Aa
trying to come off 37.5mg of venlafaxine
hiya i was hoping for some advise.. i have been on 75mg of venlafaxine for about a year i have cut it down to 37.5mg but for the last 3 days i have been doing cold turkey. im a mess at the minute, crying alot and my mood swings are awful.. i have just had to take a quatre of the 37.5mg to see if that helps, i really need to come off them cus the weight gain is awful.. can any1 give me any advice please xxxx
I have pasted his article quite a few times. Until someone provides medical advice proving he is wrong I will stick with what he wrote.
I hate to say this, but I found Gould to be a real quack. Seemed he was trying to sell his own site then really help! JMHO!
Hey there. I was on Effexor twice, and I found the side affects of it worse then coming off it. I never had real problems coming off it though. I did wean down, but only by 1/4 every 2 weeks, and I did just fine. Any faster, and I may have had problems. But I was also on clonazepam at the time, so that may have helped with some of the symptoms.
As far as the weight gain, Effexor, Seroquel, and psychiatric med that people say make them gain weight, the weight gain is usually a side affect of a side affect. Let me explain. I didn't gain weight on Effexor, but I was only on it for 5 months, and was physically sick with a bad gall bladder at the time, AND was extremely busy opening a new store, so food was the last thing on my mind. But when I was on Seroquel (a lot like Effexor), I was in the hospital on the psych ward, where I did very little activity, and continued that way when I got home. I also found myself wanting more foods like bread, French fries, pasta's, and bad foods like KFC and pizza, McDonalds. I gained A LOT of weight. I did a lot of studying and asking questions, and it turns out that seroquel and effexor has a side affect of craving carbs, and also has a tendency to slow down your activity, mentally and physically. The mental part is good, it evened me out, but the physical tiredness, and then the weight gain made me decide to drop the seroquel. I still have some of the weight gain from when I was on seroquel because my metabolism has slowed down and the lack of exercise I did while on it took a told on my muscles and I lost a lot of muscle strength, and so far have been to tired to really try to work out and get back into shape. Sometimes it seems to be a vicious cycle.
Its quite possible that the things you are feeling right now aren't because of withdrawal, but just because you don't have that medication support you had. You're going from something, even a little bit, to nothing. You must have been on it for a reason, and the effexor may have been helping more then you think, and now that you have no chemical support, you are feeling the way you did before, but notice it more after being on something for a year. Make sense? I hope so. LOL. I have a tendency to ramble on a lot when i have something on my mind and need to get it all out before I lose what I was thinking.
As far as the weight gain, Effexor, Seroquel, and psychiatric med that people say make them gain weight, the weight gain is usually a side affect of a side affect. Let me explain. I didn't gain weight on Effexor, but I was only on it for 5 months, and was physically sick with a bad gall bladder at the time, AND was extremely busy opening a new store, so food was the last thing on my mind. But when I was on Seroquel (a lot like Effexor), I was in the hospital on the psych ward, where I did very little activity, and continued that way when I got home. I also found myself wanting more foods like bread, French fries, pasta's, and bad foods like KFC and pizza, McDonalds. I gained A LOT of weight. I did a lot of studying and asking questions, and it turns out that seroquel and effexor has a side affect of craving carbs, and also has a tendency to slow down your activity, mentally and physically. The mental part is good, it evened me out, but the physical tiredness, and then the weight gain made me decide to drop the seroquel. I still have some of the weight gain from when I was on seroquel because my metabolism has slowed down and the lack of exercise I did while on it took a told on my muscles and I lost a lot of muscle strength, and so far have been to tired to really try to work out and get back into shape. Sometimes it seems to be a vicious cycle.
Its quite possible that the things you are feeling right now aren't because of withdrawal, but just because you don't have that medication support you had. You're going from something, even a little bit, to nothing. You must have been on it for a reason, and the effexor may have been helping more then you think, and now that you have no chemical support, you are feeling the way you did before, but notice it more after being on something for a year. Make sense? I hope so. LOL. I have a tendency to ramble on a lot when i have something on my mind and need to get it all out before I lose what I was thinking.
Gould used to work for Medhelp and claimed meds don't make weight gain.
by Roger Gould, M.D., Jul 18, 2005 12:00AM
You have to make sure that your weight gain is fat gain or water retention, if in fact, your caloric intake is as low as you think. Its impossible to gain real fat without an excess of calories so be sure that you are counting everything. The other explanation is that the emotions of withdrawal sometimes lead you to change of your regular habits, i.e. caloric expenditure. Have you been exercising less or been sedentary more. The other explanation is a consequence of large doses for a long time since the appetite hormones are regulated in part by the dopamine, and serotonin, which are the targets of Effexor.
This will not be a lifetime pattern and you will get over it. If it is an emotional eating issue...eating as a form of self medication, then go to www.masteringfood.com
by Roger Gould, M.D., Jul 18, 2005 12:00AM
You have to make sure that your weight gain is fat gain or water retention, if in fact, your caloric intake is as low as you think. Its impossible to gain real fat without an excess of calories so be sure that you are counting everything. The other explanation is that the emotions of withdrawal sometimes lead you to change of your regular habits, i.e. caloric expenditure. Have you been exercising less or been sedentary more. The other explanation is a consequence of large doses for a long time since the appetite hormones are regulated in part by the dopamine, and serotonin, which are the targets of Effexor.
This will not be a lifetime pattern and you will get over it. If it is an emotional eating issue...eating as a form of self medication, then go to www.masteringfood.com
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