[BonamassaGirl]

I've been on Effexor, twice.

It made me gain 40 pounds on the low, 75mg dose. It made my skin smell. It gave me nightmares. It made me never want to be intimate w/ my husband. It did take my anxiety/depression away, but it gave me such a level, not- really- happy- but- not- really- sad general feeling, that I can only describe as numb. I went off the stuff cold turkey and survived withdrawals that I can only describe as worse than getting off heroin. For 3 weeks I had electric shock sensations going through my brain and body, I had the WORST and most horrifying nightmares, I had night sweats, I was so moody I was almost impossible to live with and there were many days I sincerely would have begged to go back on it just to take the withdrawal symptoms go away. I had headaches, crying spells, screaming spells, was so tired I could barely move (when I wasn't making everyone's life hell) and if you can believe it, I did this two seperate times.

NEVER AGAIN!

I finally learned to deal with my anxiety/ depression using natural methods, such as diet, exercise, and began meditating. The meditation changed my life. I've been off the meds for about 3 years and rarely do I ever have a spell of anxiety but when I do, I know how to deal with it myself.

I realize that medication may be the correct way to treat some people's anxiety/depression, but please for your own health- if you haven't tried other methods yet, please look into it. I know how it feels, I know what it's like to feel like you can't live another day feeling sad, or feeling like the anxiety attacks are going to make you die if you have another one, but trust me there are other ways to deal with it.

Also, there are other medications. Effexor is an SSNRI- which means it is a Selective Serotonin, Norepenepherine re-uptake inhibitor. It's a double whammy, controlling two different chemicals in the brain. Most others are SSRI's or Serotonin only. This drug, in my opinion, is really dangerous. I would NOT take it, especially if there are others you haven't tried, or haven't tried therapy. Therapy can help you cope. It can help you deal with it- for me, it was meditation, yoga and lifestyle change, but therapy is a great way to try.

Even though it's been 3 years since I've been off the meds, I've noticed changes in me, my memory isn't as good and every once in a while I get one of those "shocks" in my head. It scares me to think what the drug did to my brain-

I'm not trying to tell you this to scare you, but this is really what happened with me. Also, I've known people who cannot get off the stuff once they're on it for a while. They've ended up having to be on maintenace dosages for life. And there aren't any long term studies o this stuff to have any way of knowing wahat the REAL side effects are down the road. You can PM me anytime, like I said I don't want to scare you but it's the real story you wanted, and trust me- it's real.

Hope this helps you in your decision