I’m a former user of venlafaxine. The highest dose I was on was 150 mg. It really helped me out. I used it mainly to combat my anxiety but it helped with depression as well. The side effects were not great which is why I stopped. Tapering off was terrible — flu-like symptoms, mind racing at night, couldn’t sleep, sweats, etc. Would not recommend. The one thing I can say is that I do not feel like the same person having been off these meds for a long time.