ANY success stories???

I take 150 mg extended release to not only manage anxiety and depression but also chronic pain. It has given me back a quality of life which allows me to function on a daily basis rather than lying in bed in constant pain.

Yes, I think it's good, for me at least, although you're not likely to hear a lot of success stories on here because they are content and don't need to post for help and advice. I've been on Venlafaxine for almost ten years now. I';d like to see what life is like without it, as my situation is a lot different now than when I first went on Ven, but the last time I tried to come off it it wasn't pretty, so what to do?

hi Natalie, I've managed to reduce from 300mg a day to 150.. taken a long time though.. Waiting to reduce further as I've still to see Doctor about making transition to a different one. best wishes

Hi Natalie,

Venlafaxine kept my anxiety and depression at bay for 10 years and allowed me to live a normal life. I remember reading about how bad the withdrawal was but I didn't find it that bad at all. Dropped from 150mg to 75mg and then 75mg to 0 without too much problem.

It started loosing its effectiveness recently, but it was great while it worked.

The only minor issue I experienced was increased sweating at higher doses. I also found higher doses were too activating, making me a bit shaky. It's better than a lot of other anti depressants I have tried (citalopram, ecitalopram, mirtazapine and sertraline)

Hope it works for you!

yes, it was a long road but fast forward 2 years and I'm now mentally stable, have my own place, able to be alone, have my kids alone. when I was in a bad place I lost everything, my kids, my home, my job, sanity, health just everything I was a complete mess although it took a good 6 months for my meds to have a positive effect, had most of the horrible side effects for a long time. I slowly bit gradually rebuilt my life. I still dont work at the moment but I'm at peace with this, im just happy working on myself and spending the quality time with my kids. I lost alot back then including hope but I'm glad i didnt give up even though many times i wanted to as i saw no was out other than to end my life but it really will get better, have faith. times really is a healer and the right medication helps too. good luck my friend i hope you get on the right track soon. dont give up! peace, love and good vibes. Leanne x

I started on 37.5mg tablets twice daily for generalized anxiety. It was bumped up to 75mg capsules twice daily about 4 months ago, and although I've really loved this medication, I'm starting to taper off because of some major weight gain.

It has REALLY lessened my anxiety and just made me feel a lot more balanced. I'm 34 and my birth control had my hormones all over the place before, Effexor helped me feel great again. But the weight gain after the increased dosage has me feeling discouraged.

I have been on Effexor XR twice in the past with 225 mg as my highest dosage. I have been on so many anti depressants that did not work for me.

Effexor XR is the only one that made me feel human. My problem was once I began feeling better, I would get off of it. Even with a slow taper it was the worst medication to come off of. When I went back on it about 8 months ago, my doctor told me that I need to accept the fact that I need this medication just like a diabetic or heart patient etc. needs their meds.

We experimented with dosage and found that 75 mg. Effexor XR in the morning and 15 mg. mirtazapine before bed works best for me, but it took several months to get to that point. I haven't felt this good in years! I am sleeping better and I have gained the weight that I had lost (unwanted) due to anxiety, depression, and gastrointestinal sensitivities. I do have to be careful with how I eat so I don't gain more weight because I'm where I want to be, but that is a small price to pay . Obviously this is my experience only, and other people may experience something else, but I can't imagine wanting to come off of this combination because I feel so good. Good luck to you Natalie!

This venlafaxine 150 mg ER kept me pretty level for over 10 years. I had some bouts of increased depression but I was too weary to address dealing with another drug so just kept on and on. When I told my dr about the increased depression he wanted to add MORE.

This year has been spent trying to titrate off and it has not been too bad until these last 3 months I may have to stay on 12.5 mg forever to override the brain zaps.

These drugs really need conscientious thought before starting and good input from the dr.

There really is NO definitive test for depression.

I have just successfully come off of Effexor 37.5. It took me about 6 weeks of taking pellets out I had symptoms of dizziness and nausea. I started taking an ashwaganda supplement and it kept the side effects away and I was able to take more and more pellets out without side effects. I was on it for 2.5 years and gained 30 pounds. Hoping yhe weight comes off easy.