Effexor XR and depression anxiety

I started on 40mg of Celexa in 2002 for depression/anxiety. In 2006, my wife told me she "didn't think it was working anymore" and I should go talk to our doctor about switching. We talked and he switched me to Effexor. No, I'm not blaming him!
After dealing with the massive increase in sweating (at the time I was running a custom A/V installation business including new construction. It was nothing for me to change shirts, underwear and socks 2 or 3 times a day in the 100 deg summer heat!) gaining 40 lbs, watching my cholesterol shoot up to 290 and my bp to 160/120, I decided I'd had enough and went back 1 month ago to talk about quitting. He shrugged, asked why, gave me a scrip for 37.5's, told me to "take them for a couple weeks, then start lengthening the days in between". And "oh yeah, you'll probably feel a little crummy for a week or so after you stop completely".
A LITTLE CRUMMY???
The brain zaps are unbelievable and by far the worst symptom for me so far. Turn your head like you have a plate balanced up there or pay the consequences, right? I had a couple 37's left and that little voice kept telling me to "go ahead, take one, it's ok." I finally flushed the last 3 or 4 pills down the toilet today to prevent me going back at all. (It's ok folks, you won't end up drinking my pills. I'm on septic and way up on the side of a mountain far from any water table.) I can't believe all the data/opinions I've read today on "SSRI Discontinuation Syndrome". Truly unbelievable stuff. With God's grace and my family's support, I know I'll join the ranks of those that have been able to leave this rat poison behind me. One zap at a time, right? ;-)

I hate Effexor XR. I don't really know how long I have been on this medicine because I have almost no short term memory since I have been taking it. I am so hot all the time it's just unbearable. I am sweating when my house temp is 68 degrees. I freeze everyone out of the house, out of the car, etc., because I am never comfortable. I no longer own a winter coat because I don't need one unless it is below zero. I don't own any long sleeve shirts except for a denim one in which I wear as my jacket. I wear short sleeve I have discussed this with my doctor whom always tells me he doesn't think the medicine is the cause of this. Although every time he increases the strength I'm taking, the sweating intensifies. I also wake up in the middle of the night gasping for breath, with an irregular heartbeat and/or my heart beat soaring. I have also experienced the problem with taste. Many things I used to love to eat or drink are no longer tolerable. Nothing tastes quite right. I too have had the dry mouth/cotton-throat problems. I have noticed my emotions are screwed up also. I can hardly cry about the most saddest things I have faced, but will cry about stupid things that don't truly matter. I worry about everything, and I DO mean EVERYTHING, luckily it doesn't last too long because nothing can hold my train of thought for very long. My doc has had me on Zoloft, Celexa and others and there were problems with those also. But I feel that Effexor XR is the worst one I have been on that has caused so many other problems while helping the depression/anxiety disorder. I think the bad outweighs the good, but my doctor refuses to agree with me on this and I have no health insurance to take my problem elsewhere. I have never taken Xanax, Valium or any other "controlled" substances because my doc is afraid of his patients becoming addicted to these drugs. Although Effexor XR is apparently addicting too since you have to be weened off of it. I wish I had NEVER begun to take Effexor XR, good luck to all of you that do! If I knew then what I know now, I would NEVER take it!