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gretchen35232
gretchen35232

I have been taking 200 Sertraline(generic for Zoloft) for over 11 years. I started taking because of my sister's death and the loss of my son. After a few years i was put on Wellbutrin and a lower dose to 100 mg of Sertraline. Recently I asked my doctor if there was something else I could take because I was unable to loose any weight. So on December 8th I given a new prescription for Prozac. I started that on the 9 . After about a week maybe two I start feeling nauseous went back to Dr and he thought I had a migraine. He gave me a shot for that I was still feeling nauseous having upset stomach so I went back to the Dr and they lowered the dose from 40 mg to 20 mg. Still having the nauseous feeling, vomiting a couple times, diahhera and headache. I once again contacted the Dr they have moved me down to 10mg. So I am still nauseous and head feels weird. My hope is someone could tell me how long this will last. I feel like not even taking the Prozac but I don't want to feel worse then this.

0 likes, 8 replies

8 Replies

  • Dr.D
    Dr.D gretchen35232

    Posted

    hi gretchen,

    from your text i'm not sure whether you're currently taking sertraline, wellbutrin and prozac or only prozac.

    concerning your history, you said that you started taking sertraline due to the loss of your sister and your son but have been on it for 11 years now. what was the reason you started taking sertraline? did you have a major depression or an anxiety disorder?

    i am a bit confused because if you started the medication to better cope with the loss then i would have expected you would have come off it after the grieving process. why didn't you come off sertraline? and why was wellbutrin added some time later?

    i understand you want to lose weight which is a legitimate reason to change meds yet i can't make out what causes the side effects since you've started the prozac.

    did you taper-off the sertraline? if so it could be discontinuation symptoms from that as well

    another possibility is that you're sensitive to the drug combination.

    another is that you may have started the prozac with a dose that is too high (40mg?).

    could you provide a detailed chronology (when did you start or stop any medication and for what reason?)

    i would be glad to offer my opinion.

    regards,

    d

    • gretchen35232
      gretchen35232 Dr.D

      Posted

      I started taking it because I was having a hard time dealing with the losses. The losses were less then a year apart. When I started with the Sertraline I was put on a low dose then it increased over a couple months. That was 2005-2006. The dose had increased to 200 mg. Then I think it was in 2016 my Sertraline was lowered to 100 mg. I had mentioned to the doctor I did not have much energy that was when I was put on the Wellbutrin 25 mg along with the Sertraline. Then at my last appointment he took me off the Sertraline and told me to take the Prozac 40 mg instead of the Sertraline. He has over the last 3 weeks brought me down to the 10 mg and I am still taking the 25 mg of with the 10 mg of Prozac. I am sad to say I have never questioned being on this medication for so long. I just assumed that I would take depression medication for the rest of my life. My Dr has never discussed me going off them. The question I am asked when I go in is how is everything going? I say good. And prescription is refill. But I will be discussing coming off all medication at next appointment. Hope this helps you to understand.
    • Dr.D
      Dr.D gretchen35232

      Posted

      gretchen,

      do i understand it right that your doctor switched you from sertraline to prozac and you did not taper off sertraline?

      if so it could very well be that you're facing discontinuation symptoms from the withdrawal of sertraline. the time span (1 week after the change) would also speak for this as sertraline has a half life of about 24hours and discontinuation symptoms usually start when the concentration in the body gets quite low which in your case with 100mg would mean that you reach a low concentration about 4 days after cessation (100, 50, 25, 12.5, 6.25, 3.125, ...).

      normally if it is withdrawal/discontinuation syndrome the symptoms subside within 24-48 hours when the drug is reinstated at the original dose.

      since you were complaining of low energy in 2016 this could have also been a side effect of being on sertraline for about 10years. ssris are known to "calm" down and from my experience this can lead to low levels of energy when taken long term. the treatment with wellbutrin was maybe well intended as it is known to increase energy levels due to norepinephrin and dopaminergic activity yet i'm not sure this was the right choice as the cause of your low energy did not seem to have been explored very thoroughly by your doctor. or am i wrong? did he also test the thyroid hormones? (TSH, T4, T3)?

      unfortunately many people start with these kinds of medications for a reason but then when the issue is resolved they don't come off and this can and will in many cases cause in the long term more harm than good. of course i don't know your exact story but this is just what i've experienced.

      to conclude i think your symptoms are related to the cessation of sertraline and they may very well subside when you reinstate the sertraline.

      what i think is odd is the dose of 25mg for wellbutrin you mention as the normal therapeutic dose is about 150 to 300mg and i was not even aware that they exist in 25mg doses.

      if i were you i would discuss the possibility of withdrawal symptoms and the lack of energy potentially caused by long term ssri use with your doctor and maybe plan to come off all the drugs.

      i don't know what kind of a doctor yours is (GP or psychiatrist or else) but it might also be good to discuss it with someone new as they are unbiased.

      kind regards,

      d

    • gretchen35232
      gretchen35232 Dr.D

      Posted

      I'm sorry not 25 mg it is 300 mg of Wellbutrin. I really appreciate your insight it is very helpful. I tend to take a little longer to bounce back then most people do. I think my body is a more sensitive to medication than most are. But you have been very helpful thank you.

  • carmela45627
    carmela45627 gretchen35232

    Posted

    So sorry for your losses and trouble that you have been going through. You may want to research the med on line to see what the side effects are and how long they last. It’s bad enough your not feeling well let alone side effects from medication. To lose weight you may want to walk when you are up to it. But you may want to get the meds straightened out first when you feel better. Best of luck
  • carmela45627
    carmela45627 gretchen35232

    Posted

    You may want to go on line and research the meds that you are on. How long has it been? I was put on a med that made me violently ill. Vomiting, waking up in a state of mania, constant nausea I went off of it and called the dr and then I researched it. I am on my old meds now.

    If you are not feeling well from the meds I would keep calling the dr back and ask to be on 1 antidepressant and a different one from what you are taking keep in touch

  • gretchen35232
    gretchen35232

    Posted

    After taking with my husband we have decided to that I need to get off the medication and see how things go. I talked to Dr and he told me to stop the Prozac right now and continue with the 300 mg dose of Wellbutrin. Next week he wants me to lower the Wellbutrin to 150 mg. I hope that since I didn't take the Prozac for very long that I won't get any more withdrawal symptoms. I was hoping by now that the Sertraline would be out of my system but I am still having nausea and the brain zaps. I have also been having some crazy dreams and not sleeping well. I can't wait for all of this to be over with. I would love to make trough the day without having withdrawal affects. Wish me luck over the next few days.

    • Dr.D
      Dr.D gretchen35232

      Posted

      gretchen,

      i wouldn't recommend to make too many changes in a short period as this can get difficult to handle.

      since you were on 300mg wellbutrin prior to these symptoms (nausea, brain zaps)  it seems safe to say they have nothing to do with that so i would advise to keep that up for the moment.

      since you started the prozac after coming off of sertraline your symptoms may come from either the introduction of prozac or the withdrawal from sertraline. as you have taken the prozac for only a short while it is to expect this will not lead to severe discontinuation symptoms. but if your symptoms come from the sertraline withdrawal then they will likely not go away once you're off prozac. in this case you can either wait it out (it can take a long time, weeks to month) or you can reinstate sertraline at a dose where the symptoms disappear and then taper off gradually from sertraline to reduce discontinuation symptoms.

      as of my experience i believe your symptoms come from the abrupt change from sertraline to prozac and they will go away when you reinstate sertraline. you can easily test that in that you take the sertraline again and see if the symptoms disappear. if you're in sertraline withdrawal they will usually subside within 48 hours. although i have to add a warning here. if you take the sertraline again you should definitely not take the prozac as these two drugs can have an added effect and lead to serotonin syndrom which can become a life threatening situation. so maybe you want to wait a few days until the concentration of prozac has decreased before you make the withdrawal test. but it will be worth it as you then will know whether you were in withdrawal and can then act upon that information.

      kind regards,

      d

       

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