my withdrawall symptoms coming off sertraline

Hi i'm replying to moonlight who has come off the medication sertraline. I am currently still taking the medication and suffering from the symptoms described including sleeping all the time, feeling suicidal and no motivation. I don't know if these are related to the medicine or not, however your message stating how these syptoms have gone away on stopping the medication makes me wonder. I was originally diognosed with depression and anxiety- although i do not consider myself depressed i still suffer with anxiety. I experience awful withdrawl symptoms when i forget a day and feel reliant on it. What strength were you on and how long did it take you to wean off the medication?

Would like to know if others have had the symptoms on the meds and if they stopped when you came off them?

I can confirm exactly the experiences of both moonlight and crazy lady as the same as my own findings. 100mg is certainly a difficulty dose with many side effects. My entry has been deleted off her from earlier, however I would like you to know your not alone! Hang on in there, work through the issues with counselling, dont just rely on the medication as it can make you suicidal and make you have unwanted thoughts. Just keep taking care of day to day basic needs and self care, planning exercise, keeping contacted with loved ones and family too! Dont isolate yourself, and always remember your never alone with those feelings there are thousands of us in the same situation x

I've been on sertraline for 5 yrs on a dosage of 200mg. In the last year have experienced dreadful medical problems(only just realised they may be side effects). The most disturbing being pins and needles and numbness in my arms constantly, abdominal pain and muscle and joint pains. Would really like to hear from anyone with similar side effects. Need to know if symptoms will go once I come off sertraline!!!

Moonlight, I have just been diagnosed with Bi-polar, I am 34 yrs old and been taking various anti-Ds for depression and anxiety since I was 19. . Everyone apart from my husband keeps saying well at least you know what it is now but I just want to say NO I just want to be well.

Anyway I have been on sertraline for approx 4 yrs and my psyciatrist is taking me off them as they are NOT suggested for bi-polar. There are lots of other tablets out there that work together with good therapy. I am now on Olanzapint 15mg which is the same as 200ml of sertraline and then I am on 600ml Lithium. Coming off the sertraline will get easier but watch out for the feeling that fireworks are going off in your head

Wow china doll I have been suffering with pins and needles and numbness and the muscle and joint pains.

Hope this helps :P

Heidi

Hi,

I have stopped taking sertraline 50mg, which been taking for 6 months for anxiety and stress, and after feeling well, start coming off of them over 3 months time, but after 5 weeks when I stopped I feel very horrible again, feeling upset stomach, poor appetite, anxiety etc.

Wonder if my anxiety coming back again or that is withdrawal effects from sertraline? Does anyone had them and how long it last to wear off if that is withdrawal effects??

Thanks

Hi, I'm 18, and was diagnosed with depression and anxiety 4 years ago, but the doctors didn't want me to go on anti-depressants until 8 months ago. I started Citalopram then three months ago I had to switch to Setraline because I had really bad side effect. I'm now coming off them... Well, stopped cold turkey. STUPID IDEA. Now I'm really struggling with my anxiety... I really want to go back on the meds but I just don't know if thats he right thing to do!

Hi , I have been taking sertraline 100mg for about 6 months due to OCD and anxiety . I have previously since the age of 16 been prescribed all sorts ranging from beta blockers to mirtazipine and citalopram. Beta blockers were useless, citalopram seemed to be ok for a couple of weeks then tapered off to nil effect, mirtazipine felt too heavily sedated and now sertraline like citalopram tapers off after a few weeks and the compulsions return. I have also combined all these medications with counselling interventions such as psychotherapy and CBT to none effect. This week after still experiencing compulsions and accusing my partner of the most hideous unrealistic behaviour I decided enough was enough and stopped taking sertraline . I had always gone cold turkey from other medications to no effect. What a bad choice . Brain zaps every 30 seconds which can only be described as electric convulsions for the last four days which resulted in me driving to the doctors and being re prescribed. Being 34 years old and experiencing high levels of anxiety and the most bizarre compulsive behaviour for twenty years, ruining relationships and life in general I now find myself to have hit a brick wall having feeling like I have tried everything. I even work professionally within the counselling/mental health and addiction arena and still remain clueless as to what could possibly help other than another visit to my go to up the dose again or another mental health assessment to no avail . Has anyone any suggestions before I single handily destroy another very important and sincere relationship and remain within this vicious cycle?

Thanks in advance!

I started taking Sertraline a couple of years ago after an awful time at work during which I was submitted to some severe harassment. The medication worked wonders for me, not at first, but after a few weeks and an up in the dosage I was coping with things a lot better.

Luckily the person who was causing me so much grief was found out and no longer works with me and I have been on a slow personal road to recovery over the past year. Recently I decided it was time to stop taking my medication.

I read lots if advice about coming down from these pills and have done what I thought sounded most sensible. With advice from my doctor, I gradually reduced the dosage, then halved the lowest dose, then took this every two days, then every three. I literally couldn't of come down slower.

Unfortunately however I have still got the most horrific side effects; palpitations, a fuzzy head and those 'electric shocks' that go through your head.

I was also told that if you are unlucky enough to get these side effects that they usually go within 2-3 weeks however, it's now been 1 month and my side effects aren't getting any better.

I need to know if anyone else has had this type of experience and what they did to help?

After the journey I have been through over the past 2 years, I can't believe I am now having to go through all of this.

Any advice would be so much appreciated.

Hi anon. I just wondered how you are an whether your withdrawal symptoms cleared up?

I've been off sertraline just over 3 weeks and am having a bad time with withdrawal. I had a terrible time on the drug and now this. I was on 100mg. I dropped to 50 for about 5 weeks, 25mg for about 2 weeks, 25mg every other day for a week and then stopped.

I have brain zaps all day every day and every time I move my eye. I'm more exhausted than I've ever been in my life. I have long crying spells and sweats. My sinuses are dreadful. I have a constant pressure in and behind my left eye. All this on top of the severe and lasting side effects I developed on the drug.

Just wondered if it all cleared up? Looking for some hope!

Hi there, just seen this forum whilst googling sertraline withdrawal. I've had ghastly side effects from sertraline so decided to stop taking it. The withdrawal has been horrible: dizziness, numbness, shivers and sweats anger, fatigue and feelings like electric shocks in my brain. But it is getting better! My gp has explained the withdrawal symptoms go down a tiny bit each day so you don't feel like they are improving. Two weeks on just down to the occasional brain sizzle, dizziness is subsiding and can now go to bed, sleep normally and wake up alert (ish) and go to work. Anyone going through the withdrawal, it is horrendous but does fade and will go. Hang in there, drink lots to help flush the drugs through and be kind to yourself xxx

Hi Moonlight, you are one of the few people I've read that have been on antidepressant as long as I have. I am going on 15 years on Zoloft and over the years tried to get off but never lasted more than a few days because the anxiety would come back with a venegance as well as joint pain. I have been doing yoga for several years along with the SSRI and was down to 50 mg a day with skipping at least a dose a couple of times a week, then I got diagnosed with osteoporosis, I eat extremeauly healthy, have no osteo in my family, I started to do research as to what might have caused this and found that SSRI can cause some women's bones to not absorb calcium. This was the last little kick I needed to get off of this SSRI I have slowly over 6 months gone down to 25 mg a day now to 25mg skip two days then 25 mg but if I try to skip 3days I can tell I am not ready. As I have decreased the Zoloft, I have increased my yoga and meditation and walking. I have found that yoga is the best antidote to anxiety there is. It is something anyone can do no matter your age or physical health, you just do what works for your body, the breathing techniques are what I use to come out of it when I feel myself falling into repetitive worry or negative thinking. I feel like I have been living under water for 15 years and have just come up for air. Good Luck to anyone coming off, it takes determination, patience and courage, but it is worth it. Take your time, it is easy to want to hurry it up but that is the worst way to go off of SSRI, that is what keeps us on it.