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Zoloft Withdrawal! Please help!
My doctor (psychiatrist) took me off ZOlOFT. I was on Zoloft for about 5 months at a max dosage of 100mg. When he decided to take me off he did the tapering down process in 25mg increments every five days so I thought that was a good tapering process. I even asked my family doctor and he said yeah that is a safe way to get off the med. I took my last 25mg dose this past Monday night. I never had issues when I was coming off the medicne but about three days ago I started having spells of feeling light headed. I have had bouts of flu type feelings and I feel very tired and worn out. Basically I feel like **** and I dont have the flu. My question is, How long does it take to get Zoloft out of your system? I know your never to stop taking SSRI meds abruptly but when you follow a good tapering schedule and you still deal with wwithdrawal symptoms that's enough to tick a person off. My doctor wants me to start Lexapro but he wants me to wait until Zoloft is completely washed from my system. How many days do I have to put up with this ****? Any answers or advise is much appreciated. You know the medical world tells us that you cant become dependant or addicted to these meds but I tend to dissagree the more I read about people having discontinuation syndrome after following doctors orders on a good weening off process.
Take Care
Jimmy
Take Care
Jimmy
Welcome to the site. As awful as I have felt or feel now, it is wonderful to know that I am not alone and I am not imagining the side effects of withdrawal.
I must tell you that if you read any of my old posts, you will notice that it took me 176 days to get off Zoloft. Now it has been about 8 weeks and the weight is really coming off ( yeah !!!!). At the time I stopped Zoloft, I also cut out the sugar -- no chocolate, no candy, very little dairy, only 100% whole grain bread, etc. I found it much easier to do the carb cutting only AFTER I was off Zoloft. Before I had an incredible craving for the carbs.
Don't give up the ship. My kids are all grown up now and married, but I have accepted my body as it is. Don't waste your time worrying about it - love yourself just the way you are. Have a couple of kids and you will realize that your new shape is because of the kids but it was worth it for sure.
Best of luck on your new meds.
I must tell you that if you read any of my old posts, you will notice that it took me 176 days to get off Zoloft. Now it has been about 8 weeks and the weight is really coming off ( yeah !!!!). At the time I stopped Zoloft, I also cut out the sugar -- no chocolate, no candy, very little dairy, only 100% whole grain bread, etc. I found it much easier to do the carb cutting only AFTER I was off Zoloft. Before I had an incredible craving for the carbs.
Don't give up the ship. My kids are all grown up now and married, but I have accepted my body as it is. Don't waste your time worrying about it - love yourself just the way you are. Have a couple of kids and you will realize that your new shape is because of the kids but it was worth it for sure.
Best of luck on your new meds.
WOW! this is my first blog-ever, but I felt compelled to write after my experience coming off Zoloft and reading that I am soooo not alone. Started zoloft about 5 yrs ago and just decided to go off as my husband and i were going to try to get pregnant. I thought, better to do it now. Well, 6 months later- after the HORRIBLE debilitating withdrawal symptoms, I have decided to try Wellbutrin. Just went to a new doc today. I have been in therapy, trying every modality (freudian, jung-ian, body talk, hypnosis) but the withdrawal symptoms of zoloft were brutal. I did the same thing- 100-75-50-25-12.5-and even broke that in half to (approx) 6mg. Let me tell you, I even felt it then. I would move and my brain would stand still. It would spin, I became very angry and agitated. I still lash out at my husband for no reason. It is horrible. It seems worse than before I went on Zoloft. My weight obsession is horrible now and it is exaserbated by the weight I gained on Zoloft. I am now depressed and fatifued b/c I can't lose the weight, and w/o the medicine, I start crying when I get dressed. I had to take action, I can't live like this. No motivation, excessive fatigue, lack of enthusiasm for life.... life is going by and I am not on the train. ENOUGH! I choose to make a change today. Please send thoughts and prayers the new medication works without too many insane side effects. How can I even think of getting pregnant and having a baby in a depressed womb/state of mind. I also suppose my sex rive should have returned from not being on the zoloft, but the reality is, I have such a poor body image, I don't even want to be intimate. I hate being naked right now so what's the point of increased feeling.
Ok- thats it for now. thanks so much for sharing your stories, it compelled me to write.
Ok- thats it for now. thanks so much for sharing your stories, it compelled me to write.
also, i have to add that i've been taking zoloft proper for all but the past 2 or 3 months of the 10 years i've been on it when i've had to switch to sertraline for insurance purposes. i DEFINITELY feel there's a difference- i know some people were questioning it and my pharmacist seems to think i'm nuts- but it does not seem to have the same effect as zoloft. that's my experience anyway so those who weren't sure, you're not alone.
like everyone else here, i just want to say that i am also so glad i found you guys. i stumbled upon this site after googling zoloft withdrawal on a "sick day" from work where i really just couldn't bear to leave the apartment. i found i could relate to at least one thing in every single post i read. it's a relief but also painful to hear because i sympathize with all of you and am myself about to begin my withdrawal for the 2nd time in one month.
let me start off by saying that i "self-prescribed" paxil by telling my family practitioner that i needed it for severe pms. it was really for a severe bout of depression and social anxiety i had gone through for an extended period of time in which my family wouldn't allow me to seek counseling (long story- Asian culture outlook "if we can't fix it in the family then you don't have a problem"). the paxil did nothing for my depression and left me with no libido. i went back to my doctor who then prescribed zoloft and i have been on it for the past 10 years, 25-100 mg. it helped calm all the crazy depressing thoughts flying around in my head and allowed me some clarity for the first time. but it wasn't consistent and i would fly off in rages or cry sometimes although not alot. about 6 or 7 years ago i tried to quit cold turkey, not researching it first or consulting a doctor; not knowing anything about how to withdraw- just doing it. i naively thought there would be no symptoms. i was fine for the first 3 or 4 days but then started experiencing the dizzy spells, motion sickness, nausea, unfocused eye sight and blurry trails when i tried to turn my head. i had no idea what it was. i could barely walk upright and i was easily confused i think because my brain was under so much stress. it was so bad one day that i completely yelled at my boss for no reason. after thinking that it might be withdrawal symptoms and confirming it with a friend who also tried to quit cold turkey, i went back on the pills and felt almost immediate relief. i have weaned myself gradually from 100 mg to 50 mg to 25 mg. over the course of several years in no attempt to quit but just so i wouldn't have so much of the chemical in my body.
i recently went through some pretty big changes in the past couple months (like a falling out with sister-slash-roommate and moving into my own apt on very short notice) and it's caused me to fall into a depressive state that i haven't felt in a long time. through all the changes i realized i hadn't taken my zoloft for about a week or 2 and was feeling okay. i have to preface this by saying also that i don't take my zoloft with any kind of regularity- i only pop a pill when i start to feel dizzy so basically once every 4-5 days. i know this can't be good but i know i'm a slave to the drug and i hate it. so, i was feeling okay after 2 weeks but realized i was coughing A LOT. like i couldn't stop and at times felt like i had a seed stuck in my throat that i couldn't swallow. it was the worst form of irritation. this was about the time i moved into my new apt and had found out the previous owner had a cat which i am allergic to so i attributed it to that. after reading some of the "coughing" posts, i realize it could very well have been the withdrawal. i also started to withdraw within myself at work and cut off almost all contact with all of my friends- at work and outside it. to the people that i did interact with i started to stutter and couldn't seem to form linear thoughts, my thoughts were all over the place and when i talked i started to become a bumbling idiot. so i immediately went back on 25 mg. i don't like zoloft and know that it has contributed to the 5-10 lb. weight gain i've had in 10 years, to my almost non-existent memory, to flare-ups that have caused me to act out on family, friends and boyfriends, and who knows what else.
it is so disconcerting but i really want to get off these because my sister did and if she could then i know i can. it took her 2 tries and she said it was horrible. she was crying all the time and suicidal. i've been crying a lot lately, been easily agitated and felt like i wanted to harm myself. i've holed myself up in my apt for whole weekends instead of enjoying life. i am either wholly lethargic or just can't bear to face anyone. it's so miserable and i just want to say thanks to all the posts that have made me feel like i have people whom i can relate to. i will faithfully document my experience little by little because reading your posts have helped me gain some strength and i just hope i can help others. i am on 25 mg now and will gradually taper off to 12.5 over the course of several months if i have to. i am going to take it incredibly slowly and realize that it's going to be a long and painful road ahead but i just know i have to.
-hoping and praying
let me start off by saying that i "self-prescribed" paxil by telling my family practitioner that i needed it for severe pms. it was really for a severe bout of depression and social anxiety i had gone through for an extended period of time in which my family wouldn't allow me to seek counseling (long story- Asian culture outlook "if we can't fix it in the family then you don't have a problem"). the paxil did nothing for my depression and left me with no libido. i went back to my doctor who then prescribed zoloft and i have been on it for the past 10 years, 25-100 mg. it helped calm all the crazy depressing thoughts flying around in my head and allowed me some clarity for the first time. but it wasn't consistent and i would fly off in rages or cry sometimes although not alot. about 6 or 7 years ago i tried to quit cold turkey, not researching it first or consulting a doctor; not knowing anything about how to withdraw- just doing it. i naively thought there would be no symptoms. i was fine for the first 3 or 4 days but then started experiencing the dizzy spells, motion sickness, nausea, unfocused eye sight and blurry trails when i tried to turn my head. i had no idea what it was. i could barely walk upright and i was easily confused i think because my brain was under so much stress. it was so bad one day that i completely yelled at my boss for no reason. after thinking that it might be withdrawal symptoms and confirming it with a friend who also tried to quit cold turkey, i went back on the pills and felt almost immediate relief. i have weaned myself gradually from 100 mg to 50 mg to 25 mg. over the course of several years in no attempt to quit but just so i wouldn't have so much of the chemical in my body.
i recently went through some pretty big changes in the past couple months (like a falling out with sister-slash-roommate and moving into my own apt on very short notice) and it's caused me to fall into a depressive state that i haven't felt in a long time. through all the changes i realized i hadn't taken my zoloft for about a week or 2 and was feeling okay. i have to preface this by saying also that i don't take my zoloft with any kind of regularity- i only pop a pill when i start to feel dizzy so basically once every 4-5 days. i know this can't be good but i know i'm a slave to the drug and i hate it. so, i was feeling okay after 2 weeks but realized i was coughing A LOT. like i couldn't stop and at times felt like i had a seed stuck in my throat that i couldn't swallow. it was the worst form of irritation. this was about the time i moved into my new apt and had found out the previous owner had a cat which i am allergic to so i attributed it to that. after reading some of the "coughing" posts, i realize it could very well have been the withdrawal. i also started to withdraw within myself at work and cut off almost all contact with all of my friends- at work and outside it. to the people that i did interact with i started to stutter and couldn't seem to form linear thoughts, my thoughts were all over the place and when i talked i started to become a bumbling idiot. so i immediately went back on 25 mg. i don't like zoloft and know that it has contributed to the 5-10 lb. weight gain i've had in 10 years, to my almost non-existent memory, to flare-ups that have caused me to act out on family, friends and boyfriends, and who knows what else.
it is so disconcerting but i really want to get off these because my sister did and if she could then i know i can. it took her 2 tries and she said it was horrible. she was crying all the time and suicidal. i've been crying a lot lately, been easily agitated and felt like i wanted to harm myself. i've holed myself up in my apt for whole weekends instead of enjoying life. i am either wholly lethargic or just can't bear to face anyone. it's so miserable and i just want to say thanks to all the posts that have made me feel like i have people whom i can relate to. i will faithfully document my experience little by little because reading your posts have helped me gain some strength and i just hope i can help others. i am on 25 mg now and will gradually taper off to 12.5 over the course of several months if i have to. i am going to take it incredibly slowly and realize that it's going to be a long and painful road ahead but i just know i have to.
-hoping and praying
So amazed to find this forum. I Googled "zoloft, lightheaded, withdrawal" half-heartedly, not really imagining I'd find others experiencing the same symptoms as me. I started taking 50mg of zoloft (generic) in October 2006. While it helped with my depression symptoms and actually brought a kind of peace to my life, it also brought on a quicker than normal temper and level of irritability that I hadn't experienced before. Thinking that it was possible a dosage increase would help, I began taking 100mg in January.
Bizarre as this sounds, I started experiencing symptoms of pregnancy, similar to those I had when I was pregnant with my son. Food aversions, thickening of the waist, breast enlargement and tenderness, major mood swings, and the most bizarre of all...........production of milk. Thinking I must have been pregnant I took a few pregnancy tests as the weeks went by, but all came back negative. When I went to my OB/GYN she ran blood tests to check for increased hormone levels, but those came back normal and she didn't seem as concerned as I was, so I made an appointment with my internist. She ran another series of blood tests and even scheduled me for an MRI to see if my pituitary gland had any abnormalities which could be producing hormones. Nope. In the midst of all my testing it was determined that I am diabetic, and after reading these posts I have to wonder whether that, plus my weight gain of 10 lbs. since going on Zoloft, are due to this medication.
Anyway, a month ago my doctor switched me to Wellbutrin for my depression symptoms and had me wean myself slowly off the Zoloft, starting with 50mg (from 100), then 25, etc. Well, since I dropped to 50mg, I have not felt "right" at all. My pseudo pregnancy symptoms slowly started to disappear (thank God!), but the lightheadedness that a lot of you describe, as well as a feeling of "slow motion" and a sort of "jangly" feeling in my head have continued. I describe it as "jangly" to my husband, as it reminds me of the motion of bells jangling around in my brain, without the sound. This has gone on for about a month. I stopped taking the zoloft completely two days ago, and I just feel so weird still. I needed to see if this was normal, and I found this forum. Whew! I am relieved, and yet a little freaked out that this has happened to so many other people.
Bizarre as this sounds, I started experiencing symptoms of pregnancy, similar to those I had when I was pregnant with my son. Food aversions, thickening of the waist, breast enlargement and tenderness, major mood swings, and the most bizarre of all...........production of milk. Thinking I must have been pregnant I took a few pregnancy tests as the weeks went by, but all came back negative. When I went to my OB/GYN she ran blood tests to check for increased hormone levels, but those came back normal and she didn't seem as concerned as I was, so I made an appointment with my internist. She ran another series of blood tests and even scheduled me for an MRI to see if my pituitary gland had any abnormalities which could be producing hormones. Nope. In the midst of all my testing it was determined that I am diabetic, and after reading these posts I have to wonder whether that, plus my weight gain of 10 lbs. since going on Zoloft, are due to this medication.
Anyway, a month ago my doctor switched me to Wellbutrin for my depression symptoms and had me wean myself slowly off the Zoloft, starting with 50mg (from 100), then 25, etc. Well, since I dropped to 50mg, I have not felt "right" at all. My pseudo pregnancy symptoms slowly started to disappear (thank God!), but the lightheadedness that a lot of you describe, as well as a feeling of "slow motion" and a sort of "jangly" feeling in my head have continued. I describe it as "jangly" to my husband, as it reminds me of the motion of bells jangling around in my brain, without the sound. This has gone on for about a month. I stopped taking the zoloft completely two days ago, and I just feel so weird still. I needed to see if this was normal, and I found this forum. Whew! I am relieved, and yet a little freaked out that this has happened to so many other people.
hi, ive been off zoloft for two months and a half now and im feeling as anxious as ever. im having a hard time rationalizing things. can someone tell me when these symptoms go away?
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