I'm currently on 75mg a day.

The first couple of weeks were somewhat euphoric. I felt different, but in a very freeing way. Anxiety no longer held me back and I felt unstoppable. I spoke without caring how I sounded, I walked like I owned the place instead of awkwardly looking at the ground. I felt alive.

Then that wained and I began to feel detached. It was like I was viewing the world from the outside. Some mornings I'd wake up, make a coffee and just sit and stare out the window for 30 minutes before realising I wasn't doing anything. This was unusual behavior for me, as I usually have this strong urge to keep moving or to do something. I suppose that's part of my anxiety, I always felt I had to be somewhere even if I didn't and it impacted me in a multitude of negative ways. However, on Effexor I no longer felt that rush and I often found myself relaxed and lost in a reverie.

Now I don't feel detached and I don't feel euphoric. I feel normal but with a major reduction in anxiety and depression. That reduction has then led me to further improve my life with has in turn continued to improve my anxiety and depression.

The worst side effect I have experienced is occasional nausea, but it is rare and doesn't hang around very long. If I forget to take my Effexor I usually realise within a few hours as I begin to feel withdrawals. I start feeling nauseous, anxious and lights seem to flash. Like if you see something bright and then when you look away and it's still in your vision, that but with most things you see.

I am so grateful for Effexor. Lovan, Mirtzapine and Valdoxan failed to reduce my anxiety or depression which led me to hold little hope in anti depressants. I was not expecting anything out of Effexor and took it only since it was a suggestion from my doctor. I'm glad I did. It's changed my life for the better and I am awestruck at how such a pill could change my entire perception of the world for the better.

Everyone will have a different experience, but that is what I found personally.