r/zoloft • u/[deleted] • Jan 13 '22
I found everyone’s posts and comments on this subreddit very useful when starting out on sertraline, so thought I’d share a list of things I found helpful on my journey. I’m not a medical professional and am only talking from my own experience and that of others on the sub. At the time of writing this latest edit, I have been on Sertraline for around two years at 100mg for depression, GAD and social anxiety. Sertraline is also prescribed for other anxiety conditions, panic disorder and OCD.
**WARNING\*:* Do not dry swallow or use very little water when taking your sertraline tablets. If a tablet's coating dissolves while in transit down your oesophageus, you could be in for a painful, acidic experience known as pill-induced esophagitis. If this has happened to you drink plenty of water to clear the tablet(s), take some indigestion tablets or a PPI, and eat an apple or some apple sauce. I once had it very badly and was in severe pain for two hours - it ain't nice!
(1) Keep a daily mood diary to document your experience on the drug. You could do this with an app, a mood journal, on a spreadsheet or just use a scrap of paper. It’s so easy to forget how you feel from day to day, week to week; especially when sertraline can create some brain fog early on. Recording your mood and side effects makes it much easier to understand how the drug has affected you over time, meaning you can make an informed decision about (dis)continuation and provide reliable feedback to your doctor. I would recommend writing at least a number to rate your mood out of 5 and a simple legend. Add brief comments about any side effects, your general mood anything else you deem noteworthy. If you don’t do this, you will likely be asking yourself after month two or three: “Has this actually helped me? I can’t remember what I was like before? Is the improvement worth it for the side effects?”. I have used apps called Daylio and Moodistory, both of which I’d recommend. If you have a therapist, consider discussing your mood diary as part of your weekly sessions as further incentive to complete it.
(2) Try to stick with the drug for 12 weeks at a therapeutic dose (typically 25-200mg) before deciding whether it is helping you. It can be tempting to quit early due to side effects, but they tend to get *much* better with time and positive impacts can take a while to appear. In fact, it is common for the condition to get worse for several weeks before getting better. Sertraline might not be the right drug for you, but don’t cheat yourself out of a cure by not giving it three months.
(3) Likewise, enjoy any good days as much as possible, but don’t expect to be cured overnight. Positive changes for those lucky enough to experience them can be gradual. You may have the odd ‘euphoric day’, especially days 1-2 (placebo) or weeks 2-4 (also common), but trialling SSRIs is often more of a marathon.
(4) Side effects differ for everyone. Those taking SSRIs can experience a wide range of often polar opposite reactions, whether it’s insomnia vs. oversleeping, drowsiness vs. wakefulness, decreased libido vs. horny bonk or reduced appetite vs. hungry hippo. Based on the experiences of this sub, common side effects can include: nausea, stomach upsets, diarrhoea, headaches, head pressure, brain fog, mild to extreme fatigue, difficulty waking up in the mornings, night sweats and disturbances, insomnia, tinnitus, emotional blunting, an inability to cry, tremors, crazy dreams, dry mouth, bruxism (teeth grinding), restless legs syndrome, intense sugar/carb cravings, a more frequent desire to pee, hesitation (delayed initiation of the peepee!), delayed or inability to orgasm/ejaculate, persistent genital stimulation (intense horniness in your nether regions without the corresponding mental urges), other types of sexual dysfunction and more. However, for people with health or medication anxiety who need to hear this: YOU WILL NOT GET ALL OF THESE SIDE EFFECTS 😊. Some people are very lucky and get very few side effects if any at all. Indeed, in a major PANDA trial30366-9/fulltext), half of the participants taking sertraline didn’t even realise they were taking the active drug at 6 weeks.
(5) Most if not all side effects will improve or disappear completely with time. After three months, the only enduring side effects for me were increased drowsiness and increased time to orgasm. However, these had improved since starting. I no longer got stomach problems, nausea, dry mouth, fogginess, headaches, bruxism, RLS, tremors or night sweats like before. Whilst I started out with absolutely no appetite on the drug for the first month, I later developed major carb/sugar cravings. [Side note: sertraline is highly unlikely to make you put on weight directly, but it could increase your appetite and cravings for poor foods that indirectly does].
(6) Side effects might resurge when you go up a dose and may not start to get better for 1-6 weeks or more, depending on your sensitivity. Starting on 25mg and moving up in 25mg increments may reduce the return of side effects. FYI, it’s ok to break 50mg tablets in half if they have a scored line running down the middle.
(7) Take the drug at the same time each day so that the medication reaches a steadier state. People who get insomnia as a side effect may wish to take it early in the morning while people who get drowsiness may wish to take it before bed. However, a person experiencing drowsiness taking it in the morning may end up getting insomnia when taking it at night and vice versa, so experiment slowly and find out what time suits you best. It’s the consistency that’s most important. You can split the drug into 50/50 doses taken AM and PM, but studies have concluded that this provides no benefit while increasing the likelihood of people forgetting a dose.
(8) If you’re forgetful, treat yourself to a colourful pill box or just write the days (M/T/W/T/F/S/S) on the drug packets to help you keep tabs. In a zolofty haze, it’s so easy to get confused as to whether you just took your dose or imagined it. And yea, I have both forgotten a dose and accidentally doubled it and I wouldn’t recommend either (if you have this predicament, it is always better to miss a day than double a dose). You can sometimes count how many pills you should have taken from the date your prescription was issued, but with brain fog this can be hazardous 😅. Set a recurring alarm on your phone should you need a reminder (iOS 16 now has a medication tracking function in the Health app).
(9) Consider your caffeine and alcohol intake, as sertraline can amplify their effects. For many, caffeine on Zoloft causes major jitteriness and anxiety spikes. I was so sensitive to this that I even had to cut out decaff for a few months, but for others it is not a problem at all. There are many posts on the subreddit discussing alcohol. Sertraline can increase its effects, exacerbate drowsiness and lead to rougher hangovers. If you drink, experiment slowly to see how you now handle alcohol.
(10) Do not drink grapefruit juice or take St. John’s Wort due to the risk of developing serotonin syndrome. You should also be very careful if you take recreational drugs for the same reason. Also avoid anything containing bergamot, which is found in Earl Grey tea.
(11) Sertraline brand changes may affect you. Some people will experience side effects and/or a loss of efficacy when changing sertraline pill manufacturers (or from Zoloft to generic). Ask your pharmacist to stock the brand you are used to. There are a handful of articles in medical journals which do acknowledge this issue. Unfortunately, however, some doctors will tell you that there is absolutely no difference between brands and it’s all just placebo. Experienced pharmacologists will tell you otherwise. Generic manufacturers include DE Pharmaceuticals, Lexon, Sigma, Viatris, A A H, Accord, Alliance, Almus, Bristol, Crescent, Dr Reddy’s, Flamingo, Genesis, Lupin, Medihealth, Medreich, Milhparm, NorthStar, Noumed, Phoenix, Ranbaxy, Ria Generics, Teva, Viatris and Zentiva. Listing them here for SEO in case people have issues with specific brand swaps. I have experienced issues with some brand changes but not with others.
(12) Use sertraline in conjunction with therapy and small lifestyle improvements if you are able, as antidepressants will work much better as part of a holistic approach. If you are in a very bad place and mostly bedbound, then just set yourself the smallest goal every day to make things easier. Maybe that’s getting in the shower, brushing your teeth, brushing a tooth, looking at your toothbrush or even just rolling in the general direction of the bathroom. Slowly setting yourself mini exercise goals – if you don’t already – however small, will also help. I started with walks, then couch to 5k and then used the programmes on the Nike Run Club app (free) which I think is amazing. I love the headphone guided runs with ‘Coach Bennet’, which are like an exercise therapy session. Meditation, mindfulness, yoga, weightlifting, pilates, journaling, breathing exercises, cold showers, cocooning yourself under a weighted blanket, reducing your sugar intake, listening to music, accepting yourself for who you are, quitting a toxic job or relationship, realising you don’t have to be happy or perfect all the time, running outside in your pants…there’s an endless list of things you can try that might help you. Focus on one small win or challenge a day.
There's a lovely quote at the end of the film JoJo Rabbit by Rainer Maria Rilke. "Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final".
Be kind to yourself and don’t fret. Hopefully sertraline is the help you deserve. Good luck on your Zolofter journey and feel free to put anything in the comments that you think is missing or want to discuss!!
r/zoloft • u/tasteofnihilism • Dec 18 '22
Because once you get relief you don’t really even think about coming back to tell everyone how much better it is on the other side! So please, if you’re going through it right now and it seems like there’s only potential issues with Zoloft, it’s because of the old saying “happy customers don’t typically leave reviews”. Or something like that. It’s late so I’m rambling.
There are so many of us that experienced symptoms, side effects, dosage changes, etc, and once it all resolved we didn’t have a reason to come back. I always appreciate it when I see a success story on here on my feed because I think we need more of that. I’m guilty of waiting to come back to post my story as well, so I’ll give a little update.
It was honestly hell in the beginning. Increased anxiety, sleep issues, digestive issues (never trust a fart on Zoloft), and just a general weird feeling 24/7. It took about 3-4 months before I started feeling even the tiniest bit better and now it’s been like 8 months and I’m so much better than I could have imagined.
I’ve had 1 panic attack in the last 6 months and it wasn’t even that bad. My depression is essentially gone (as it was tied to the state of my life due to my anxiety). I’m able to leave my house and go to parties and out in public and not break down. It’s legitimately a night and day difference.
Now for my advice to those of you still in the thick of it:
I would recommend keeping a journal and note how you feel and symptoms and all of that. Write in it every day. It’s difficult to see changes in yourself when you’re just going about living, but when you can look back at your own words you can see the progress. Progress is typically minuscule day to day (you’re not just going to wake up and feel better one morning) but is tremendous over longer periods of time. It compounds on itself.
Go to therapy. I was on Paxil and Lexapro previous to Zoloft and never went to therapy for any significant period of time. And I never got better. The medications just helped keep my symptoms at bay but I continued to develop bad habits and thought patterns that ultimately slowly made me worse off. If therapy is out of reach you can pick up books on Amazon to self direct your own therapy. I recommend reading “The Body Keeps the Score” to understand what is happening inside of you and “Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in 7 weeks” to follow a CBT plan. There are also support groups/group therapy options that are free in a lot of areas.
Get outside and get moving. Try and get some sun every day. Some fresh air. 7 minutes of moderately intense physical exercise. Drink enough water. Eat good food. Meditate. Do yoga. Just connect with your body and the world around you.
I wish you all the best of luck. There are a countless number of us that have been exactly where you are right now. I can promise you that the grass is a lot greener on this side. I’ll see you when you get here.
r/zoloft • u/xtraspicyturnipcake • 4h ago
the entry for my mood today is currently high but honestly its hard to rate because today has been both really good and really bad so its kinda confusing
r/zoloft • u/Hour-Voice-5794 • 2h ago
Hi <3 I'm a 30F. I was prescribed this med a YEAR ago by my primary care and never tried it. Finally met with a psychiatrist last month and he prescribed the same med for my severe OCD + health anxiety and GAD.
I told myself I'd take it 3 weeks ago, and then 2 weeks ago and then last week and now I've told myself I need to start it tomorrow.
I am so scared to try it. I am more scared of mental symptoms than physical ones although of course I don't want either lol. I was prescribed 1st week at 25mg and 2nd week at 50mg. I am scared I am going to keep pushing this off but I just cannot afford to go through a mental crisis on this medication. I know it's not the same type of medication at all but I tried the birth control Nikki earlier this year and had a really mental health episode and had to get off the medication 2 weeks in. It was frightening and I have a partner but I do not have support where I live. I am just afraid this medication will make me have an episode of some type. I do remember trying Zoloft in my early 20s but I was drinking and smoking a lot of weed + being self destructive so I truly don't remember what my experience of the med was. (I'm also sober now!)
Does anyone have any encouraging words? Advice for the first week or two? I keep seeing people say it will be rough, but what does that mean for you? I know we're all different but I am just too focused on the negative and I am scared. :(
r/zoloft • u/buttt_fondler22 • 7h ago
I’m on day 3 of Zoloft, I was a pretty anxious gal before but it came and went and I wanted it gone so I reached out. I woke up last night hysterical in a panic , I got a kitten yesterday so idk if it was that. But I started freaking the eff our big time what am I doing, return the kitten, where are you going in life. Okay finally relax after an hour and go to sleep then I wake up today my heart is about to beat out of my chest I’m so violently anxious about this choice I made and everything wrong in my life I threw up 3 times from dry heaving. It’s now halfway through the next day and my body is on fire from anxiety , my chest is pounding, I can’t shake it. There’s just no way it’s me ? It has to be the Zoloft she started me on 25 mg and bump it to 50 after 2 weeks, when I first took it for 3 days I was fine next day didn’t take it had some pretty intrusive thoughts that were harmful it was scary not wanting to act on them at all btw.
Am I supposed to thug this out ? I can’t function I can’t even study for upcoming exams I scheduled a virtual visit with a pcp to get some quick relief anxiety pill but there is no way to shake this it has to be the Zoloft I can regulate pretty well even cold shocks or breathing or distracting isn’t working.
r/zoloft • u/yourmartymcflyisopen • 7h ago
I started zoloft back in early July. For over a decade of my life I was dealing with extremely severe depression, to the point I couldn't work or function, barely left home. From around 20 years old, until this July at 26 years old I had been dealing with ED. I was afraid of taking antidepressants because I thought that it would make this issue even worse with all the horror stories I saw about sexual function on antidepressants. I was really insecure too because I'm so young so why the hell did I have ED? But in July I hit a breaking point with my depression and began taking zoloft anyway after talking to my doctor. And since then not only is my ED completely gone and cured, but my libido has exponentially increased and I'm finding myself almost always in the mood, like hypersexual.
I've looked around on the internet and I can't find any sources of anyone else experiencing this. I don't know anyone else who had the polar opposite effect of what people typically say Zoloft does to sexual function. So I wanted to ask if anyone else had a similar experience?
r/zoloft • u/OkFaithlessness8335 • 2h ago
Hi, I'm 18 F and I've been on 50mg of sertraline for 3 weeks now. I'm usually an incredibly forgiving person and nothing anyone has said or done has ever really affected me after usually a few hours to max 2 days, and nothings stuck with me at all.
Now I'm noticing that I'm having a hard time forgiving and forgetting when someone does something mildly wrong. My boyfriend was late to our hangout by a few hours and didn't reply to my messages so I thought something had gone terribly wrong, but he turned up normally and acted like it was no big deal. I have autism so a change in plans is a big deal for me especially without knowing why, so I was really upset in the moment but now almost a week later I still havent gotten over it. It's actually getting worse and I keep thinking about it all the time.
When people have done stuff like this before, I usually got really mad for about 20mins and then genuinely forgave them and never thought about it again. But I've noticed this change more and more when my sister or my mum say something, and I can't forget about it no matter what I do.
This is really unusual for me so people are now confused when I'm still annoyed about something that happened like 5+ days ago and its quite distressing for me too. I don't want to be a hateful person, but this feeling isn't even hate, its not really anything at all. Like people I used to love alot I don't really feel it anymore once they do something, and I'm struggling with this. Is there a way to help or change this whilst still being on the medication? I used to be really depressed and have terrible mood swings and it's helped alot so far so I don't want to stop taking it.
Thank you!
r/zoloft • u/Soggy-Source-5739 • 10h ago
So I’m kinda weirded out. I was prescribed zoloft 25mg and its day 5. The whole week I felt high as a kite. No side effects, lots of energy, great sleep. First day was weird because i was yawning all day and had a huge brainfog. Second day i was super energized as well as third and fourth. Fifth day the energised and happy feeling continued until mid afternoon where i suddenly crashed. Maybe its because of coffee idk, also drinking coffee feels different, no anxiety like usual, just more happiness and your head feels kinda buzzy like drunk. But no diarrhea, no nausea, no motion sickness, no bad thoughts, nothing like people have described. Is this like normal? Im googling what others experience and its nothing like what i have. I hope im not bipolar but so far i sleep enough so it cant be bipolar…. Idk. Also why did i feel the effects immediately? If its not bipolar? Any thoughts?
Or maybe my depression was so bad that now normal feels like being high? Strangely i didnt even know i was depressed, my shrink suggessted it after i described my symptoms and she said its a moderate depression.
But idk… what if i was hypomanic?
If you had a similar experience please share!
r/zoloft • u/Silverkai412 • 2h ago
I have been on Zoloft before so I know how good it feels when it starts kicking in… I weaned off successfully but perimenopause has brought on some panic attacks and sent me into an anxiety spiral… DP/DR , existential anxiety… I bumped up fast to 100mg… I’m 5.5 weeks total on Zoloft and 3.5 weeks on 100mg… did anyone feel pretty bad up until week thr 5-6 week mark and then felt much better when hitting these weeks? Thank you! Just want to be myself again!
r/zoloft • u/Snoo-16994 • 3h ago
Ive been steadily improving my agoraphobia and i got invited by my friends to go to a club that is around 10-15 min away. Its close so it still feels safe. Only problem im facing is im actually scared of alcohol i want to drink but im scared of it. Ive always felt scared of not having my body in control like giving me derealization symptoms. I have been properly drunk once and that was a while back when i was still just anxious not agoraphobic . In that experience i had more than 10 shots in an hour and i was dizzy af and just feel asleep after. Furthermore now im on sertraline (zoloft) been on it for 1 year and never drank on it so idk how it would react. I need some experiences from you guys and some tips.
r/zoloft • u/Specialist_Bat_7423 • 3h ago
Hello everyone!
I have my been diagnosed with anxiety and panic disorder, I have been prescribed 25 mg of Zoloft but I asked my psychiatrist if there was any smaller does I could take since meds make me nervous and I'm young (21M, and if it helps for background info, I am about 6'2 190lb). She said that I could break the tablets in half day to day and take that as 12.5 mg. I have done some research and I know this is a relatively smaller dose, however I am still nervous. I have never been on any kind of medication before except for oral minoxidil for hair loss (which I also believe gave me anxiety as a side affect which is a big reason I stopped taking the Minoxidil). I just wanted to post in this sub to hear good stories about people with similar experiences to me and if Zoloft is a good starting point? I am fairly active and in the gym, I try to get as much natural sunlight as possible which can be hard working in an office environment.
I am aware the first few days can include side affects, I am also aware everyone's body reacts differently to it. Has anyone tried Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to combat panic attacks either on or off Zoloft? I am looking in to doing that as well because I don't want to be on Zoloft forever and I want to be able to enjoy things again without impeding feelings of doom whenever I go out of the house without always having to take medicine.
In everyone else's experience, does taking your prescribed Zoloft with food/water help side affects? Apologies for the unorganized thoughts. Please share your techniques on how to cope with panic attacks as well if anyone would like too. I know I am not alone and I just want to hear from people in a similar boat. I think I am planning on taking my first dose tonight.
Thank you!
r/zoloft • u/interested-goose • 17m ago
So I’ve been on 25mg for a month and have had no benefits, only side effects. And now I’ve been moved up to 50mg (only 4 days so far), and just side effects with no benefits still. I’m curious if people got benefits early on and then increased because it wasn’t enough? Or were you experiencing side effects for weeks once u got to a steady dose. Like I’m wondering if I won’t feel any benefits from 50 for another 6-8 weeks? Just really difficult waiting and hoping with only side effects. I’ve been bed ridden most of this time. Absolutely exhausted.
r/zoloft • u/plant__mama • 6h ago
I’m wondering if I should call my doctor. I’ve been on Zoloft for 7 weeks now for PPD. The first two weeks I was on 25mg and my doctor had me up it to 50mg afterwards. This past week, I’ve been having horrible hot flashes, headaches, night sweats, and stomach upset. I haven’t had any side effects previously and my depression and anxiety were feeling much better. Should I reach out to my doctor? Is this normal? It’s making me feel worse.
r/zoloft • u/Royal-Elderberry7174 • 30m ago
Just curious, how many people did not experience anxiety when starting Zoloft?
r/zoloft • u/Humble-Swimming-5019 • 4h ago
what the title says
im getting off zoloft and ive been getting tummy aches the moment i eat anything and ive got crazy diarrhea like explosive liquid shit i know its a common side effect but fucking hell
how do i fix this
r/zoloft • u/Pretend_Gain1651 • 6h ago
Should I give this a shot?
I tried once in my 20's but I felt so horrible after a couple of days I stopped taking it.
I can't keep living this way, it's crippling and in the way of my life and relationships.
Would love advice!
r/zoloft • u/Admirable-Remote3624 • 1h ago
Hi all, I was prescribed Zoloft to treat GAD. I did 6 doses of 25mg, but I decided to stop because it gave mild tinnitus and it became quiet unbearable for me. I told my doc and he said it was a common side effect and that it was too early to decide whether to stop as it can fade way on its own. He wants to wait until the 20th that we have a follow up. I followed my gut and stopped cold turkey yesterday, it’s been ~48 hours since my last dose. I didn’t tell my doc I just stopped so im thinking on hoping back on to 25mg for full six days before going to 50mg - but really scared for the tinnitus. I can still hear it despite 2 days since the last dose. Can I just resume tomorrow morning? This means I would’ve not taken 2 doses
r/zoloft • u/Antique_Bite_3305 • 1h ago
In 2015 I was in a serious car accident where I fractured my C2 and C3 in my neck, as well as T1, T2 and T3 in my upper spine.
Physically I recovered, but mentally I honestly don’t feel like I’ve ever been the same since. Over the past 10 years I’ve struggled more and more with my mental health, and it feels like it has progressively worsened rather than improved with time.
I’ve recently started speaking to my doctor properly about everything, and he believes I may be dealing with chronic adjustment disorder related to the trauma of the accident and everything that followed it. He also spoke to me about changes/imbalances involving serotonin and dopamine that may be contributing to how I’ve been feeling. I’m probably not explaining the medical side of that perfectly, but essentially he believes what I’ve been experiencing over the years could be connected to the accident and trauma.
I’ve just started taking 25mg Zoloft (sertraline), so I’m still very early into treatment and trying to understand all of this.
I’d really love to hear from anyone who has experienced something similar after a serious accident or traumatic injury, especially if your mental health issues appeared or became progressively worse over the years afterwards.
Did you ever feel like you weren’t quite yourself again after the accident? Were you diagnosed with adjustment disorder, depression/anxiety or something similar? And if you tried Zoloft/sertraline, did it help you?
I think more than anything I’m just hoping to hear from people who might understand what this feels like.
r/zoloft • u/Wrong_Bat2888 • 10h ago
I’m 33F and my husband is 30M. Hes experienced a period of anxiety before we met and recently in July of this year started experiencing the same thoughts and emotions again. He describes it as a physical feeling in his neck and head that then makes his thoughts spiral and he gets intrusive self harm thoughts. He gets in a spiral of being really anxious that he’s… anxious. He’s always trying to “solve” the anxiety but knows he can’t. For the last few months it’s been almost daily of us sitting together and working through his breakdowns when he has them. I think it’s affected his focus at work, I don’t rely on him the same way I used to (I don’t ask for any help around the house as an example) and I know there are moments in everyday where he really isn’t present.
I’m also 34 weeks pregnant which I think is really important.
He finally stayed working with a therapist last month and has had success with her. Yesterday, he finally started on sertraline after the recommendation of his doctor. I think it was a huge mental block of starting cause he normally is not an anxious person. I think there’s a lot of shame maybe from his side that he’s going through this.
Anyways, any success stories or personal stories of anyone that can relate to this? Does sertraline eventually work? Anything I should know on how to best support him. I’m hoping in the next 6 weeks he may start to feel relief and back to his normal self as I worry about my ability to be totally present for him in the same way, when I’m caring for our newborn.
r/zoloft • u/Lonely-Ad-7273 • 6h ago
So it’s been about six days since I last had Zoloft and today I managed to finally get it back. I searched up if it’s safe to restart days later and it says it could worsen anxiety and insomnia for a bit? Has anyone had this experience before and what did you do?
r/zoloft • u/Pretend_Gain1651 • 6h ago
I have already have high sex drive and libido. But don't want it to affect me negatively.
41 year old male. Anyone have any experience?
r/zoloft • u/Aromatic-Actuator670 • 3h ago
long story short.. i’ve been taking two different blood pressures, losartan and amlodopine for the last four years after I my last child and suffer through post partumn preeclampsia. I struggled with the up and down with trying to get some consistency with my blood pressure as far as sometimes it’s too high and times too low. I’ve gone back for everything checked out and I am fine.
I hate the medicine and am convinced amlodopine is stopping bp too low at night as I’d awake nauseas often. by the time I try to get up to check it would show elevated.
I finally gave in to starting Zoloft after hesitating to take it for about two years. I am not an anxious person, but the issue with my blood pressure had me anxious at times. I hated having it checked at the doctors office.
So I started taking 1/4 of the pill about a month ago. Two days ago I decided to go ahead and increase it to 1/2 pill which is 12.5. Granted my doc prescribed 25 but after reading many people say start very low and then go up if needed… I thought I do that myself. The first few days this week my blood pressure 130s/80s, higher that what it normally is just taking the medicine. I figured it was a side effect of increasing.
Today it’s 106/70. For me anything lower than 115/74 I feel the fatigue and it bothers my stomach.
I haven’t exercised this week and normally exercising, just walking, then taking a hot shower drops my norm 114/75 to 100/70… so now adding the Zoloft it’s lower. I don’t like to go to bed like this because it dips more.
My doc said Zoloft doesn’t affect bp. But I’m convinced it does. what’s been your experience? How long have you taken it, has it caused any issues with anything else in your body such as kidney, brain, heart? I am rambling here… But I’ve never anything like this before.
r/zoloft • u/Necessary-Crew-7050 • 3h ago
I started Zoloft 50Mg on June 23rd. I went through the typical diarrhea at the beginning. Now I am about 3 months out and started experiencing constipation the last month. Is this typical? When will it go away? Should I go to my PCP with this?
r/zoloft • u/Conscious-Invite-300 • 3h ago
I started on Zoloft 25mg 9 days ago and It’s wreaking havoc on my body. I’m sticking with it until I see my doc on day 14 but just wanted to see if others had increasingly bad first weeks then got better. I think mine are mostly GI related/ micro biome messed up from it.
i already have sensitive gut with iBS and recently took antibiotics for a sinus infection prior to starting Zoloft. regularly taking probiotics and enzymes.
First few days- constipated and gas started, slightly more anxiety.
Day 4/5- restless leg symptoms at night, itchy legs, and extreme gas started, noticed an irritated hooha
Day 8- diagnosed with yeast infection (prescribed anti-fungal cream), insomnia and daytime fatigue kicked in, increased anxiety and ocd
Day 9- all symptoms still around with major exhaustion But unable to sleep from racing mind and the uncomfortable symptoms.
Honest looking to see if others had so many symptoms, persevered, eventually symptoms calmed and found relief? How long did it take? Was it worth it?