Hi Clara:

Unfortunately, antidepressants often quit working for people, and patients have to switch to another medication. Pristiq is the brand name for desvenlafaxine, an SSNRI -- Selective Serotonin Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitor, or antidepressant, that helps your brain have more serotonin and norepinephrine available. The recommended dose for Pristiq is 50 mg a day, but you should talk with your physician about what he has planned over the long run.

Lexapro, or escitalopram, is an SSRI, that is, it only works on serotonin. We are finding that people sometimes need more than just management of serotonin, and that is why the SSNRI medications were born.

Tapering one medication in order to get you on another is fairly standard treatment. When a physician has time to it this way, he often will.

I hope this helps,

Dr. Diana Walcutt

*Dr. Walcutt is a Psychologist, not a Psychiatrist. Psychiatrists prescribe medications. Psychologists study them, but most Psychologists are not authorized to prescribe meds or give you specific advice about them. Dr. Walcutt's answers are not intended to diagnose or treat any medical or mental disorder. Any information given in a post about medication is for educational purposes only, and primarily to aid you in having an informed discussion with your own Psychiatrist/Physician.