Depression
"I&#039;ve taken Effexor/venlafaxine for at least 18  years &amp; I&#039;ve never felt the desire to change. I have pretty severe depression as well as anxiety. Since venlafaxine treats both conditions, it has worked well. I feel best when I take it quite early in the morning, with luck, an hour before I have to get up--mornings are the WORST time for me. I advise getting a dog or two (I have 2 Rottweilers). They rouse me to let them out to pee around dawn so that&#039;s when I swallow my venlafaxine. By 7 or 7:30 am, the meds are working &amp; the dogs are making me laugh. I cannot recommend dogs enough as a complementary add-on to venlafaxine for depression/anxiety. Truly, they are &#039;therapy dogs&#039; for our kind. Very worth it."