I was suffering from clinical depression that started when I was being treated for HEP C. About 8 months into the treatment I would awaken everyday with feelings of hopelessness and a wish to simply not exist. The doctors said I needed to see a psychiatrist and get treatment for this severe depression. I tried several anti-depressants including Prozac, Paxil, and Zoloft with no success. I finally tried Effexor and it worked! I lost the feelings of hopelessness, I found I was able to smile, I regained some energy and generally felt better. At the end of the HEP C treatment I stopped the Effexor treatment also but after a couple of months the depression returned and was quite disabling. I ended up taking Effexor again and the depression subsided. I have been taking Effexor in doses of 150 mg to 225 mg for the past 5 years and have been able to return to work, enjoy my family and life in general. If I stop taking the Effexor I find myself slipping back into depression after just a few days. I am taking the time to write this to provide a note of encouragement to people who have not found a way out of their depression. As I said, I had to try several before I found something that worked but I kept trying. I also use diet and exercise and therapy and prayer and meditation. I need them all to stay in the light. I still have days when I awaken with my head in a negative space but with the help of the medicine, doctors and prayer and helping other people worse off than I am I find life is usually pretty good and often downright great! Published: April 30, 2008 ::

Basically, this drug has helped change my life. I've had problems with recurring major depressive disorder for as long as I can remember, but it took one really bad episode in my adulthood to make me consider taking an antidepressant. I have to say, taking the meds in combination with talk therapy has improved the quality of my life beyond measure. Most of the complaints people have here are about weight gain, decreased libido and withdrawal effects. My weight gain started before taking Effexor, so I can't blame it on that - I know it was due to a lifestyle change. I had decreased libido for about 6 months, but then it returned back to normal. And FYI - you're going to have withdrawal effects when you stop taking any antidepressant. The key is to taper off slooooooowly and with the supervision of your doctor. Not everyone needs to take Effexor (or any antidepressant) forever, but for me - as long as it keeps me in remission, I'm a happy camper. Published: March 04, 2008 ::

*WARNING* I have been taking this for about 3 years. It works, but at what cost. I'm was always tierd. As for sex in my life it was non existent and severe hot flashes weight gain, and sinus problemes. It fixed one probleme and gave me five more. I am now trying to get off this medication. It is so hard!! I have been pill free for 4 days and i'm dizzy I fell sick to my stomache and I just want to cry at the drop of a hat. I wish I had know of the withdrawl. At this point it is very hard to function normaly. I hope this gets better. Published: February 09, 2008 ::

Unfortunately, my 25 year-old son's depression worsened and he thought he could correct it by taking a second pill. This unfortunately led him to commit suicide December 5, 2007. Please, please be careful and read the information provided. Published: December 18, 2007 ::

I must say that Effexor is most effective at treating depression. It really helped me through a very bad time in my life. BUT I must warn anyone who is thinking of taking this medication that the withdrawl symptoms are MOST SEVERE!!! Sweating, Chills, Bad Headache, Nausea, Restlessness, Inability to sleep, Cloudy thinking just to name a few. It is impairative that anyone thinking of stopping this drug do it correctly and under the close supervision of thier doctor. The symptoms are no joke, I felt like a junkie going through detox! Review all your options to find what's right for you and be ready to endure the side effects, the more knowledge you have the better! Published: April 17, 2008 ::

Doctor prescribed this med for me b/c of menopause and depression. Gave me one in the office at 3 pm and by 8:30 pm felt better than I had in 5 years! Awesome, miracle drug! - BUT no one told me about alcohol and the drug, I had a couple glasses of wine and by midnight I was throwing up like I drank a bottle of whiskey - Took me almost two days to recover from that episode - vomited for about 6 hours straight. Published: January 12, 2008 ::