I'm new here. After 20-plus years taking Effexor for depression, with decreasing effectiveness lately, my psychiatrist has recommended cross-tapering from this drug to Zoloft.
I would like to have others share their experiences coping with cross-tapering--that is, gradually decreasing Effexor dosage while simultaneously increasing Zoloft dosage. I understand that this process may take a few weeks, but I am concerned about the side-effects that might be expected during the transition. Many thanks for your feedback on what to expect, and how to cope.
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Bkd4happy
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It can be difficult to switch meds. Some people do experience difficult withdrawal symptoms. Unfortunately, it is common for an antidepressant to stop working after a period of time. It happened to me, several times. It does take time to make the transition, hopefully Zoloft will be effective for you, it will probably take 2 months before you know for sure.
It will definitely take longer than a few weeks. For every small decrease I would wait 2-3 weeks. I tapered down from 75mg. I got down to 12.5mg of fast release 3 time's a day. It was at that point the taper caught up with me and the panic and physical symptoms were too much. I ended up going up to 37.5 mg of extended release and will try the taper again after winter.
I tried to taper too fast and found that it can be 2-3 weeks before you feel the effect of a decrease.
It can take 6 weeks or more before you see improvement in withdrawal symptoms after stopping effexor.
I was on 30mg of Zoloft and did not notice any help from it and didn't notice any change when I stopped taking it after increasing my effexor after the failed taper to 37.5mg.
My advice is to take this as slow as you can as your body is used to depending on it. When I try my next taper I plan to see if there are any other medication options to help the weaning process.
Some have an easier time than others tapering. My pharmacist told me that Effexor binds to the opioid receptors which is why it can be so difficult to wean from.
Prozac has a much longer half life than Effexor . If you take Prozac as your last tablet the side effects aren't supposed to be as bad. This may help you if you haven't tried it.
I am on Zoloft for the third time. I prefer not to stay on medication after 12 months if at least 6 of those I have been feeling totally fine. Hoping I won't need them, but so far had to get back to them again because slipped into depression. It is hard for me to judge your experience. I have no idea how it feels to be on meds for 20 years, but Zoloft is a saver for me personally. I was misdiagnosed with bipolar and had to switch from Quantepine and a mood stabilizer back to Zoloft, which is the only right thing for me. Zoloft, in its first two weeks, is the worst thing you might experience. You might have unwanted terrible thoughts, weakness, sleepiness, terrible mood swings, insomnia, but they do go away. 100% always.
Usually within two weeks. If this persists, talk to your doctor. But please be patient. Zoloft takes up to 8 weeks to get into full effect, and you might need to adjust the dose. I have successfully tapered off and switched to Zoloft within two weeks. But, I was on other meds only for two months before switching, not 20 years. And those drugs were different. I still had pretty bad side effects, but somehow I've gone through them by reminding myself that Zoloft does this; it is not me and not even my depressed brain. And also, I understood that I was switching serious meds, so this was expected. That got me through. I do hope that Zoloft will work for you. For me, it is a miraculous drug that I am very grateful for.
Hey! I have been taking Effexor XR for about 15 years and tried what you were told to try by your dr. I myself had a horrible experience. I was not able to function at work or do anything normal. I took my vacation time for work and used it and just tried to trudge in thru....unfortunately all I truly remember is my mother rushing me to the ER because I had a nervous breakdown. After all that, I went back to just taking my usual dosage of Effexor and have been fighting for years to get off completely of this drug. Anyways I am getting off topic of your question....I would just tell you to take things SLOW. Extremely slow. Do not overwhelm your system. I would also take maybe a couple of wks off of work if you do work and are able to do so when you begin the process. Let me also say, I WOULD LISTEN TO ACTUAL PEOPLE WHO HAVE TAKEN EFFEXOR XR FOR MANY YEARS! Your dr does NOT understand the withdrawals that this medication causes. No one understands u til they have gone thru them themselves. Seek out lots of advise from long term Eff. Users. Good luck and I truly hope your Dr is different from most general practitioners. Take care of yourself ✌🏻
Oh! I forgot to mention that before I was placed on Effexor, I had been in Zoloft. I liked that there were less side effects BUT for some reason the medication would make me pass out. For no reason. I could be standing and talking to you then suddenly feel week and fall to the ground. It was crazy. I have been in many different types of these meds and Never experiences that!! I have heard Wellbutrin has less side effects and most importantly, does NOT effect your libido. I have heard it has Actually enhanced it! Anyways Good luck again!
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