Today has been the worst day yet with withdrawal symptoms. Headache, sweats and throwing up. I've been sick all week but today it was just sever throwing up. My throat is killing me, headache probably from the vomiting and the sweating!! My poor fiance is freezing and I'm laying under air vent with a big fan blowing on me. Even taking cool showers. I bet it's your withdrawal and not hot flashes.

@youngsally
Yes, this is why I was prescribed Effexor--for hot flashes. I developed breast cancer in 2000 and was pre-menopausal. The cancer was hormone-driven and I was put on Tamoxifen after a lumpectomy, chemo and radiation. The Tamoxifen binds with estrogen and after about 10 weeks on it, I began having hot flashes because I was going into a chemically-induced menopause. It is very common for breast cancer patients who can't have hormones to be put on Effexor to control hot flashes (well-known off-label use). It worked like a charm and I was on 25mg for 18 years. I was going to quit it about four years ago, but developed breast cancer again. This time I was facing double mastectomy, several reconstruction surgeries and 16 rounds of chemo and my doctor said let's put that on the back burner. I had no idea when I started Effexor that it was such a powerful drug, that it affected your brain neurotransmitters and was difficult to quit. I don't think my oncologist knew this either and he has been surprised by my continuing issues despite tapering off quite slowly. It has been my experience, however, that if there is a weird, or uncommon side effect to something, I'll get it.