going off effexor xr to zoloft

[vickie44]

hi,just wanted to ask a question my dr put me on effexor xr 75 mg 7 mos ago well they arent working at all i kept telling him they werent he upped my dose to 150 that made it worse so went back down to 75 i tried to stop cold turkey once never again ,well last time i went to see him was in dec and i was crying and told him id rather die then live like this cause alls i do is sleep have no energy im starting to get moody and my aniety is worse ,well he sent me to a psychiatrist hes putting me on zoloft im to take the effexor like normal then 1 week of 25 mg of zoloft for 7 days then 3 weeks on the 50 mg what im wanting to know is once the effexor is out of my body could i also stop the zoloft after 1 month also i want off all these meds i feel the meds are making me crazy i have no life i never go anywhere i dont do anything i use to do i havent had anymore panic attacks just crying spells here and there and my husband sometimes makes it worse hes stressed over bills and yells not at me just yells about everything and it bothers me and yes i have tried telling him to please not do it but he dont listen he also dont understand what im going through my panic i believe was caused from alot of stress first i had a ovary and tube removed jan 2006 then in april i went to jail over my ex husbands g/f then in may i went to jail again twice over my ex husband himself and then while in walmart i couldnt handle nomore and had a very bad attack and i was also scared to be home alone i was terrifed out of my mind people though i was crazy ,any advice on the zoloft switch.

[billbaggins]

I was on Effexor XR for several months.

When you go off (or on) Effexor, the doctor should give you a "starter kit" of 37.5mg's for about two weeks then move up to 75, then to 150 if need be. I was on 150's for quite some time, but when I wanted to stop taking them, I had to do the opposite...go from 150 to 75 to 37.5 then off of them completely. It seemed to work quite well for me.

Did your doctor do this? Or did he just put you on the 75's from the get go? From what I understand, starting high (75 or 150) can create too much serotonin which could cause some of the symptoms you speak of.

[vickie44]

yes my dr started me on the 37.5 for 10 days then i went to 75 i was on them for like 5 mos well my depression was getting worse so he upped me to 150 they were too strong i couldnt handle them so then he tried me on 2 -75's one in am and one in pm they worked for maybe 15 days then they started feeling just like the 150's so i went back down to 75's then i got worse i was depressed and crying and then started having the fainting spells so he sent me to a psychiatrist he put me on the zoloft 25 mg for 7 days then 50 mg for 3 weeks along wilth taking the effexor for 1 month then said to stop the effexor after one month i hate the effexor i couldnt do anything on them i had no energy i slept all the time now the 75's arent working either i wake up in the middle of the night and the dr said its my high aniety  and the tingling sensation is back it went away for awhile but its back plus now my stomach hurts and i just dont feel good at all i start my zoloft tomorrow and im praying they work hes also putting me on the welbrutin to help me stop smoking plus i take 1 mg xanax as needed.they say the effexor is hard to come off of and it is to me cause i tried stopping cold turkey when i had the 150's and i was soooooooooo dizzy and slept 24/7 i couldnt get out of bed and i had bad nightmares from it too on this med you have to go off slow i dont know much about the zoloft but i hated paxil too it made my aniety really bad i couldnt handle it at all and i only took it for 3 days .and also i was sleeping good at night but now i wake long before time to get up last night i woke up at 2am and couldnt go back to sleep and i get up at 6am

[gfitz]

I was on effexor xr for 8 months, after being on Zoloft for about 5 or 6 years. In all I've been on meds for depression for over 12 years, and my case is severe enough that I've been told to expect to be medicated for the rest of my life. First of all: Even though they say it takes about 2 weeks for these drugs to take full effect, I found it to take more like 3 weeks. 3 days is not enough!! Zoloft (at 300mgs/day), while it was working, was like waking up from a bad dream. I was "me" again for the first time on years! Unfortunately, as my body's hormones changed with my age (I'm now 56), Zoloft no longer was working so well for me. So, after trying Wellbutrin (gave me hives! :( ) and one other drug which did nothing, they started me on 225 mgs of effexor xr. After a couple of  months, when I was having crying jags, etc., they upped it to 300mgs. Like you, I turned into a zombie. I'm just now fully off effexor and on Cymbalta (the jury's still out as to how well this is working -- after all, I came to this board today because I'm having a massive anxiety attack!).

Going off effexor, even in increments, is no fun at all. Nightmares for sure! Headaches, muscle aches, no energy. Finally I'm getting my energy back, but this morning's anxiety attack makes me wonder if the Cymbalta I've been switched to is working.

Anyway, I hope your experience with Zoloft is as good as mine was (while it lasted), but you must give it time!! Weeks, not days! No one likes to think that they're so messed up they need medication to be "normal," or "sane." You need to keep in mind that life events can trigger a chemical imbalance in your body. "Snapping out of it" is not an option here. Pretend you've just been diagnosed with diabetes. Would you stop taking your insulin just because you wake up feeling good one morning? Or because you've decided you don't like taking medication? No, because you know the diabetes is still there, lurking until you eat too much sugar (or see your ex-husband, or whatever is your trigger).

Many people find that they can go off medication after a time (think months or more) and with therapy. Don't rush it!! SRI drugs are not like taking a tranquilizer which takes effect in 20 mins. and lasts for 4 to 6 hours. Also, you didn't get into this condition overnight. Chances are that as you look back you'll see years worth of symptoms you were able to suppress at the time.

My husband too, is scared and worried about money(I can't work right now). It is incredibly stressful to listen to their fears and anxieties (and the anger which is the result), I know. Makes me feel even less worthy, more of a problem than the helper I want to be, and used to be.

Anyway, hang in there!! Keep taking the meds, and if they aren't working after a couple of weeks, call your mental health person again. Keep trying 'til they find the right medication for you -- it's hell while you're going through it, but the relief you'll get is worth it! Good luck!

[marybeth_van]

I really want to go off effexor. I am afraid of the side effects. any suggestions