Going off Effexor and onto Wellbutrin

I've been on Effexor XR (300 mg) for about fifteen years and recently decided with my psychiatrist that I would go off it and start Wellbutrin XL. I got on the Wellbutrin (150 mg) and started tapering off the Effexor, and I was surprised at how smoothly it was going. Then I went from 75 mg of the Effexor to nothing, and within two days I felt like I was going to die. I felt nauseous, drunk and hung over at the same time, shaky, dizzy, etc. Sometimes my heart feels like it's pounding so hard that it's going to explode. I've done everything everyone says to do--Benadryl, vitamin B complex, antacids, ginger tea, omega-3 fish oil pills, no alcohol--and it's gotten a lot, lot better.  But it's been two weeks since I went completely off it and I still have brain zaps and nausea and I'm having a really hard time concentrating on my work, and I'm basically just miserable. I've come to the conclusion that I probably should have tapered off much slower, but it seems like there's not much point in going back and starting over at this point. I'm scared that it's not going to get better, and I feel terrible emotionally. I feel hopeless, and I've been getting angry and irritated at everything, and I finally realized today that I am starting to feel like a very unpleasant, angry person. I'm not sure if I'm feeling this way just because of the withdrawal, or if it's the Wellbutrin that is making me angry and irritable (I think I've just been feeling so angry since I got off the Effexor, not the entire time I've been on the Wellbutrin, but I've read that it can have this effect), or if I just need the Effexor in order to not be such an angry, horrible person--it just seems like there's too many variables, but I need to figure out which one is causing it because I can't stand myself this way. So I guess my questions are, will I feel physically better someday or would it be best to start the process of getting off Effexor all over again, and has anyone had the same experience with Wellbutrin and Effexor, and how did you deal with it? I like my psychiatrist, but I just get the sense that psychiatrists really don't have a good understanding of how these meds can make you feel and it's just a lot of guess and check (and I feel like my psychiatrist thinks I have things a lot more together than I really do). I'm sorry this is so long, but I'd really appreciate it if anyone can help!

[M4Y0U]

Ask your doctor for Tramadol to smooth the Effexor withdrawal.

Structurally, tramadol closely resembles a stripped down version of codeine. Both codeine and tramadol share the 3-methyl ether group, and both compounds are metabolized along the same hepatic pathway and mechanism to the stronger opioid, phenol agonist analogs. For codeine, this is morphine, and for tramadol, it is the M1 metabolite, O-desmethyltramadol. The closest chemical relative of tramadol in clinical use is venlafaxine  (Effexor), an SSNRI. The two molecules are nearly identical. Both tramadol and venlafaxine share SSNRI properties, while venlafaxine is devoid of any opioid effects.

You don't want to be addicted to Tramadol but used wisely it can smooth the withdrawal symptoms of Effexor extremely well. You might want to decide to go with tramadol and Wellbutrin together, this could prove to be a really good working antidepressants combo. Wellbutrin acts primarily as a dopamine reuptake inhibitor and to a lesser extend norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor without any significant serotonin affinity.

M4

References - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tramadol

[remar]

I've taken Effexor myself and it was the hardest antidepressant for me to quit. You have to taper very slowly off this med. It sounds like you went a little too fast. The withdrawal will go away. Since we're all so different it's really hard to say when that will happen for you. Wellbutrin can have those side effects for some people but like you said, it hard to say if it's that med or the withdrawal. I've never taken Wellbutrin but my daughter has and she said it can be a stimulating med. The Effexor made me calm and almost to tired at times. They are very different meds. How long have you been taking the Wellbutrin and how long have you been off the Effexor? You do understand it can take weeks to build up in your system. If what your going through is just to hard to deal with then talk to your Dr. It would of course be up to you if you wanted to go back and do the tapering more slowly. If you've been off of it for a couple of weeks you might want to consider just hanging in there and being done with it.  Remar

[Sophia10]

Thanks for your response, Remar. I've been on the Wellbutrin for a little over a month, and completely off the Effexor for two weeks. I had been planning on staying on Effexor for the rest of life, but I finally realized that it was the reason I was so tired all the time and had to take so many naps during the day--I really disliked that about myself, but I'd been on it for so long (since I was sixteen) that I thought that I was just a person with very, very low energy. (And my doctor thinks that I'm still slightly depressed--I guess I've just gotten used to that too--and so he thought it would be a good idea to try a different category of antidepressants.) I guess I'll just have to wait it out and see if the anger and irritability go away--all these feelings just make me feel like a really disgusting, unpleasant person, and I really hate feeling this way about myself.

[suzsibs]

Why decide to change after 15 years? I've been taking effexor for 9 years, I stopped due to spasms and jerks that doctor thought were caused by effexor, I went through what you are going through, I was diagnosed with spinal myoclonus and after 6 months of hell not taking effexor the jerks didn't go away so I went straight back on effexor and although I'm jerking still and now taking anti epilepsy meds I would rather take effexor and cope with my depression and jerks than turn into as you put it 'angry person'. Tell your psychiatrist how you feel and don't be fobbed off.
Best of luck
Suz

[M4Y0U]

Ask your doctor for Tramadol to smooth the Effexor withdrawal.

Structurally, tramadol closely resembles a stripped down version of codeine. Both codeine and tramadol share the 3-methyl ether group, and both compounds are metabolized along the same hepatic pathway and mechanism to the stronger opioid, phenol agonist analogs. For codeine, this is morphine, and for tramadol, it is the M1 metabolite, O-desmethyltramadol. The closest chemical relative of tramadol in clinical use is venlafaxine  (Effexor), an SSNRI. The two molecules are nearly identical. Both tramadol and venlafaxine share SSNRI properties, while venlafaxine is devoid of any opioid effects.

You don't want to be addicted to Tramadol but used wisely it can smooth the withdrawal symptoms of Effexor extremely well. You might want to decide to go with tramadol and Wellbutrin together, this could prove to be a really good working antidepressants combo. Wellbutrin acts primarily as a dopamine reuptake inhibitor and to a lesser extend norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor without any significant serotonin affinity.

M4

References - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tramadol

[Sophia10]

I decided to change medications after fifteen years because I finally realized that it was the reason I was so tired all the time and had to take so many naps during the day--I really disliked that about myself, but I'd been on it for so long (since I was sixteen) that I thought that I was just a person with very, very low energy. (I was living with someone last year, and having someone else around all the time made me very, very conscious of this.) I didn't like feeling like I was sleeping my life away, and this just made me feel very hopeless. Also, I have started seeing a new psychiatrist, who thinks that although I have been functional over the past fifteen years, I am still somewhat depressed and another medication might help me feel better and get more joy out of life, not just be functional. I am going through some difficult life changes right now, and I had a suicide attempt earlier this summer. I think that feeling so badly about my life because of the side effects of Effexor--on top of the challenges that I am facing right now--is really not an option for me, and my psychiatrist agrees with me on this.

[Sophia10]

Thank you, M4Y0U. I am seeing my psychiatrist next week and will ask him about this.

[M4Y0U]

You may want to bring a copy of what I said in the post in case your psychiatrist doesn't know the drug. Most of the time doctors will be hesitant in giving medications they don't know well. I think Tramadol is well known by doctors but it's SSNRI action and use for Effexor withdrawals or as a antidepressant is maybe not mainstream.

M4

[suzsibs]

Hi Sophia
Let me know how you get on, I know what you mean about not just being functional. You got some knowledgeable info from M4YOU I hope it helps with your symptoms and your psychiatrist gives it a go for you. There is nothing worse than side effects from meds ;0(
Take care
Suz

[Sophia10]

Thank you, Suz. M4YOU, I am definitely going to ask my psychiatrist about Tramadol, and I hope that he either knows about it or is willing to look into it, but if he's not familiar with it, I certainly don't want him prescribing it to me based on what someone on the Internet said--I think that's a pretty good way of setting yourself up for a malpractice lawsuit, and I do like to think are still a few subtle differences between psychiatrists and common pushers.

Sophia

[RenZimE]

Tramadol is indeed a well documented aid to Effexor withdrawal. I, myself am taking Effexor and will definitely take the Tramadol approach when my time comes to come off the medication. I can totally empathise with the tiredness.. With a full nights sleep I will still feel completely sluggish and in need of a nap. Its rediculous because, as much as I've always been a relatively sleepy person, at times it feels I simply cannot function for the tiredness.

Please do let us know how you get on.. I genuinely am interested on this journey to becoming Effexor-free. Best of luck,

RenZimE.

[1rosa]

Hi,

I am doing the same as you, and am now on wellbutrin 300 sr, along with Lamictal 200MG, and down to 37.5 effexor from 225. I want to taper to 25 and then be off it but it seems the last tapering is somehow the hardest. for two weeks, I have tried and get into crying, zaps, depression..so I am going to ask for Tramadol.

Also, for you and anyone who wants to taper, the method I used and that I found online was this: The formula is 2 to 1, then 1 to 1, then 1, so it goes like this: 75 one day 1 and 2, 50 on day 3; second stage is 75, 50, 75, 50 and then you are down to 50. Each stage can take as long as you want, depending on your reaction.tolerance.

I don't want 2 anti-depressants as a cocktail, esp. since I switched because I thought wellbutrin was better if getting pregnant and sexual side effects. Why is this last stage so hard, it just leaves me numb, crying, barely off the couch. If you take Tramadol, are yous till tapering or can you not take effexor and just do the Tramadol in it's place?