I am wondering the same thing. I plan to stay with my meds my doctor has me on. It is certainly better than being on an emotional roller coaster. I have been in a deep depression and hospitalized in the past and I know I don't want to go back to that kind of horror. I will gladly stay with my meds and continue to see my doctor as scheduled.

@liz223 I hate the thought of taking unnecessary drugs, they ALL do have down sides, but what are the down sides if these that make people want to get off them so much?
JK

It's just like a ball and chain to me. If I miss even one dose, I'm sick and literally throwing up the whole next day. I don't want to have to deal with that for the rest of my life.

@contentandwell - You ask a very important question. I can’t answer for everyone, but I can answer for me. I started therapy about a decade ago to help me cope with some situational issues that caused me some very severe depression. Venlafaxine had its place and I might even go so far as to say that it saved my life.

I am in a much different place in my life now, and no longer need the strict emotional stability that venlafaxine has provided. Now, I find that venlafaxine has actually provided *too much* emotional stability - to the point of stagnation, or emotional blunting. Sure, I don’t feel the low-lows that I once did, but more importantly at this time, I also don’t feel the high-highs either. These are part of what make life so precious.

I’m starting to get some of that back, and I’m realizing more and more each day what I’ve been missing.

I hope that makes sense ...(?)

@efexnot Thank you so much for your response, I really appreciate it and I understand perfectly. I think the person I am concerned about has convinced himself that he absolutely needs these medications. Sometimes I feel like he wants to need them, as odd as that may sound.
I realize that depression is a real illness but when I consider this person, his depressions seem to me to all be situational, and with very good cause. He is convinced he is bipolar, but that is misdiagnosed something like 60+ percent of the time because the diagnosis is made based on what the patient says.
Thank you again. This really is such a difficult thing to deal with, both for the person who is suffering from it and for the people who care deeply about that person.
JK

I was prescribed Effexor by a neurologist because of migraines in my optic nerves and I was told it could also have the benefit of helping my anxiety. It has been 5 years and now I’m on two extra medications because it didn’t relieve my migraines and helped my anxiety too much causing depression but by the time my primary care realized the issue I had been on all three medications for three years. I have gone from 225mg Effexor down to 75mg a day and other than the “brain zaps” and extreme nausea am feeling better and have less daily migraines so I know that I will probably be fine without any Effexor but can’t get through the withdrawal to stop it completely. @contentandwell