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Zoloft withdrawal and side effects, any opinions?

Posted , 4 users are following.

Tinkerbell95
Tinkerbell95

In about April my primary Doctor put me on 5-10mg of buspar for my anxiety. I went to the dentist in May and was told I needed to have my wisdom teeth taken out. Which surgery was May 10th. A week before surgery, I stopped taking it due to them not telling me I could still take it. Anyways all went fine and I noticed the first week of recovery I was scared and very anxious. I could eat something and be afraid I was gonna get an infection of dry socket. I knew I was in for something. Towards the end of May I had my mental breakdown. Was taken to the emergency room twice. Aden no appointment for my closest phsych Doctor. They put me on Ativan and Zoloft. I felt perfect. I was back to my normal self again. I was able to do things without fearing for my life and being so anxious all the time. 4 weeks in to taking both, my doctor told me I should start weaning myself off due to its nature of being very addicting. WHY IS HE WANTING MY HAPPINESS TO STOP?! And so I did because he had put it into my head that the long term effects aren't good and it scared me but one thing he didn't do was tell HOW to wean. So I figured I would do it the way I think it's suppoed to be done. I was on 25mg of Zoloft and .5mg twice daily of Ativan. I kept taking the Zoloft and tried taking my Ativan once a day in the middle of the day around noonish that way the ativan Wil hold me for the rest of the day until the next day. Everything went fine when trying to wait until the middle so I figured maybe I should wait until before supper to take it to

Help me sleep. Oh no. I had the worst and weirdest feeling. My head and muscles started getting tight. I was panicking and my anxiety was through the roof. So I took the Ativan thinking hey maybe it's just my body trying to tell me this ain't the right way to taper. I felt worse. So I gave it until the next day and I still felt miserable. I called my doctor and told him and he said to stop taking the Zoloft because that's probably what it is. Stop taking the Ativan completely just in case it's that and I'm going to prescribe you 5 mg of Lexapro. I take the Lexapro one time and my body hates me. So I called BACK UP and they told me to stop taking it and switch back to the Zoloft. Everything started working itself back into place. I finally at stopped withdrawing from the Ativan about a week after being back on Zoloft. Being on just the Zoloft I felt so uneven. Dizziness my anxiety wasn't getting better its only gotten worse. So last week, I called an they told me to come in today. Although, over the weekend the side effects gotten worse so yesterday I stopped taking it. I do have to say I do feel much better off the Zoloft than on. And I was on 12.5 mg when I stopped taking it. I go tomorrow back to the doctor so they can see about putting me back on Ativan. And I'm wondering if it's a good idea to go back on the Ativan even though I felt so good.

0 likes, 10 replies

10 Replies

  • Bucket
    Bucket Tinkerbell95

    Posted

    Certainly not an e pert. They can't find anything I can take but I felt like Ativan was just a bandaid with nothing following but nightmare of withdrawal. Said this should be only shortterm usage. I guess they do the best they can to help with our problems but feel like they don't have a plan long term when giving these meds. Haven't helped u a bit I know

    • Tinkerbell95
      Tinkerbell95 Bucket

      Posted

      I was told it should be short term usage as well. I do have to agree with you though, it is a hellacious drug to withdraw from. Although, my doctor told me I wouldn't have any withdrawal symptoms due to it being such a low dose and not taking it longer than 4 weeks.

  • tess33005
    tess33005 Tinkerbell95

    Posted

    Hi there, and I'm sorry you're going through a bad time.

    Please don't go back on ativan - it is highly addictive. Your doctor is right.

    If you're feeling better without the zoloft and ativan, that's very good. Some people react badly to zoloft and lexapro and many other meds.

    Sounds like you're on the right track. let us know how things are going for you.

    Love Tess x

    • Tinkerbell95
      Tinkerbell95 tess33005

      Posted

      I'm not feeling all better but it's not like it was. I'm experiencing muscle tightness in my neck and back And still very nervous. I just wish I can find one medicine that actually works without having to worry about side effects, or it stop working at some point. I used to be very carefree about my health and it seems like that's all I can think of.

    • Misssy2
      Misssy2 Tinkerbell95

      Posted

      Ask if you can try Wellbutrin.

      I was on an SSRI drug forever (Citalopram) and Ativan so far for 15 years...

      The Wellbutrin FOR ME...really works...I feel less anxiety....and don't take the Ativan now during the day...its worth shot.

      I want the same thing as you....1 pill for all.

    • Tinkerbell95
      Tinkerbell95 Misssy2

      Posted

      This may sound stupid... What is Wellbutrin? I've heard of it before but I've never been told what it was..

    • Misssy2
      Misssy2 Tinkerbell95

      Posted

      its another antidepressent, here I just copied this from google

      Wellbutrin (bupropion) is an antidepressant medication used to treat major depressive disorder and seasonal affective disorder.

      Wellbutrin may also be used for purposes not listed in this medication guide.

  • Psyched_Out_Kim
    Psyched_Out_Kim Tinkerbell95

    Posted

    I don't understand why the Zoloft would have been stopped at 4 weeks when it's not even fully in your system at that point. You were just beginning to get the benefits of it starting to work, and it was stopped. If you were given the proper time on it, anxiety would have lessened drastically, which would leave little to no need for Ativan, except for breakthrough anxiety attacks.

    Zoloft, like many other antidepressants, can cause an increase in anxiety in the beginning stages, but it's temporary. After the 4-6 weeks (sometimes longer) that it takes for Zoloft to work, that temporary increased anxiety goes away, and takes with it a lot of your other anxiety.

    To me it sounds like you had a panic attack, and the doctor blamed it on Zoloft, instead of explaining that this can happen in the beginning. He then got you afraid of long-term effects to convince you to not take them. If you were feeling better, but had a couple rough days, I don't see why the med was discontinued. Personally, I would find a psychiatrist to help with this situation, because it's not the expertise of the primary doctor.

    • Tinkerbell95
      Tinkerbell95 Psyched_Out_Kim

      Posted

      I'm not for sure why he said to either but after he said that I took matters into my own hands and continued it. But the dizziness lack of coordination was too much for me to handle. I was a bed body. Today was the first day in a month I've been outside / out of the house for more than 10 minutes. I have so many questions than need answering.

  • Tinkerbell95
    Tinkerbell95

    Posted

    One thing I do have to ask, is tight neck/back muscles withdrawal symptoms to the Zoloft?

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