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Sertraline

Posted , 6 users are following.

Charlotte5548
Charlotte5548

I've been taking sertraline 50mg since early December and its giving me

difficulty sleeping. I get a lot of headaches and stomach aches though I

can't tell if it's just from stress in general or the drug. I was taking prozac

fluoxotine (not sure how to spell it) but had really bad side effects; vivid

dreams, insomnia, paranoia. I take the liquid form because I have an

irrational fear if swallowing pills, not sure if that effects how quickly it

works - part of what frustrated me with the prozac was how I didn't feel

any different/happier. Does anyone have any advice on dealing with side

effects and the panic about thinking it will never kick in and help you feel

better? (btw it's supposed to be treating depression and anxiety)

0 likes, 18 replies

18 Replies

  • michelle71710
    michelle71710 Charlotte5548

    Posted

    Hi Charlotte, sorry you are not feeling good. I'm currently on sertaline. Been on it for 36days now and upped my dose to 100mg 5days ago. Have you seen your doctor? Maybe you need to up your dose? Xx

    • Charlotte5548
      Charlotte5548 michelle71710

      Posted

      I saw my psychiatrist a couple of weeks ago and he said I should

      continue in the same dose because when I was on prozac my

      side effects got worse when it was increased. I stopped taking

      it when it got really bad and my doctors were a bit annoyed when

      they found out but I was just glad to have been done with it.

  • caron79449
    caron79449 Charlotte5548

    Posted

    I had severe side effects on Prozac, horrible drug. Sertraline is not much better tbh. I'm weaning myself off it as the side effects are too horrific for me. 

    • MJAlps
      MJAlps caron79449

      Posted

      Caron, what side effects are you experiencing? As someone who Sertraline finaly worked for, please realize that there are two types of side effects, mental and physical. BOTH are normal. Physical side effects  (jittery, restlessness, insomnia) are due to the drug not being at full dosage. Mental side effects, (continuting insomnia, increasing anxiety, etc) are more rare. 
    • MJAlps
      MJAlps caron79449

      Posted

      Yea caron please read this article. Most failures with Sertraline are actually user errors ( quitting too early). Because sertaline is a safe for life, the downside of that is that it's slow acting and needs to be taken for a full 24 hrs. Regard me. 

  • weenett
    weenett Charlotte5548

    Posted

    Charolette think thats part of anxiety when u feel this u always think i'll never feel like me again i'll never get better but its just the anxiety

  • gemma71246
    gemma71246 Charlotte5548

    Posted

    Hi Charlotte.

    I am a 43 single mother of an 8 year old and I am going through the menopause whoopie! I have been taking Sertraline about a year now. I was in a hell of a mess a year ago due to extreme low self worth , finances , anxiety and menopause etc. I couldnt face dealing with anything and dread to think where I was heading. The doctor started me on 50 mg sertraline and I stuck this for a month. Honestly it made me so much worse and like you could not sleep or function. I decided rather than just come off and try somthing else or  let the doctor just prescribe a higher dose, I would lower my dose. So I break a tablet in half and take just 25mg every morning (to minimise sleep disturbance). I have been so much better and was able to face my troubles. I think Doctors make the mistake of upping the dose when perhaps they should lower it. It is up to you because it may be different for you . We are all different, all i can do is tell you my experience. I also know that when I do decide to come off it I only have to deal with withdrawel from a low dose. Good luck . P.s I still have my worries but I deal with them . Also counsilling would be good but it is not really available as it should be. take care x

    • Charlotte5548
      Charlotte5548 gemma71246

      Posted

      I've been having a bit of trouble sleeping and wonder if it's due to the medication. Was that a similar problem tou had? Did it improve side effects and mood when you lowered your dose? I'm considering asking about increasing my dose from the 50mg I've been on the past 10 weeks.

  • michelle71710
    michelle71710 Charlotte5548

    Posted

    Hi Charlotte, how you getting on with the sertaline? Any improvement with the side effects?xxx
    • Charlotte5548
      Charlotte5548 michelle71710

      Posted

      Still having trouble sleeping and bad stomach aches, though I can't tell if that's stress related or from the drug. Being on prozac just taking it was very difficult. I worry if I increase the dose it will be worse - more severe side effects or something. xxxx

    • Charlotte5548
      Charlotte5548 weenett

      Posted

      Started just before Christmas with 25g for two weeks then went up to 50g which I'm still on. In my last meeting with my psychiatrist he said to stay on 50g. My next appointment is in March. xx

    • michelle71710
      michelle71710 Charlotte5548

      Posted

      Hi Charlotte. What dose you on now? I've upped my dose 3 times now and haven't had the bad side effects I experienced at the beginning so you should be fine. How long you been on the meds for now? Xxx

    • Charlotte5548
      Charlotte5548 michelle71710

      Posted

      I'm finding it increasingly difficult to sleep. Is that a common side effect? I have an appointment with my regular counsellor on Wednesday about my mood and anxiety, maybe I'll bring up increasing the dose. I have an appointment with psychiatrist in March to review how it's working xx

    • michelle71710
      michelle71710 Charlotte5548

      Posted

      Hi Charlotte, how you getting on? Lack of sleep can be a side effect of the meds or anxiety. When you see your doctor ask then about it maybe they could give you something? Or you could try kalms? I've never tried it but it's supposed to help and you can take it with sertaline xx

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