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body aches and fatigue caused by sertraline?

Posted , 7 users are following.

linzi00401
linzi00401

hi all,

I have been on Sertraline now for around 8 months. My anxiety is far better, I am panicking much less often and not as extreme, so in that regard the medication has been a great success for me.

however, since been on the meds my sleep is terrible (always has been but worse), I am constantly tired to the point where I cannot be bothered doing anything - my husband has even commented that it is like i have lost my personality. I have to force myself to do housework etc and have not been to the gym in months. my weight has ballooned (4st on!!). 

My main issue though is i am constantly aching. It goes from my shoulders, down my arms right to the tips of my fingers. I feel like I have lifted really heavy weights. The pain is bad enough to be contributing to my lack of sleep. 

I would like people's thoughts on the following points;

1) does the Sertraline cause the 'can't be bothered doing anything' feeling or am I depressed?

2) can the meds cause this constant aching or is it a result of putting tons of weight on?

Please help guys!

Thank you

0 likes, 8 replies

8 Replies

  • Shasmo_from_TX
    Shasmo_from_TX linzi00401

    Posted

    1.) The insomnia is also an effect. If you can, try to get something to help you sleep at night. What dose are you on?

    2.) Yes, it can cause weight gain in some people. I gained alot of weight when I first went on it. I have since had gastric sleeve so the weight issue is not a problem now.

    • linzi00401
      linzi00401 Shasmo_from_TX

      Posted

      I'm on 50mg. Do you think the weight gain is what is causing my aching or is the aching also a side effect of the drug?

  • nicole0926
    nicole0926 linzi00401

    Edited

    When I first started I had a ton of aches and pains. I also found out that I have a potassium deficiency. I am on a prescribed supplement and that has been amazing and now I don't have aches and pains so maybe you want to get that checked?

    Yes, it can cause weight gain as well. I lost 20 pounds at first from not eating then I gained it back and then some but now I have lost 10 of it and still losing it.

    I would talk to your doctor. All the best to you!

    • linzi00401
      linzi00401 nicole0926

      Posted

      Thank you. I have an appointment booked next Tuesday with the Doc so will discuss the aches with him/her then, might request bloods to see if I am deficient. I also feel ready to start coming off the meds as I feel so much better so hopefully this will be a success and then I can get my life back in order. Like I said in my original post, the anxiety is far better, i just want my va va voom back now and to stop feeling in pain physically all the time! smile
    • KindredSpirit
      KindredSpirit nicole0926

      Posted

      i know your comment is 2 years old but i was interested in what supplement you were taking.every time i take sertraline the full body aches are really bad. I'm not overweight so this is probably to do with potassium. i read that sertraline causes this but was curious as to what helped you. you mention it is a prescribed supplement?

    • dee80793
      dee80793 KindredSpirit

      Posted

      i dont know if this will help you, but shortly after starting zoloft , my body aches were unbearable. I went and had extensive blood work done and doctor did not find any deficiencies that would cause these aches. Chances are it is the Zoloft

  • anij45555
    anij45555 linzi00401

    Edited

    hello,

    I took sertraline for around 8 weeks. I'm truly shocked the impact it had on me.

    It immediately helped with anxiety, but then the severe aches and pains began.

    I woke up one morning with my knee blown up like a balloon, It took a week to return to normal. Then began the pain in my head, jaw, ears which I had for 4 weeks. I also found it hard to even walk, and was breathless every time I tried exercise.

    I had blood tests for everything and all was normal.

    I then started to think of actual suicide for the first time in my life which was really terrifying.

    I started to not want to leave the house, feeling anything I was interested in was of no interest anymore. To put it simply it was like I was dead inside.

    I couldn't even orgasm anymore (which has a huge effect on your life and relation ship that the doctor really doesn't prepare you for).

    I desperately wanted all of these symptoms to not be connected to the sertraline.

    I know they say it takes 6 weeks for it to kick in, but even through the deadness I could see my whole life falling apart. So I weaned myself off.after 8 weeks of pain, very slowly.

    And I'm happy to report that everyday I got better.

    Each day feeling stronger, more "Me". In just those 8 weeks I put on 13kgs!! I was already overweight so I have a long road ahead to try and shift that.

    All the aches and pains have gone, yesterday I did 9kms of walking.

    I've had other doctors say the medication is terrible and therapy such as EMDR, Acceptance and commitment therapy etc combined with good nutrition, exercise (even just dancing in the house) Cold therapy Is way better then the Russian Roulette of sertraline etc.

    I was really hoping for an easy fix.

    It's been 3.5 months since I started taking it, and I'm only just starting to feel pain free.

    I hope this helps people who are suffering but unsure if its the sertraline.

  • erin53124
    erin53124 linzi00401

    Posted

    I found this googling sertraline causing body pain, and figured it would be a good idea to post my experience for anyone else who might be doing the same and seeing this in the future.

    My dose is 50mg at night. I had been taking it during the day, but it caused a lot of drowsiness. It took longer than the standard 8 weeks for it to start making a difference, a bit abnormal for me.

    At 4 months in, late 2021, I was experiencing intense shoulder pain and visited my PCP for x-ray referrals and some strong NSAIDs, to which I’m highly receptive. This shoulder has given me a bit of trouble in the past, so I didn’t think much of it. I got a brand-new cushy mattress and a more supportive pillow.

    2 months later, start of 2022, I was in daily agony. The NSAIDs did nothing, my emergency leftover opiates from surgery only helped for about 2 hours. Each major joint had acute aching, I had deep muscle pain in most large groups. Intense difficulty falling/staying asleep, which didn’t help.

    At this point I was worried about autoimmune diseases, long Covid, etc. I’m 32 and active but felt 92 and was bedridden. I couldn’t shower, clean, or cook. I stopped being able to walk and play with my dog. My soft and cozy bed felt like the hard rocky ground. I lost 20lbs to atrophy and not being able to feed myself consistently. It just kept slowly getting worse. Thank god I am a cardholder and was able to buy strong edibles, that is the only thing that pulled me through.

    A month ago, May 2022, my insomnia difficulties were pointing to the sertraline. I have never had that issue in my life, if anything I struggle with the reverse. On sertraline, I unfortunately seem to have the rare side effect of having “too much” energy and fast talking. Alongside this the joint and body pain was listed. Online searching brought me here.

    I immediately switched my pill to taking upon waking up, and I’m not exaggerating, that first night I skipped the pill to wait for morning I had the DEEPEST and most restful sleep I had had in a year. I had dreams again, y’all. Crazy ones. I woke up still in pain but very hopeful. The change seemed immediate.

    It has been a month and I’m beyond thrilled. The pain slowly decreased until it went away completely. I am back to feeling my age, I have an incredible amount of daytime energy but fall asleep easily for the whole night, and my depression seems to have been kicked hard. I have not felt this good since I was a teenager.

    It’s almost as if I was never taking it at all during the last year, or some kind of sugar pill. I feel this is supposed to be the true effect of the medicine, and this whole time for some reason I never ever got it. No idea if it has to do with how I metabolize while sleeping, or something else. I’m just glad it’s over now and I don’t have to go through the trials of weaning off and then back onto a new medication.

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