Hot Flashes
"in 2005 at age 61, I had breast cancer.  32 radiation treatments later and it was decided NOT to prescribe a post-cancer med because of continuing menopausal hot spells   oncologist prescribed Venlafaxine 75mg two times a day.   as an RN  I kept a hair dryer in my locker for when my hair would become drippy wet during hot spells.    
it is now 2014 and I do not experience the hot spells any longer!   My moods are totally better and more positive...I know it sounds weird, but if I miss a dose, my mood plummets.  Once, while on a trip, I had a terrible reaction when I ran out of my prescription and went without Venlafaxine for 3 days!  The doctor knew immediately I was in withdrawals. Yucky spaced-out symptoms."