Deprescribing: When Stopping Medications Is the Right Choice

When you take too many pills, it’s not always about doing more—it’s about doing less. Deprescribing, the planned and supervised process of reducing or stopping medications that are no longer beneficial or may be causing harm. Also known as medication reduction, it’s not giving up on treatment—it’s getting back to what actually works for your body. Many people, especially older adults, end up on a long list of drugs because each new condition gets a new prescription. But rarely does anyone step back and ask: Which of these are still helping? That’s where deprescribing comes in.

It’s not just about cutting pills. It’s about understanding polypharmacy, the use of multiple medications by a patient, often leading to increased risk of side effects and interactions. Also known as drug burden, it’s common in people managing chronic conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, arthritis, or depression. The problem isn’t the drugs themselves—it’s that they pile up over time, sometimes without review. A 70-year-old might be on eight meds because each doctor focused on one issue. But no one looked at how they all interact. That’s why drug withdrawal, the process of safely reducing or stopping a medication to avoid rebound effects or withdrawal symptoms. Also known as tapering off meds, it’s a skill, not a guess. You can’t just stop a beta blocker or an antidepressant cold turkey. You need a plan—like the ones in our posts on switching meds, managing rivastigmine side effects, or tapering antidepressants.

Deprescribing isn’t for everyone. But if you’ve been on the same meds for years, feel foggy, dizzy, or tired all the time, or keep getting new side effects, it might be time to ask. It’s not about rejecting medicine—it’s about using it smarter. Our collection shows real cases: how people safely cut back on anxiety meds, how switching from one blood pressure drug to another reduced dizziness, and why stopping certain antibiotics helped with vaginal irritation. You’ll see how one person’s relief came from stopping, not starting, a drug.

There’s no magic checklist. But there are clear signs: more side effects than benefits, meds that don’t match your current health goals, or prescriptions that outlive their purpose. The goal isn’t to stop everything—it’s to stop what’s not working. And that’s where deprescribing makes all the difference.