Sertraline & Alcohol

Posted , 41 users are following.

Hi everyone..been on sertaline for nearly 3 months...i was wondering..i havent drunk for months...and i no it says not to drink..but wat happens if u do drink on the medication?

any help is fantastic thank you

2 likes, 56 replies

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  • Posted

    HELLO JUST READ YOUR E-MAIL. I also enjoy a drink but since starting sertraline 6 months ago not a drop of booze has past my lips. However that dose not mean you can't enjoy alcohol free beers largers and wines. I drink Becks A/Free lager and It tast just like the real thing. A decent wine is harder to fine but there is Iceburg A/Free wine. By the way A/Free is 0/05 per cent anything higher is not. The effect of drinking alcohol while on sertraline is this. Sertraline ups your mood making you feel better Alcohol lower's mood so the combination works against each other. Stick with the alcohol free If I were you at least you know your safe that way. Also It was my G.p. who mentioned it was safe to drink A/Free. Good luck.
  • Posted

    Hi, I've been taking sertraline for 2 months now and had alcohol. It doesn't seem to make much difference....I think i got drunker a little bit quicker than normal and as alcohol is in itself an anti-depressant I think the fear is that it makes u feel depressed again. However, just wanted to let u know that i had no health or extreme side affects.
    • Posted

      Thank you, I am about to start taking Sertraline and although I don't drink a lot, I do like the occasional glass of wine.
    • Posted

      Alcohol is in fact a depressant. Taken with an SSRI over time it begins to ruin the stabilization of your serotonin levels. The medication is trying to correct that imblalance.
  • Posted

    My wife has been on sertraline and does drink small amounts (ie; a glass of wine with a meal). She has not exhibited any medical problems as a result. I would say the alcohol goes to her head a bit faster than it used to, but that seems to be all.

    She is now coming off the drug and is feeling much better after approx 6 months on it. Side effects seemed to be quite mild in her case with the dosage at 50-100mg.

  • Posted

    I have be taking sertraline for 4 weeks now and it has dramatically changed my life for the better. I was obsessive and suicidal. Life is now worth living. I have always enjoyed alcohol and have not let taking these stop that. I drink a couple of pints of beer a day and I have had no side effects or problems at all. Also the NHS website says that there is no eveidence that there are any problems mixing alcohol and sertraline. The only reason they say 'don't' is because it can make some people drowsy like all anti-depressants (I don't have this issue).

    So have a beer and enjoy! :D

  • Posted

    have be taking sertraline for 6 weeks now,

    Just dont drink while taking these, i did and eneded up in A&E

    • Posted

      realised i swore on the other one so might not go through. but I just wanted to know why because I got very arrogrant about it after going up to 100g and felt like beyond great and now its day 4 (been on sertinline before but stopped and started again and this is the strongest ive ever been on) and i had a bit to drink and now I feel terrible physically and a bit wierd metally 
    • Posted

      Hi, Since you posted 5 months ago, have you had any more trouble?

      I have been on and off sertraline too, In the past few years my worries and stresses have increased, so I've gone up to  a 125mg dose of sertraline. Problem is, drinking was increasing too. I feel just as bad, or worse mentally, as I do physically..after drinking.  There has been a cycle of this for a year or so. I'm just going to have to drop the drinking.  Let me know how you are doing.

  • Posted

    Hi, I've been taking Sertraline for 6 months, 50mg to begin with, upped to 100mg by GP after 3 monthly review. It's working wonderfully for me after a few side effects intially and it did take a while to kick in.

    I asked my GP about alcohol and he didn't have an issue with it at normal levels, but told me that it's effect would almost certainly be increased, as I would now agree.

    Only once has it been a problem when I drank quite a lot at a dinner party and the next day had to be reminded about the latter part of the evening as I'd got no recollection of it at all, despite the fact that my wife said that although being quite tipsy, I was completely cohesive until the end of the evening.

    As with everything, I think moderation is the key, and I guess getting overly drunk isn't a good idea anyway for anxious or depressed folk.

  • Posted

    been on this tablet for 6 days , had a few drinks at weekend , and i felt ok after a small alcholpop but it did make me feel sicker, i had few more drinks when i felt better after the first one and i felt fine untill i started gettin hotter easier and felt really sick, however i did be sick, but i wasent feeling that well from the tablets anyway, but i didentget drunk easier, and the next day i felt totally fine.

    Its my 7 th day tomo and at first the tablet made me feel sick n i couldnt sleep i would forget things easy my jaw would vibrate , my appatite has gone but now i am sleeping more and just gone the oppisite way to where im sleeping and feeling lazy and down.

  • Posted

    Hello. I had a very bad experience when I drank on this medication. I was a victim of violent crime and am now disabled.

    I bought this when prescribed by a private psychiatrist. As a matter of fact my GP told me not to take it as I was living in an awful place in Birmingham and was not ill to feel unhappy and afraid.

    So if given it by the NHS it may be a different matter.

    Always listen to your GP as they are in the same environment as you are and know if your instincts are correct or not.

    My aunt had died and I needed to socialise. I let my guard down and paid dearly.

    12 years later I have never been assaulted again.

  • Posted

    Hi everyone

    I have been reading about the effects of alcohol whilst taking sertraline and stupidly on Sunday I went to a lovely garden party and drank way too much. Today is tuesday and I am still feeling very sleepy and last night was struggling with my breathing. I am taking this for anxiety and depression. Will I be ok?. Thank you

  • Posted

    Hi

    I have been on sertraline for under a week -6 days and a first timer on antidepressants

    I was worried about having a drink and like a drink at weekends -

    I tried a little and found it just made me more docile, blocked the emotional side of me, as before i would cry a lot on drink, before i took them. it blocks that feeling.it didn't stop me drinking though i'm careful on the amount

    I get still get anxious paranoid but i thinks it's down to my situation relationship problems.

    any comments ?

    • Posted

      Hey guys!

      I've been on 50mg for about 3 months now. I'm a student and I drink pretty regularly. I was prescribed by a psychiatrist at my school who actually didn't even warn against drinking while on it.

      I've had some issues with "emotional numbing", which the alcohol seems to exaggerate. I really just dont feel any emotions when I drink anymore. Aside from that I've had no issues although I think my tolerance may have gone down.

    • Posted

      I've been on 200mg for 7 months and am also a student. I've had a few different alcohols and different percentages and they all seem to make me feel emotionally numb too, even from a small amount, before these tablets I was able to drink a fair bit before I got tipsy. When I was put on it, I was in a psychiatric impatient unit and never got warned about alcohol because alcohol wasn't available or allowed on site. I've been discharged now for a few months tho so I am able to own alcohol. How have you managed to cope?

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