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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 11 of 11. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by SadDoggie on August 2, 2006, at 17:38:05
I was thinking of starting Emsam and my doctor told me I have to stop Effexor and wait 2 weeks before I can start taking it. Is this really necessary? I don't think I can take 2 weeks without Effexor. Hell the best I can do is a few days.
Posted by bkdog on August 2, 2006, at 17:51:58
In reply to Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI?, posted by SadDoggie on August 2, 2006, at 17:38:05
> I was thinking of starting Emsam and my doctor told me I have to stop Effexor and wait 2 weeks before I can start taking it. Is this really necessary? I don't think I can take 2 weeks without Effexor. Hell the best I can do is a few days.
yup... its true.
i had to do a ssri detox for 2 weeks....took lots of clonazepam those 2 weeks +- 4mgs a day,
and dranks tons of water.... and took lots of multi-vitamins.ymmv... this was what my doc had me do, as ssri's and maoi's dont play nice together
Posted by Jost on August 2, 2006, at 21:37:54
In reply to Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI?, posted by SadDoggie on August 2, 2006, at 17:38:05
How much effexor are you taking, SD?
I don't know about effexor per se, but with many meds, going off too fast can make the withdrawal effects last longer and be much more unpleasant.
Despite desire to get off, and restart, you may do yourself a big favor by gradual reduction.
Others can speak to effexor particularly.
There may be some meds to use to keep you afloat in the interim-- I used some seroquel, and xanax, etc when going off Parnate.
But definitely wait the two weeks-- understandable as your not wanting to is, it could lead to a bad reaction.
Jost
Posted by Phillipa on August 2, 2006, at 22:21:54
In reply to Re: Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI? » SadDoggie, posted by Jost on August 2, 2006, at 21:37:54
I too am tappering off my luvox to start EMSAM. I've gone from l50mg to 25mg in a week or so. And I do take valium and lamictal. Stay away from the effexor withdrawal thread I know quite a few people who had absolutely no side effects from stopping effexor. Love Phillipa
Posted by Jost on August 3, 2006, at 0:33:35
In reply to Re: Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI? » Jost, posted by Phillipa on August 2, 2006, at 22:21:54
That's great to hear. Maybe my experience wth parnate was unusually rough.
Mydose level was quite high, so it may have been atypical in many respects.
Since I'm susceptible to serotonin syndrome, my pdoc is very careful with mixing meds that raise serotonin levels.
Jost
Posted by silvercoin on August 3, 2006, at 8:09:09
In reply to Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI?, posted by SadDoggie on August 2, 2006, at 17:38:05
> I was thinking of starting Emsam and my doctor told me I have to stop Effexor and wait 2 weeks before I can start taking it. Is this really necessary? I don't think I can take 2 weeks without Effexor. Hell the best I can do is a few days.
Doctors tend to stick to the 14 day rule, but this is really a general catch-all. The actual period of time it takes a med to completely clear your system is 5 half lives. Effexor has a relatively short half life and technically would not require a 2 week interval, but you do need to distinguish between the XR and standard versions because they have different half lives. The makers of Cymbalta recognize this and only specify a 5 day interval, as their med has a half life of less than 1 day, typically around 12 hours, I believe. People taking Prozac need to allow a longer interval to elapse before taking an MAOI, perhaps 5 weeks, due to this med's exceptionally long half life. However, you may not be able to get your doctor to drop the 2 week rule in view of your med's short half life, as this may push your doctor out of his comfort zone. This has typically been the case with my own doctor.Todd
Posted by SadDoggie on August 3, 2006, at 8:38:21
In reply to Re: Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI?, posted by silvercoin on August 3, 2006, at 8:09:09
> Doctors tend to stick to the 14 day rule, but this is really a general catch-all. The actual period of time it takes a med to completely clear your system is 5 half lives. Effexor has a relatively short half life and technically would not require a 2 week interval, but you do need to distinguish between the XR and standard versions because they have different half lives. The makers of Cymbalta recognize this and only specify a 5 day interval, as their med has a half life of less than 1 day, typically around 12 hours, I believe. People taking Prozac need to allow a longer interval to elapse before taking an MAOI, perhaps 5 weeks, due to this med's exceptionally long half life. However, you may not be able to get your doctor to drop the 2 week rule in view of your med's short half life, as this may push your doctor out of his comfort zone. This has typically been the case with my own doctor.
>
> Todd
I am actually not taking the Effexor XR, I take the one you take 3 times a day (I think I feel a bit better on it for some reason than the XR version). This should even have a shorter life. Do you know how long this would take to completely leave your system?
Posted by SadDoggie on August 3, 2006, at 8:40:43
In reply to Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI?, posted by SadDoggie on August 3, 2006, at 8:38:21
By the way I forgot to say I only take 37.5mg I know that's a real dose, I used to take a higher dose but for some reason less started feeling better after some time.
Posted by silvercoin on August 3, 2006, at 12:53:58
In reply to Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI?, posted by SadDoggie on August 3, 2006, at 8:38:21
>
>
> I am actually not taking the Effexor XR, I take the one you take 3 times a day (I think I feel a bit better on it for some reason than the XR version). This should even have a shorter life. Do you know how long this would take to completely leave your system?The half life of Effexor's main metabolite is similar to that of Cymbalta at 11 +/- 2 hours. Theoretically, it should be completely cleared in 13 x 5 = 65 hours. I would allow a couple extra days to be safe and would suggest a similar time interval as Cymbalta, about 5 days.
Todd
Posted by SadDoggie on August 3, 2006, at 23:00:33
In reply to Re: Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI?, posted by silvercoin on August 3, 2006, at 12:53:58
> The half life of Effexor's main metabolite is similar to that of Cymbalta at 11 +/- 2 hours. Theoretically, it should be completely cleared in 13 x 5 = 65 hours. I would allow a couple extra days to be safe and would suggest a similar time interval as Cymbalta, about 5 days.
>
> ToddThanks for this information Todd. I think I can take 5 days, maybe I'll up the clonazepam for this :) I also had another question, if I want to get off the Emsam do I have to wait a number of days too? And if I do how many days?
Posted by silvercoin on August 4, 2006, at 7:36:49
In reply to Emsam- wait 2 weeks after taking SSRI?, posted by SadDoggie on August 3, 2006, at 23:00:33
> > The half life of Effexor's main metabolite is similar to that of Cymbalta at 11 +/- 2 hours. Theoretically, it should be completely cleared in 13 x 5 = 65 hours. I would allow a couple extra days to be safe and would suggest a similar time interval as Cymbalta, about 5 days.
> >
> > Todd
>
> Thanks for this information Todd. I think I can take 5 days, maybe I'll up the clonazepam for this :) I also had another question, if I want to get off the Emsam do I have to wait a number of days too? And if I do how many days?
There, you would need to wait at least 14 days before starting another antidepressant in order to recover MAO activity, and in this case, it would be quite imprudent to shorten the interval.Todd
This is the end of the thread.
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