Stopping Medication with Panic Disorder

[marmag]

I was diagnosed with panic disorder three years ago.  It started at a very stressful time in my life when I quit my job and decided to attend graduate school.  I was 46 years old.  It was very incapacitating so I was placed on Zoloft, 100 mg a day which eventually took affect and I was able to function again.  I also take xanax on rare occasion (only about once or twice a month) when something particularly anxiety provoking is going to take place, i.e. job interview, presentation, etc.  I feel perfectly normal now and am wondering if I need to continue taking the Zoloft.  I was originally told it wasn't approved for long-term use.  Can I just quit taking it or should I taper the dose.  I think it suppresses my sex drive and consequently impacts my otherwise very fulfilling 13-year relationship with my partner.  This is my primary motivation for wanting to quit taking the medication.  Any suggestions?

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

Yes he should actively consider terminating your use of the Zoloft and continuing your periodic use of Xanax.
He should do this under the supervision of your physician who will recommend that you taper off over a 3 week period.  You do that by taking half of your dose each day for week then half a dose every other day for a week and then a quarter of the dose every other day for the third week.

[Mazzcm]

I would suggest tapering off - u've been on it 4 a long time.
I was on it for Panic Attacks and anxiety for about 6 months - I stopped cold turkey. I was a little shakey and kept getting "zaps" in my head - It only lasted about a week though.
However, everyone is different when it comes to meds - But that was a really crappy week.
-MAZ

[drock]

i have to say that i tried ssris for panic and they made me feel a lot worse i take .5mg of xanax twice daily and i feel as though my panic as been cured even though i know if i stop taking it now it will come back but only because i am still learning how to retrain my thought process and not overthink . i think putting all your stock in medications is not the answer the problem with panic is its mostly in your thought process i dont believe that people have some sort of chemical imbalance i think it come from the fact that some people like myself are excessive worriers and overthinkers. add that to a few panic attacks and you are sure to create a disorder.