Posted 11/15/2010 12:26 AM (GMT -5)
I'm so glad when I can get the chance to help someone get off this medication... As long as you are sure you don't need it anymore like I did...
My story is this: I started taking Effexor XR to combat anxiety and depression when I was diagnosed with U/C back in 2005. I took it for a total of 3 years, but only 1 year was voluntary.... After the first year I tried to stop taking it and the withdraws were so bad for me that I ended up taking it again just to feel better.. I tried tapering, but it was just too hard for me and the "brain zaps" were the WORST! I used to feel like I got motion sickness, I was nauseated all the time and it just plain felt Horrible! So over the next two years I felt like a prisoner to this drug.. not wanting to take it, but it made me too sick to stop taking it and I was just STUCK...
Sooooo... out of desperation I went to my GP, who is awesome and she put me on a prescription called Wellbutrin. I started taking Wellbutrin with the Effexor and was FINALLY able to taper down on the effexor relatively quickly and within a month, I was completely off the Effexor without hardly any discomfort. I continued taking the Wellbutrin for another month then quit that one cold turkey.. Much easier to get off the Wellbutrin. I only had a headache for a day and that was it...
I hope this helps.. it was the only way I could do it.