Anxiety treatment and alcohol

[holly_98]

I've done a lot of research in the past week or so about Zoloft and the affects of alcohol. Since Zoloft is used to treat manic depression, I havn't found any answers. Usually doctors advise not to drink while taking this specific medication because it will cause advers affects therefore increasing your depression and you migth have random, harsh mood swings. All the asnwers pertain to depression. Since i am not taking this medication for depression, would i experience the same thing if i had a few drinks? i know that drinking while taking medication is not smart, but i am on the lowest dosage and dont plan on drinking daily.

[caregiver222]

Boy. You picked a good question. Alcohol is an effective treatment for anxiety for many, but has so many other bad effects (including brain cell death) that it is not a good idea to "indulge". So I don't recommend alcohol, period. As foryour depression try something simple. Daily exposure of at least 45 minutes to two hours of bright sunlight.

[Raine9]

This is one reason why I don't want to go on meds.  I know I will have a drink or two every now and then but am afraid of what it's gonna do to my liver.  I know you wrote that you researched it but this is what I found on Wikipedia.com.  So from this, it seems a few drinks every now and then would be okay.  But I REALLY don't know.  I'm hoping that someone with extensive knowledge will respond to your post.

Patients should limit their alcohol intake while on sertraline (or any antidepressant). Because the liver is doubly taxed with processing both substances (in addition to any other drugs the patient may be taking), alcohol remains in the bloodstream longer, so the effects of alcohol may be more strongly and quickly felt by people taking sertraline or other antidepressants. Heavy alcohol consumption while on any SSRI can damage liver cells much
quicker than those off of the drugs.

Good luck!