Reply to thread

Message

Yup, Brain Shakes.

They are scary, aren't they? Effexor should be a medication of LAST resort as it is the most likely to cause them. With effexor you can have them if you are ONE HOUR LATE with the next dose. And if you run out or are improperly weaned it can last for a month or more.

If you are having this problemit means your body is withdrawing from an SSRI/SNRI AD. I did some research when I was on effexor and discovered all of this. My doctor did NOT want to hear anything about it, or acknowledge that it happened. She did say that a few doses of prozac would not hurt me. Several online resources suggested a single 20 mg dose of prozac every week or so while you are going through withdrawal. The prozac is a much longer acting SSRI medication. The brain shakes happen when your brain thinks it needs more of the SSRI medication. Prozac stays around and lets your body come down easier. Effexor has a short half-life as does lexapro. Prozac has a long half life.

I had the prozac in the house. And I took it. My OB/GYN is the one who explained the half life (amount of time it takes your body to get rid of half of the medication) as the reason it worked. He sees many women who are taken off SSRI/SNRI medications very quickly, and he uses this. Most of them get relief. He not only has a very large private practice, he also has started community free clinics in 2 cities in the last 15 years.

This OB/GYN learned about the prozac when his wife was being treated for PMS and depression. They switched her off of one medication too quickly and she had problems. So he did research, then talked with a pharmacist buddy (my pharmacist as it happens). There is research to back this up, but many many many docs do not want to believe in the withdrawal.

PLEASE do NOT take any medication with-o checking with your doctor. There may be very good reasons why this would not help you, or might harm you. Your doctor knows your medical history, hopefully he or she will help you. It never hurts to ask, well not usually.

I am so sorry you are going through this.

Susie

<blockquote data-quote="susiestar" data-source="post: 92818" data-attributes="member: 1233">Yup, Brain Shakes.&nbsp; They are scary, aren't they?&nbsp; Effexor should be a medication of LAST resort as it is the most likely to cause them.&nbsp; With effexor you can have them if you are ONE HOUR LATE with the next dose.&nbsp; And if you run out or are improperly weaned it can last for a month or more.&nbsp; If you are having this problemit means your body is withdrawing from an SSRI/SNRI AD.&nbsp; I did some research when I was on effexor and discovered all of this.&nbsp; My doctor did NOT want to hear anything about it, or acknowledge that it happened.&nbsp; She did say that a few doses of prozac would not hurt me.&nbsp; Several online resources suggested a single 20 mg dose of prozac every week or so while you are going through withdrawal.&nbsp; The&nbsp; prozac is a much longer acting SSRI medication.&nbsp; The brain shakes happen when your brain thinks it needs more of the SSRI medication.&nbsp; Prozac stays around and lets your body come down easier.&nbsp; Effexor has a short half-life as does lexapro.&nbsp; Prozac has a long half life.I had the prozac in the house.&nbsp; And I took it.&nbsp; My OB/GYN is the one who explained the half life (amount of time it takes your body to get rid of half of the medication) as the reason it worked.&nbsp; He sees many women who are taken off SSRI/SNRI medications very quickly, and he uses this.&nbsp; Most of them get relief.&nbsp; He not only has a very large private practice, he also has started community free clinics in 2 cities in the last 15 years.&nbsp; This OB/GYN learned about the prozac when his wife was being treated for PMS and depression.&nbsp; They switched her off of one medication too quickly and she had problems.&nbsp; So he did research, then talked with a pharmacist buddy (my pharmacist as it happens).&nbsp; There is research to back this up, but many many many docs do not want to believe in the withdrawal.PLEASE do NOT take any medication with-o checking with your doctor.&nbsp; There may be very good reasons why this would not help you, or might harm you.&nbsp; Your doctor knows your medical history, hopefully he or she will help you.&nbsp; It never hurts to ask, well not usually.I am so sorry you are going through this.Susie</blockquote>

[QUOTE="susiestar, post: 92818, member: 1233"] Yup, Brain Shakes. They are scary, aren't they? Effexor should be a medication of LAST resort as it is the most likely to cause them. With effexor you can have them if you are ONE HOUR LATE with the next dose. And if you run out or are improperly weaned it can last for a month or more. If you are having this problemit means your body is withdrawing from an SSRI/SNRI AD. I did some research when I was on effexor and discovered all of this. My doctor did NOT want to hear anything about it, or acknowledge that it happened. She did say that a few doses of prozac would not hurt me. Several online resources suggested a single 20 mg dose of prozac every week or so while you are going through withdrawal. The prozac is a much longer acting SSRI medication. The brain shakes happen when your brain thinks it needs more of the SSRI medication. Prozac stays around and lets your body come down easier. Effexor has a short half-life as does lexapro. Prozac has a long half life. I had the prozac in the house. And I took it. My OB/GYN is the one who explained the half life (amount of time it takes your body to get rid of half of the medication) as the reason it worked. He sees many women who are taken off SSRI/SNRI medications very quickly, and he uses this. Most of them get relief. He not only has a very large private practice, he also has started community free clinics in 2 cities in the last 15 years. This OB/GYN learned about the prozac when his wife was being treated for PMS and depression. They switched her off of one medication too quickly and she had problems. So he did research, then talked with a pharmacist buddy (my pharmacist as it happens). There is research to back this up, but many many many docs do not want to believe in the withdrawal. PLEASE do NOT take any medication with-o checking with your doctor. There may be very good reasons why this would not help you, or might harm you. Your doctor knows your medical history, hopefully he or she will help you. It never hurts to ask, well not usually. I am so sorry you are going through this. Susie [/QUOTE]

Verification