Posted by Caleb96 on March 26, 2004, at 10:27:24
In reply to Re: How long does withdrawal from Effexor last?, posted by John Andrews on March 24, 2004, at 7:13:04
OK Folks,
I'm going to relate MY experience with going C/T from 300 mg/day of Effexor. KEEP IN MIND THAT EVERTHING I WRITE IS FROM MY PERSONAL ANECTDOTAL EXPERIENCE AND IS NOT A RECOMMENDATION FOR ANY ONE ELSE. DON'T STOP TAKING YOUR MEDS WITHOUT YOUR DOCTOR'S OK (OR AT LEAST INFORM HIM/HER BEFORE YOU DO)!!!
I've been taking 300 mg/day of Effexor for three years. Unfortunately, Effexor has the same sexual side effects as the SSRIs. After taking it for several months, I was literally 'chemically castrated.' The upside of Effexor is its short half-life--if you stop, full sexual function returns in a few days (BTW, I'm 45, so I'm not exactly a kid anymore). I guess everyone knows the downside of stopping Effexor by tapering or cold turkey.
I have had no problems taking Effexor, and it's done wonders for my depression with no side effects other than the sexual issue. The times I've stopped C/T, the only side effect I've experienced is a g*dawful, splitting headache that starts on the second or third day, and lasts a day or two. Standard therapy of NSAIDS (drugs like aspirin, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, and to a lesser extent naproxen, NOT Tylennol[acetominofen]) help take the edge off the pain, but don't 'cure' it like they would a normal headache. After the second day or third day, I generally feel fine and my 'mojo' comes back. By day five I can perform like a 20 year old (no Viagra necessary). Enough of my sex life.
Now, about a year ago, my dentist sent me to a neurologist because my TMJ had gotten much worse and was not responding to a simple acrylic bite guard any longer. The neurologist determined that I had trigeminal neuralgia, a very painful problem that is characterized by sharp pain radiating across the face (in my case into my right eye and upper jaw). He prescribed a drug called gabapentin (Neurontin) 300 mg/3 times a day. That helped a little but I was still having a lot of pain. Last summer he prescribed a stronger drug called carbamazepine (Tegretol). Some of you might recognize that as an anti-epiletic. In fact, there are only two uses for Tegretol--epilepsy and (believe it or not) trigeminal neuralgia.
Tegretol/carbamazepine is an anticonvulsant and specific analgesic for trigeminal neuralgia. From what I've read, it is believe to act on chloride channels in a variety of neurons (I presume it partially depolarizes the neurons by allowing an influx of chloride ions) but the exact mechanism is apparently still unknown. What is known is that carbamazepine has a tonic effect on neurons and thus prevents uncontrolled firing of a variety of neuronal pathways. Think of Tegretol as having a similar effect as the benzodiazepines, only more subtle and widespread throughout the brain.
Having said all that let me get to the point. Recently, I stopped taking Effexor cold turkey (with my psych's permission); at the same time, I was taking Tegretol (300 mg/4 times per day) because my TG neuragia was acting up. I was also taking 1 to 2 mg clonazepam (Klonopin) per day for general anxiety and the heebie geebies. To my surprise, I experienced NO withdrawal effects due to stopping the Effexor (300 mg/day) cold turkey--even after 2+ weeks I feel fine. I am attributing this to the Tegretol, and its ability to prevent major and 'minisezures' and its general calming effect on the brain. CAVEAT: I could be totally wrong. However, I know that Klonopin and/or NSAIDS are not the cause of my lack of withdrawal symptoms, since they have only been of minor help in the past (and I haven't taken any NSAIDS in the past two weeks). I started out on 300 mg Tegretol 4X/day for the first week, dropping to 300 mg 2X/day during the second week. My mood has also remained stable. Keep in mind, however, that Tegretol has side effects of its own--dizziness, drowsiness, light-headed feeling, etc. and in some people it can cause changes in white blood cell counts if taken long term.
I'm curious to know if Dr. Bob has heard any of anecdotal experiences like mine. I don't know if this would work for anyone else, but I would think it's worth a try given some of the posts I read on this site.
poster:Caleb96
thread:1016
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040325/msgs/328677.html