Assess
Your medication history, past taper attempts, withdrawal history, symptoms, goals, sensitivities, and the life around all of it.
Psychiatric deprescribing
with emotional integration
Coming off the medication is only part of the process.
Specialized psychiatric tapering care + emotional integration.
Two minutes. Personalized next steps.
- One clinicianYour prescriber and your therapist are the same person
- 75–90 minInitial evaluation before any plan is set
- 2–4 visitsEach month, depending on your plan
- Your paceNo standard schedule. The taper follows how you respond
Emotional resurgence
The emotional side of deprescribing.
When the dam comes down, the river starts to move.
Medication can work like a dam. Up to 70% of people taking antidepressants, such as SSRIs, report feeling emotionally numb.1 As the dose comes down, what was held can start moving again: feelings, grief, anger, fear, old memories, a clearer sense of your relationships and of who you are.
If the dam is lowered too fast, this emotional resurgence can feel like a flood, which can be uncomfortable or even destabilizing. Taper™ was created not only to help you come off medication when you're ready, but to integrate what comes through into a fuller, more connected life.
1 71% of 1,431 people taking antidepressants in 38 countries reported feeling emotionally numb. Read & Williams, Current Drug Safety, 2018. Other studies report lower rates, around 46–60%.
Client review
After significantly reducing my Paxil with the goal of coming off it, I can feel my emotions again. Less anxious, enjoying things, caring about things. I feel less numb and more like a person. Others just wanted to medicate me instead of helping me feel through what came up.
How it works · The Taper™ Method
You shouldn't have to choose between someone who understands withdrawal and someone who understands you.
I prescribe and manage your taper, and I'm a psychotherapist trained in somatic, nervous-system and trauma-informed work. Every visit holds both.
Reduce carefully.Regulate through change.Integrate what emerges.
Reduce
An individualized taper instead of a standard schedule, informed by hyperbolic tapering: smaller reductions as the dose gets lower. The pace follows how you respond, and holding steady is part of the plan when needed.
Regulate
We watch withdrawal, sleep, mood, anxiety and your nervous system, and build your capacity to move through change so a hard day isn't automatically read as relapse.
Integrate
When grief, anger, fear, memories or identity questions come up, we make room to understand them and work with them.
Is it right for me?
Taper™ is specialized care. It isn't for everyone.
I'd rather be clear up front than have you pay for an evaluation that was never going to fit.
Taper™ is built for you if
- You want to reduce or stop a psychiatric medication, and you want to do it carefully.
- You've tried before and it was harder than anyone warned you.
- You're willing to work with what comes up emotionally, as well as the doses.
- You can commit to regular visits for the length of your taper.
- You live in Kentucky or Colorado.
Taper™ may not be the right fit if
- You're in crisis, or you need more support right now than outpatient care can safely give.
- You want off on a fixed deadline, whatever your body and mind are telling you.
- You only want a prescription managed, without the emotional side of the work.
- Alcohol or drug use needs medical attention first.
- You live outside Kentucky or Colorado.
None of these has to mean never. Some mean "not yet," or "let's talk first." The readiness assessment checks for them, and if something needs a closer look, the fit consult is free.
Seven questions, about two minutes. Nothing is sent until you book.
Pricing
Start with one evaluation. Then choose your level of support.
Step 1 · Evaluation
Step 2 · Membership
Fall enrollment
Specialized tapering care is hard to find, and often hard to afford. This fall, I'm opening 10 spots at a reduced rate.
Taper™
$395/ monthStandard $595/mo
Ongoing, individualized deprescribing care.
For a relatively gradual or stable taper.
- Individualized taper management and prescribing
- Withdrawal monitoring
- Emotional and nervous-system check-ins
- Integration work within each visit
- Taper adjustments as clinically appropriate
- Brief secure messaging between visits
- Two 30-minute visits each month
Taper™ Plus
$595/ monthStandard $795/mo
More support, in the rhythm your taper needs right now.
Everything in Taper™, with more time each month. Choose the format that fits your current phase.
Weekly Support4 × 30 min
WK 1
30
WK 2
30
WK 3
30
WK 4
30
For frequent monitoring during active medication changes.
Taper™ + Integration2 × 30 + 1 × 50 min
WK 1
30
WK 2
50
WK 3
30
WK 4
For when the medication changes feel manageable but a lot is coming up emotionally.
Your support can change as your taper changes.Switch between the two formats month to month when it's clinically appropriate.
Secure between-visit messaging is available for brief taper-related questions and updates. Messages are generally answered within 1–2 business days. Issues requiring substantial assessment or therapeutic work may require a scheduled visit.
Taper™ is not a crisis service. Emergency resources are listed at the bottom of this page.
About
Nick Bischoff, APRN, PMHNP-BC
Taper & integration specialist
I'm a psychiatric nurse practitioner who specializes in deprescribing, and a psychotherapist trained in somatic, nervous-system and trauma-informed work. I prescribe and manage your taper myself, and I'm also the person you work with when what comes up is emotional. One clinician, start to finish.
- Prescriber
- Psychotherapist
- Licensed in KY & CO
Questions
Before you start
What if the evaluation shows Taper™ isn't right for me?
I'll tell you plainly and talk through what might help instead. You'll still leave with a clearer picture of your medication history, your withdrawal risk and your options.
Do I have to want to stop my medication completely?
No. Some people reduce to a lower dose, some pause partway, and some come off entirely. We decide the pace and the destination together, and both can change.
Does Taper™ use hyperbolic tapering?
Taper™ is hyperbolic-informed. Every taper is built around your medication, your history and how your body responds. For some people, a true hyperbolic taper, where each reduction gets smaller as the dose gets lower, is what keeps withdrawal manageable. For others, a modified taper is the better fit. Either way, you get the taper that's right for you, not a one-size-fits-all schedule.
What if nothing emotional comes up for me?
Most people notice at least some emotional change as they taper, but how much varies a lot. If little comes up, the focus stays on the taper, and the integration side of Taper™ is there whenever you need it.
How do you tell withdrawal from relapse?
It isn't always simple, which is why it gets its own conversation at the evaluation and stays part of every visit. Timing, the kind of symptoms, and how they respond to changes in pace all help tell them apart.
Which plan should I choose?
The readiness assessment suggests a starting plan based on your answers, and we confirm it together at your evaluation. Taper™ suits a gradual or stable taper. Taper™ Plus suits active medication changes or a lot coming up emotionally, and its format can switch month to month.
Do you take insurance?
No. Taper™ is a self-pay service.
Is Taper™ a crisis service?
No. If you're in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. In an emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.
Start here
Lower the dam slowly. Let the river move.
Two minutes to check your fit and see where you'd start. Your $195 evaluation is 100% credited to your first month if you join. Fall enrollment is limited to 10 spots at a reduced rate.