Increase or wait

Posted , 7 users are following.

Me again!

After being on 25mg of sert for 13 days I thought things were improving I felt good and the anxiety wasn't bad at all. I had two horrendous days of bad anxiety to the point I couldn't leave my bedroom.

One doctor says to wait another week to see if the small dose of 25 will give me relief.

Another doctor says up it to 50 - which I'm terrified of doing. I don't want side effects again they were absolute hell!

What do you guys suggest? I'm at a loss right now and I'm only 2 weeks in 😩 I know I have to stay on it. But I felt good on day 10 and 11. Lots of people say they increase quite rapidly but how do you know if you're already at a dose that suits you and you just need it to settle?

0 likes, 12 replies

12 Replies

  • Posted

    Ohhh Suzie......

    So sorry. Does it feel like increased anxiety due to medication or does it feel like your normal anxiety? How bad was your anxiety before you started the med? I know my dose in the past was 50mg and that seems to be common. I do hear ya about the side effects though. Also as you know it takes a good 4 weeks to see improvements. Tough call. Did your nausea ease up? All other side effects gone? I am now on day 6. Had a better afternoon yesterday and slept better last night. Felt normal like myself for a few hours in the evening. Anxiety is really bad this morning though even after taking a Xanax.

    • Posted

      Hey holly. I've suffered with anxiety before and taken meds and come off them and lived without. So I started on sertraline when I felt the anxiety start to come back it wasn't bad at the start because I didn't let it get bad. I don't have any side effects now apart from the ridiculously increased anxiety but the problem is anxiety attacks can make you feel sick and shake etc etc.

      I don't know whether to increase or wait it out. I'm at a loss 😔 My head says increase my heart is too scared to

      I'm glad you had a good few hours yesterday x

    • Posted

      So you feel the anxiety and panic is worse than prior to starting this time? That's is kind of how I feel. Plus when I take a Xanax and it barely helps, I feel it is med induced. I could be wrong but....... That is why I was thinking so hard about stopping a couple days ago. Although I have always needed meds for my anxiety for the past 20 years. I try and go without and eventually I have to start them again. So I figured I should go ahead and restart after all of the medical issues I just went through that made me come off of them 2 months ago. I feel worse but then know I will probably have to do this in the long run as I haven't been able to stay off long term. That is why I was so tempted to stop the other day but have a feeling I will fall back into to bad panic and anxiety but,now the med has me feeling that way. So hard to know what is right.

  • Posted

    Have you tried propranolol this really helps me with anxiety...i was on 25mg for 9 months and all my symptoms came back.

    So ive stopped still have anxiety but trying different things like supplements.

    • Posted

      I'm on propranonol at the moment 10 mg 3x per day which was helping a lot but now the anxiety is too much.

      Question is, is the medication still settling or should I increase it to 50mg?

    • Posted

      I know how you feel I started on 50mg then increased to 100mg a week later I have to say I felt the benefits of 50mg I did have anxiety when I increased to 100mg and my doctor told me to reduce back to 50mg but I decided to ride it out because even though I hate anxiety I thought I've got nothing to lose,you could try and if it's too much reduce it back down it's trail and error with these tablets but I have found coming on this forum really helpful x

    • Posted

      Thanks Katyf. I think I've decided to hold out another week on the 25. And then bump up if there's no improvement! I find this forum really helpful too just hearing what everyone else is going through.

  • Posted

    Hey Suzie,

    25mg is a low dose so I would probably go up to 50mg its not a massive increase so you should be ok! You could ask your doctor for some diazepam for your anxiety just until the tablets start to kick in and make you feel abit more comfortable, they have worked wonders for me and I break them in half so I dont take alot just when I need it! Now Im feeling better I dont use th but its nice knowing they are there and do the job!

    • Posted

      Thanks emzy. I have propranonol so I'll keep going with that as I increase.

    • Posted

      Propranonol 10mg is a very low dose and did nothing for my anxiety! The other doctor I saw the other day said its more for ppl who suffer from panic attacks! Thats when he gave me diazepam and it worked great for bad anxiety! But if you find its working for you stick with it or you can always up the dose!
  • Posted

    Hi Suzie. All I can say is Zoloft is a different animal than any antidepressant I've ever tried. I was on 50mg for a month and felt even more depressed (disappointment?). My PA bumped it up to 100mg. I think I finally am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I had days that I was highly anxious, others where I felt kind of manic (speeded up). Thought it was odd that a drug that treats anxiety seemed to cause it. It's been leveling out.

    I hope it works for you. What message I keep hearing is that you have to wait it out with this drug, to see if it helps😊

    • Posted

      How long have you been on the 100mg now? I am in the same boat as Suzie. On day 6 of 25mg. Up and down each day. I am taking for anxiety and it is over the top right now. Comes and goes. Very intense. Been needing to rely on the Xanax more than I like but have to get relief as it is debilitating sometimes. I have taken this in the past and did very well on it for years. Having are all hard time starting this go around. Wasn't nearly this anxious prior to starting it.....

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