Zoloft....my experience

[heatherj932]

Hello-
Just wondering if anyone has experienced these types of withdrawl symptoms with Zoloft....first of all i was on 100mg, went down to 50mg, then 25mg, then quit.  I am feeling horrible.  I feel like I have constant motion sickness, high anxiety, I literally feel like I am losing my mind...I cannot concentrate.  I am crying for no reason at all.  Today, I called my Doctor and she told me to go back on it....50mg.  I took one about an hour ago.  I would rather be on Zoloft the rest of my life rather than deal with these symptoms.  Has anyone dealt with this before??  

Thank you.
Heather

[Hensley258]

bbaggins makes a very valad point. Beware of regular doctors and MD's that will just throw pills at you to see what sticks.

Sad to say, but Antidepressant medications are the number one "over prescribed" medications on the market.

Don't get me wrong, You may very well require an antidepressant med like Zoloft.
I'm not saying that you don't suffer fron cronic depressive and anxiety dissorder, you very well may. In that case, yes, some type of Psycotropic medication like Zoloft is (more often than not) required as an ongoing treatment. (I'm sorry to inform you, but in some cases it is a life long condition that does require medication for life to control)

Your depression and anxiety may be caused from a Chemical imbalance of nurotransmitters in your brain which require the use of an SSRI like Zoloft.

Then again your depression could be situational or caused by some past severe trama in your life. In some cases cognative therapy can help this. In some cases no so much.

What your next step should be is to make an appointment with a Borad Certified Psychiatrist. Not an MD, Not a family doctor, or a Psychologist, but with a Board certified Pasychiatrist.

Will regular family doctors will prescribe you this stuff? Oh yea they will dish it out like a pez Dispencer. Unfortunatly most of the time this is bad news.

I have seen it happen too many times.

I have found that most Psychiatrist are more cautious and conservitive when prescribing. This is always a best practice, because moving up is always an option.

Also VERY IMPORTANT: If you stay on Zoloft (or any AD medication long enough) there is about a 35% chance that in 2 to 5 years you will experience what is commonly refered to as "poop out."

This means that your body has adjusted so well to the same medication that it slowly becomes les and less effective. If it happens you will know it because it slowly kind of feels like a med withdrawl (kind of like your taking your meds but feel like your not)

If this happens. DON'T PANIC. It just means that you need to switch to another AD med that your body has not already sdjusted to. It doesn't mean your condition is getting worse. You body has just found a way to eliminate the theraputic effects of that particular medication. That's what our bodies do. They are great defenders of any outside chemical and work diligently over months and years to destroy that forign chemical.

The odds of this eventually happening are about 15%to 35%. I happen to hear a lot of this and to me it seems closer to 50%

For example I got 4 good years of remission from Zoloft, then it slowly lost all it's effectivness for me. If (and I say if) this happens to you don't panic. Another drug will work that your body has no defence for.

I hope that all made sence. It took me 17 years of research to learn that. So you go in with alot more knowledge than I had.

[bbaggins]

Some doctors will just throw pills at you and will see what sticks. If you can, have your doctor set you up with a psychiatrist. That's the only way you can get a real diagnosis of what you have.

Additionally, anxiety and depression often go hand-in-hand, so if you have one, chances are you have the other.

As far as coming off the meds, I would do what Hensley258 said. Taper off as slowly as you can, and use Xanax or Lorazepam (Ativan) to "take the edge off".

[heatherj932]

Also-my doctor never "diagnosed" me with anything.  I told her about my past, dealing with my Grandmother's death, I have had a rough life.  My Mom is on Zoloft, my Aunt as well.  I always felt that there was something wrong with me from a very young age.  Can doctors' actually diagnose whether you suffer from an anxiety disorder vs. depression?  Sometimes I feel as though I have both.

[heatherj932]

Thanks for the advice....actually, there is no particular reason for me stopping.  I have been on it for a little over a year.  I should have been on it 10 years ago.  Do people actually take AD for all of their lives?  I was open to getting on Zoloft, because I could no longer deal with the depression, crying, trying to suppress emotions of the past.  I would never wish those withdrawl symptoms on anyone!  I felt like I was going crazy, I hope that since I started taking it again today, that it will be back in my system soon.  At least I know that I am not crazy, and that I am capable of having a completly normal life.  My husband is thrilled that I am going back on it.....poor guy :-)

[Hensley258]

Oh yes, in fact I get those exact symptoms everytime I taper off a particular antidepressant medication.

It's not just Zoloft, they all do that when you try to stop. Even if you taper off slow it still happens.

Your taper off method was somewhat proper, Except probably too fast.

If you really need to get off the Zoloft (sertraline) then try this:

Go down to 50Mgs for two full weeks, after that then go 25mgs for a full two weeks, then after that go 25Mgs Every other day for three weeks. Follow that plan and you should be able to stop. Also it really helps if you have some Xanax handy.

I have found Xanax to be a very useful drug to use during a withdrawl phase. It calms and keeps the head zaps and anxiety to a minimum.

As always with Xanax, use sparingly and only when needed. For example you start feeling sick with withdrawl symptoms toward the end of your taper cycle of Zoloft. Then take just 0.25mgs of Xanax (NOT 25MGS of XANAX) just 0.25mgs (as in a quarter of one miligram.)

Don't worry the Xanax is not going to produce any withdrawl symptoms when you stop taking it. (AS LONG AS YOU DON'T ABUSE IT) if need be 0.50Mgs can be good before bed to help you sleep. It takes the edge off the withdrawl symptoms and allows for the long deep sleep your brain needs to overcome the withdrawl.

IMPORTANT: Do understand that by stopping your Zoloft treatment that there is a fairly good chance that the symptoms of your depression will return.

If you want off AD medication then I assume there is a good reson for it, such as side effects or other personal reasons. This is ok, but in doing so you risk a serious relaps of your Clinical depression.

Try to keep in mind that with any antidepressant medication, the justification for using it MUST out weigh the impact of using it. If the side effects of AD medication are worse than your symptoms of your depression then it's obviously not worth taking.

For example: In my case, the symptoms of my severe depression and anxiety dissorder are so absolutly devistating and severe that I will suffer ANY side effect of any medication not to experience the Hell of my condition at it's worst.

Thus for me the justification is warrented and acceptable.

I do not advocate or encourage any type of Psycotropic medication to anyone that is not in absolute desperate need for it's potential benifits.

I hope you feel better soon.

Good luck.