I'm now up to 75 mg of Effexor XR, and it's going well. I had anticipated all kinds of problems, mostly to do with nausea, when my doctor inreased my dosage. But the extended release formulation has made me less queasy, despite doubling the dose. My doctor took no chances, though, prescribing me a full pint of anti-nausea medication. When I went to fill the prescription, the pharmacist said, "Wow. You must have one heck of a cough. It's a whole pint!" I didn't have the heart to tell him it wasn't cough syrup. Silly pharmacist.

The anti-nausea syrup, I learned after going online, has a few unpleasant side effects and warnings, one for people who have had problems with urinary retention. I've often had that problem, triggered by the various psych meds I've taken. In fact, at one point I was going to the ER so often for it, I was given a do-it-yourself at-home catheterization kit. (I can't find my urethra, though. It remains a mystery to me.) Luckily, I haven't had the retention problem in quite some time—I threw away the kit—because now I know to check side effects. So no syrup for me.

But my stomach's okay. I'm very tired, though. Saturday, in particular, I felt quite sedated, but that might have had something to do with the fishing-tackle swap meet I was obliged to go to. My boyfriend chatted with the regulars and bought some shad darts. I fell asleep in a chair.

Aside from the sedation, I'm feeling good. I'm not entirely rid of my depression, but I'm feeling hopeful, and proud of myself for having the tenacity to stick with this stuff for a month and a half even though it was a laborious process. I know it's hard to take medication that makes you feel like shit, and harder still when it doesn't seem to be working. But most anti-depressants take a while to kick in. You've got to hang in there.

So here ends my Effexor tale. I'm assuming I'll adjust to the sedation, and my depression will continue to improve. I'm giving it another month to see absolute results vis-a-vis mood. If I'm miserably depressed at that point, I'll go off the Effexor, and I'll write a diary about that. But for now, I think, it's best to bid farewell to Special Effexor. Thanks to everyone who shared their own experiences.