Effexor Withdrawal Similar to Benzo?

[[Co...]]

I took Effexor for 8 yrs and quit CT..was brutal for 2mths before I got back on and used the Glenmullen taper plan. Learned I could only drop by 30% every 30days to avoid bad side effects. Took a long time to stop but when I did I had zero side effects. I know these drugs are very different (one works on serotonin and one on GABA) but would my Ativan taper experience be at all similar to Effexor? My side effects CT W/D from Effexor are identical to Ativan. Trying to figure out if I should get back on Ativan and taper down.

[[Ri...]]

Hello ColinCharlie,

You have to taper ALL psychotropic drugs including Ativan and Klonopin.  Yes, the withdrawal effects from Effexor and any benzo will be similar although only benzos seem to have that extended period of withdrawal.

[[sc...]]

Hi Colin Charlie, I met a woman in an outpatient clinic I was in and she literally could not go any lower than 7.5 on her Remeron,,it was that difficult and someone else had said it was a close second to coming off k,,but everyone is different

[[La...]]

I read a medical journal article on the topic of the wording used to describe what happens when you come off a drug, e.g. "withdrawal" vs. "discontinuation". It showed that the effects of coming off benzos and antidepressants are very, very similar and that they're both withdrawal effects. "Discontinuation" sounds nicer to some, but the physical and emotional symptoms are almost the same. And yes, tapering is the only way to come off those medications safely. However, tapering doesn't mean that you won't have withdrawal effects. It is safer, however.

 

 

[Guest [ma...]]

You use of both Ativan and Klonopin as outlined in your signature was very sporadic. What you are experiencing is not abnormal even for the limited use of benzos that you had. Not sure what dose the K was but 20 to 25 pills in 3 to 4 days is in my opinion a significant amount. Not sure why you would consider going back on benzos to taper given your history.

 

Many psych drugs and non psych drugs can have a w/d profile the same as or similar to benzos. Discontinuation syndrome is a fluff word most often used by the drug companies. It's w/d plain and simple and you will heal in time.

[[ta...]]

I quit venlaflaxine (Effexor ) cold turkey after 6 years of use. It was a horrible experience the vomiting went on for days, it's also the reason I was put on diazepam for the anxiety from venlaflaxine withdrawl and then left on it for ten years. Dizaep withdrawl definetley has some similarities but is much more onerous. Although Iv taken prozac for several years before I never had any withdrawl from that one which is strange.

[[La...]]

Hey tattyapple, I read about a study going on at a hospital in my city where they're doing DNA testing for antidepressants. The goal is to determine in advance how a person might react to a particular drug in order to prevent bad reactions. It's ongoing, so no results yet, but clearly, we each have a genetic code which can determine how we metabolize different substances. The different ADs are metabolized differently, so I'm not surprised you were okay with one med but not with another.

[[La...]]

Hi,

Just found that pharmacogenetics study I mentioned above. Check out the "Test Results" section and click on "View Sample Report" to see how one person can have different reactions to medications of the same type, e.g. antidepressants, antipsychotics:

 

http://impact.camhx.ca/en/clinicians-study

 

Too bad they're not doing this study on benzodiazepines. Maybe it could have saved some of us from these reactions.

[[ta...]]

Hi I will read that report with interest..It does make sense we are all different and will react differently. Iv had so many issues with my doctor who says at my low dose I should not be experiencing withdrawl I said just because your book says I should not be having withdrawl does not mean I'm not... Maybe in the future when you need a drug there will be a simple test which will tell you which you will react to and which you won't it will save people so much pain.. My doc wants we to try mirtrazapine but I hear it's similar to Effexor so don't want to risk it

[[La...]]

Maybe the testing is available there! I believe it's an Amercian company that is teaming up with CAMH here. I'm just not sure where it's based. If you can access such testing, it might be worthwhile.

 

In my benzo and Prozac research, I started reading about the CYP450 system in our bodies, which pertains to how we metabolize things. Here's the Wikipedia excerpt:

 

 

"CYPs are the major enzymes involved in drug metabolism, accounting for about 75% of the total metabolism.[16] Most drugs undergo deactivation by CYPs, either directly or by facilitated excretion from the body. Also, many substances are bioactivated by CYPs to form their active compounds."

 

Anyway, I learned that there could be an interaction between two drugs that are metabolized through the same CYP450 enzymes.

[[Co...]]

I took paxil for 7 years and quit ct. It was hard! I lasted a month and went back on it. I was just out of it and kept getting brain zaps. I started taking tramadol and was able to ct the paxil. I then tapered much easier off tramadol.

[[mo...]]

Hi ColinCharlie,

 

Effexor was my only other withdrawal experience before benzos - it was awful.  Some of the symptoms were the same, dizziness and floaty-boaty sensations, derealization, depersonalization, and sense of doom.  I had brain zaps at I didn't have in benzo withdrawal.  In benzo w/d, I've had tons of symptoms that I didn't have in Effexor withdrawal, but I was only on Effexor for a few months and xanax for 2 and 1/2 years.  We're all so different, it's impossible to know how your withdrawal will play out.  I wish all the best for you, and hope you feel better soon, whatever you decide to do.