Posted by AIK on September 27, 2004, at 16:17:09
In reply to Re: Effexor -tapering Q, posted by Dave001 on September 24, 2004, at 0:37:39
In response to the post below regarding dissolving the Effexor XR capsules in water or another solvent, please, any of you tapering down, do not do this unless you ask your doctor or pharmacist (someone who has expertise in this area). In refuting Dave's recommendation I have following input.
1. The contents of the capsule will not dissolve in water. It is formulated to dissolve at various pH levels throughout the GI tract. This is done in order to provide an extended release action.
2. Even if you are able to find a suitable solvent, you would be changing from the extended release action to an immediate release dose of Effexor. Changing dosage forms should never be done without the supervision and recommendation of a health professional.
It is unfortunate that this site has become a pissing contest for us that are looking for support with others during our experiences with the drug Effexor, whether it being the usage or it's withdrawal symtoms.
I am fortunate to say that since I logged on to this site a few weeks ago I have gained more knowledge and support from the same withdrawal symtoms I experienced (because I thought I had contracted a virus, infection, whatever) to find out it was the improper stoppage of the Effexor. I am also happy to say that since I have properly decreased by dosage slowly, I had the most energetic weekend that I can remember. We are on this site to support, share, and be there for one another. I don't want to sound disrespectful Dr.
Bob, "but you knocked off the wrong the person". I would appreciate it if you would post this message, at your discretion of course, so others will not attempt to concoct the "XR capsule recipe" into a tapering down formulation. This is not the place for a lay person to reformulate Effexor. I was under the assuption that this was a support group..like I said before, you knocked off the wrong person.
> > I have read a lot of posts about tapering and "cutting the pills". My effexor is in caplets (I think...plastic containers with little particles inside them). Is there some way to open these up and separate the contents? I have a whole bunch of 75mg that I am supposed to start next week, but I would rather stick to 37.5 for a while (what I am on now). Is it ok to dissolve the effexor in water or mix it in food or something instead of just taking the whole capsule?
>
> If I were concerned about withdrawal from Effexor, this is what I would do: check a recent copy of the Merck Index to find out the solubility of venlafaxine. Choose an appropriate solvent and dissolve the contents of the capsules into a solution from which you can easily measure precise
> amounts. By using a lot of solvent, you could make it easy to dispense doses with a reasonable accuracy of +/- 1/mg. I would probably fill a 100 ml graduated cylinder with the solution, and then use that to prefill syringes (you can get oral syringes from the supermarket) with the desired amounts for each day. For obvious reasons the most you would need per day in a solution would be < 37.5 mg if you have 37.5 mg caps, or < 75 mg if you have 75 mg caps. Don't know the stability of venlafaxine but you should refrigerate the solution, and preferably use something other than water.
>
> I doubt you would notice any withdrawal symptoms if you reduced the dose by 1 mg/day. If there's no pressing need to discontinue the drug, why not? :-)
>
> Dave
poster:AIK
thread:12459
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040927/msgs/395885.html