I'm on lexapro and it works well for the physical symptoms of the anxiety, ie shakes, shortness of breath, dizziness, lack of focus, etc. There are some side effects the first couple weeks but most of those go away. I've had some ongoing sexual side effects, though, and I'm pretty sure the lexapro has caused some weight gain. These side effects aren't bad enough to make me want to stop taking it, though. I just have to take an ED pill to function sexually and I work out and eat right to combat the weight gain.
What was most helpful for me, though, was adding regular therapy. The med was helpful but talking about my anxiety with a therapist made me feel much better about everything. So if you haven't already I'd recommend finding a councellor or therapist. And meditation, yoga and tai chi are also very helpful.
If you do try the lexapro be sure to give it time to work. You may actually feel worse in the first week or two and it may take several weeks before it really starts kicking in. So don't give up on it if you don't see immediate results, cause you probably won't. My big side effects were nausea and dry mouth for about a week. The nausea would usually be for about 2hr after I took the pill and the dry mouth would come and go. Oh yeah, and I didn't sleep very well the first couple weeks either.
Good luck.