Been on Sertraline for 8weeks for anxiety, still not myself, advice?

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Hello, My name is Taylor and I am 20 years old and have been lurking this site for 2 months. I have always been one to have social anxiety but never something that being with family or going into a comfortable atmosphere couldnt fix this past year i finally started branching out and becoming more social and was the best self i could have ever been, i was truly happy. On october 23rd my entire life basically changed. I was with my boyfriend and all of a sudden i started feeling weird, sick to my stomach and dizzy. I went to his room and told him i was having some anxiety, usually it would be a stomach ache and pass. This time, i started hysterically crying because the anxiety was overwhelming and i went into a full blown panic attack. lost my coordination, vision, could not speak, was throwing up, limbs were tingling and numb. was rushed to the hospital, ruled it as a panic attack and was given xanax .25 mg and sent home. The following week was ok, slight anxiety but nothing crazy. then a day came about where i had to go to work and was so scared that i was going to have a panic attack that i did, and almost blacked out again. This was a friday, went home, took half of a .25mg xanax felt a little better. Then Sunday came around and my boyfriend asked me to come over to his place (the site of my first panic attack) and by association i freaked out. Long story short every morning after i was waking up with TERRIBLE anxiety lasting the entire day, every anxiety symptom you name it, nauseaous, gagging, shaking, crying, loss of breath, tight throat. I tried to fight it for a week thinking it would pass but then it developed into this depression/anxiety hybrid. I was crying non stop, was not eating, thankfully I had no trouble sleeping, the sight of anyone or anything made me nauseaous and sad and i basically wanted to die. I made an appointment with my GP and she put me on 25mg of sertraline that I started on November 5th along with more .25mg xanax to take till it kicks in. I honestly could not tell you what side effects I had vs what my anxiety was causing cause it was seriously that bad. I know for a fact it made my aversion to food even worse though and anxiety much higher and also muscle twitches and jerks. A week or two went by with really no change, then week three i felt better, i got out the house and my mood lifted, still had a tight throat 24/7 and mild anxiety and little appetite but i started getting hope but still nowhere near better. Then a week later i CRASHED, back to square one with that terrible depression hybrid. Went back to GP and we raised it to 50mg. The following three days were the worst of my LIFE, i literally thought i was going to be put in a mental hospital i was having such bad thoughts and anxiety. the past couple of weeks have been a rollercoaster. I have a better lifted mood about everything, depression seems to have lifted somewhat but the anxiety is still here. I am able to enjoy things i used to more but always feel like im out of breath and dizzy and sometimes the anxiety builds up so much i just cry. I have to say i do feel a lot better than i was 8 weeks ago but no where near myself. At night i feel more relaxed and can actually do things, and have had some good days. Something that worries me is my appetite is so incredibly poor and im loosing a lot of weight that i cannot afford it has peaked some days where i can eat pretty well but not good. I have a lot more hope now and those hopeless feelings have gone quite a bit but i never feel relaxed and cant do much without being out of breath. All in all im scared and do not know what to do. i want my life back so badly. i am tired of waking up every morning and anxiety hitting me like a brick and sitting there for a long time shaking cause  dont know if i can even get up. I am in talk therapy as well but i really feel like it isnt doing that much. I am wondering if there are any success stories, if i should up my dose and most of all if this drug will ever help me feel like myself again?! 

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  • Posted

    Taylor, haven't heard from you for awhile. How are you doing? Hope you're doing a lot better. Xx

    • Posted

      Hello GodsServant, I am doing WAY better than I started but not 100% yet just taking all the improvements as I come. I still have bad days, moments and hours. My appetite came back and I gained weight ! I sleep pretty great. I increased from 50 to 75mg for three weeks and now I am on 100mg for two months to see how this plays out. My anxiety has been reduced quite a lot but unfortunately still lingering a lot and like to smack me hard sometimes but the level of deepeness that it gets to isn't how it used to be. I can function like a normal person now but just hoping that with more time on the 100 or an increase will take care of the random sadness I feel and anxiety that sometimes bubbles up, and make it so I can just have anxiety in situational matters. I'm not completely my old self but I feel very in touch with it. All in all my anxiety has been reduced I would say maybe 60% on very good days I see 80%. Everyday is still different just waiting to level out I guess ! How are you doing ?!

    • Posted

      Taylor, soooo good to hear this from you!!! I figured you were better - most folks get better and aren't here often - completely understandable. smile

      You are definitely on your way to getting better! You will be like 85-95% normal in a few months. Remeber, depression is the last to go and then numbness and true sadness comes in for a bit. Feb 17 would officially 3 months for me and I'm doing as good as can be! Also, try not to get stress, as you will find, stress is a setback. Also, try not to be HALT (Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired) and oh yeah, you will feel more anxious or depressed during the monthly lady's holiday because of all the hormones acting up during that time, so get plenty of rest and be gentle with yourself. Xx

    • Posted

      Thanks so much! I am happy for you too! What mg are you on???
    • Posted

      100mg. I was on 150mg very briefly for 2 weeks but then I went back down to 100mg. Actually, Feb 19 would be officially 3 months for me since I restarted officially on Nov 19. I think 100mg is a good dose for me.
    • Posted

      No anxiety. I felt sad for awhile. But what I do noticed is that after being on sert for awhile my feelings become very muted. But then after a couple of weeks off the med I find my emotions all over the place again. I would be on then edge, anything small thing would bring about a sense of annoyance and set me going...fuming or seething in anger. It's as if all those feelings I had bottled up while I was on the med all come bubbling and poring out. But I don't intend to return to this phase because I don't intend to ever get off my med. The scariest thing about this illness is that no matter how much distance I I try to put between myself and it, I could easily fall back into an attack in a matter of weeks if I am off my med even if I had been normal and well for a couple of years (while I was on med, of course). Xx. 

    • Posted

      I'm reading over this discussion, and have a question for you taylor41... when did you decide it was time to increase to 75mg and so on? This is my fourth week on 50mg, and I had a good week last week, then seem to be getting anxiety again this week. I figured I need to wait it out a few more weeks, maybe up to 8 or more. I want 50 to be enough but am wondering if it will be.

    • Posted

      I would give 50mg another week or two, I gave each dose at least 3 weeks and if I wasn't get closer to being myself again with each dose increase I would up the dose as my side effects weren't bad. Remember this journey is rocky so you will have setbacks, I still have them

  • Posted

    Hi Taylor41,

    I hope you are doing well.I was wondering if you are still on Zoloft and also how long it took you all together to feel better. i am on Zoloft and have been on it for two months. I still don't feel like myself. I have had some good days but i have had bad days more. Recently,I had a good week then yesterday and today my depression came back and my anxiety seems to want to come back too. I was on 25  mg for 12 days, 50mg for 8 weeks and now 75mg for 10 days. I don't know if i should stay on this med. Any information is appreciated. Thank you

  • Posted

    hi taylor-

    i know you haven't posted for over a year but i just came across your story.  mine is freakishly similar and wanted to get some answers.  did you figure what worked best for you and your anxiety?  did you stick with sertraline?  i am at about the 8/9 week mark and i'm feeling very similar.  i feel just "ok" and still am having some panic attacks.  i also feel irritable and anxious throughout the day.  i have, however, improved on my motivation.  i am able to get out of bed in the morning and continue with my normal routine.  i just don't feel 100% myself.  any advice is very helpful!  thanks smile

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