Tapering: Effexor

active

9 posts

United States

I wish I would have been more informed and educated about this drug!

September 10, 2026··

Posted in:Effexor (Venlafaxine)Finding Meaning

I wish I would have known the consequences of stopping this drug and effects would have in my body. I don’t think I would have taken it and would have requested a different drug at the time.

Effexor — 70mg 150mg — 3-4 years — actively tapering | other — 10mg |

9 Replies

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Catina8d ago

Community AnchorEffexor

"I wish I would have known the consequences of stopping this drug and effects would have in my body. I don’t think I would have taken it and would have requested a different drug at the time." — @Lety

I'm sorry. I am in the same boat as you. I didn't do my homework first about Effexor. However, that doesn't mean we can't get off of it. You just might need to slow your taper down and give your body time to stabilize. You're not permanently damaged and are not alone.

Venlafaxine (tapering) - Current dose 17.92 mg
Trazodone - 50 mg
Levothyroxine - 25 mcg

“Your brain and body know how to heal. Trust the process and keep going.”

Please Note: I am not a healthcare professional. Any advice given is based on personal experience and that of others in the lay withdrawal community.

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BasedStaff8d ago

Community AnchorEffexor

Ya many people feel this way. Its really a shame informed consent isnt done properly , otherwise lots of damage would have been spared. Especially in people who had mild issues

Creator of Taper Community, here to help you.

Maria A.8d ago

LighthouseZoloft · active

Absolutely- had I known I would have never touched this medication for my post partum anxiety. All I needed was support and a good therapist.

Zoloft —50 mg to 15 mg — 8 years with a cold turkey and reinstatement in between— was liquid micro tapering, crashed at 14.275 mg and now holding at 15 mg.

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Catina8d ago

Community AnchorEffexor

"Absolutely- had I known I would have never touched this medication for my post partum anxiety. All I needed was support and a good therapist." — @Maria A.

I hear you Maria. Many of us would do things differently if we could turn back time. At least we're in a supportive community and are receiving the best tapering advice we can, so we're very fortunate.

Wolf7d ago

Community AnchorProzac · researching

It is super weird when you did not need the drug that much in the first place, really.

Prozac — 40 mg — 6 months — holding | Zyprexa — 20 mg — 6 years — holding | Depakote — 600 mg — 8 months — **tapering** | Buspirone — 20 mg — 8 months — holding | with clinician
"If life is painful, start a rebellion and make it good."

Wolf7d ago

Community AnchorProzac · researching

Yep, they are overprescribed, in many places.

Flyguy106d ago

LighthouseProzac · supporting

Agreed. The doctor putting me on the majority of the drugs I was on didn't warn me about anything. I was attributing symptoms to my physical condition rather than the meds. Finally getting off gabapentin felt amazing. I had no idea how bad it was making me feel. And the risks of duloxetine discontinuation are so great, had I known I would have never taken it. I only did it to prove I had physical injuries and not fibro. Figured when it did 0 for pain she would have made the connection, but no, her answer was always to just up the dose. My own stupid mistake. I refused to for a couple months, should have stuck to my guns. Knowing what I know now I would have never taken it.

Prozac — 10mg — Started 8/13/26 — supporting others | Valium — Started 02/2025, max of 20mg — current 10mg - holding | Cymbalta 20mg - 1 month, 40mg - 6 months, 60mg - 1 month, 90mg - a few days, 60mg - 1 month, 40mg - 15 days, 20mg - 3 weeks, discontinued 8/13/26 | LDN 4.5mg - 1 year - now discontinued | with clinician

Lety5d ago

Effexor · active

Thank you all! I don’t feel alone in this journey anymore.

Effexor — 70mg 150mg — 3-4 years — actively tapering | other — 10mg |

AJ4h ago

NavigatorCelexa · active

I never would have touched a drug either (I was on Prozac from 17 and stopped it a couple of years later with no issues so considered medication a short-term support thing). In hindsight, I needed real, practical human support through adolescence and my early 20s. Guidance in figuring out life. Not just to numb myself. All I can do now is forgive myself, focus on giving my kids the support I lacked, and maybe one day create something positive out of this mess.

Celexa — 3.6mg — 15+ years — actively tapering | without clinician

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