Sertraline Withdrawal .. Does it go away?

Oh I forgot Benadril helps with diziness. Life saver tip 

Hi Donna, 

Thank you for putting your experience up on here for encouragement.  I think you have an awesome attitude, which is crucial!  

I have to caution you, though, that your journey isn't likely over yet.  God willing that it is, but month 3 can really blow up on people, with what doctors call "relapse," with anxiety, insomnia and depression at a level never experienced before.  For those who make it through that period without reinstating, the next horrible wave can hit at 7 or 8 months out. Of course, most doctors don't acknowledge protracted withdrawal.

As you mentioned, you came off way too fast, and yes, it is advised to do a 10% taper.  Actually, the recommendation is to do 10% OF YOUR PREVIOUS DOSE, since tapering by 10% of the original dose leads to cuts that are way too big as far as the brain is concerned once you get down to the low end.  For example, if you started at 10 mg and cut by 1 mg/mo, by the end, going from 2 mg to 1 mg is actually a 50% cut, way too destabilizing!  

The other reason is that even at the minimum effective dose of most SSRIs/SNRIs, the receptors are still ocupied at 80%.  No matter how high you go, you'll never get higher than about 92% occupancy.  However, when you drop below the MED, the receptor occupany starts to drop off precipitously, such that small dosage changes cause large numbers of receptors to free up, causing much destabilizing of the nervous system.  Probably more technical than anyone wants to know!  Moral of the story, the lower your dosage, the greater the impact of small dosage changes.

I think you are a very strong person, Donna, and knowing that you still might hit waves may allow you to sail on through.  I hope so!  Keep us posted!

Also keep in mind that the farther out from jumping off you are, the less likely reinstatement will help if you really run afoul.  It may actually be better to reinstate a very small amount now and do an ultra slow taper on out.  I've seen enough people who CTd find themselves suffering badly but when they tried to reinstate it didn't work and caused even more trouble.  It is very hard to backpedal once the CNS has become so destablized.  It is nothing to triffle with.

I'm talking 10 mg or maybe even 5.  You could do as you said with the juice, get nice and comfy for a month or so and then do the 10% of the previous dose on out.  I know, most folks hate the idea of reinstating and feel they never want to put that in their bodies again, but this is about harm reduction.

As one who did have the wheels come off the bus in protracted withdrawal, I'm just hoping to spare you some suffering :-)  Whatever the case, you might want to join Surviving Antidepressants as a survivor :-)

Hi Betsy

you are well informed, I was taking 50 mg sertraline for two years for anxiety ( I resisted increasing). Shortly After I was diagnosed with dystonia - anxiety is a symptom. I was put on propranolol for the tremor and clonazepam as a muscle relaxant, they have reduced my dystonic sypmptoms to a manageable level.

So I reavaluated my sit last summer and decided since the latter two drugs are for life I would come off the sert. My GP advised I half the tab for 2 weeks then stop ! I had horrific nightmares on half so went back onto the 50. A couple of months later I went down to 3/4 and a couple of months after that down to a half, so 25 mg. I stayed on that dose because I became anxious again. I am keen to get off them and now have stabilised again am going to try a quarter but prob need a pill cutter.

TBH my thinking is I don't need to be on them given the other drugs, I'm hoping will take care of the anxiety, I've made life changes, work etc but my biggest fear is that cancer is on the list of side effects of sert ( as if we're not anxious enough) !!!!

i will update my progress

thanks for all the posts, very informative

Hi Tezes, I wouldn't be surprised if sert contributed to your dystonia, since these meds are all actually toxic and have far reaching implications with the nervous system.  Tardive dyskinesia being one.

At any rate, I fear you are in the danger zone with your taper, and that pill cutting will not be good enough to guarantee your success.  40 mg is the minimum effective dose, and all that really means is that at that level about 80% of the serotonin receptors are blocked.  As you cut the dosage, the receptors begin to free up precipitously, causing destabilization that leads to the withdrawal symptoms.  Small cuts cause big swings.  So, that is why at half of 50 you had the nightmares.  You did a more gradual taper of 25% of the original dose two times to get down to 25 mg, but that still caused rebound anxiety. This is a withdrawal effect, not a relapse.  At 25 mg, your receptors are occupied at about 75%!  If you were to cut your 25 mg in half, you would jump down to about 35%!  Can you see how destabilizing that would be?  I will send you a PM with a link to the paper I am referencing; it is very interesting and has graphs of this information.

So, that is why the tapering authorities such as those on the Surviving Antidepressant forum recommend a 10% taper of the PREVIOUS DOSE per month.  10% off of 25 mg would bring you down to 22.5 mg.  This still correlates to an occupancy of 70%, much easier for your nervous system to adapt to without much trouble.  You still might have withdrawal symptoms but hopefully at a tolerable level.

I believe Zoloft comes as a liquid, which would be the easier way to do such cuts, since it can be measured with a syringe.  You can also make your own liquid.  The SA site has all the information you need about how to do this.  I think it would be wise to join the forum.  I'll include the link here for a topic that includes links; see the one for how to taper using a 10% reduction method.

https://patient.info/forums/discuss/depression-resources-298570

Good luck; you can do this!

And don't forget to look into online CBT self-help, meditation, and other non-drug methods for dealing with anxiety.  Magnesium supplements can be useful, as well!

Hi Betsy,

when I was put on the sert it was for anxiety, I was a mess after having two years of severe stressful events, crying everyday etc.  however I already had what I now know to be dystonic tremor. The sert helped me get through all the medical investigations that followed, brain MRI 's etc. 

The downside was the numbness and lack of emotion and the initial side effects, I also developed tinnitus which I hope will subside when I finally get off sert. I doubt very much whether my GP will prescribe liquid sert since he thinks I should just stop taking them !

i agree going down to 12.5 will be a quarter of the original tab but still 50% of what I am on now. I will have a look at how to make my own liquid but it sounds complicated to me.

 

It's not, really, and it is worth making the effort to do, since withdrawal can ramp up to Perfect Storm proportions and really ruin lives.  It's just not worth taking the chance!

What you will need is a way to crush your pill, and a measuring device that can measure milliliters, and a couple of syringes, probably 10 and 5 ml.  Ask your chemist or pharmacy (are you in the UK?).   What size tabs do you have?

 

Yes am in the UK my sert tablets are small white torpedo shaped ones scored in the middle, they are marketed as Lustral.

I'll start by asking my GP to prescribe some liquid as I have to go for a medication review next week. Not sure he'll agree but I'll give it a go and let you know

many thanks

Apparently Zoloft isn't very soluble, so weighing may be your better bet.  There is a liquid suspension product  that can be purchased that would keep your powder in suspension, but otherwise you'd have to shake and measure before the powder settled. I use the Gemini20 jeweler's scale that weighs milligrams, available from Amazon for about $22 US.  Since your tablets actually weigh a good bit more than, say, 25 mg, you would be able to weigh chunks to get your dosages, or weigh the powder and then mix in juice.  Since the powder can still settle, I swish the glass with water and drink that as well to be sure any pill residue is consumed.  It's a pain, I know, but you will be in total control.  As for your doctor, just ask for the right size tablets to work with and otherwise don't bother him with details about slow tapering!

 

Dr. Doesn't believe all these symptoms people are having from withdrawal ...he thinks it's in our heads.....I told him to google withdrawal and he said all this stuff is garbage people are having....but he probably never tried it

Please try and get off this dreadful medication....I took sertraline for three years and never had anxiety.....now one year without medicine I have no headaches dizziness is gone and feel my life was waisted while on this horrible med...dr.s need to try it.....then they can identify.....if it's not made by Mother Nature don't put it in your body.....and apparently you are supposed to sign a consent form allowing Drs to prescribe this poison....I wasn't even a depressed person....only I was sad my mom passed....I am so angry

Do you have any permanent damage from it?

Did you have pssd?

Thanks,

Alex, pssd sufferer

I think that mentally I have suffered and it has been a nightmare not having control of your emotions and anxiety even though you never had it to begin with.....I never ever felt adrenaline rushes or confusion when you feel panic ever before....I asked a therapapist if there is such a thing as chemically induced anxiety and panic and she said definitely. 

Thanks Alison,

Do you have pssd?

Skender