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When do you know it's time to come off?

Posted , 7 users are following.

kikidee76
kikidee76

Hi everyone,

I'm on 100mg of sertraline having gradually built up. It's now been 9 mths and things are going pretty well. The only noticeable side effect that has remained really is its effects on sex.

I don't want to be on medication, so I'm wondering now if I should think about tapering off. Thing is tho, I also kind of think maybe some of us just need a little help with our moods. However, my mum has just received some worrying health news and I didn't cry - this concerns me, what if I'm going thru life without really being me, without really feeling.

And then there's the good old inner critic telling me I would go back to a life of anxiety without sertraline and that I won't be able to cope on my own.

Interested to hear people's views / experiences of life after sertraline.

Thanks for reading.

1 like, 21 replies

21 Replies

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  • tanya42521
    tanya42521 kikidee76

    Posted

    I tried to come off it after 9 months Hun . Same as you 100mg . Just started to take one every other day ... Then didn't take them for a week or so. I felt awful my anxiety was through the roof I was getting brain zaps. My vision was slow . Sertraline is my life now . I don't think I could suffer 4-6 weeks worth of side affects . But everyone is different .
  • diane42874
    diane42874 kikidee76

    Posted

    I'm on 100mg sertaline increasing from 50mg which I had been on since feb. i have been on this medication on and off for 14 years usually by now I,m feeling better. Although I've suffered with depression before I've never suffered with anxiety like I am now on this higher doze. Don't actually know if sertaline is the cause.  

    Anyhow when I've been on 50mg before and have been ready to stop with the g.p's help I've decreased the pills to every other day for a while. But, you should really see what your g.p thinks before you do anything.

  • david49878
    david49878 kikidee76

    Posted

    Diane's post caught my attention especially since I have been a long-time sufferer of depression and moreso than I used to be with anxiety. Could it be I "graduated" from depression to anxiety once I stayed/am staying on sertraline a long while? Who friggin' knows? I can tell by all the people on here who are addressing serious concerns, but having different problems that, yes, the medicine's effects seem to vary with the person. That's about all I do believe for sure. I also think that if I got a second option from 10 different doctors on whether I should be taking meds like sertraline, probably at least half if them would say no. And the way the world -- and doctor's and drug companies for sure -- worship money rather than truly caring for their patients, none of it surprises me, just further gets me down.
    • diane42874
      diane42874 david49878

      Posted

      I am only trying to come to terms with the changes in my mental health issues. I have never suffered as bad as I have this year. Although my g,p is good I always feel as though when I go and see him I have to pass a test as too my symptons. It's like he doesn't want to put ideas in my head, hence i then don't know if my symptons are usual. I think most people on this site are looking for answers and for people to tell them that yes it will be okay!
  • david49878
    david49878 kikidee76

    Posted

    Don't know about that, Diane, but it seems logical that they would if they have just started taking this, or any similar, med. I go with the flow, but am not a fan if having to take this crap forever, and would like to hear physician tell the straight-up truth about any better alternatives that exist. I am not convinced they do that with most regular people, and in my mind, everyone deserves equal respect if they have a serious medical condition....makes me sick it is about monetary costs, even life-or-death meds for some. What kind if morality is that? Well, enough I guess...I have written volumes about inequality in this world, and it only gets worse, so maybe I should just tune it all out.
    • diane42874
      diane42874 david49878

      Posted

      Hi, thanks for your second message. I was feeling anxious yesterday as I had a doctors appointment.  Went in usual  ' how are you feeling'. after a discussion about the last two weeks asked me how long did I want to be signed off work for. He's given me another 2 weeks and I am hopeful that I can go back to work after that. I did ask him wether the sertaline caused the anxiety as I've never been on a 100mg before and it definatly seems to be bad at the moment and I got a rather vague answer so I'm none the wiser.
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