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Long-term withdrawal effects from Effexor XR - HELP!
I have been off Effexor for about 5 months now. I stopped cold-turkey per my doctor's instruction (BIG mistake!). I thought once I was over the initial withdrawal, I would be fine; BUT I only had a couple weeks of feeling o.k. before I started experiencing all sorts of problems. I started with muscle weakness and pain in my calves and stomach pain directly below my rib cage. It then progressed to my arms and now my voice is even weak. Everything is bilateral. Has anyone else experienced these delayed, long-term withdrawal effects from Effexor? If so, did they ever go away? I'm scheduled for an MRI of my brain to rule out anything more serious such as ALS. If my tests come back o.k., the doctor mentioned putting me back on Effexor and then weaning me off of it very slowly to see if that gets rid of everything, but I'm afraid to go back on it in case it just makes everything worse. I am also under the care of a homeopathic doctor and am on several supplements, which have helped greatly with my depression, but my physical symptoms have not gone away. Any advice or help would be appreciated!
Best Answer
Could any of the supplements you are taking also be having side effects coupled with a re- emergence of symptoms you had prior to taking the effexor?? I only ask because time has passed (did you say it has been several weeks now?) since you stopped cold turkey (can't believe the doctor recommended that!! YIKES. At this point, all know that tapering off slowly is the best course of action). I am wondering if some of your anxiety isn't returning.
Certainly withdrawel side effects on any of these drugs are unpleasant and that could be part of it but there could be other things going on as well.
I would definately put yourself back under a doctor's care to manage the situation even if it isn't the same one that instructed you to quit cold turkey (as you may have lost confidence in him/her).
Wishing you lots of luck dear and hope all of the uncomfortable things subside really soon or you find the root cause to treat it effectively. Peace
Certainly withdrawel side effects on any of these drugs are unpleasant and that could be part of it but there could be other things going on as well.
I would definately put yourself back under a doctor's care to manage the situation even if it isn't the same one that instructed you to quit cold turkey (as you may have lost confidence in him/her).
Wishing you lots of luck dear and hope all of the uncomfortable things subside really soon or you find the root cause to treat it effectively. Peace
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The vast majority of people who come off these kinds of meds will experience some level of a discontinuation syndrome (aka, withdrawal), but most for people, it is tolerable and short lived. You should have definitely been tapered off slowly, your doctor was wrong to suggest for you to go off cold turkey, unless you were only taking it for a few days.
Effexor is one of those meds that is notoriously hard to come off. There are definitely more horror stories related to Effexor than a lot of other meds. The good news is, even if it takes a lot longer than a person would think, or desire, you WILL get to feeling better. You are doing the right thing by continuing to follow up with your doctor about your symptoms, because another fairly common occurence is that people attribute a lot, or most of their symptoms to drug w/d, when in reality, a lot of times, there is something else going on, even a reemergence of anxiety and depression. It's just always good to keep the assessment process open while you're still experiencing these symptoms.
I would strongly recommend you making sure that the doctor managing this issue is a psychiatrist familiar with these meds. A PCP can manage anxiety and depression to a POINT, but the most optimal doctor to do this is a psych. I also agree that you may want to seek a second opinion from a new doctor, to get a new perspective. Again, unless you were only on the Effexor for a short, short time, your doc should have known that tapering was recommended.
I'm so sorry you are feeling so lousy, and I wish you the best of luck in finding a solution to help get you feeling better real soon! Just try to keep in mind that, while this has gone on FAR too long for you to have to endure feeling so badly, you won't feel like this forever. For some people, and for unknown reasons, it just takes longer for your system to readjust to not having the Effexor on board.
Please keep us updated, we care!