hi

i'm desperate. i've been on pristiq for 9 months and i've tried to go off twice but failed after 2 1/2 days cold turkey. i want off because i have only gotten my period once--and all tests in that regard are normal--so it must be the pristiq and i have stomach/bowel problems. i have been on ADs for over 10 years---first luvox and then pristiq. i was told i could quit cold turkey. i switched from that doc. the new doc said he didn't know much about pristiq and didn't use it---i suspect the other doc was courted by wyeth. any way, the new doc suggested tapering but said we were kinda making it up as we went along. so i skipped saturday. i felt light headed and irritable. i was gonna take the pristiq today, but then i thought, sure i could feel fine, but then feel like crap again monday. my first doc told me that if i could stand it, i would be 'detoxed'--my word--after 7 days. i am going to call and talk to my current md tomorrow. although i don't have a lot of faith in him.

please---anyone who has quit the pristiq cold---how long do these symptoms last? i know it is going to get worse before it gets better. i am at 40 hours now. i am not working--i'm off for the summer as a teacher---so i can be 'sick' this week and just lay on the couch. although that is not my first choice of a summer activity. please help me---how long do these symptoms last? won't my body readjust to being without the pristiq and even out? i feel like crap. i haven't had the brain zaps yet---looking forward to that. but i've had the lightheadedness to the point of nausea, irrational thoughts, disconnected feeling, irritibility, and crying jags. please tell me i am not crazy for doing this--that it is possible to make it through. i feel like tapering would just prolong all these symptoms and i want to get it over with. i am going to see my grandparents on july 17 and really want to be stable by then.

thanks for any help

oh, i have upped my small klonopin intake---i usually take .25 mg twice a day and i've been taking twice that--which the first doc said was okay.

help.

to DF worrygirl

Pristiq is very simular to effexor. Most people taper off that. I would try tapering like your Doctor says. hopefully some-one will come along that is more familar with pristiq then I am

thanks. for the advice. i just don't want to prolong the symptoms. but i will call my md tomorrow. i hope he'll talk to me over the phone. my last md wouldn't. i can't drive an hour in this condition. thanks for the welcome too.

the answer for me about how long the pristiq withdrawal lasts---7 days. i stopped taking it on a saturday morning (last saturday) and i finally felt like myself the following friday and saturday. it was pretty awful. lightheadedness, uncontrollable crying jags (still a bit teary), shakiness, hot/cold flashes, irrational thinking, upset stomach/bowels (not as bad as i expected), inability to concentrate and be coherent (still seem so mistype words, which is out of the norm for me), and general despair that it'd never end. but it did. i am on the other side of that *#@#*&#$% drug. i am done. i am not going on an AD again. i don't know if my depression was ever that severe....but the answer is 7 days cold turkey. i wasn't working---i am off for the summer--and i couldn't have done it while working. it can be done. good luck and blessed be.

positive changes since:

I got my period which i had only once while on the pristiq for 9 months. that always bugged me. i had been clockwork regular especially since i was on the pill

I actually feel like i want to have sex---something which the ADs had always zapped out of me.

Hurray Worry Girl!!

This is great news to here as I'm currently weaning off my ADs. Can't wait for the benefits!! xx

best of luck. really. it was one of the hardest things i have ever done. and i don't know what meds you are on, but for me, it did get better. my body is still adjusting, but i am so glad to be off the da-n things. there has got to be another way. acupuncture has helped me a great deal.

I;ve heard that about acupuncture. I also have back pain so I really might give it a whirl if I have trouble.
I take citalopram and I've heard mixed reports about the withdrawal. I had quite a hard time getting used to them though so I'm prepared for the worst.....I think!
I hope I'll feel more alive again, although don't want to go back to the crying!! xx

i recently went off pristiq. my dr. told me NOT to quit cold turkey. that could cause complications. she told me to take one pill every other day for a week and then the next week take one pill every two days. after that week to not take the pills anymore. so far ive felt pretty good. no anxiety or anything. it's been 5 days since i've taken it. however, since i've stopped ive been having flashes of lightheadedness. the lightheadedness for about 3 seconds then goes away. the flashes come and go all day long. has anyone else experienced this when coming off of pristiq or any other AD?

Yes, I have experienced what you describe coming off Paxil. Getting off that med made all the difference in the world to me, though. I "reconnected" to life! I am now on Pristiq, and I have had what I'd call "moderate success" with this med.

To the OP, DO NOT CUT THESE PILLS!!!! To the best of my knowledge, Pristiq only comes in "CR" or continuous release form(then again, maybe it's ER, or extended release). The fact of the matter is that you risk...what's it called?.....Serotonin Syndrome, and it ain't pretty!

As has already been suggested, go down to one every other day, and so on.....Maybe you could even take your last dose as scheduled, then extend the next dose by four hours the next week, another four hours the following week, and so on....

Consult with you pharmasist or MD before doing anything. "Cold Turkey" on any AD without proper medical supervision is just a bad idea, plain and simple.

Deepster

PRT--i really believe acupuncture works. i did out of desperation, but there is something to it. i am a believer.

Othersstar and Deepster--i am not suggesting anyone go off pristiq the way i did. when i posted the original post i was desperate and in the grips of withdrawal. pristiq did a lot of funky stuff to my body. to me it is poison. i have been on ADs for over ten years and i'm done. done. i have heard of the serotonin syndrome---my last shrink, idiot that he was, said it was a concern while i was on luvox and pristiq--when i was switching over. frankly, at that point, i didn't really care if i lived or not, so i was willing to risk any complications. i know that with pristiq you need to be careful about taking ibuproffren and tylenol and asprin because of possible stomach bleeding.

my former shrink said going off cold turkey was safe. i survived. i couldn't have worked or done anything---i had a week to be "sick". i had lightheadedness for 4-5 days straight and then it went away. i felt so lousy the first morning of not being on the pristiq, i just felt i couldn't deal with that every other day. my shrink now, whom i trust, said to cut the pills in half.

now i am also on klonopin--a cousin to xanax--and that i know you CANNOT stop suddenly. but i am even, with my shrink's help, going to wean off that. i need to be drug free. i am so tired of battling the side effects of the drugs.

in the fall i felt not quite suicidal, but the thoughts were there. now, after a change in life circumstances and almost 6 months of acupuncture, i feel hopeful for the first time in a loooong time. and i feel hopeful because i am off pristiq. to me, that is a nasty drug.

I don't ususally post replies but wanted to share my experience with Pristiq withdrawal...maybe it will help somebody. I took Pristiq for 3 months (first 50 mg and then 100 mg) and I had terrible side effects incuding dizziness, nausea, fatigue, headache, night sweating, vivid dreams, confusion, irritability, noises in my head (ch ch sound) -- which might be brain zaps but it didn't feel like an electrical current, and weight gain. These episodes would last usually 2-3 days at a time and were completely debilitating. My Pdoc said she didn't think these symptoms were related to the med because they presented in week 3 and not week 1. I started to think I had a brain tumor or something. Went to various doctors trying to find a diagnosis. Was told I had BPPV, possibly Meneiere's Disease, and finally went to an audiologist who gave me a VNG test (vestibular test to see if my inner ear was causing the problems) to measure my eye movements. She suggested according to my test results that it could be the medication. I was so mad!! I had completey trusted my Pdoc and believed her when she said it wasn't the medication. I had no idea a medication would give someone such horrible side effects....I was very naive! I began to research Pristiq online and found forums like this with tons of people complaining about the side effects. I decided it was time to take control. I called my Pdoc and told her what was going on and she said I needed to wean myself off. I took 50 mg every other day for six days. One week ago today was the last time I took any of it. Oh, and I kicked my Pdoc to the curb....she shouldn't be prescribing this stuff if she doesn't even know what the side effects are and when they can show up!!

This past week has been one of the worst in my life. The withdrawal was even worse than the side effects. I barely got out of bed and was out of work the entire week. The nausea was the worst to deal with. I also had dizziness and a stuffy head that felt like it weighed a ton. Lots of crying jags and irritability. I haven't eaten anything except crackers due to the nausea and feel very weak. Today is day 7 off the medication and it's the first day I'm starting to feel a "lift" in the sypmtoms. Going to my general doctor today as I finally feel like I can drive. I think this poison is almost gone and I can finally get on with my life. I'm done with meds for now....my depression is 10x worse now than it was when I went on Pristiq. It's just not worth it!! I actually filed a complaint with the FDA as I feel more clinical trials (or at least a longer period of time) should have been conducted. For all the good this medication does for some people, there is just as many it harms. I don't feel that the FDA has been responsible in approving the med. If anybody else feels the same way I do, here's the link to file a complaint...pm me for the link

I wish everybody out there the best of luck if they are taking this medication and trying to get off of it. I'm hoping within a few more days I'll be back to myself again.

This post has been edited by lonleysindy: Jul 24 2009, 02:26 PM

Update...withdrawal for me lasted 17 days. Only took Pristiq for 3 months so if you take it longer, I would imagine the withdrawal could last longer.





This post has been edited by Kfalz: Aug 4 2009, 08:45 AM

Kfalz, thanks for your post. I am currently on Pristiq and getting ready to start the withdrawal period in about a week. I want to meet with my doctor first and discuss her recommendations for stopping. I also thought about enlisting an acupucturist to see if they can help speed up the withdrawal process, but I don't know if I am just wasting my time and money with that idea. Anyone want to post on that, I would greatly appreciate it.

Trying to get my body in shape for this by increasing my physical activity. I hope that once I get off this medication I can regulate my depressive tendencies through diet, exercise, and meditation.

Sadtab

Hello, registered new to the group so that I could reply to this post. It seems closest to what I was looking for. I know it's been over 3 months, but maybe someone will offer a comment since then. I am writing in lieu of my daughter, who is 28 and suffers from severe MDD and SAD. We are in a difficult situation. It took a lot of time and effort to secure state insurance but does not cover anything for her depression. The local governments are in conflict and so her program was cut. She is on the pristiq plus klonopin and neurontin. None of it really helps. She's done welbutrin and lexapro, zoloft, cymbalta, and I forget the rest. Well, at least her current meds keep her from total suicide. The problem is the pristiq is too expensive. I am trying to see if Wyeth will help for now with the expense. Meanwhile, I only have a few pills left and am considering a slow withdrawal to make them last versus a cold turkey scenario. Thanks for your post since it offered some information I might be able to use. She has a regular doctor now who can monitor her progress at least in some respect. I am wondering if increasing her dosage of clonazepam during the interval will help with reducing the pristiq. She's currently on 100 mg of Pristiq which I heard is not really different from 50mg. She's on 1.5mg of clonazepam and her doctor said she could increase it to 2mg. I'm wondering if she can re-introduce welbutrin while she's on a withdrawal schedule to help. Her dr. may say yes or no (she sees her in two weeks) but I know none of this is her area since she deals mostly with physical ailments. Any suggestions? I'm looking into the acupuncture since some mentioned it helped them. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on Pristiq. God Bless.

I am in the same situation. For seven months my Psychiatrist had me on samples which are no longer available. I was on Prozac for the prior eleven years and it was not working so well anymore. I cannot afford to pay $4 per dose for Pristiq, Wyeth, the manufacturer of Pristiq, was acquired by Pfizer. The first thing they did was suspend distributing free ssamples. They also are no longer accepting emails or telephone calls from end users. Their prescription assistance program has also been suspended. I do not know what Pfizer intends to do. My MD is on vacation and his office suggested that if I cannot afford to pay for a prescription and am experiencing problems I should go immediately to the local hopsitla emergancy room. I cannot afford that either so I guess I will quite cold turkery and hope for the best. I know more about my depressiion disorder and think I can work through it. If I become really depressed I have to keep reminding myself it is the meds talking and not really me. I would like to be off anti-dpressants altogether. The sexual side effects for me have not been fun- major impotence. I am ever hopeful that I might meet a woman and an intimate relationship flourished. You know, that is what life is all about. I forget the Saint who wrote something like "only human relationships matter, all other forms of endeavor pale in comparison." Come to think of it, that sounds a lot like what George S. Patton wrote about War. I hope I do not have the two confused :-). Make Love Not War is still a value set I believe in! This might be rambling a bit. I have mental and physical "shakes."

Good Luck to everyone trying to get clear of ADs.


This post has been edited by ChrystalR: Oct 30 2009, 05:20 PM

Never stop taking an antidepressant cold turkey. You will get very very sick!!!

I am taking effexor for 2 weeks now i am on 75 MG it doesnt do anything to me
before that i was on zoloft and for some circumstances i had to stop it cold turky....
after i quit the zoloft i have tried 4 times to commit suicide.
about a month ago i almost succeded all i know was i woke up in the hospital and didnt know ho what where ...
so now im on effexor but it aint helping i have no support from family .
even my girlfriend is not a big support when i try to talk about it no one listens.
i feel like im alone in this.
i hope it starts working soon because im afraid if it dont i might try again sigh.

This post has been edited by adorabelle: Nov 1 2009, 08:37 PM

i'm sorry you have such a hard time finding the right meds
never stop taking medications cold turkey, you have to wean off of them slowly.
always let your doctor know that you are thinking about stopping, they will work with you.
you are not alone, it is depression talking. hang in there, it will get better. it might take some time but it will get better again.
have you talked to your dr about other options that might be available to you?