Coming off sertraline - advice needed

Just side effects, and also, perhaps, a little bit of expecting such symptoms. For me........ Just stick on 1 every 3 days...... Leave it at that forever....... Until you naturally stop taking them........

I guess it could be that I am expecting these symptoms a little bit. I just need to start thinking about it so much and hope that it eventually passes. Thanks for the advice.

Hi, my GP also advised me to take Sertraline every other day when reducing but having read other people's posts, they seem to do better taking half a tablet every day, then a quarter etc until they stop completely. This would make sense as Sertraline levels are highest for 24 to 36 hours after taking it, so by missing days you are not keeping the levels in your body stable. I have been cutting my tablets in half so that I can take a smaller daily dose and so far, so good. I have reduced from 150 to 50mg so far. I have had withdrawal effects at first when reducing the dose but once my body gets used to the new dose - a few days later - I start to feel better and am starting to feel like myself again. Good luck!

Thank you :-) I'm now trying 25mg daily as opposed to

2 days off one day on 50mg. So far so good. Few dizzy spells but on the whole it's not going too bad! X

I too am experiencing the withdrawals of coming off sertraline, and it couldn't be at any worse of a time. I'm 31 and have been on 50 mg daily since July 2013. After speaking to my PCP, he said that it should've reached its maximum effectiveness and reduced me to a 1/2 tablet of 25mg for the final two weeks, following my request. I've always been a naturally upbeat, happy, funny person, but after my parents' divorce last year, it became a little harder to be everyone's cheerleader. I began weening a week ago and became engaged 4 days after that. We are trying for a June wedding and I feel like I'm about to lose it. I realize it's petty but the dress shopping frustrating. I gained an extra 15 pounds in the immediate 3 months after starting the meds. When you're 5'2", 155 pounds is significant. Not only that, everyone's workload at work has increased by at least 8% in the last month. All if these coupled with the headaches, wooziness of the head, irritability, and now the bursting out of tears, I'm wondering whether to stick it out or not. The swimming of the head and the headaches are the worst., but the doctor said that's a normal neurological change. I'm hoping that all of this passes soon and I can go back to "the way I was before" but it's already a tough ride.

Hi, I really do sympathise with you. I'm still taking 25mg daily but I'm going back to my gp next week to see what my next steps should be. For me it's the tiredness and bursting into tears over the smallest things that I'm particularly struggling with. I wonder if I can ever get back to my old self. I guess we need to just ride it out. Sounds like you have a lot going on so try and stay focused on the positives of your wedding. Keep going! Good luck x

Hi all. My fiancee is on 150mg, has been for almost 3 years.

I am hugely concerned of what affects they're having on him, I would like to know if any of you are familiar with weaning off that high dose?

I've read some but mist people are on less than what he is.

Thank you for taking your time to read this.

Hi Rachael - I too have been on Citalopram and was then changed to Sertraline.  Have been on Sertraline for nearly 3 years and have been trying to come off it for the last 9 months.  I started off on 50 mgs then went to 100 mgs.  I gained lots of weight but the medication definitely helped and kept me more balanced. Last summer I decided to cut down to 50 mgs.  I did this gradually with no real side effects.  I then got a bit too confident and tried missing out more days in between which turned out to be not such a good idea.  I had some really bad days - very emotional, lethargic, no energy and just feeling like I wanted to stay in bed all day and not see anyone.  I went back to taking my 50 mgs a day.  I then made a concerted effort to try and lose some of the 2-3 stone I'd put on over a 5 year period of being on anti-depressants.  I lost a stone and a half before Christmas and I felt so much better.  After Xmas I then started taking 50 mgs every other day again and felt fine.  Then I had some significant problems with a colleague at work which was causing me huge amounts of stress and I could feel myself sinking back into depression again.  I've had to take time off from work due to this and am sadly back on 100 mgs of Sertraline.  Since upping my dose to help me with my mental health I have piled on the weight again because I'm just eating and eating all the wrong kinds of food - I have absolutely no energy and am so lethargic.  I've been here before so know these are the side effects of the medication.  To me it  now seems like a vicious circle.  You get anxious and depressed so need the medication which then makes you feel more lethargic and generally crap!!!  I'm so fed up of feeling like this and have decided to try and get my act together by going on a sugar detox, re-joining the gym and getting out and about more in the fresh air in general and slowly cutting down on the Sertraline again.  You can't ever just stop taking the medication without expecting any side effects - you also have to be in the right place in yourself emotionally before you can even think of cutting back on the meds.  My best advice to you would be to do it very slowly and also look at making healthy lifestyle changes if you need to - it all helps but sometimes it's easier said than done.  Good Luck

Hi

I have been on Zoloft for a long time. I am also decreasing it and was on two full tablets at a time. Now I am down to 1/2. However when I feel emotional or anxious I drink 5HTP. This really works. My brain can now learn how to manufacture seretonin by itself. Get yourself some 5HTP 50mg or 100mg and start using it instead of Zoloft. It really works for me. My sister is also using 5HTP and I also give it to my teenager when she becomes very emotional with mood swings. I wish I found 5HTP before I started the Zoloft.

Hi, I too would like to wean off of Zoloft on my own.  I have been taking 50 mg for about 3 years, I have about 6 weeks left of the pills  Can you give me some advice ?