Table 1.
Summary of the Facebook withdrawal groups sampled during this study.
| Group no | Group name | Facebook group type | Which drugs are focussed on? | Type of advice provided | Number of Admins and Mods (29 January 2020) | Age of group in years (displayed by Facebook in the group description) | Number of members at 19 June 2020 | Membership growth per month | No of members per admin (20 June 2020) | Internet URL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | EFFEXOR (Venlafaxine) Side Effects, Withdrawal and Discontinuation Syndrome | Private | Venlafaxine (SNRI) | Support for those trying to taper off the drug, suffering withdrawal or protracted withdrawal | 10 (2 male, 8 female) | 7 | 6162 | 85 | 616 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/effexorsupportgroup/ |
| 2 | Effexor (Venlafaxine) Should Be Illegal | Private | Venlafaxine (SNRI) | Support for those trying to taper off the drug and suffering withdrawal | 7 (1 male, 6 female) | 8 | 2128 | 53 | 355 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/221442677940995/ |
| 3 | Cymbalta Hurts Worse | Private | Duloxetine (SNRI) | Support for those trying to taper off the drug and suffering withdrawal | 14 (all female) | 7 | 24282 | 386 | 1734 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/Cymbaltahurtsworse/ |
| 4 | Cymbalta Survivors Support Group | Private | Duloxetine (SNRI) | Support for those trying to taper off the drug and suffering withdrawal | 21 (10 female, 11 community names) | 6 | 3362 | 19 | 160 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/cymbaltasurvivors/ |
| 5 | Cymbalta (Duloxetine) Should Be Illegal | Private | Duloxetine (SNRI) | Support for those trying to taper off the drug | 6 (all female) | 5 | 2768 | 61 | 461 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/1063295287032326/ |
| 6 | Cymbalta Withdrawal Horror Stories | Public | Duloxetine (SNRI) | General discussion and withdrawal stories | 1 generic account | Unknown | 2037 | 36 | n/a | https://www.facebook.com/Cymbalta-Withdrawal-Horror-Stories-312565197797/ |
| 7 | Cymbalta Dangers International | Public | Duloxetine (SNRI) | General discussion and information. Some withdrawal support | 1 generic account | Unknown | 2403 | 55 | n/a | https://www.facebook.com/CymbaltaDangersInternational |
| 8 | Citalopram Withdrawal | Public | Citalopram (SSRI) | General discussion and withdrawal support | 1 generic account | Unknown | 2424 | 32 | n/a | https://www.facebook.com/Citalopram-Withdrawal-291006524257054/ |
| 9 | Celexa (Citalopram, Cipramil) Should Be Illegal | Private | Citalopram (SSRI) | Support for those trying to taper off the drug | 5 (all female) | 5 | 1465 | 47 | 293 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/907714912585415/ |
| 10 | Zoloft (Sertraline) should be illegal | Private | Sertraline (SSRI) | Support for those trying to taper off the drug | 8 (all female) | 5 | 4370 | 125 | 546 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/792517227522030/ |
| 11 | Sertraline, side-effects and withdrawal symptoms | Private | Sertraline (SSRI) | Support for those struggling with side effects and trying to taper off the drug | 5 (all female) | 5 | 5279 | 231 | 957 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/1565207600363685/ |
| 12 | Paxil Paroxetine, Seroxat. The truth in getting off safely | Private | Paroxetine (SSRI) | Support for those trying to taper off the drug | 2 (both female) | 9 | 1733 | 16 | 867 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/127583113994251/ |
| 13 | SSRI/Antidepressant (Paroxetine, Paxil, Seroxat) Withdrawal | Private | Paroxetine (SSRI) | Support for those trying to taper off the drug | 8 (2 male, 6 female). | 9 | 3356 | 108 | 420 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/204732929546136/ |
| 14 | Life Beyond SSRI Antidepressants - Prozac, Effexor and many more. | Private | All SSRIs and other antidepressants | General discussion and member support for withdrawal and beyond | 1 (female) | 9 | 2872 | –18 | 2872 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/103788426372995/ |
| 15 | Let’s Talk Withdrawal Podcast | Private | All | General discussion and information about prescribed drug withdrawal | 1 (male) | 3 | 1975 | 35 | 1975 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/LetsTalkWithdrawal/ |
| 16 | Coming Off Psych Drugs | Private | All | Support for those trying to taper off the drugs | 10 (3 female and 7 generic accounts) | 5 | 509 | 5 | 51 | https://www.facebook.com/groups/ComingOffPsychDrugs/ |
| Total Membership (all groups) Total Membership (Private groups) |
67,125 60,261 |
Mean ± SD 80 ± 101 n = 16 |
Mean ±SD 870 ± 831 n = 13 |
Admin, administrator; mod, moderator; SD, standard deviation; SNRI, serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor; SSRI, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor.