Fingers crossed for successfully staying off the Desvenlafaxine.Thanks for your reply, I apologise that I somehow missed it.
For the record, I have been on and off cocktails of psychiatric drugs for 16 years. Pretty well all the common anti depressants, anti psychotics, and mood stabilisers (Valproic Acid and Lithium) I have experience with, all under the supervision of psychiatrists (not GPs).
Pristiq is the first drug to cause me any such grief. Coming off the others would give me a period of insomnia, at the worst. Pristiq (and I continue to take IR Seroquel) is the only drug to have serious withdrawals for me. Today's my first day taking no Pristiq at all (I have weaned down from 300mg to 0mg per my psychiatrist advice).
I can't really explain the feeling in words, but every night I feel like my skin is on fire and I'm lucky if I get even 4 hours sleep, which consist of vivid nightmares.
I have been told (unverified) that Pristiq and Effexor may hit opiate receptors in addition to their role as SNRIs, which could explain why they have some benefits for those with chronic pain disorders, and also perhaps why they give the heroin-tier withdrawals that I continue to experience.