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Effexor Weaning Methods

Effexor is a common drug used to help patients with depression, anxiety and panic attacks. Weaning from this drug should be controlled by a physician because of its severe withdrawal symptoms, which up to 78% of Effexor users will experience. All physicians recommend a slow and steady decrease in antidepressant dosage; however, the exact methods of how slow and by what amounts differ from patient to patient based on a vast array of individual responses to this drug.

  1. Reducing by 75mg

    • Some physicians structure a patients' weaning by 75mg per decrease (each decrease time could range from 1 week to a couple of months). A typical dose of 225mg/day would decrease first to150mg/day and then to 75mg/day.

    Cutting Dosage into Halves Per Week

    • For patients taking smaller dosages, weaning sometimes involves decreasing by halves. If your dosage is at 100mg/day, the first cut would require you to take 50mg/day, the second cut at 25mg/day, the third at 12.5mg, and so on.

    Decreasing at a Rate of 5%

    • A much slower method of weaning involves decreasing a dosage by 5% each time. For example, a starting dosage of 250mg/day would slow to 237.5mg/day, then to around 225mg/day, and so forth.

    Bridging

    • Bridging involves supplementing with an additional antidepressant while tapering off Effexor. This allows the brain to remain chemically balanced while eradicating Effexor from the system. This process plays out by simultaneously decreasing the amount of Effexor while increasing the amount of the second antidepressant.

    Time Frame

    • The time frame per decrease will be determined by your physician based on the specifics regarding your history with this drug (e.g., current dosage, length of time on it, side effects experienced, previous weaning attempts, other medications used, previous antidepressant history). You may be advised to decrease your medication once a week to once every couple of months. Often, this time frame will change during the process as well. Close monitoring of the entire process is vital to weaning off Effexor without complications.

    Cold Turkey

    • Stopping Effexor suddenly is never recommended. The result will be uncomfortable withdrawal effects such as dizziness, short-term memory problems, a sense of losing consciousness at times, pins and needles on the body and other symptoms. These side effects can occur when tapering off Effexor at an extremely slow rate as recommended, so stopping without warning will most definitely cause these symptoms to appear in a severe form. Effexor has a well-known reputation for being one of the worst antidepressants to come off of. Please consult your physician if you are considering going off Effexor.

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