I want to come off efexor XL

[BatRachy]

Ok. I've been on this pointless, awful drug for over a year now, it's done nothing but bring me trouble.
I'm desperate to get off it, but as I'm on the modified release ones (the others made me sleep for over 24 hours at a time) how will they be able to reduced the amounts.
And I know withdrawl is awful, but is it quicker to go cold turkey? or with awful slowly-dragging-it-out-ness curtosey of the doctors gradually lowering the dose.

I'm so, so scared, any one able to help?

[Stellata]

I survived it, and so have others here. So you're not alone.

I went from 150 to 75, and then 75 to 37.5, very very slowly. Slower than the psychiatrist had planned. I saw my GP every week while I was coming off it. And of course in therapy as well. It was better for me to go slowly, because of all the PTSD stuff that came forefront as a result of the withdrawal. [which can tend to magnify what's already there. unfortunately].

Lots of support is essential, really.

[Amadeus]

Generally you go down by halves or close to it with at least a week on each dose. So if you're at 225 mg and you're taking 75 mg pills then do 225 for however much longer and take away 75 mg, and another week and then take away another 75, and so on and so on. Check out this page http://www.crazymeds.org/effexor.html and go down to the part about "How to Stop Taking Effexor" Like he says there, going down by 37.5 is probably the best way. Also using Prozac to help alleviate some of the symptoms helps. There was another thread recently about this same subject http://www.recoveryourlife.com/forum...ead.php?t=7988
From what I've experienced, going cold turkey is the worst thing to do, EVER. Seriously, "Brain zaps" are not fun.