1. Community
  2. Mental health
  3. Sertraline

Yo yo

Posted , 5 users are following.

laura36585
laura36585

Still early days for me, just over two weeks on 50mg and I am feeling up and down like a yo-yo.   Some days I feel brighter and happy to go long walks with the dogs and some days I can’t get off the sofa.   Yesterday was a sofa day, I felt anxious and sick to my stomach, didn’t eat all day and had a headache, I’m sure my mind was feeding the whole thing yesterday and today I am reflecting and wondering why on earth I can’t see at the time, I am actually doing this to myself.   Perhaps it’s just a case of starting up the meds, some days will be good and some will be bad, it’s hard to accept, if I have a good day I want every day to be good and if I have a bad day, I’m convinced every day will be bad, it’s such a confusing illness and I am always searching for answers but never really getting anywhere.   I really hate the days when all I can do is withdraw into myself to cope, they are scary days, thinking that I was always feel like this and just have to put up with it is so overwhelming.   I want so much to believe that one day my anxiety won’t dictate my life but it’s really hard to believe when you have been plagued by it for years and years.   

0 likes, 14 replies

14 Replies

  • paddy2801
    paddy2801 laura36585

    Posted

    I guess we are what we are. Im the same as you up and down but far too glazed for my liking.

    The high sex drive has gone pretty much so I doubt I will stay on this medication.

    Im on 2x50mg a day.

    Sometimes I have energy sometimes I dont, I dont today. 

    It also takes so long to make a decision on this med, it leaves with the cant be bothered attitude its going to wreck my business.

    Im going to give it one more week.

    It is comforting to know lots of people have the same diagnosis with this med but I dont think I want to wear this crash helmet much longer its too weird.

    Everyone has to deal with lows and anxiety and there are millions stuck at home that cant/wont go out. It is a personal made problem borne out of life experience and the only way out is through your own clear mind and teaching yourself/ourselves to rebrand yourself somehow.

    When/if I give up I will post my journey back into the land of the living.

    • laura36585
      laura36585 paddy2801

      Posted

      3 weeks is still really early days paddy, but I know it’s a life time when you feel so crap.  If I were you I would try to stick it a bit longer, at 3 weeks you are still experiencing side effects of starting this drug and it does take time to settle down.   When I took it before the side effects did settle down, I think we just need to be patient.   
    • laura36585
      laura36585 paddy2801

      Posted

      Paddy you should speak to your gp if the sexual side effects are bothering you, I have read that they can add meds to counteract this so it’s not something you have to put up with.  
  • brenda53218
    brenda53218 laura36585

    Posted

    I felt just like you and Paddy, I am on 50 and in my 13th week. I was like you in the beginning, not knowing how each day was going to be. As of today I do have more good days than bad. I will still have the occasional anxiety but not like I was having. It seems to kick in when a stressful situation occurs, but I do seem to handle it better. So what I'm trying to say is that it seems to be working but might have to up it alittle. Giving the 50 until June to see if i have to up it.

    • laura36585
      laura36585 brenda53218

      Posted

      Hi Brenda.   It sounds like sertraline is working for you and quite well, that’s great news I hope it just gets better and better, I love to hear someone who is having a good experience and feeling better, it gives us all hope.  
  • Blondey
    Blondey laura36585

    Posted

    Hi Laura,

    You put it in a nut shell. I felt ok today later in the evening started to  feel sick, Axiours and very down, I think it’s the meds as well as the illness itself.

    Some  days are full of happiness and joy, the next day full of sorrow and wanting to be alone.

    I don’t know where I am half the time.

    However, we shell keep plodding on.

    God bless you Laura , remember where in this together.🙏

    • laura36585
      laura36585 Blondey

      Posted

      The nausea is so annoying, that’s a real part of how my anxiety is, I always feel it in my stomach and I hate it.  Today has been better, walked the dogs tonight for a good few miles and felt so much better for it, I am reading a book on mindfulness and trying to take on the suggestions from it so I will see how that goes.   At least today wasn’t a sofa day so that’s good smile I hope your anxiety has settled down this evening blondey.   Why don’t you get a mindfulness book and try it with me smile 
  • paddy2801
    paddy2801 laura36585

    Posted

    I have today stopped so we shall see how I get on. For me I cant handle the sexual in-appetite.

    I know I haven't probably taken it for long enough and I have felt miserable and woolly in the head. It has made me think differently. After 5 years of 4x cocodamol a day to deal with the lows I want to actually see what I am like `clean` as it were.

    Folk writing on here are curious as to other folks experiences and it is a consistent pattern, the only thing is we are only talking with people who are experiencing discomfort in some form. I wonder out of the millions that take this med if a lot just put up with the symptoms or actually have benefits.  

    • laura36585
      laura36585 paddy2801

      Posted

      Absolutely agree paddy, people share the bad experiences and the folk who have good experiences are too busy getting on with life and don’t need the support of a forum so we will never really know how many remissions come from sertraline.   I have actually noticed that the days I read more on here and use this forum are the days I tend to feel more anxiety, I do think ruminating over others peoples negative experiences actually creates a cycle and you end up off on the anxiety merry go round yourself.   I wish you the best of luck coming off your meds, I work in heathcare and see patients who have been taking co codomol like yourself for many years and that itself is a challenge so good on you for taking it by the balls and sorting it out.   
  • paddy2801
    paddy2801 laura36585

    Posted

    Thanks Laura.

    I did beat the coco though it was tough and I expect the setra will be similar and of course I dont know if I will succeed.

    But I want to send a positive message out there that the mind is only in our own control and you are correct when you say that dwelling on the forums can really only twist your own mind into negative thinking.

    Actually, paradoxically , the forum has given me the confidence to say hey hold on pull yourself together man.

    When I did some CBT the mentor always felt I had the mental capacity to be strong. The mood chart I did was very enlightening in that the more I filled in your mood chart the less of the highs and lows I got.

    As an aquarian and typically with a very creative mind it is easy to follow the wrong passage in thought processes. That is where my battle lies.

    Alcohol plays a huge part in the mind degeneration and should never be mixed with either coco or sentra or any other similar meds in my opinion. I learned the hard way.

    • laura36585
      laura36585 paddy2801

      Posted

      Paddy I previously took sertraline for years and have now re started so I feel I could offer some benefit of experience on withdrawal.  Do it slowly if you have been on it a while.  You will feel the upset stomach and anxiety when you stop.  Lots of headaches and feeling aches etc but it will pass.   Drink lots of water and multi vitamin, eat well and nourish yourself properly while you are stopping.  I took b12 as it is supposed to be good for the nervous system.  I am also having cbt at the moment but only had one session so haven’t really gotten much from that yet but hopefully in the coming weeks that will change.   I also had a lot of dizziness when I stopped, I found sunglasses helped me loads when I was out and about, don’t know why that is but it definitely made me feel less spacey and off balance.   
  • paddy2801
    paddy2801 laura36585

    Posted

    Thanks Laura but I have only been on the med three weeks and already I dont like it. Especially the sexual incapacity. Just not prepared to run the risk of no return over a long period. Life is miserable enough without that lol.

    Been off a day got slight ringing in the ears and a musty head but I feel ok, very determined. I never thought I could kick the coco but using the setra as a switch did help. I am not convinced about the strength of the setra anyways.

    I dont know you Laura but your return to setra sounds an emotional crutch as much as anything but I guess that is what it is all about.

Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.