work on some of my problems. In March 2023 I was diagnosed with ADHD and started Ritalin, hoping it could help me. It felt pretty efficient at first -- I was happy, full of energy, and it was a lot easier for me to start tasks and complete them. However, in the end, it didn't bode well with venlafaxine. I reached doses of 30mg/day Ritalin, 112.5mg/day venlafaxine, and the combo gave me pretty sh*tty side effects -- sensitivity to light, tiredness, headache, absurdly dry mouth -- without helping with ADHD at all. I quit Ritalin and the side effects mostly subsided. Following this, I wanted to quit venlafaxine to see how ADHD meds alone would work out. My reasoning is that dealing with ADHD may work better for depression since it would make it easier for me to undertake beneficial life changes, rather than just going to work and getting back home and not doing much. So after 10 months of venlafaxine, I tapered off from August to September, from 112.5mg to 0mg. It was a quick taper, but at the time it seemed to be okay for me. When I made the jump to zero, I felt a bit weird and sensitive for a couple weeks, and had very mild brain zaps. The physical withdrawals had been very mild compared to what I was expecting, so I thought I'd made it. I later tried ADHD meds again, but they didn't seem to work well. Ritalin did work at first, albeit not as strong as when I was on venlafaxine. But after a while, it lost efficacy and seemed to make me feel sad, so with my psychiatrist we decided not to try higher doses. I tried Concerta and it was similar, albeit shorter lived. Throughout October and November 2023 I had periods of anhedonia and dull sadness, which started worrying me. Later I was feeling depressed too, probably didn't help that I was starting to get sick of my job. I also feel that, looking back on 2023, the antidepressant did help me feel better but I felt largely content with a life situation that doesn't suit me well. In December, I was feeling better when I took vacation time and visited my parents -- until I started feeling depressed again for no apparent reason. I also experienced some sleep trouble and insomnia at that time. January 2024 was kinda rough. I think protracted withdrawals and work-related stress combined into something quite bad. But at the time I didn't think protracted withdrawals could be something lasting for so long. Feeling desperate, and afraid of the work situation, I tried going back on venlafaxine. But it felt wrong -- it immediately made me feel quite anxious and tripped out. When I started it in November 2022 it didn't feel this way, and I'm normally not a very anxious person. It felt like my brain was overly sensitive and I was adding fuel to the fire, so I quit after 5 days of venlafaxine. I went back to work and saw my mood decline throughout the week, had a breakdown the next Monday. I'm now on medical leave, again. I feel some guilt about it. I'm in the process of quitting my job -- I want to take some time to rest before going for another, hopefully better job. I'm a bit afraid though. I'm probably still going through protracted withdrawals, but I'm concerned about depression returning too. I'm concerned that the 5-day reinstatement attempt may have worsened things. For now my idea is to avoid all psychoactive drugs until my brain is stabilized, but if anyone here has suggestions about this, I'm all ears.

The only way in the end that I could come off venlafaxine was to go on another drug. It has never occurred to me that I am experiencing, nearly a year later could be withdrawal. I assumed this was taken care of by the new drug. However my anxiety has never recovered and is very bad, even on escetalapram. Do I up the dose, try another drug, or is what I'm feeling a reaction to withdrawing from venlafaxine? I am wanting to taper off escetalaprin but feel very nervous as my experience with wd from venlafaxine was quite simply unbearable.

Hi, first of all thank you for this platform. I really need help and do not know where to find it anymore… I used to be on a high dose of Effexor (300mg) in my 20s for about 5 years. I decided to taper down to came off the drug in 2017. The advice of my doctor was to reduce by 37.5mg every two weeks (if I remember correctly). The physical withdrawals were not too bad but I developed panic attacks after about 6 months and went back on the smallest dose of Effexor (37.5mg). I was on that dose for 5 years and I had less and less panic attacks over the years, I was really happy. Last year in September 2022 I was ready to stop the drug again to have a baby. I wanted to reduce by removing some beads from the capsules but when I opened it I found only one large bead. The drug I was on is a replica of Effexor called Enlafax-XR which is the funded drug here in New Zealand. I decided to stop completely from 37.5mg to 0mg which is what my doctor recommended. The physical withdrawals were fine and went away pretty quickly. I had more anxiety then usual, but thought it would go away with time. Fast forward to July, I took a multivitamin which included multiple B vitamins for a few of days and that combined with a fight with my partner sent me into a spiral of terror. I was shaking when going to bed and would wake up with a racing heart. This lasted for 10 days. I was good again for a few more months. Then came September - I would get quite anxious after my period and decided to take a supplement of St Johns Wort to see if it would help. I started vomiting and shaking in bed again and spiralling into thoughts of terror. Since I had no idea what was going on I contacted my doctor which prescribed me again Enlafax-XR at 37.5mg. I took one pill and was completely out of it the next day. My vision was slow and my legs and arm were rigid. Time was going really really slow. I told my doctor which told me I probably had had an anxiety attack and that I should try again on a full stomach. I tried again a couple of weeks later after spending those two weeks in complete terror, shaking and vomiting. At my second attempt I was able to reintroduce the drug. I became better after 1 week and that lasted for another 3 more weeks. I still had quite a lot of anxiety but the terror was gone and I felt more grounded. After 1 month of taking Enlafax-XR 37.5mg I had a big fight with my partner (our biggest fight yet in 9 years together). Things went downhill from there. I stopped eating, was vomiting all the time, my vision became slow like I was drunk, my legs and arms were completely stiff and tingly and my chest was burning from the inside. This was really intense for 2 weeks and some of the symptoms slowly went away. It’s been three months now that I am on the drug and still vomit a lot and have really little appetite. My vision is still slow and I have an inner jitteriness in my whole body. I am also continuously horny when I come of my period and can masturbate multiple times a day (it is really annoying). I do not know what to do anymore, I feel like I am at the end of the rope. I always feel on edge/agitated and nothing feels good anymore. I have three options: - Continue taking Enlafax-XR and hope it will get better. - Stop taking Enlafax-XR cold turkey as it cannot be tapered and see what happens. - Switch to the real Effexor-XR, see if I can tolerate it and start decreasing the dosage. I am scared and have really little hope. I do not want to make things worst for myself by choosing the wrong next step…Any advices would be more than welcome. *I have been on multiple drugs over the years starting at 18 years old. Citalopram, Seroquel, Wellbutrin. I have not been on any of these for 10 years. Thank you so much.

Hi all, new here. Looking forward to learning. Thank you !

I have severe GAD diagnosed in early 2018. After trying to manage it on my own for a couple of months I finally asked my dr for an anti anxiety medication. she put me on 75 mg of Effexor, and I started taking it on May 2019. It worked incredibly. in February 2023, my main stressor for anxiety got resolved and wanting to get pregnant soon I decided to taper. I tapered from March 2023 - June 2023 using the bead counting method with my drs instructions. At first I thought I got away with it but I was wrong. Just like many others of us I developed severe insomnia and haven’t been able to shake it off to this date. I reached back out to my dr and worked with a psychiatrist both of whom agreed I benefit from sleeping meds. I tried taking 25 mg of Vistaril and while that worked okay, it made me very groggy the next day. Then my psych decided to switch me to Trazadone 25 mg and that worked ok. Today, I have not been able to sleep at all and it’s too late to take anything. I’ve taken the day off from work and made an appointment with my dr to talk about potentially reinstating — Effexor is not safe during pregnancy so maybe something else. I just don’t feel good in general and am feeling like I’m suffering more than I need to and need something to give. thanks in advance for welcoming me to the community, we’ll get through this!

I stupidly started taking 10 mg per day of baclofen for pain, after being very clear with my doctor that I didn't want to take anything that causes physical dependence/addiction. The side effects were bad after taking it about 8 days so I stopped - and am now experiencing withdrawal! Turns out it must be tapered off. I'm beyond angry at myself and my doctor. Conventional instructions are to reduce 10 mg to 5 mg for a week, then half again, then stop - distressingly similar to the incorrect info we get about ADs. Does anyone know or have any experience with tapering off after taking 10 mg/day for 8 days? As background, I have taken ADs for over 30 years and have spent the last 5 years trying to taper off venlafaxine. I am now diagnosed with ME/CFS/mitochondrial deficiency. I'm still taking 8 mg of venlafaxine.

Hi, I've been a member of SA for roughly a year, but this is my first post, so hello. I've been taking antidepressants for roughly 23 years now in order to treat OCD and anxiety depression. The greater part of that has been on fluoxetine, which I took intermittently over roughly a period of 15 years. When I say 'intermittently' there would be periods where I would miss a couple of days, up to perhaps the odd month or two when I wouldn't take anything. To a certain extent this was probably down to the side effects I tended to experience and also self-denial about having mental health problems. Unsurprisingly, my mental health didn't improve, even if the drug was likely to do anything - I guess I muddled through. So, as seems to be a familiar story, following a couple of stressful events, I started taking the fluoxetine consistently every day, but found that the side effects - nightmares and leg spasms on falling asleep - were beginning to become a problem. In order to alleviate this issue, my doctor suggested I take sertraline, which I did for several weeks, but found that I actually had more side effects. The next drug that the doctor suggested was Venlafaxine(Effexor) 75mg. After roughly 4 - 5 weeks, once again, side effects, so I asked if I could drop to a smaller dose 37.5mg, which I managed without any real issues - probably because I hadn't been taking it for very long. I took the lower dose for roughly a year, after which, once again due to building side effects and because I actually wasn't feeling too bad - I'm not sure if this was the drug or I just started to feel better naturally - I asked the doctor if I could start reducing the dose. The doc replied, "yes, just stop taking it and we'll see how you manage." This was my first ever experience of withdrawal, made worst be the fact that I had no idea it could happen on prescription medication! Fortunately, I decided to only half the dose rather than stopping completely. It still took me 2 weeks to figure out what was happening however - I simply thought my mental health had suddenly taken a dramatic nosedive. I had three or four more failed attempts at getting off Venlafaxine over the last four years. I reached the stage where even tiny reductions put me into withdrawal. I can't quite remember what led me to Surviving Antidepressants, Glenmullens' book maybe, but I was pretty much at my whits' end on how to get off that awful drug. I found some information on the Prozac bridge and decided to try that. When I took the final dose of Venlafaxine, I was expecting to be hit by the psychological equivalent of a bus, but, luckily, it did seem to mitigate a lot of the severe withdrawal symptoms that made my previous efforts such a nightmare. I also managed to find a GP open to trying this approach. Am I out of the woods yet? Well, that's one of the reasons I've finally decided to post. Thankfully, I'm off Venlafaxine. Am I out of withdrawal? I'm not sure. My anxiety and OCD seem to have got worse over the last 5 - 6 months. This of course could be down to not taking AD's any more which suppressed the anxiety, or that I'm still in some type of withdrawal - maybe both. I guess I'm posting to see if I can figure it out. Thanks, Paul

Hi, I am is 41 years old. I was on Venlafaxine XR for my vestibular migraine in 2019 to 2021. My dosage was 37.5 mg one tablet every 3rd day which was suggested by my neurologist as i was getting hives from taking the medicine. For my hives I was taking half tablet of Allerga M (Montelukast 10mg + Fexofenadine 120mg) twice a week. I took Venlafaxine XR for 1.5 years and Allerga M for 2 years and then CT it as all my vestibular migraine symptoms had gone away. When i CT from venlafaxine I did not get any withdrawal symptoms for 9 months. Then after 9 months in June 2022 my vestibular migraine symptoms (swaying, light and sound sensitivity, unstable feeling, surroundings looking dim and blurred vision) came back, I tried to re-introduce Venlafaxine XR again but on taking just one tablet after 9 months my occipital area started paining and i started getting internal trembling inside my body. I still tried taking it the very next day too but had the same issue so stopped taking it and went to the neurologist. The neurologist then tried paroxetine (1 tablet) which didn’t suit me and so he then tried the following medicines -prednisolone (steroid 1 tablet), betahistine (2 tablets), flunarizine (half tablet) and all the above made my condition even worse as she started getting leg jerks while sleeping which i wasn’t getting before with my vestibular migraine symptoms. Then the neurologist finally said lets try Venlafaxine XR again as that has helped me in the past in 2019 and inspite of hearing I was having trouble taking it told me to try it again. Then when I tried Venlafaxine XR again i started getting brain zaps and myoclonic jerks and my stomach and vagina started making loud noises. This had never happened before so i stopped Venlafaxine XR and went back to the neurologist. He then prescribed a Benzo - Alprazolam (1 tablet) which i didn’t feel well on as my heart started racing rapidly and i had chest pain as well so then i went back the next day and he gave me Sodium Valproate (anti epileptic medicine) and told me not to come back and see a psychiatrist. Then that night when i took the sodium valproate tablet a glass breaking sound while swallowing started in my ears and my brain and hip started thumping so i stopped the medicine on 17th August 2022 immediately. Then on 19th August 2022 as i had Covid symptoms especially cough and sore throat i took a cough syrup which was Dilo DX syrup (Chlorpheniramine maleate with Dextromethorphan hydrobromide) 5 ML, this is when my entire symptoms changed for the worse. My occipital area started shaking internally and my vestibular symptoms went away. As I was still having covid symptoms like cough and sore throat she took Lecope AD (Levocetrizine , phenylephrine and ambroxol) - 1 tablet while the shaking in the occipital area still continued. I couldn’t understand what the internal shaking was for a week but as they were not stopping and as per the instructions of the neurologist I finally met with a psychiatrist. I was also exposed to green fungus around the same time in the house as it was rainy season here in Mumbai (India). The psychiatrist ordered an MRI of the brain which was clear. After that i met various psychiatrists and neurologists who said this was Functional or somatic symptoms of depression and they tried to stop the internal shaking or vibrations with the below class of medicines which made my condition even more worse as I was unable to tolerate any medications because my nerves used to pull and pain and my internal shaking/tremors used to increase on taking every medication. I used to then discontinue the medication after 2 to 3 tablets. Below is the class of medications tried on me since August 2022 till date:- (Small doses of each medication was tried and discontinued) YEAR – 2022 · Provanol 20 MG (Propranolol hydrochloride tablets IP) - Half tablet - Beta blocker. · Nexito 5 mg (escitalopram)- Half tablet – SSRI Antidepressant · Provanol 10 MG – (Propranolol hydrochloride tablets IP) Half tablet - 2 days - Beta blocker. · Rejunex CD 3 - Multivitamin · Folinext (Folic Acid and methylcobalamin) - 1 tablet - Vitamin · Homeopathy medicine – GAVE EXTERNAL TREMORS · Zapiz 0.25 mg (clonazepam) Half tablet – 3 days – Benzodiazepine. · Provanol 2.5 mg (Propranolol hydrochloride tablets IP) – 3 days - Beta blocker. · Tynept 12.5 mg (Tianeptine) – Half tablet for 2 days - Dibenzoxazepine Antidepressant · Mirtaz 7.5 mg (Mirtzpine) - Half tablet – Tetracyclic Antidepressant · Synaptol 50 mg (Tolperisone hydrochloride) - Half tablet - Muscle relaxer. · Gabapin 100 mg (Gabapentin tablet IP) - Half tablet - Antiepileptic · Homeopathy medicine · Ayurvedic medicine · Evion - LC - Half tablet (Vitamin) · Solopose - MD 0.25 mg (Etizolam) - Half tablet - Benzodiazepine. YEAR - 2023 · 10th Jan - Ascoril D plus ( Dextromethorphan hydrobromide + phenylephrine hydrochloride + Chlorpheniramine maleate) - 5ML - Took it for dry cough · 11th Jan - Lecope AD ( Levocetrizine , phenylephrine and ambroxol) - 1 tablet for 4 days – Took it for sore throat · 16th Jan - Nurewire Tablet - 1 tablet (Vitamin) · 23rd Jan - Cetzine (cetrizine) - 2.5 MG - Antihistamine · 25th Jan - Pacitane 2 MG – Half tablet (Trihexyphenidyl) - Anticholinergic medication · 27th Jan - Allegra 180 - Half tablet (Fexofenadine) - Antihistamine · 1st Feb to 3rd Feb - Atrest 12.5 mg -Half tablet (Tetrabenazine) – Vesicular Monoamine Transporter 2 inhibitor · 6th & 7th Feb - Benadryl syrup - 2 ML – Cough syrup · 8th & 9th Feb - Supradyn - 1 tablet - Multivitamin · 14th & 15th Feb - Practin syrup 2 ML (Cyproheptadine) - Antihistamines · 18th Feb - Allegra 180 - Half tablet · 21st & 22nd Feb - Mentat (Himalaya Ayurveda) · 28th Feb - Allegra M ( Montelukast 10mg + Fexofenadine 120mg) – Half tablet Leukotriene antagonist and antiallergic medicine · 2nd & 3rd March - Atarax 5 mg - Half tablet (Hydroxyzine) - Antihistaminic medication · 6th March - Pramipex 0.125 mg - Half tablet (Pramipexole ) - Dopamine agonists · 9th March - 1 CBD Gummy · 10th March - Levocet 2.5 MG (Levocetirizine) - Antihistamine · 11th March - Buspin 2.5 MG (Buspirone) - Anxiolytics · 14th March - Levocet - Half of 2.5 MG · 16th March - Levocet - Half of 2.5 MG · 21st March - Bilagra 3 MG (Bilastine) - Antihistamine · HOSPITALISED on 23rd March to 30th March - Vantaxa 5 MG (Vortioxetine) – Half tablet for 1 day - serotonin modulator and stimulator Antidepressant then Prothaden 25 MG (Dosulepin) – Half tablet for 1 day + quarter tablet for 3 days. - Tricyclic antidepressant · 1st , 3rd , 5th & 7th April - Opiprol 50 MG (Opipramol) – quarter tablet - Tricyclic antidepressant · 8th April to 6th May - Lecope AD ( Levocetrizine , phenylephrine and ambroxol) - Mucolytic, Antihistamines and Nasal decongestants – Took it for Sore throat · 10th May - 1 drop of Rudra Taila (CBD drops) · 15th to 22nd May - Metolar 25 MG - Half tablet (Metoprolol Tartrate tablets IP) - Beta-blockers. · 25th & 26th May - Homeopathy medicine (3 pills) · 13th to 15th June - Homeopathy medicines · 16th to 21st June – Neksium 40 mg ( Esomeprazole tablets I.P ) – 3 tablets – Proton pump inhibitor and Motilium M (Domperidone tablets I.P) – 3 tablets- Dopamine-2 receptor antagonist · 26th June - Homeopathy medicine · 14th July to 22nd July – Oflox 200 MG - Ofloxacin Tablets I.P – Antibiotic · 26th July – Gabawin 25 MG – Quarter Tablet (Pregabalin) – Antiepileptic · 30th July – Deslor 5 mg - Quarter tablet - Desloratadine- Antihistaminic medication · 8th August - Half of Allegra 180 (Fexofenadine) – She takes half tablet of Allegra 180 every 3 days for her hives till date. · 30th August – 1 Meftal spas (Dicyclomine (10mg) & Mefenamic Acid (250mg) Anticholinergic and NSAID · 11th September - Homeopathy medicine + Half of Meftal 500 (Mefenamic Acid) · 3rd & 4th October – Half of Syndopa plus (Levodopa (100mg) + Carbidopa (25mg) - Antiparkinson agent · 6th October - Half of Allegra 180 (Fexofenadine) · 7th October – 1 + ½ Lecope AD (Ambroxol (60mg) + Phenylephrine (5mg) + Levocetirizine (5mg) Mucolytic, Antihistamines and Nasal decongestants – Took it for Sore throat AND 2 tablets of Lanol ER (Paracetamol 650mg) - Analgesic (pain reliever) and anti-pyretic (fever reducer) · 23rd October – 1 tablet of NOW - Saccharomyces Boulardii probiotic – 5 billion CFU · 26th October – 1 tablet of Pan 40 (Pantoprazole Gastro resistant tablets IP ) - Proton pump inhibitor · 27th October - Half of Allegra 180 (Fexofenadine) · 28th October – 1 tablet of Nexpro 40 (Esomeprazole magnesium tablets I.P AND 1/4th tablet of Gastractiv 10mg (DOMPERIDONE) - dopamine antagonist · 29th October - 1 tablet of Nexpro 40 (Esomeprazole magnesium tablets I.P - Proton pump inhibitor (Took for 10 days). My current symptoms since 15 months are:- Internal tremors running from head to toe, involuntary movements, nerves pull and pain on taking any medication, pacing, electrical sensitivity to electronics, tingling in hands and feet, burning of skin, external tremors, pain in my occipital area and neck, pulsating at the base of the head which goes down to my entire body. The neurologists did various tests like MRI of cervical spine, F DOPA PET Scan – Brain, Various blood tests, Whole Genome Sequencing (Genetic testing) and all were clear.They then officially diagnosed me with Functional Neurological Disorder (conversion disorder). Currently I can barely walk and im homebound for 15 months now. I currently take only my thyroid medication which is Thyroxine 112 mcg every morning before breakfast – 1 tablet and half tablet of Allegra 180 MG (fexofenadine) – once a week for Hives. The diagnosis that I have received from most neurologist and psychiatrist is that I have Functional neurological disorder (conversion disorder) or Depression and my symptoms are somatic. But I feel this could Kindling or Akathisia or Serotonin syndrome or Mast cell activation or Mold or Long Covid or Withdrawal from the rapid trial and error of medicines but no doctor is ready to help me or give me clarity as to what is wrong with me and why no medication is working on my body? I have tried counselling, EMDR, CBT, DBT, Physiotherapy, ayurvedic, homeopathy and every allopathy medicine possible but my condition doesn’t improve and im really suffering with the physical symptoms especially internal shaking/tremors. I have no idea what has gone wrong and no doctors in India help and they all have put their hands up. Currently no medication/ supplements works on my body and only makes my condition worse. Can someone please tell me what exactly am i suffering from? And is there any cure? I feel helpless and lost as as I have tried everything in my reach and my condition is getting worse day by day. Please Help and Guide me. Thank you so much in advance.

About three years ago, I went to a new psychiatrist, highly recommended by my therapist, to ask him about getting off the venlafaxine and clonazepam I was put on 20 and 15 years ago. When I left I had two new prescriptions: bupropion and lamictal. He thought I was severely depressed. The lamictal was supposed to counteract the effects on adrenaline production of long-term use of venlafaxine. It worked overnight. I enjoyed a few years of relatively good mood. I was also 3 years sober then, and now 6.5 years. Quitting all psychotropics has been on my mind for years. An early experience with Paxil in the 1990s--I took it for maybe a month, tops, but it made me groggy. I became sicker than I'd ever been--flat on my back with vertigo, horrible nightmares, and continuous nausea, as well as the brain stuff. Lucky for me, all this cleared up after about a week. Of course any doctor I spoke to about this had no idea. I am here to learn about weaning, and to find support for making a decision and beginning the baby steps.

Hello SA, I am a 24 year old grad student with a history of depression and anxiety. My med history is below. August 2017: started Venlafaxine @ 37.5 mg, gradually moved up until @ 150mg by end of year. 2018-July 30,2023: On Venlafaxine 150mg July 31, 2023: Begin taper, following SA's 10% every four weeks protocol October 17, 2023: Taper after three weeks instead of four. Feel fine at first, but by Saturday October 21 feel above average anxiety. End up going back to my previous taper's dose on October 26, 2023. Currently holding at this dose. November 2, 2023: Major depressive crash. Went back up to full dose (150mg)

I was on Valafexine for 10 years. I was at 2 75s a day. I tappered off myself for a year. When i got to the point where i was off of it my withdraw started gradually with dizziness and irritability then it progressed to feeling tired all the time and bad anxiety for a week then it went to sweating, shaking, panic, free fall feeling insomnia. I ended up in the doctors office and back on 2 25s a day to stabilize me. After three days i went up to 100 mg a day for 5 days, then they put me on 37.5 and i was on that for 6 days and ended up in the hospital for serotonin syndrome. The psychiatrist took me off of valafexine and put me on heavy sleeping pills, and buspar. I stopped the buspar after 4 days because it was to much for me. Im on day 4 of no valafexine. I started the dizziness yesterday. I just want to know if anyone has a similar story and if the withdraw is as bad the second time around? Has anyone been put back on and tappered back off with a better and shorter withdraw time?

Hi everyone.. I am currently on venlaflaxine at 300mg and want to start tapering down by 25mg at a time .. in the UK the dosage changes are a minimum of 37:5 each dose . I am sure I read years ago there are companies which you can pay that will do dosages at your request (with the doctor consent) has anyone heard of this ? If so know of any in particular? I have been on this medication for ten years now and had two attempts to come off which have gone smoothly until the lower doses and then triggered a huge episode of depression each time. I have a plan this time and am using other sources to support:) any insight would be greatly appreciated xx