"so far effexor xr has been a lifesaver with minimal side effects. as a full time care giver to my mom who has alzheimer&#039;s, depression was slowly destroying me and i was a fool to think i was man enough to deal with it - with no help. after 3 weeks use, i had completely overcome my heavy alcohol use and my motivation, clarity and concentration levels returned to an above normal level. in the beginning i did experience the sweating side effect and felt a bit anxious. my doctor agreed he should have started me at the lowest dose instead of the 75mg. i now find that a 75mg dose every other day, supplemented with exercise on the non dose days has seriously turned my life around for the better."