Drug Ratings for EFFEXOR XRAverage Rating: 3.1 (2037 Ratings)
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| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR EFFEXOR XR | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
  | F M | | | | |||
| 3 | Depression & Social Anxiety | Initially: Erectile Dysfunction, Decreased Cognitive Ability, Memory Issues, Sudden Weight Gain, Horrific Withdrawal Symptoms (vertigo, spinning room, nausea, light and movement sensitivity... lasted 2 weeks, was bed ridden) | This medication is an effective anti-depressant. You can expect to have a 2-3 month lead in with annoying side effects. Every dose increase will bring those side effects back. Once my body had adjusted, all the side effects left me, and my mood was balanced and lifted. My social anxiety did not improve, but I believe I have a dopamine deficiency. Expect to be off work if you are coming off this medication. DO NOT miss a dose, DO NOT discontinue without speaking to your doctor and reducing doses slowly. You will regret it if you don't. Make sure this is something you want to take long term, as it is something you do not want to start and stop. | M | 26 | 12 months 150 mg 1X D | 5/16/2013 | 1 | Depression & anxiety | Erectile dysfunction, disturbed sleep, less muscle tone, blood pressure problems, trouble concentrating and with fine motor movement, anger, violence, bad dreams, | Took this after switching from lexapro because it caused ED. Doctor prescribed this, made it worse, much worse. Permanent ED. No morning erections. Feel very bad about life now and very alone. | M | 27 | 2 years 75mg 1X D | 5/12/2013 | 4 | Anxiety/depression | Tiredness lethargy loss of libido but it did work wonders for my depression. | M | 67 | 1 years 150mg | 4/30/2013 | 5 | Depression, GAD, social anxiety | Increased sweating | I am a psychiatry resident, and I just want to say that all ratings from people who have taken any SSRI (Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft, Lexapro, Celexa, Luvox) or SNRI (Effexor, Cymbalta, Pristiq) for less than one month should be completely disregarded. In fact, this site should probably remove them. These meds take at least 3-4 weeks to work like they are supposed to. And yes, people get GI side effects and headaches (since serotonin is mostly in the nervous and GI systems), but these are typically worst on days 3-7 from starting or with a dosage increase, and they do get better. Increased sweating has been my biggest problem with Effexor XR. I have tried switching to Prozac twice (currently I'm on 40 mg of Prozac). The sweating is better for the most part, but I think Effexor was really helping to control my irritable bowel symptoms because it's kind of out of control at the moment (it makes sense due to Effexor's norepinephrine reuptake inhibition, which is the mechanism of the older tricyclic antidepressant nortriptyline that is often used for IBS and other chronic pain syndromes). I've been on varying dosages of Effexor (150, 225, 300 mg). I was doing really well on 150 mg for the past year but again I wanted to sweat less. I'm pretty sure I'm going to go back on Effexor despite the sweating. There are really no magic pills; generally patients need to weigh the benefits and the side effects (which generally improve or disappear). | M | 27 | 2.5 years 150 mg 1X D | 4/25/2013 | 5 | I was taking Effexor for anxiety | I have dreams quite frequently. I sweat a lot and can be moody at times. All in all I think Effexor has changed my life for the better. People should give it more time to work. It takes 6 weeks for anything to feel any better. Everything has negative side effects you just have to weigh the pros and cons. I think Effexor is wonderful and I won't be stopping anytime soon. | F | 27 | 10 years 75 MG | 4/24/2013 | 4 | Depression/Anxiety | Increased blood pressure, jittery, loss of libido, racing heart, irregular heart beat, consipation ... after about five months, horrible rash, hives and itching. | I have tried several different meds in the past for my anxiety/depression. I seem to be very sensative to side effects. Effexor really seemed to help level me out and make me feel happy again and not worry so much. But almost immediately, my blood pressure went up and I became very constipated. Then I started experiencing a racing heart and occasionally would feel 1-3 'hard' heart beats every 5-10 minutes. After about 5 months, I suddenly broke out in a rash and hives on my chest, shoulders and neck. My face would become red, flushed and itchy and I'd itch from head to toe. Guess I need to try and get off this stuff and try something else. | M | 45 | 5 months 150 mg 1X D | 4/8/2013 | 5 | Sleep dis, menopause, mood swings | None, maybe some weight gain | I have tried other anti-depressants and could not tolerate Paxil, Prozac, and a few others. This one worked like a miracle. After a week I felt completely normal again. I was sleeping and I felt like my old self. I don't remember the exact dose I was on, but it was a low-moderate dose. After about 6 months I tapered off for another couple of months. | F | 48 | 9 months 50 1X D | 2/27/2013 | 4 | Major depression | Weight gain | Never ever try to come off cold turkey!! In the process of weaning off by the doctors orders. Tingling in feet, and that is it so far. I can't wait to be off of hs drug! It helped for 6 years, but the weight gain is really getting to me! | F | 40 | 6 years 150mg 1X D | 2/16/2013 | 2 | Depression, generalized anxiety | Weight gain. Reduced mental clarity. Heightened emotions. Suicidal thoughts. Withdrawal is a btch. I was on 225 mg for a long time and then tapered down to 37.5 mg. Reason I'm writing this review today is that I was without medicine for 2.5 days and I'm in a dark and uncomfortable place. I ended up in ER twice because of Effexor withdrawal in the past. | It may work short term but doctors need to be more careful in the cost-benefit analysis of this medicine. Also, in the event of misdiagnosis (as it was in my case), if you write this drug for a patient who is actually bi-polar, you'll intensify the manias (when most of the suicides etc. occur). | M | 31 | 3 years 37.5 1X D | 2/14/2013 | 4 | Depression/anxiety | decreased appetite, sexual dysfunction, lightheadedness/dizziness (relatively mild). Most of these have improved but are still present. | I started out at 75, then bumped up to 150, 225, and now 300 mg. I feel like 300 mg is a lot but I have had treatment-resistant depression and have been on SSRI's for a couple years so it's not bad. With SSRI's, withdrawals are not bad as long as you taper down. If you are on a high dosage and you cease taking it immediately that's very dangerous. Effexor is not "addicting" in the sense that a narcotic medication like Xanax is, but it does cause chemical changes in the brain (that's how it works) and the readjustment period if you stop taking the medication is considered "withdrawal". As somebody with a substance abuse history, SSRI withdrawals are a joke compared to alcohol or any other narcotic. You can't die from Effexor withdrawal lol. So far the medication has worked fairly well for me. I am finally able to get back to work and I have motivation to do things again. I have no major complaints other than the short half-life of Effexor (make sure you take this med at the same time every day, because withdrawals can kick in just from missing or being late with a single dose).' I also take Trazodone 150 mg to help me sleep and Buspirone 15 mg to help with sexual side effects. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns about your experience with the med. 99% of side effects (except sexual) get better within the first couple weeks. Hang in there! | M | 22 | 3 months 300 1X D | 2/13/2013 | 5 | Panic Disorder with agoraphobia | At first nausea, but that subsided. Also, a small increase in anxiety when starting the med. | The only antidepressant that has helped me. I take it with Valium and propranolol, and got my life back! Best of all, I experienced no sexual side effects from this drug, as opposed to the others I've tried. | M | 26 | 7 years 150 mg 1X D | 1/25/2013 | 5 | anxiety/depression | Lower sex drive | This med saved me and my family. Debilitating anxiety, terrible insomnia brought me to the point of ending my life. Effexor XR worked practically instantly improving my ability to fall asleep. As my night sleep got better, anxiety went away. My Dr. telling me to stay on my medication, and I do not have a problem with that because I never want to go back to depression. May be I am just lucky, but I practically have no side effects. | F | 56 | 3.5 years 150 1X D | 1/21/2013 | 1 | anxiety | Dry mouth, restless legs, fatigue and drowsiness. The worst part of about this drug is it eventually did nothing for my anxiety, and when I tried to discontinue it several times, I had rebound anxiety so bad I had to go back on it to relieve it. This was a vicious cycle that went on all four years. | I would not recommend taking this drug or any SSRIs. They do not work and they are addictive, no matter what your doctor says. You will get hooked on them as bad as heroin or cocaine. It will be impossible to ever stop them. They cause brain damage like short term memory loss and dementia. All the SSRIs are bad. Don't ever start them. | F | 53 | 4 years 75 mg 1X D | 1/13/2013 | 3 | Depression | Weight gain, emotional numbness, muscles sore, constipation, Restless Legs, do not even THINK about sex and memory loss that made me think I was getting dementia ( that runs in my family). | I asked my Dr. to take me off effexor because of memory loss. He told me to take 1/2 tablet (75mg) for 2 weeks; then 1/4 tablet (37.5mg) for 2 weeks then 1/4 tab every other day for 2 weeks. I could not tolerate the every other day because of the "brain zaps" so I took 1/8 tab (18.75mg) daily for 2 weeks. I then stopped taking any amount and the brain zaps increased and I was a crying, sobbing mess! I cried at everything and at nothing! So...I am taking 1/16 tab (9.375mg) and it has stopped the brain zaps and minimized the crying spells. This is RIDICULOUS!!! Will I ever get off this stuff??? | F | 65 | 8 years 150 MB 1X D | 1/6/2013 | 1 | Depression,anxiety | gained a lot of weight. I didn't wan't to miss a dose because withdrawl starts right away. | I didn't realize I was gaining so much weight. It just started slowly coming on and before I knew it 3 years later I had gained about 30 plus lbs. I suggest trying almost anything before this, and if you do go on this drug be prepared for a living hell getting off of it. There have been a few that had minimal issues getting off of it but the majority including myself wen't through a special effexor version of hell. That possibility is my warning to anyone who wants to give it a try. Keep in mind the websites by the drug makers of effexor gloss this truth over. So look into it well before taking it because I sure didn't. Weaned myself off very slowly because I just wasn't getting enough good out of it and it was unpleasant if I was late taking my next dose or if I missed it for some reason. this is one med that you better not miss getting a perscription filled for. Finally got off this pill and lost 30 lbs over about a year without even trying. | F | 37 | 3 years 75 1X D | 12/21/2012 | 1 | Depression and intrusive thoughts | Heart palpitations (beat at 140bpm) whole body numbness and weakness (couldnt lift my arms or walk without help) whole body tingling/burning, couldn't breathe or speak, felt like I was dying. Ended up in hospital. Stopped on day 5 and all symptoms went away. Do not take this drug!!!!!! | F | 21 | 4 days 37.5mg | 12/18/2012 | 3 | Depression | Stimulation, Restless leg, tingling in legs and feet, nausea, Dizziness, mood swings, suicidal thoughts, aggression. | M | 20 | 30 days 37.5MG 2X D | 12/6/2012 | 3 | anxiety | After beginning i had terrible nausea,sweating profusely,constipation,lack of sex drive. Trying to wean off now and my brain feels like its on a rollercoaster,im so irritable i feel horrible. This is my 2nd time on effexor xr and there Will NOT be a 3rd!! effexor xr and there willNOT | F | 29 | 2 years 75 mg | 11/24/2012 | 1 | Social Anxiety | Debilitating knee pain (permanent), increased joint pain, bone pain, chest/heart pain, rapid heart beat, sweating, exhaustion & insomnia despite exhaustion, confusion & impaired cognitive function, increased anxiety. | This drug caused permanent knee pain so severe that I can barely walk now about a year later just from the lowest dose taken for only two weeks. This drug is poison to most males, although it seems it works okay for females. If you are male do not take this drug! Instead take a benzo like klonopin for anxiety or if you have pain take something that is less experimental like vicoden or percocet. | M | 24 | 2 weeks 37.5 1X D | 11/7/2012 | 1 | Panic Disorder, GAD, PTSD | Nausea, heavy heart beat, weakness, abdominal pain24/7 bloating, lightheaded24/7, shallow breathing,blurred vision24/7, increased thurst, servere sweating (expecially when nervious) ie: makeup would come off within minutes of putting it on. nightsweats (soking the sheets) chronic constapaion for (1.5 years) developed Tinitus too. | Worst thing I have ever done!! It had affected every area of my life. Could not do 'normal' everyday life easily, as was ALWAYS PHYSICALLY ILL! Felt 85 not 25! I agree with the RN nurse above. Do not try this drug unless you have been chronic(years) and have try natural methods first (NO SIDEEFFECTS) The way God intened to help this. | F | 27 | 3 years 75mg - 225 1X D | 11/6/2012 | 5 | Major Clinical Depression | Have taken for 13 years and is the only drug that has sent my depression into complete remission with the help of lamotrogine which I added about 4 years ago. Wanted to document the fact that I am otherwise perfectly healthy and fit, but have just had a low grade tumor removed from the base of my spine. Don't know if this was related to the Effexor or not. Will continue taking it, as it allows me to live a normal life. But wanted to let everyone know. Noticed in another post that someone also had a tumor in the pituitary gland. | Have taken for 13 years and is the only drug that has sent my depression into complete remission with the help of lamotrogine which I added about 4 years ago. Wanted to document the fact that I am otherwise perfectly healthy and fit, but have just had a low grade tumor removed from the base of my spine. Don't know if this was related to the Effexor or not. Will continue taking it, as it allows me to live a normal life. But wanted to let everyone know. Noticed in another post that someone also had a tumor in the pituitary gland. | F | 43 | 13 years 225 1X D | 10/3/2012 | 1 | depression | Alcohol binge drinking. | M | 34 | 8 months 150 | 10/1/2012 | 1 | Major Depression | Dilated Pupils | Didn't do sh*t. I read about all the withdrawal stuff and how wonderful people thought the drug was for their depression. But really, it was a wussy drug because it had no effect on my emotion/mood whatsoever. Is this a joke? I didn't even have a withdrawal. | M | 20 | 3 weeks 65mg 1X D | 9/16/2012 | 5 | depression ptsd | weight gain but being emotionally healthy is more important | F | 6 years 225mg | 9/7/2012 | 5 | Manic Depression | Sweaty hands & feet Euphoria | This medicine has saved my social life. It has saved me from making terrible mistakes at work and around my family. My manic depression has driven to do things any normal person would never even think of doing and it seems as though I cannot live without the medicine. I think I may have to have my dosage up'd to the next level because the bad dreams and sudden outbursts are coming back I've noticed. Thank you Venlafaxine. You've saved my life and my daughters. I wouldn't recommend it to just anyone though. I'd like to think of it as a "last resort" type. I've tried countless other meds. But this is the only one that does the trick. | F | 27 | 2 years 75MG 1X D | 8/30/2012 | 5 | manic depression, Bi-polar, anxity | Nausea, Insomnia, Loss of appetite, Dizziness, Dry mouth, Increased sweating, Constipation, Abnormal dreams, Weight loss, High blood pressure, Flushing, Abdominal pain, Twitching, Inability to sit still, A rapid heart rate, Fever, sweating, or shivering, Coughing, Extreme confusion, High cholesterol, Hemorrhoids, Liver problems, A decreased sex drive, | My Dr. tried every medication and nothing worked, until he put me on Effexor XR. I started out on Effexor XR 75 mg, and was slowly raised from there to Effexor XR 300 mg. Then I was changed to the generic Venlafaxine XR 300 mg. I have had a lot of side effects with both of the medications, but it has been a life savor for me. I have been committed 3 times in the last 2 years. I was also getting 1 on 1 counselling but at the time I didn't have any insurance and the laws changed. So I had to start doing group therapy, and that didn't work. I always wanted to help others instead of helping myself. The Effexor XR worked wonderfully for me until about 2 1/2 years ago. I fell 4 1/2 years ago and broke my right ankle in 3 places and I ended up with RSD. Since then I have been in a power chair and I can do almost nothing by myself. I also ended up getting a blood clot in my right leg and was put in the hospital for that also. The Effexor XR worked so good for me with little or no side effects, until I was raised up to 300 mg. I feel that a lot of the side effects that I have are from the RSD not the Effexor XR.. I am trying to get back into counselling now. The counselling does wonders for me. As far as the liver problems, the Dr. told me I had a fatty liver. I am also on morphine for pain from the RSD. I would recommend for anyone to take the Effexor XR. The help that it has done for me along with counselling out weighs the side effects by far. | F | 49 | 8 years 300 MG 1X D | 8/30/2012 | 3 | Depression and Anxiety | Effexor has undoubtedly saved me from countless spells of depression and anxiety, but knowing now what the side effects are, I'm not sure I'd make the same decision to get on it. I'm on a high dose, so night sweats (sometimes soaking the sheets) are an issue, as well as the crazy dreams and I think, some slight memory loss. The worst is the withdrawal effects. Coming off this drug is almost torturous for people. I know when I miss a dose it sends me into a tailspin. I'm not looking forward to the day I have together off of it. I took it while pregnant and I also believe it led to some issues at birth with my son's health (low muscle tone, feeding issues, withdrawals for him). The drug works well, but I'm not sure it's worth all the other symptoms. | F | 32 | 10 years 375 mg | 8/23/2012 | 4 | depression | Sweating, sleeplessness and some dizziness (infrequent) | 57 | 3 months 150mgdaily | 8/22/2012 | 1 | Anxiety | feel like a zombie. Headaches, fuzziness, drowsiness, and lightheadedness. B.P. went way up. | I have tapered down to 37.5 mg. but have been unable to stop the medication due to terrible withdrawal side effects like insomnia, anxiety and panic attacks. Headaches and dizziness as well. | F | 52 | 4 years 150 mg 1X D | 8/10/2012 | 1 | Perimenopause | I had a very severe and sudden reaction within 20 minutes of swallowing the pill. Vomiting, diarrhea, sweating, shaking, passing out, writhing on the bathroom floor for an hour. This was followed by a severe headache that lasted several days. Stay away from this pill!! | My dr. told me that this was a mild drug with little side effects and put me on a low dosage. Nope - this drug was like a poison to my body. I would never recommend that anyone take it for any reason. I can't ever recall being that intensely sick - I lost 4.5 pounds in 1 day, and I'm already a skinny gal. Avoid this drug. | F | 39 | 1 days 37.5mg 1X D | 7/29/2012 | 1 | anxiety insomnia fibromyalgia | Made insomnia and anxiety worse. I was never hungry, but when I did it, I was like a bottomless pit. I got bad headaches. Then I spoke with a friends parent who is a doctor and was told about the meth-like substances in effexor and how it should not have been prescribed for me for insomnia or my social phobia. Coming off of it has been easy for me, besides the constant moodswings, the fatique, headaches, and the nausea. I don't recommend anyone take this. | F | 19 | 2 years 37.5 mg | 7/21/2012 | 1 | depression and anxiety | Omg, I kept feeling worse and worse and so stopped it. And then all hell broke loose. I had to go to the hospital for an I.V. I vomited so much--so much pain. That stopped but now I can't stop weeping, can't tolerate light or noise; can't read or watch tv, I'm a writer who can't write. | F | 69 | 4 weeks 75 1X D | 7/19/2012 | 2 | 1X D | 7/18/2012 | 3 | GAD / Mild Depression | Day One - spacey, Day Two - nauseous, tight neck and head muscles, internal hot flushing accompanied by weakness and trembling, Day Three - nauseous, increased heart rate, warmer than usual, increased anxiety, Day Four - nauseous, digestive upsets, tight neck and jaw, prickling & tingling on skin, flushing, increased anxiety, experiencing zaps when falling asleep, woke in the middle of the night very hot, anxious, prickly, got scared, didn't take the med on Day 5, now decided I will try to tough it out, Day 6 - took it an hour ago, so far just tight neck and head muscles | Too early to tell. I've read enough posts that I think I need to just get through the hell of the first two weeks and then move up to 75 mg and see what happens. Very anxious (duh!) about the whole process. | F | 51 | 5 days 37.5 1X D | 7/16/2012 | 4 | Major Depression | Terrible night sweats (most nights), non-existent libido, concentration difficulties, unbearable discontinuation syndrome if I miss a tablet | There's no doubt that Effexor XR saved my life, however long-term use is not the best. My moods are stable, but I'm now mildly and continuously depressed because of the two main side effects - lack of libido and bad night sweats. It's ruining my relationship, and so I'd really like to get off it but am terrified due to the side effects, and not knowing what I'll be like when I'm off it. I didn't have a choice but to resort to this drug, and I owe my life to it. It has made my life bearable, but introduced new problems which I never had before. | F | 23 | 9 years 150 mg 1X D | 7/13/2012 | 4 | depression | I have not suffered any side effects. | Effexor XR has been very helpful to alleviate my depression. Lately, I have had brief bouts of mild depression, so my doctor added Welbutrin XL 300 mg. | F | 58 | 6 years 150 mg 2X D | 7/13/2012 | 4 | Bipoar Depression | Appetite suppression, insomnia, increased blood pressure, mild to moderate stimulant-like effects | Effexor has been doing a pretty good job of combatting my resistant depression, in combination with an SSRI. The insomnia, increased blood pressure and stimulant-like effects of this medicine are mostly when I first went on it and for a couple of weeks following dose increases. I was up to 300 mg for several weeks but found myself getting irritable and moody on that higher dose. Overall I am satisfied with this medication, although I wish it didn't raise my blood pressure etc. | F | 23 | 4 months 150 MG 1X D | 7/4/2012 | 5 | OCD & Anxiety | I started taking Effexor for my intrustive thoughts (OCD) and generalized anxiety. After trying multiple medications this one seems to be the best so far!! Getting adjusted to the med wasn't easy, but my patience has paid off. It has helped significantly with my anxiety and intrusive obsessive thoughts. Obviously I still get bothered by them a couple times a day, but that's much better then every 4 or 5 mins. Unlike others I'm actually losing weight, which is great considering Celexa made me gain 20 lbs in just two months. I feel clear headed which hasnt happened with any of the SSRIs I've tried. Although when I first started this drug I often felt high or out of it. I was worried about sexual side effects, but it hasn't been that bad. I'm just not as horny as I was before, which isn't a bad thing. Don't let bad reviews keep you from trying SSRIs or SNRIs each person reacts differently and it usually takes a couple med changes to find the right one for you. It's truly saved my life, and made it comparable to life prior to my OCD onset. | M | 24 | 3 months 75 | 6/14/2012 | 3 | Panic Disorder, GAD | Tinnitus, extreme constipation, apathy, fatigue, insomnia, weight gain, hair loss. | I had to go up to 150mg to get rid of my daily panic attacks. The following are side effects I experienced from withdrawal: flu-like symptoms, crying, fatigue, brain zaps that would whoosh through my head and make my eyes roll back into their sockets, nausea. The drug worked, but the side effects both during and when I was weaning off are not worth it. There are other options out there. | F | 40 | 9 months 150 1X D | 6/9/2012 | 2 | Depression | Excessive sweating. No sex drive. Dissociation. | The withdrawal symptoms are the worst! | F | 21 | 3 years 75 mg 1X D | 5/13/2012 | 4 | Depression agitated | Sexual anorgasmia impotence brain zaps | M | 46 | 1 years 450 | 5/8/2012 | 5 | depression | None while on the drug. It made everything better. I was able to focus, depression was gone, and anxiety completely gone. But I gained 20 pounds in 6 months and decided to come off the drug. That is when all hell broke loose!!! The brain zaps were horrible, dizziness, and clouded thoughts almost made me go back.But a friend suggested Prozac to ease the withdrawals and it worked like a charm. My brain zaps went away. I took Prozac for one week and cycled off symptom free. Don't be a slave to the Effexor monster! | F | 31 | 6 months 75 mgs | 5/5/2012 | 2 | depression | did not mix with other meds, weird feeling in head | M | 55 | 4 months 20 1X D | 4/28/2012 | 3 | Depression | Hair loss, night sweats, complexion break outs, hormonal changes, increased blood pressure & cholesterol | This medication has worked for me better than any other, although it's not as effective as it once was & my highest dose has been 300mg. The one time I weaned off (tired of my side effects); I experienced horrific withdrawals! | F | 38 | 7 years 225 1X D | 4/17/2012 | 1 | depression | This was the most horrendous experience. If I had not had experience handling anxiety I would have definitely killed myself. I woke up shaking and I looked in the mirror and my eyes were terrifying like filled with terror and I couldn't change it. It was utterly utterly horrible. | Never take this horrific drug. | F | 34 | 1 days 30 mg 1X D | 3/22/2012 | 5 | anxiety and ocd | difficulty losing weight, more frequent breakouts, some sexual side effects | I give this drug a 5, not because it is perfect but because it has radically changed my life for the better. I've tried various antidepressants over the years and other drugs and I always come back to effexor. It really reduces my anxiety dramatically with minimal side effects. I do have to watch what I eat when I'm on it but I haven't gained massive amounts of weight like I did on other drugs. I've also had to go off and on it a few times (when getting pregnant, etc.) and though it is hard to come down off from it, it's not that big of a deal if you just reduce it slowly, take benedryl the last few days and sleep a lot. Any side effects are really not a big deal in light of how much it helps me in my life. I have no idea how people with anxiety survived before these drugs were invented. Effexor has dramatically changed my life for the better. | F | 37 | 10 years 75 mg 1X D | 3/21/2012 | 1 | Anxiety/Mood imbalance | Dizziness/heart palpitation, nausea if dose missed or late weight gain sweating anger/edginess loss of motivation | i would strongly suggest not taking effexor. I was put on it for anxiety. mood and while it seemed to help at first it eventually made me more irritable. the worst thing for me was the weight gain. the doctor said it was weight neutral...yet on my first followup visit her first question was whether i had gained weight..obviously she knew this was a possibility...i had gained like 10-15 lbs without changing anything in regards to my diet. i had always been slender and with a little diet and exercise could maintain a good figure...the weight slowly crept up to the point where i blew up out of nowhere...went from a size 4 dress to like an 8 or a 10 VERY fast! i got a trainer, joined weight watchers, cut calories and the weight would not come off...it was so embarrassing to have this unexplained weight gain to my family and finance -they saw how dedicated i was to exercise and diet yet i looked so fat and gross in my clothes...talk about depressed...this made me DEPRESSED...my doctor told me to "stay active" and "eat lean protein" really? duh? finally i quit effexor almost cold turkey...i am getting married and cannot afford to be on this drug and have this disgusting weight gain...3 weeks off and already my body is showing signs of getting back to its old self..if body image is important to you-STAY AWAY! i wish someone had told me or i knew this or i never would have started this terrible god awful drug. fight through the withdrawals and take vitamins and y | F | 32 | 7 months 75 1X D | 3/5/2012 | 1 | Neuropathy | Major diareha for 15 days non-stop. So bad I had to go to hospital and get fluids through an IV. Irregular hearbeat, shortness of breath and I lost 31pds in 2 weeks. | This has not helped my pain in any way. Only added to many more doctor bills I already have :( | F | 33 | 21 days 37.5 1X D | 3/5/2012 | 3 | depression | This medicine had an odd effect on me. I started noticing dust and had an uncontrolable urge to clean dust from everything. I am not joking. This was the medicine because it was not my normal behavior. It also made my neck stiff and painful. | A while after I quit taking this medicine, my infatuation with dust disapeared. I know this medicine has helped a lot of people. | F | 40 | 3 months 1X D | 3/3/2012 | 5 | Depression | Constipation, fatigue. | I was previously on Serzone for several years which worked great for me but was considered risky due to concerns about liver damage. Doc put me on 75mg of Effexor XR. Took that for 9 years and then I started having insomnia which was has been the major side effect of the depression that I experienced. Bumped my dosage up to 150mg and I started sleeping better but I got major constipation, more fatigue and just not functioning very well. Its been very difficult to stay focused at work and I'm constantly falling asleep. May be time to try a different drug. I look forward to retiring in a few years and stopping my meds and working through the issues without having to keep down a stressful job at the same time. | M | 54 | 10 years 150mg 1X D | 2/23/2012 | 2 | adjunct to Wellbutrin | This is an update to my previous post, but still have no appetite and have lost 12 pounds. I have been on 150mg for two days so we'll see how that goes. I take it in the morning, but have trouble sleeping (although that could be the Lamictal I take at night). Muscles ache like crazy, headaches, can't seem to keep on task at work. I hope that's temporary because I can deal with everything else | I had been off Effexor for two weeks when my cat accidentally knocked my bottle down my drain and my insurance wouldn't override and give me two weeks' worth. The withdrawal was such intense hell that I hope my doc knows what he's doing when the time comes for me to come off. Yes, the stories are true - withdrawal is hell and if you can, take time off work while you do it. I won't have that option. | F | 48 | 30 days 75 mg 1X D | 2/19/2012 | 5 | Effexor XR | If I miss a dose, I get very dizzy. Besides that, no other issues. | Effexor XR has saved my life. I am so grateful to be taking this drug. Prior to taking Effexor XR, I took Remeron for 7 years. However, Remeron stopped working after 7 years. I am hoping that this drug does not stop working for my major depression. I have been free of depression for over 5 years now. I took Effexor XR while being pregnant, and my daughter is perfectly healthy and almost 4 years old. Effexor XR has been a blessing in my life. | F | 39 | 6 days 150 mg 1X D | 2/16/2012 | 5 | migraine vertigo | Ridiculous weight gain (40 pounds for someone who has never, ever had a problem with weight control and is now on a diet for the first time in my life!), and increased sweating (probably from being so much heavier, especially around the middle), other side effects were transient including dry mouth, yawning, vivid dreams, teeth clenching. | My life was saved by this drug. Without it I have vertigo so severe that I can't stand up most days. It has been a blessing for me in that regard, so I can't complain about the horrible weight gain I guess. I started out underweight, and now I'm overweight. | F | 39 | 6 years 75 mg 2X D | 2/14/2012 | 1 | Depression | Crazy nightmares, night sweets, irritable and emotional. I cannot get off this drug - I've tried everything - weaning off, stopping cold (don't ever do this...It's HELL...dizziness, nausea, anger, cold/hot sweats, vomitting) and adding other anti-depressants. I want to get off Effexor XR and I can't - I'll be on it forever. It also does not help me. | Please talk to your doctor about the withdrawl side effects before you start. | F | 26 | 6 years 150MG 1X D | 2/13/2012 | 5 | Major Depression | NONE | This stuff ROCKS!Effexor XR has literally saved my life!I highly recommend it! | M | 53 | 7 years 300mg 1X D | 2/6/2012 | 2 | Anxiety and depression | This drug ruined my personality and made me emotionally apathetic and disconnected. Side effects include significant weight gain, gas, severe sweating, headache, risk taking behaviours, sleep disturbance and significant memory loss (i cant remember much while taking it, like the 2 years were a patchily recalled dream) and upon discontinuation, severe withdrawals, physical and mental. Required meticulous tapering and psychological support to get off the drug. Am now drug free for 15 months and no longer suffer the original illness. As an RN, I would only recommend this drug to mature adult individuals with severe illness and no other option. St johns wort is a good alternative. | F | 25 | 2 years 75Mg | 1/23/2012 | 3 | anxiety | the medication worked well but if I missed a dose by several hours I experienced an odd dizziness as though my brain was loose inside my skull. Quitting was brutal -- took many months of weaning off the drug to limit the dizzy/brain spin and overall feeling of ick. | Much too difficult to get OFF of the drug. I would not recommend this to anyone. Though it worked well for the anxiety and depression, it was NOT WORTH the side effects. | F | 48 | 4 years 30MG 1X D | 1/8/2012 | 5 | depression | Sweating any time of day, especially when nervous. Horrible sweating at the gym. NIGHT SWEATS!!! I've actually cut my dosage in half, hoping to lessen the night sweats. It's only been about 10 days, and the night sweats are less severe and the headaches are gone, but I'm not sure if that is due to cutting down or that menstruation ended about 5 days ago. | I've read online a long list of complaints of side effects from patients who are taking or who have taken Effexor. I am blessed that the only side effect I have is night sweats, though it's so bad that I've changed my clothes up to 4 times during one night and I'm cutting my dosage without my doctor's permission. Night sweats literally ruin your night's rest. | F | 45 | 3 years 100 2X D | 1/7/2012 | 3 | Major clinical depression | Weight gain, extreme thirst, severe sleepiness/fatigue, lack of energy, emotional apathy | M | 42 | 10 years 300 mg/day | 1/5/2012 | 1 | Fibromyalgia | weight gain, hair loss, tingling in extremities, upset stomach, vision problems, brain zaps | decided to stop it about 2 years after starting as I did not feel the benefits (helped me sleep) were worth the side effects. I was unable to wean off it as I would get too sick to work, so would go back on it. I tried repeatedly, slower each time. Finally was unable to work for another reason, but that gave me the opportunity to get off this stuff. Withdrawal is horrific, but I am glad to be rid of it! | F | 57 | 10 years 75 mg 1X D | 1/5/2012 |