1. Community
  2. Mental health
  3. Sertraline

Increasing Zoloft and feel terrible! Please help!

Posted , 6 users are following.

mary_beth01383
mary_beth01383

Hey guys. This is my first post on any type of forum. A little background: I am a nurse and usually a high functioning member of society until BAM, I began having panic attacks every day. I am in my 5th week of Sertraline and my newest and possibly most frightening new symptom is brain fog. I feel like my brain is only functioning at 10%. I also feel disconnected and experience derealization. I just increased my dose a week ago to 75mg. Has anyone else experienced this? Did it go away?? Also, has anyone else convinced themselves that something is wrong with their brain and/or they are going crazy? Thanks so much! -mary beth

1 like, 9 replies

9 Replies

  • lynda70899
    lynda70899 mary_beth01383

    Posted

    Hi Mary Beth

    No, you are not going crazy.  All side effects of sertraline.  I haven't experienced depersonalization.  What is that like??  Every time you increase you may experience side effects. As they say it gets worse before it gets better.  Things will get better for you.

    lynda

    • mary_beth01383
      mary_beth01383 lynda70899

      Posted

      Thanks Lynda! The derealization feels sort of like I'm in a tunnel and places that are familiar like my home feel like I've never been there before. It's the most strange sensation. Thank you for your reply!
  • jane05636
    jane05636 mary_beth01383

    Posted

    Hi...Sorry to hear you Feeling so awful. I have basically thought I was losing my mind for last couple weeks to the point I went to a and e convinced I was seriously ill and I think it was all to do with increasing dose of sertraline. I also felt I could function or even remember what I had to do from hours to hour never mind day to day. It will pass. I thought I would feel like that forever but now I feel a lot better. U may need to ask for some support from friends or family until it passes. I did cos I felt I couldnt cope with anythjbg and I am usually very high functioning active person and couldn't even remember to brush my teeth! ! I found speaking to a CPN really helped too....x
    • mary_beth01383
      mary_beth01383

      Posted

      I meant how long and what dose. See what I mean by brain fog lol
    • jane05636
      jane05636 mary_beth01383

      Posted

      Hi, I'm on 50mg now and it's been 4 weeks. Started to feel normal again on wed but note that it was pretty awful and the doc didn't warn me. I have kept going because sertraline is supposed.to be most effective for anxiety in evidence based studies. The derealisation is horrible and scary and memory fog makes functioning very hard. Try using some anxiety apps to help calm and ground you and keep talking about how u feel to those you trust so they can reassure you. It will pass. Make sure your GP knows how much you are.struggling and whether a referral to CPN team may help. All the best
  • Tracy7338
    Tracy7338 mary_beth01383

    Posted

    Hello Mary Beth I would have thought at 5 weeks you would be ok and that that small increase to 75mg would not have affected you that much. To be honest I didn't suffer any further side effects after I increased to 75mg from 50mg and that was about 3 weeks ago now and altogether I am in week 6. I would grow 've t another week or so to see if it settles down as we are all affected in different ways. If it continues after another week or so I would see the Doctor again and see what he says. I hope you are feeling better soon
  • michelle14134
    michelle14134 mary_beth01383

    Posted

    Hi Mary Beth I too ave experienced all the symptoms u are talking about I'm on 100mg for about 41/2 months now and I also convinced myself I was going mad and there was something seriously wrong with me , the brain fog and the derealization is terrible I sometimes walk down the street and feel like I've never been there b4 everything feel s so different and the brain fog well my memory is terrible I even forget what I'm saying mid sentence it's awful I ave got slightly better since starting the sertraline but no where near normal I also suffer really bad insomnia can't sleep at all without pills and am up at 4am every morning regardless it's exhausting xx
    • Guest
      Guest michelle14134

      Posted

      same i wake up at 4am every morning and horrible brain fog ughh
Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.