Hi, I'm Ilana

HI @Ilana, welcome to Taper Community. We have many members tapering Venlafaxine (Effexor). I'm tapering it too. Can you give us some more detail about how you're using fluoxetine during your taper? Also, are you tapering in a Hyperbolic manner when you're counting your beads? How much are you reducing and how often? We're happy to help and support you the best we can! https://taper.community/drugs/effexor https://taper.community/resources/blog/how-to-taper-off-effexor-xr Catina 🩷

Hi Ilana, Welcome to the community! Yes, I’d also be very interested in hearing more about the fluoxetine. How long have you been taking fluoxetine? At what Effexor dose did you start it? How are you tapering off Effexor? How much fluoxetine are you taking? We’d be very grateful if you could describe everything in detail, especially the timeframes. 🤗

I'll try to explain as much as I can remember. I'm sorry for the english...i'm from Brazil I started venlafaxine after not having success with another anxiolytic (escitalopram)... I believe it was around 2019. I didn't have significant side effects at the beginning, and my anxiety symptoms decreased a lot. I started, I think like most people, with 1 week of 37.5mg and then 75mg I spent good years taking 75mg, until I had some episodes of anxiety and panic, and it was recommended that I increase to 75mg + 37.5mg At the end of 2024 I decided I wanted to stop taking it for several reasons. The main one is that I want to get pregnant. Even though there is no certainty about harm to the fetus, I didn't want to risk it. That was when I made the first attempt at tapering off combined with sertraline. It was horrible. I went from 75+37.5 to 75, then to 37.5 and down to zero, taking sertraline along with it. I cried about everything, extreme unhappiness, a feeling that I wouldn't make it, stomachaches, nausea... and I had to go back to Venlafaxine Upon returning, I wanted to stay at 75mg, because I thought that was already enough. I stayed at that dosage until approximately June 2025, when I tried to withdraw venlafaxine again, but this time on my own and without a support medication. I managed to go down to 37.5 without problems, but when I removed that last one, I spent 2 days fine and on the third I thought I was going to die. Feeling of low blood pressure, fear, panic, crying, chills... and I had to go back to 75mg Finally, since June of this year (2026) I have been in the tapering process. The psychiatrist suggested to me the possibility of counting the granules. She asked me to do it like this: 75mg to 37.5; then open the pill and count half of the granules, then half of the half... until zero. Along with that, 40mg of fluoxetine. I managed to do it up to the half part (1/2). When I went to 1/4, my body showed signs that it was too fast. I felt headaches, nausea, shocks... and I went back to the half. Since then, I have followed a method that has worked in part for me. Today it works like this: every 7 days I remove 2 granules and see how I feel. When I reached 18 granules, I started having the shocks again... anxiety skyrocketing. I went back to 20 and I am now waiting for my body to get used to it to see if I can remove them, this time one by one. My biggest fear is not being able to stop before 35 and having problems getting pregnant. I already know that hormones fluctuate a lot during pregnancy, and I am afraid of needing to go back to the normal dosage and losing everything that has been done

Thank you for your detailed response. I don't blame you for wanting off the Effexor before getting pregnant. There have been lawsuits against Pfizer/Wyeth for babies born with birth defects due to Effexor. Generally speaking, most psychiatrists are going to advise rapid linear tapers. They don't understand the concept of neuroadaptation and the need for Hyperbolic tapering. Also, some do recommend "bridging" onto another antidepressant or adding another one, but this doesn't always work and can sometimes muddy the waters and complicate things. I can't tell you not to do it, but I want you to be aware of the risks. How long have you been on the Prozac? I also think you're tapering way too fast. It's best to make a reduction and wait a month (or until stable) before the next reduction. I'm tapering Effexor and I am only removing 2 tiny beads each month. I've gone faster before and it did not go well. If you go to the Tapering Protocols section and click on the Guides tab, you'll find many helpful articles about how to taper properly. You can also learn about Hyperbolic tapering in the Resources section. https://taper.community/resources/blog/how-to-taper-off-effexor-xr