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Special Effexor: Withdrawal effectively over

Aug 2 2006 | Comments 5

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Some have asked how the Effexor withdrawal was going. And you know what’s weird? It’s going great. I’m now down to half my original dose, and the only side effect I notice is a little dizziness in the afternoon-evening, which dissipates once I’ve taken the pill. I was so terrified, but I’ve got no complaints. I’m glad I opted to try it despite all the warnings. I feel better now; the night sweats are gone, and I’m losing weight. The depression isn’t back yet, thank goodness, but I think I’ll stay on the half-dose for a while.

Kent sent this funny cartoon from his neck of the woods. (Side note: Kent, I can’t find your address anywhere! I wanted to write back, but I lost the envelope.) He also included a card that had an inspiring quote from Emerson, who was a true pro in that arena, despite being saddled with a middle name like “Waldo.” The card is after the jump.

Thanks to those of you sending in cards. Sometimes it’s nice to get a piece of paper in the mail, kinda the way they did things in 1796. (Or was that 1986? Whatever.)


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liz | 12:47 PM | Uncategorized

meg Says:

glad it’s going well. when i went off of effexor, my doc tapered it by adding some prozac, and i had no problems.

Aug 2 12:58 PM

Masale.Wallah Says:

Good to hear that you’re doing well and the weaning program is yielding positive results. Also, the new photograph is much better! A suggestion for the next redesign of the blog: Could you have the links on the right side in some sort of an ordered/bulletted list? The current form makes it hard to discern where one link ends and the next one starts.

Aug 2 2:50 PM

Wendy Says:

I just weaned myself off of Effexor after 8 years. I still take Wellbutrin which probably helped with the withdrawal. Congrats on your success, as I know how hard these adjustments can be.

Aug 15 9:31 PM

Jennifer Brady Says:

I happened upon your site. I am glad you are doing so well with your symptoms. I have been trying to taper off for nearly two years and finally decided to get off once and for all. It seems odd to me that a drug that has such devestating “side effects” can not be more closely regulated or taken off the market. My last two weeks have been pure h*ll. I still have to endure the dizziness, nausea, brain “zaps”, and various other effects, but they are much more manageable. I consider myself to be an educated health care professional, who had no idea this was even a problem until I read an article released by the AP. After doing much research and numerous emails and phone calls, I am finding out that the FDA does not have much to say about Effexor XR. I guess it should not suprise me since the pharmecutical companies give big campaign dollars. Continued success on your tapering off Effexor.

Aug 23 11:11 PM

mar Says:

I have gone cold turkey from effexor. It has been one week and I still have side effects. How much longer do you think it will be before I feel normal again?

Nov 11 3:29 PM

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