"i am a 33 yr old woman with anxiety, irritabilty, ocd 
. i have been on many different medications since i was 18. my new doctor finally sent me to a psychologist to see if effexor was the right drug for me after being on it for 18 months with some improvement but not great improvement. at the time i was on 75 mg a day. the psychologist upped my dosage to 200 mg a day. since then i have had very slight anxiety, and only when even a normal person would have a panic attack. my ocd is manageable. and i no longer wish everyone dead. i have had 0 side effects what so ever.  only thing i have noticed is when i miss a couple days, (mom of 3 it happens), all my problems come back 100%. i never take my meds at the same time and have never had withdrawal."