Guarded Optimism,
Everyone's experience with drugs is different since chemically, we are all different. And, what these drugs do is alter the chemicals in our brain to make us feel better. Effexor is in a group of seratonin reuptake inhibitors (SRI'S), but is a multiple reuptake inibitor that acts like an SSRI and an SNRI...you'll have to read about these yourself. The hardest thing to do is get on the med and get off the med. Starting a med can present a whole host of side effects that, in some cases, can be unbearable. In my case, I used Effexor for about 1.5 years. Prepare yourself for a difficult 1st month. But, the key is to remain optimistic...remember, my experience may be different than yours...here are some side effects I had initially: dizziness, poor concentration, vivid nightmares (even invoking childhood), nausea. I called my doctor 4 times in the 1st month to make sure this was normal. Eventually, my body and brain grew accustomed to Effexor and I was anxiety/depression free for the remainder of my treatment. However, some of the unpleasant side effects continued, one of which was the vivid nightmares. With my doctors approval, I felt it was time to stop taking this med. Withdrawal from any med is difficult. If you ever do this, do it very, very slowly. It could take 2-3 months with a slow taper. Fortunately, Effexor is made up of tiny granules which you can easily add/remove from the capsules. Discontinuation symptoms can be very bad with this drug, so beware. The slow taper should help keep these at bay.
