Zoloft Withdrawal! Please help!

[jimmy 1965]

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

[noriejune]

Wow, I am so glad I found this site when I did.

For years now the doctors have been trying to get me to take prozac and zoloft. I come in and they tell me I'm depressed and take this drug... it will help you. I explain to them I'm not depressed... I just suffer panic attacks...and I have since I was 2 years old, I'm 38 now. Sure I would like to live a life where I can come and go as I please and  not suffer these attacks... but it is not in the cards for me.  I go for months at times and have no attacks, just anxiety that never leaves me unless I am home safe. See I suffer from a fear of vomiting and so flu season is a real killer for me. So I stay home a lot at this time of year.

It wasn't until a year or so ago that I found out that there were others like me and that my phobia has a name. (emetaphobia) Anyway the doctors keep trying to get me to take drugs. I ended up in the emergency room almost a year ago and this nice doctor gave me lorazopam... wow... never knew I could feel so calm. It took him a half an hour or more to convince me to take it. He told me they give it to cancer patients for nasuea and vomiting.

Well they won't just give me this drug for those times when I really need it... after all it is addictive and I don't really know myself well enough to know if I need it or not and might take it too often. SO they want me to take this wonderful drug Zoloft... take it every day????? Why I don't suffer severe panic attacks every day???? Anxiety, yes, attacks daily, NO.

After reading what all of you have had to say about zoloft... I thank God for visiting this site. I just took both prescribtions (25mg and 50mg) and flushed them down the toilet. As far as I am concerned that is all they are good for.

I can't even take tylenol without fearing a drug reaction that will cause nasuea or vomiting. What would have happened to me if I started this so called "CLEAN" drug. yeah... that is what the doctors told me... zoloft if a clean drug... one that is not addictive and has no side effects.(at least no side effects that would keep me from successfully taking it.) Either taking it or quitting taking it...WHAT LIARS doctors are. Are they really that stupid, do they not see what they are doing to people? There has got to be a better way! I'll stay home and watch LMN or SciFi everyday before I take a poison like this!

Thank you all so much for sharing your struggles with this drug and others. You saved me from suffering as you have. God bless each and everyone of you. I hope you all get better soon and I pray you all get free of this drug.

Nora

[theckla]

Guess what?  It's not just zoloft!  I've just come off years of celexa
and I've got all the same symptoms--even the coughing.  I thought for sure
that was unrelated.  I feel like I'm breathing water.  I was just making up my
mind to give up tomorrow and go back on the pills until I came across this site.
I've got such rage sometimes that I can't be in the same room with anyone.  
Even alone I have to take Benadryl, or anything else that will sedate me enough that I'm harmless.

I just take something and burrow under my bed covers as much as possible.  It's crazy, I threw a pop can in a doctors waiting room while arguing with my husband.  Thank god we were the only ones in there!  The rage seems
to be triggered by almost anything from a strong odor (like bananas) or the Tv being up a tad too high.  Even normal bodily functions like having to pee or being sexually aroused make me hysterically angry (no idea why, god knows I should be grateful for any sexual feelings after being on antidepressants since '93!)  And of course, I've gained lots of weight so seeing myself in the mirror or getting dressed in the morning is enough to upset me normally, but can be downright dangerous right now!

I was beginning to think I was relapsing (I was depressed and  I have borderline personality disorder), but I feel so sick at the same time. Like being hungover and seasick all the time.  Sometimes just walking across the room will make me dizzy and sick, and my head hurts all the time. And the electric brain zaps are almost constant unless I'm very still.

The Benadryl idea came from a website somewhere--it does help with the nausea, dizziness and the rage--but you feel slightly muddle headed and I think you get a bit anxious and irritable when it starts to wear off.  I'm going to ask my doctor if she has any recommendations, but I'm not holding my breath.  If it was up to her I'd be on meds forever.  She told me that only time will help with the withdrawal (sorry, "discontinuation syndrome") so I had to find even the Benadryl myself.  I had to go on stress leave from teaching (4 schools--don't ask :>) otherwise I'd never be able to get off these pills.

I can't believe that the same pills that saved my life in the 90's are ruining it now.  

[bcemre3]

Wow -- you have now opened my eyes big time when you talk about having a cough that won't leave you.

I am completely off Zoloft (it was a 176 day taper) since April 1st.  I am been coughing constantly since I began the taper in October.  The coughing led to vomiting and I ended up in the hospital with a GI bleed.  How's that for coughing!!  

I have been on 3 different cough medicines with no help.  Been to the allergist (no allergy) and the GP numerous times.  Still coughing.  Been on different antibiotics 3 times, steroids, etc etc etc.  Still coughing.

I am feeling like a wet rag now but I can't determine if that's from the Zoloft withdrawal or the coughing.  I cry at the drop of a hat and never did that b4 Zoloft.  I took Zoloft for panic attacks.  I stopped it because of the weight gain.  

Good news, the weight is beginning to come off..   If anyone else has been coughing, please let us know -- maybe we are on to something.

Louise

[charlottee52]

Hi Sunni and thankyou for your response. I actually went and saw a different doctor yesterday and told him what was going on. I dont think he believed some of the things that I was telling him. Especially the part about the brain zaps. But none the less he did believe some of it. I told him that I did not want to go back on the Zoloft but I couldnt handle the way I was feeling. He put me on a tablet called Stemetil ( Prochlorperazine ) I looked it up when I got home as I have a book which tells you what the medication is for. It said it was for Nausea, Dizziness. I took one tablet as soon as I left the chemist and it did help me. That was yesterday and this morning I woke up and felt just as bad so I took two of these and they have helped. The best thing I read about these tablets is that it says they are not addictive. But I remember hearing that about the Zoloft as well. Anyway Sunni im so glad you are feeling a bit better. It gives me hope that this is not going to last forever. I NEVER want to ever go back on these horrible tablets. I felt like I was going through hell.
Thankyou Sunni for making me feel like there is hope.
My email address is ***@****
If you would like to contact me and just chat.

[Val S.]

PLEASE SOMEONE TELL ME WHY I AM COUGHING MY BRAINS OUT!

Several months ago the doctor took me off the zoloft (on it for years-150 mg) and put me on Wellbutrin.

I coughed and coughed and researched this on the internet.

I found one person who also came off of Zoloft and onto Wellbutrin with coughing effects.
This person went back on Zoloft and the coughing stopped.

I also went back on Zoloft and the coughing stopped.

Due to financial problems, I weaned myself off of Zoloft and am coughing like crazy!

Been a month and am still coughing~~feels like a hurricane is going through my head at times.

I know that I could have other problems due to a cough but it seems funny to happen when going off of Zoloft~~twice!  And then to stop coughing by going back on it.

I believe now that the coughing was never due to Wellbutrin and is a side effect from going off of Zoloft!

I cannot find the person who also had this problem, but I do see that one of the rarer side effects of Wellbutrin is coughing and was wondering if this small percentage of users just switched over from Zoloft?

If someone can shed some light on this, sure would be appreciated!

[sunni898]

Hi there,
Just wanted to let you know that you're not alone. I know what you're
going through and if you read my previous post from 4/30 you'll see
that I also considered drastic action in response to the withdrawal from
Zoloft.
It's been two weeks now, I am feeling better. I can't say that I'm ALL better
but the withdrawal is somewhat better. The zaps are still there, just less
frequent. I am no longer in bed all the time, I am no longer wishing that I were dead, which trust me is a vast improvement.
If you want to talk, I would be happy to send you my email address. I am still
feeling slightly crazy, so maybe it's stupid to offer that to a complete
stranger but I remember thinking that I was alone in this mess until I found
this website and I wouldn't want anyone to harm themselves because they
felt the same way.