I have been taking Effexor for about 5 years now. I started after having a major emotional breakdown. Allow me to explain. I was initially put on Prozac and felt fantastic. I stayed on the Prozac for several years and life was fucking great. So great, in fact, that I decided I no longer needed to be on any medicine for depression and just stopped taking it. Since Prozac has a nice half-life, getting off of it was a breeze...absolutely no side effects!
Then I had some major crises in my life and started to slip into a deep depression and manic anxieties. I was a mess. The doc put me on several medicines just to get me to the point where I could function. I have to honestly say that I am very grateful for the help some of these medicines provided, but I deeply regret the day I began Effexor. It is currently the only psych med that I take and it is an evil drug. If I don't take this medicine exactly the same time every day I will feel the most uncomfortable withdrawals...brain zaps (like electrical surges thru my head that disorient me), terrible sadness, crying, anxiety, feeling disconnected.
I have realized that some other uncomfortable things that I experience are most likely Effexor related. I hate this drug beyond mere words. I hate that sometimes I cannot finish sentences, like I have a thought in my head but I can't say the words and sometimes can't even think of the word I was going to say. I hate that I have no sex drive anymore, and during the very very rare occasions when I do get the urge, orgasm is impossible.
I hate that I am an addict to this terrible, dangerous drug. I worry what it is doing to my brain. I wish to God that I had stayed on the Prozac and never decided to play doctor and take myself off of it. The horrendous withdrawals I get from just missing my regular dose time is enough to convince me that I will probably be on this evil drug for a long, long time. Effexor is HELL!!!!!!!!!!!
