Been taking sertraline for three weeks still feeling side effects is this normal?
Posted , 6 users are following.
Hi,
A few weeks back I had two panic attacks so my wife set me an appointment in the psychiatrist who prescribed sertraline(zoloft) 25mg and 50mg after a week, to help with the imsomnia he prescribed victan 2mg(1/2 in the morning and 1/2 or one in sos when I woke up in the middle of the night).
On the first day I even had suicidal thoughts. During the first week I couldn't sleep even with victan, I had terribly depressive mornings, and I kept having diarrhea and feeling anxious as hell. Last week(2nd week) it got a bit better, started sleeping(sometimes I'd wake up and take 1/2 a sleeping pill) and now it's just the diarrhea and the sadness I feel on cloudy days mornings kept depressing, sometimes I'd have intrusive violent thoughts which freak me out as I'm a peaceful person.
I also started seeing a psychologist and working out every day..
I'm now on the third week and yesterday things were starting to feel different, brighter and I didn't even have diarrhea but today I couldn't get a good night sleep(my 1 year old is teething again), my whole body is sore and I feel depressed again, had diarrhea and suicidal thoughts(which I managed to shake off) went through my head briefly.
Is this normal?
0 likes, 16 replies
lynn260 domingos53415
Posted
So sorry to hear about your situation. Starting an antidepressant can lead to suicidal thoughts and stomach problems. As you change the dose, you also alter the neurotransmitters in your brain which also create more thought processes to change.
My own view is to try to achieve stability on the same dose. Taking sleeping pills also gives you a foggy head in the morning.
I do hope things settle for you.
🙏🤞
domingos53415 lynn260
Posted
Right now what's killing me is the insomnia I get some nights and the bad days
domingos53415 lynn260
Posted
and the suicidal thoughts of course.. I have so much to thank for how and why can I feel so useless??
knight84874 domingos53415
Posted
Blondey domingos53415
Posted
Hi Domingos,
When I first took Sertraline neally four weeks ago I thought I was going mad.
I was in the park walking my dog when all of sudden I felt extremely neverous, sick, and that people were all watching me, I just had to realise it was the medication that was making me feel like that.
I know how you feel and it’s very up setting for you, I imagine it gets better.
However, Sertraline as nasty side affects as far as i’m Concerned, also it takes so long to work.
Still we have to try and carry on no matter how hard it is sometimes.
My heart goes out to you and hope you start to feel the good benefits soon.
God bless🙏
domingos53415 Blondey
Posted
Thank you for sharing your experience. It's always good to know that other people have overcome these ordeals.
God Bless you!
Blondey domingos53415
Posted
PopWop domingos53415
Posted
Hang in there Domingos, it can be really tough. I've got a sertraline diary on here if you want to read how I was doing at your stage. I'm 5 weeks in and feeling better but not perfect, at 4 weeks though I was still struggling.
There are also success stories posted on this forum quite regularly, people who have been through the hell and have emerged the other side, may do you good to hunt them down too, it helped me.
Keep posting on here, everyone is so supportive because we all understand.
hypercat domingos53415
Posted
Hi I have been taking sertraline for a while now. I started off on 100 mg but it didn't do anything so it was increased to 150 mgs. I still get a couple of minor side effects, bad dreams and dry mouth but consider them a good trade off for how well it works for me.
It will take at least 6-8 weeks before it fully gets into your system so be patient. If the side effects are too bad then do go back to your doctor and ask for a change. x
hypercat domingos53415
Posted
Hi I have been taking sertraline for a while now. I started off on 100 mg but it didn't do anything so it was increased to 150 mgs. I still get a couple of minor side effects, bad dreams and dry mouth but consider them a good trade off for how well it works for me.
It will take at least 6-8 weeks before it fully gets into your system so be patient. If the side effects are too bad then do go back to your doctor and ask for a change. x
domingos53415
Posted
Thank you everyone for your kind words. I have a baby daughter I want to see grow and a wife I love. I want to live with everything in my body but Sertralina has been hell to bare. Specially these dark thoughts. Today was worse so I changed the appointment I had made with my therapist for this Saturday. I need to find ways to deal with suicidal thoughts. I've already lost 10kg and it's affecting me and my family. Some understand others say that's just my head making up things as if I could control intrusive thoughts.
Patient domingos53415
Posted
Hi domingos53415
We note from a recent post which you have made to our forum that you may be experiencing thoughts around self-harm. If we have misinterpreted your comments then we apologies for contacting you directly. But if you are having such thoughts then please note that you are not alone in this, and there are people out there that can help.
If you are having these suicidal thoughts then we strongly recommend you speak to someone who may be able to help. The Samaritans offer a safe space where you can talk openly about what you are going through. They can help you explore your options, understand your problems better, or just be there to listen.
Their contact details are on our patient information leaflet here: https://patient.info/health/dealing-with-suicidal-thoughts, which also offers lots of other advice on how you can access the help you may need.
If you are having such thoughts then please do reach out to the team at the Samaritans (or the other people detailed in our leaflet) who will understand what you're going through and will be able to help.
Kindest regards
Patient
sam93989 domingos53415
Posted
Hi, been taking surtraline 50mg for panic attacks mainly but mild anxiety also! I’m on day 3 and had a really awful time from day 1!!! feeling jittery, uneasy,severe anxiety and panic attacks worse than I’ve ever had them before! I woke up having a panic attack last night and went into a complete manic state thinking the meds where going to make me do something crazy! It wasn’t plesent for myself or my partner ?? Been settling the nerves with diazepam since last night as directed by my doctor! Spoke to them today and they want me to ride it out but I’ve had enough!im terrified to go to sleep. Please don’t go by my experience as I know it helps many people, good luck and anyone else who suffers the same your not alone!
Blondey domingos53415
Posted
I hope your not going to feel patronise, when you wrote about having frightening thoughts you mentioned you can’t help having them.
Well my daughter send me a video today to help with my Depreesion, Anxiety, and OCD.
Please watch it, the Guys name is Phil Good he’s American. Look him up and try to watch all the way through. It might help to change your thought pattern in someway or the other.
I know it’s so hard, However, give it a try lots love and Gods blessing.
I’m trying today to feel good about my self, your not alone.
domingos53415 Blondey
Posted
Thank you! Today I'm feeling better, managed to sleep and haven't had any weird thoughts apart from possible being schizofrenic(which is ridiculous cause I don't show any symptoms). I'm going to watch the film for sure
domingos53415 Blondey
Posted
I've been trying to find the video but can't, do you think you could either give me the name of the video or the link?