The only thing worse than Effexor is depression. I'm down to 37.5 mg and feeling MUCH better. I tried 0 mg a few weeks ago and the darkness came over me, so I'm back to 37.5 mg. Several very stressful situations have been resolved and so my depression is in general much better. But, clearly I'm still depressed. I work with a psychiatrist in therapy and if you're still struggling without medicine, you should get into therapy. I've been going for months and I have months to go. I had thought my childhood traumas were way behind me, but like my general practitioner warned me 20 years ago, those traumas do not just go away. I've got me some learnin' to do. Find a good psychiatrist for medication management to get you through it and a therapist to help with your depression. Easier said then done, I know. Good luck.