I work with as a patient navigator for cancer patients. I am not a doctor (and I don't play one on TV!). I could have finished training to become a therapist, but I wound up functioning as a social worker instead. In any case, I see some women prescribed effexor for true menopause and the menopause-like side effects of aromatase inhibitors for breast cancer treatment. How in the world did this drug get considered for something like that!? It seems pretty specific to this one antidepressant. HRT is better than effexor, of course, but if HRT is not safe for you, then effexor seems to make a positive difference.
Yes, how DOES one come off effoxer? I don't take but someone in my family has taken it for 25 years. It worked well. They are now never depressed. But do they have to take it forever? This needs to be discussed with patients--that you are stuck on the drug, possibly for life
Well that is a great question and a subsequent article. I work with outro health which is developing very slow taper protocols for this problem, and I'm a fan of their approach.
Similar situation here - a childhood friend is stuck on it, it works for her but is too expensive to continue for life. I'm not a doctor but I suggested reaching out to a compounding pharmacy and seeing if her doctor can prescribe an extremely slow taper. Of course compounding will be even more expensive in the short run. Glad to see in Owen's comment below that there is work being done to develop a protocol. This drug really shouldn't be so readily prescribed by GPs (as it was in her case, only her second attempted antidepressant) with no plan for getting off of it.
Great read. I have had patients in clinic find it nearly impossible to come off of Effexor. In residency I had one patient who would break the 75mg capsules open and count the beads, aiming to decrease by 1 bead every week if she could tolerate it. It's been a little bit since residency, but I hope she was able to finally get off of it. You can find similar stories on /r/Effexor
14 years on it. Was at 375mg/day XR. Has taken me 2 years to get down to 75mg. Sigh. May have worked at one point (?), but not anymore. Side effects unpleasant, withdrawal when I forget it is brutal.
"Nemeroff a very careful academic." His financial ties to the drug companies are the stuff of legend, as well as him lying to his university about how much payola he was taking. He took millions of dollars from them.
I work with as a patient navigator for cancer patients. I am not a doctor (and I don't play one on TV!). I could have finished training to become a therapist, but I wound up functioning as a social worker instead. In any case, I see some women prescribed effexor for true menopause and the menopause-like side effects of aromatase inhibitors for breast cancer treatment. How in the world did this drug get considered for something like that!? It seems pretty specific to this one antidepressant. HRT is better than effexor, of course, but if HRT is not safe for you, then effexor seems to make a positive difference.
Fascinating! Thanks for the tip!
Yes, how DOES one come off effoxer? I don't take but someone in my family has taken it for 25 years. It worked well. They are now never depressed. But do they have to take it forever? This needs to be discussed with patients--that you are stuck on the drug, possibly for life
Well that is a great question and a subsequent article. I work with outro health which is developing very slow taper protocols for this problem, and I'm a fan of their approach.
Similar situation here - a childhood friend is stuck on it, it works for her but is too expensive to continue for life. I'm not a doctor but I suggested reaching out to a compounding pharmacy and seeing if her doctor can prescribe an extremely slow taper. Of course compounding will be even more expensive in the short run. Glad to see in Owen's comment below that there is work being done to develop a protocol. This drug really shouldn't be so readily prescribed by GPs (as it was in her case, only her second attempted antidepressant) with no plan for getting off of it.
Nice summary of what I hoped people would take away!
Great read. I have had patients in clinic find it nearly impossible to come off of Effexor. In residency I had one patient who would break the 75mg capsules open and count the beads, aiming to decrease by 1 bead every week if she could tolerate it. It's been a little bit since residency, but I hope she was able to finally get off of it. You can find similar stories on /r/Effexor
14 years on it. Was at 375mg/day XR. Has taken me 2 years to get down to 75mg. Sigh. May have worked at one point (?), but not anymore. Side effects unpleasant, withdrawal when I forget it is brutal.
"Nemeroff a very careful academic." His financial ties to the drug companies are the stuff of legend, as well as him lying to his university about how much payola he was taking. He took millions of dollars from them.
For so many of us, it is "eras of drugs"