I have been taking effexor for months now and I decided that I should try to wean myself off of it. I couldn't understand why I was so tired and depressed until I read all these comments.

This is horrible. I know the drug is strong because I've had times when I forgot to take it or forgot to pick it up from the pharmacy and I would have those brain zaps. They are horrible! Every time I just give up because I figured I feel better on the drug then off of it. Depression and anxiety runs in my family but if I knew the withdrawal would be this bad I would have never taken it! I just hate feeling like I'm a horrible person. I don't know what I should do.

People, people, I completely understand how you all feel and have a bit of advice. Effexor is one of the hardest anti-depressants/anti-anxiety medication on the market; worse than the Zoloft family and their withdrawal effects.

Therefore, I just did this myself the past eight days. I went from the 75mg to the 37.5 mg for about four days and then got off of it after three days of being on the lower dosage.

Advice: I would have extended the 37.5 mg a bit longer and cut that size in 1/2 for a week so it would not been as terrible of an experience. So no. 1, taper yourself.

No. 2) I took 1 Benadryl every three hours for the brain shocks/tremors, dizziness, and it helped with lesson the upset stomach. I thought it was the flu. No, it's just the combination of the Effexor that is throughout your body and in your nerve endings throughout your body causing you to feel sick, flu-like, aches, crying for no reason, fever, hot flashes, the headaches.

Also, I talked to the pharmacist and he said to drink lots and lots of fluids to flush the Effexor out of your system. He also said it would take probably up to 10-14 days being off of it completely to feel better.

Hang in there. Do not go back on the drug to end the tough road you are on; it's only the first week (5-7 days) that's the worst! Don't push yourself to do things, you will need to take naps especially with the Benadryl but that is what saved me!

I still have the tiredness and crying a bit, but nothing like this past weekend. I was fortunate not to have to work, but Effexor is one of the most addictive drugs I have ever been on. I was only on the Effexor XR 75 mg since October and they wanted to continue increasing my dosage from the initial 37.5 mg to the 75 mg up to the 300 mg! I am not in that much need for my anxiety. Hey, I have been functioning just fine all my life and have accomplished more than I could have ever dreamed of so it's not that bad! These doctors just want to medicate us and/or our children but in actuality, it is worse.

I am seeing my doctor after Christmas and they are not going to be happy with me. I decided to do this with my paramedic husband and after talking to my pharmacist after I was diagnosed with a sinus and upper respiratory infection.

The ER doctor didn't look at the medicine that I take and I am allergic to after i told him and the RN's three times and my file had it in there too.

Anyway, long story short, the antibiotic interferes with my migraine medicine which can cause death and i was allergic to the family of antibiotics that I was on. Thank God for pharmacists who care about their customers because I would have been dead if I took that antibiotic!

Please be careful with the interactions of the medicine you take and hang in there with the withdrawals because it does get better!

I'm coming off 75mg and this is the worst feeling ever. I felt like I was pregnant again with my kids.

I would never recommend this drug to anyone. I want to sleep half the time and vomit the other half. Makes it really hard to raise two kids and work full time and go to school full time.

I would rather have the mood swings instead of dealing with these withdrawals.

The headaches are horrible and my vision comes and goes. Some days I can't think straight and my poor kids think their mom is losing it completely.

I am a mother of a 3-year-old. I had a miscarriage in March 2008. I began taking Effexor after the loss of our stillborn child in March 2009. I now have insurance which will not pay for Effexor. It will cost me $500 per month, so I can't do that. This is so stupid.

These are the side effects I experienced while on Effexor: decreased sex drive, inability to have orgasm, significant weight gain, constipation.

I haven't taken Effexor for about one week.

I am experiencing these common withdrawal symptoms: dizziness (often referred to as "brain shivers"), sense of slow motion when moving around, like the inside of my brain is dragging behind my head, nausea, diarrhea (occasionally), insomnia, sense of agitation and/or increased anxiety, blurry vision at times, body aches, increased sense of being overwhelmed.

How long will this last? Am I damaging my body by stopping all at once?

I am currently weaning off of 75mg effexor, and I have done a lot of research lately to help. I am finishing my doctorate degree in microbiology and have always had an interest in herbal remedies.

I am on my second week of weaning, and I have had hardly any symptoms - and I am extremely sensitive to these things! As a scientist, I was able to use a scale to weigh out a 5mg dose decrease per day on the weekdays and take the same dose Fri, Sat, and Sun.

I read somewhere that someone counted out the number of white balls. Ideally you put the rest back into the capsule to take, but it can be absorbed into water and drunk. So, I decreased the meds by 5 mg/day on weekdays and started taking fish oil capsules (lots of research shows it can be as effective as prozac!) and vitamin D3. FDA dose of D3 says ~400mg/day, but recent studies show it should be much, much higher.

I have been taking 4,000 IUs of D3/day for a few weeks, and noticed a huge increase in my happiness within the first day. Your body uses D3 to make serotonin (most antidepressants work by keeping what little serotonin you have circulating in your blood, which acts to "increase" your serotonin.)

D3 gives your body the building blocks it needs to make more serotonin to naturally increase your levels. D3 is what your body makes when you are in the sun, incidentally, and it would be really difficult to overdose on.

Take a B-complex vitamin with D3 to help your body make the most of it. By the way, serotonin is converted to melatonin in the dark, so this actually helps you sleep better too! Try to increase these vitamins slowly as you decrease your effexor for the smoothest transition.

Also (and here's the hard part for most of us!) try to back off of the coffee and sweets, as they screw with your serotonin levels by jacking them up and increasing your needed levels of serotonin, then letting them plummet.

Enough of this. I got a four- week pill dispenser and put my decreasing effexor in each day for the first 3 weeks of the month. Then I put in 1000 IU D3 and 1 fish oil capsule for the first week. The second week I put in 2000 IU D3 and 1 fish oil.

The third week I put in 3000 IU D3, a B-complex, and 1 fish oil (this is the last week on effexor) and for the fourth week (no effexor) I put in 4000 IU D3, a B-complex, and 2 fish oils.

I am also decreasing my sugar and caffeine slowly and increasing my exercise. I hate to read about all of you guys suffering like this :(. One last thing, St. John's Wort is an effective herbal antidepressant, however it will interfere with your birth control pills.

I am happy to have found this information. I have been on Effexor for about 6-7 months, i think. Recently i ran out and i could not afford to refill my prescription as i do not have coverage and with Christmas coming and five kids to buy for and only one real income, i figured waiting a week or so would be no big deal.

The past few days have been hell. i am exhausted. i have been getting upset at my kids for nothing and then it is just going away. i can never organize my thoughts right and i feel as though i am going blind. I know i am not but everything is very blurry and i feel like i am going to vomit if i turn my head or even my eyes.

I am a photographer and it is how i was making my money for Christmas and i did a shoot today and half my shots were blurry. I need this money but i don't know how i will do my shoots this week like this. It will truly ruin Christmas.

I never new of any of these side effects. i am very sore and i just don't know how i am going to get through till i can get more pills, although now i do not really want them but they have made a big difference for me.

I feel for everyone else who is going through this. Also wondering how doctors can neglect to inform us about this before we agree to use it.

I can't stop crying just from reading the posts. Little did I know how awful this would be. I have three little girls and am at home mom trying to quit taking this.

My daily withdrawal is the brain tremor, dizziness and stupid crying episodes. I went from 150XR to 75XR to four days now of nothing and the eye movement dizziness is constant.

I asked my daughter (11) to help me drive because if I move my head to look for cars I get too dizzy. I have found that if I close my eyes before I move my head the zap isn't near as bad. It even occurs when I move my eyes from side to side.

I have had one episode of severe unexplained headache with throwing up even water for about 24 hours, of course on Turkey day. I also fly off the handle at almost nothing: yelling, crying. I hate what I am doing to my kids.

I don't want them to think I am weak or an angry person, because I am not. I only began this med because the man I was with when I was eight months pregnant with my last, now two, kicked me and my two girls out so he could be with someone else (decided he didn't want to have kids or the responsibility) without a penny to our name.

Now I feel like all of that is coming back to haunt me. I know I am dealing with this as a result of those circumstances and it's is one vicious cycle. Somehow we all need to hang on. I have kids who depend on me.

I have been taking Effexor XR 75 for 10 months, to help with the coping process of a divorce. I wish my doctor had told me about the withdrawal symptoms of this drug and the side effects.

I have gained 20 pounds since being on Effexor. I decided to stop it cold turkey six days ago. Since then I have had the brain zaps, severe joint pain, headaches, irritability, a horrible feeling of being overwhelmed all the time, zero ambition and at least three crying spells daily.

I am a mess. I had no idea that this medication was so addicting. If I had known I would have never taken it. I am heading to the store to buy some vitamins to alleviate some of these symptoms. If anyone is thinking about taking this drug, don't.

I am a 21 year old Canadian woman and have been on Effexor for 11 months. I recently switched jobs and lost my benefits for a while as a result. I recently ran out of pills and have had to go without them cold-turkey. I cannot afford a refill on my prescription until my benefits kick in mid-December.

It has been five days since I last had a pill and I am trembling so hard right now that I can barely type. I've been nauseous for days, cannot stand without support, have to close my eyes when I move my head for fear of further dizziness, and can barely even keep water down. When I move my eyes from side to side, I can hear them. It's this weird buzzing sound inside my skull.

I cried yesterday when I dropped a sock on the ground. I just woke up from a 16-hour "nap", and all I can say is thank God I already have today off work.

I would not wish this on my worst enemy. Please do not take this drug. I suffer from severe depression in addition to borderline personality disorder, and while this pill has helped ease the pain in some horrible times, I wish my doctor and I had gone with something - anything else.

All I want for Christmas is to feel less like I'm dying.

i was on this God forsaken drug for two and a half years at 150mg, went down to 75mg, then 37.5mg. i am now on day 9 without it. i feel the pain of each and every person out here who has spoken of their hellish experience.

i am a 38 year old male, i work at a job that i love and even though it is a very physical job it had always kept me in good shape.

i have gained a significant amount of weight whilst on this medication. now the withdrawals -- it's awful, the headaches, dizziness, nausea, extremely agitated, and on and on.

i am a devoted husband and a very loving and grateful father of two children ages five and four, but these withdrawal symptoms have made life very difficult!

my heart goes out to everyone going through this. for whatever it is worth, i had read a posting somewhere and a person recommended smoking pot. i apologize if this is offensive to anyone, but i was desperate, and it gave me tremendous relief! benadryl also helps. God bless.

I have been on effexor for seven years with a dosage of 275mg a day.

I started coming off of effexor three months ago and am still not able to stop. I have the "brain tremors", feeling as if my arms/legs react slower than what my brain tells them. I'm nauseated and have vomited -- it's almost a motion sick feeling.

My doctor and I have planned that hopefully by spring (it's Thanksgiving now) I will be off of Effexor completely.

If I would have known all this beforehand, I would never have started taking them.

Good luck to all who are trying to come off of Effexor.

I am on 450mg of effexor. I have started menopause and none of my clothes fit me as I have put on so much weight.

The doctor's advice was to watch what I eat, go walking daily and that I will have to go off effexor but I am absolutely terrified. Just thinking about it makes me cry.

She suggested hospitalisation for two weeks during the beginning of this transition but she has no idea - how can I leave my family voluntarily for two weeks?

I now know that going on effexor was the biggest mistake of my life.

I have been off this drug for 200 days and now I can barely see. I had to get my son to type this and to read everything for me and I can not sleep past 3 a.m. This drug sucks and to anyone who is thinking of taking this, don't. Can anyone help? Never try this drug!

I've been taking generic effexor 150mg/day for about sixc weeks or so, but lost my insurance right as I was due to get a refill, so I've had to stop taking it, as I cannot afford the $150 cost. This entire last week, I've felt just generally horrible. Then today, I woke up with the worst headache and stomachache that I've ever had, worse than any hangover ever. Felt like I was being punched in the stomach, and like I desperately needed to throw up. It's lasted all day. And then tonight, I suddenly started a crying jag that made me feel like I could no longer go on, and wanted to commit suicide. Dear God, I just want it to stop!

After reading these comments, I can relate 100 percent. This has got to be the worst medication in the history of antidepressants and I wish that doctors never prescribed such a powerful drug to all of us.

I'm a 20 year old (Canadian) woman who has been suffering from depression and anxiety since I was about 17 and started going on Effexor when I was 18 so I've been on Effexor for 2 years now at the 75mg dose. The first year I was on it then after a while I felt I didn't need it anymore, then I went off of it cold turkey, because my doctor had no information really about it in the first place to tell me not to and why, just that it would help with my depression and anxiety disorder. well let me tell you that was a nightmare. then I was fine for a few months until I relapsed (having multiple breakdowns etc.) and had to go back on it again, since April I've been taking it, and it helped like usual, and then it stopped working, I noticed. I felt that I didn't need it anymore because it's not helping me and that maybe there is a different and natural way to help me instead, so at the moment I'm weaning myself off, talked with my new doctor, and I planned it out on my calendar, which is a smart idea to do. One day I take Effexor and the next day I don't. I do this for about a week so I can build some tolerance and be getting used to coming off of the drug. It's starting to get difficult even missing one day. I'm scared for week 2 to come around where I'll have to skip the 37.5mg dose for two days and then finally the third week I'll skip it for three days and by January 1st will be my last day of Effexor and I can hopefully be free of these terrible symptoms! My withdrawal symptoms include: nausea (extreme), headache, dizziness (extreme), night sweats (I had them during taking the medication in the first place and still have them while trying to get off of it too), and of course the infamous terrible "brain zaps" where it literally feels like an electrocution to the brain. it shocks my whole brain, especially to the right side of me. my whole right side is completely numb and tingly during these "zaps" and this is from a small dose. I can't even imagine how it is for others who take higher doses. This feels like an illegal drug's side effect, not from something that is prescribed to help us by our doctors. I really wish I had listened to my mom on this one regardless of being 18 and an "adult" or not. Well that's my story. I wish you all luck and hope for a better stress free future. :) xoxo.

I was only on effexor for five days, but the side effects were too much. 100 mg and five minutes later i was throwing up uncontrollably. can't stay awake more than an hour after i take one. Three days after i stopped taking them, and I still feel really nauseous, antisocial, anxious and tired. this stuff is pure poison.

I am currently taking 225mg of Effexor per day and have been on it for about 5 years. Prior to that, I had crippling anxiety that prevented me from having any kind of a life. I have never had any problems with this drug and it has virtually eliminated the anxiety. I sympathize with anyone who has had a bad experience with Effexor, but I highly recommend it with regard to anxiety. I'm afraid I can't comment on its effectiveness with regard to depression as that is not why I take it.

i am currently on effexor an have only been for about three months. I swapped over from aropax and thought i still had room for improvement. i am currently on stress leave from work. i have become a virtual basket case. my psychcologist has said i have acute stress disorder because of the abnormal environment that i work in. i have to go to workcover psych next week. i believe they will try and link this stress up with the depression. i would definitely not recomend this drug to anyone. try aropax. i was so much better on it. wishing everyone full recoveries.

I am currently weaning off effexor - started on 75, now on 37.5 which I now take every other day. I feel like a bus has hit me, ache all over, excessively tired, hallucinations, nightmares, heavy head. When I was initially prescribed this medication,I was told 'you will feel a little off for a few days'. I was given no information about withdraw except don't stop taking them suddenly - if I had known the truth I would have never gone on them in the first place. Why don't doctors talk to you about other options first like counselling, support groups etc. If doctors were truly concerned about our well-being they would look at other pathways before prescribing such medication. I find burning lavender oil or listening to soothing music helps me to sleep better.

I sympathise with everyone. I was prescribed a high dose of Effexor extended relief capsules (150mg) about 6 months ago so that it would "kick in" quickly. The side effects were hellish and have more than outweighed the benefits of the drug. I am now hugely overweight which depresses me as well as being an insomniac. I have not been the most organised person in the world about taking the tablets and after a two week holiday abroad with sporadic tablet taking I attempted to go cold turkey. If you are thinking of trying this - *don't*. I have never felt so ill in my life and functioning has been nearly impossible. In floods of tears I consulted another GP (one who would understand that I am intelligent with two degrees and just don't have a brain that works at the moment as opposed to the one who says "take this it'll make you feel better"!). I have now had a much more tapered discontinuation programme - after the initial fortnight without anything I took 37.5mg daily for 2 weeks, then alternated tablets day on, day off for two weeks. Today is my first third day without the pills and whilst I feel a little spaced out it isn't as bad as I expected. My worst symptoms seem to be much worse IBS. I do have the added complication of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome which may affect things. I would urge anyone trying to come off effexor to do it as gradually as possible and would wish each and every one of you the best of luck in all of your individual battles with depression. Love to all, Jaye x

I am weaning myself off effexor. I have been on effexor for at least five years. I wonder why we are not told the side effects of coming off it? I have had trouble sleeping for years. Now I think it is from the effexor! Coming off it is not easy. I am getting those terrible brain tremors, vomiting, still not sleeping, coughing and over all malaise. I'm taking it every other day and started every two days after a week but had to go back to every other. Couldn't deal well with the brain thing. I think it takes a long time to rid oneself of these awful symptoms.

I've been off Effexor for 5 days after working dosage down to 37.5. I can't afford the meds, and have always been afraid of the withdrawal symptoms (I'm one who gets them just by being a bit late.) I'm still getting brain stutters, nausea, and very bad mood crashes. I'm more suicidal now than ever before. I'm trying to hold on, but am scared to read symptoms may last a long time. I'm angry that the reported affects were so long ignored by the medical and drug communities. Am trying to hold on but am very suicidal. More so than any other time in my life.

I have recently come off my Effexor XR 150 mg because I have no insurance. I feel horrible. I have been crying, I start to drive somewhere familiar and get lost, I am having brain shivers and I am terrified of everything. I don't know what to do I am scared and sad. I have a 22 month old son and I am terrified to be around him because I am breaking down. My husband doesn't know how to help me and frankly I don't know how to help myself. Please can someone help me please? Thank you.

My husband is on one 75 mg & one 150 mg daily of Effexor. The doctor is tapering him off by dropping the 75mg for a month, then another 75 mg drop to finally none and a possible change over to Lexapro. Since dropping the first 75mg five days ago, he has slept almost 22 hours each day and when he is up, he says he's having very bad joint aches and pains. He hasn't showered and he seems very disconnected. Is there anything that will help with the joint pain? Is the sleeping all day common? Thanks, H

I have been reading these posts and other ones on websites about withdrawal. Now at least I know it is not just me being "crazy". I was only on 37.5 and quit cold turkey because I did not know you could open the capsule and take half. It's been two weeks and although I feel fine during the day, at night I turn into a monster! Nightmares are severe, insomnia, extreme agitation like I want to crawl out of my own skin. Someone on a post said taking Omega 3 capsules, Vitamin B complex, and a multi vitamin helps with these symptoms. I am going to try it today! Thanks

I went off Effexor cold turkey and have very few side effects apart from not sleeping as well as usual. Moods are fine -- even a little more upbeat than when I was on the treatment. I keep waiting for the mood to go downhill but this hasn't been the case. I have been off it now for around three weeks after taking it for around 12 months constantly. I think that I must be one of the very lucky ones.

well it's been the third week off of 37.5 and my insomnia is getting worse. I can't fall asleep, even though i'm extremely tired. I can only get at least 4 hours of rest if i'm lucky to fall asleep after 3 a.m. how do I deal with this?

i have been on 150 mg per day of effexor for three years now. for the past three weeks my depression has been very intense due to stress related problems. since i have started taking this medication it helps balance my stress level. but now feels like it just stopped working. i am on day 4 of not taking this med and feel worse everyday, impaired vision, upset stomach, diarrhea, brain tremors, tingling of the tongue and fingertips, can't stop thinking of all the negative stress related problems, constantly crying, tired and i can't fall asleep. i am 24 and have a 3 year old to take care of and i just wish these symptoms would go away. how long does it take for the symptoms to pass?

Why after being on 300 Effexor a day and going down to 150 am I so totally miserable?

Have just gone from 300 Effexor to 150 per day and the doctor added lowest dosage of Chlonazepam: 2 per day. In the last few days I have been very down. I have not felt this way for a long long time. What to do? I only went down on the Effexor because it seemed quite a high dosage.

I am in the process of titrating off of effexor. After reading many online complaints and warnings I was terrified!

Under my doctor's care, I have titrated from Effexor to Zoloft over the last 3 weeks and am relieved to report I have had no transition problems. I recommend this solution to everyone thinking of getting off of Effexor.

Been off tablets 15 days now did gradually come off, was advised 37.5 was the lowest dose. Obviously not. Having terrible insomnia awake at 2 a.m. every day. This has been going on for the same time that I stopped taking tablets. What can I do?

I am on day 5 of stopping cold turkey because I was having suicidal thoughts. I am 54 and never, as bad as things have gotten, have I ever been suicidal. I wish all doctors had to try every drug they prescribe before they prescribe it. My suicidal thoughts have ended, but I am vomiting, feel like I have a bag of sand in my head, having hallucinations (my bathroom rug turned into a scene from little house on the prairie), i have no balance, my eyes hurt, my head hurts, I can't even consider going to work. This is awful, I just pray its over soon.

i have been gradually weaning myself off effexor. is it possible that 8 days after my last dose of 18mg i am still suffering from withdrawal symptoms?

i stayed in all day thinking i may have the flu. my chest hurts when i inhale i'm coughing and have an awful headache. i do not have a fever i realized it's not the flu, perhaps it's from the effexor withdrawal?