# anyone take Sertraline?



## Alys (Oct 29, 2009)

If you do or have, how does/did it work for you? Also, how quickly did it start to have an effect? And for people who have OCD as well, did you experience a significant lessening of your syptoms?


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## Vini Vidi Vici (Jul 4, 2009)

it started to work for me after about a month, and it did reduce my OCD symptoms as well. It didnt completely take away all the OCD, but it definetly helped alot with it. it helped alot with depression also....but i didnt like the apathy feeling it gave me...i was tired alot, and didnt feel like doing alot of stuff....but when i drank some caffeine that feeling went away. its a nice med, not perfect, but it helped me.


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## arth67 (Aug 6, 2009)

generally called zoloft, its a prozac type that helps some but not others, you will have to take it for 2 to 6 weeks to see if it will help you


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## mark555666 (May 1, 2008)

The only positive effects that SSRI's give me are:


Less OCD (but it's subtle) OCD is just another form of anxiety and more powerful anxiolytics are probably more effective. (hi klonopin). On the other hand I mainly heard that OCD is mainly a serotonin problem.
Premature ejaculation (which doesn't bother me at all)
They help with sleep (not SSRNI'S obviously - norepinephrine keeps ya awake) People should take them at night to avoid most side effects.
Takes a month to work ( a bit hard to say actually)

Zoloft and Prozac are probably the only ones that I want to try someday but it has unique psychiatric effects, from what I've read from the experts here on this forum. 5htc blablal lol


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## jim_morrison (Aug 17, 2008)

Freesix88 said:


> They help with sleep (not SSRNI'S obviously - norepinephrine keeps ya awake) People should take them at night to avoid most side effects.
> Takes a month to work ( a bit hard to say actually)


SSRI's cause insomnia in some, I'd be more inclined to take an SSRI in the morning personally as they make me wired. Serotonin is actually part of the brains major wake system, which is why serotonin antagonists can help with sleep.


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## mark555666 (May 1, 2008)

Hmm think you're right, partly.
For some people serotonin is activating but when you increase serotonin you also increase melatonin :doh which is used for sleep. I always notice people are more happy when the winter ends.

Just read this:

http://pages.prodigy.net/unohu/topics_sero.htm#SerotoninMela

*Serotonin and Melatonin*
"Melatonin is manufactured from serotonin. When *melatonin levels increase, serotonin levels usually decrease*, since more serotonin is converted to melatonin. On the other hand, *exposure to light lowers melatonin levels* and increases serotonin levels. Consequently, serotonin levels are lower, while melatonin levels are higher, in the winter as compared to the spring and summer, especially in people with SAD. (Page 143)"


Book: Somer, Elizabeth, M.A., R.D. Food & Mood. Henry Holt and Company, LLC, 1999.


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## Forza Italia (Oct 30, 2009)

> serotonin is activating but when you increase serotonin you also increase melatonin


Don't you mean decrease melatonin ?

If you would induce melatonin in your body with pills, i would guess it would put your right to sleep and you wont be aware of the lowered serotonin levels. When you're awake, you just pop your ssri pills


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## Canadian4Life (Sep 27, 2010)

Have been on clonazepam for a year now. It helps somewhat with anxiety but makes me less sociable. Started zoloft last week and so far I can see a big difference..hope this continues. Took 3 others ssri's (celexa,paxil,effexor) and they made me feel weird (not myself). On zoloft I feel myself 100% well not 100% because I have ALOT less social anxiety. So it is helping me. Everyone will react different to meds and they say benzos are the only things that are effective but they don't help in the long run. Benzos give me that "I dont care" feeling..might be good to some but it made me a lazy, dull person. Zoloft does dull me somewhat but it dampens down my emotions so I have more control. So tried 4 ssri's and only zoloft was effective and tolerable as well. I don't get insomnia from it like the rest..it's actually calming to me which is much needed.


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## bufster (Nov 23, 2011)

*sertraline?*

Hi, i have been taking sertraline since last thursday and have found that i am getting more panic attacks, depression, dizziness, tiredness, aching and stiffness of muscles is this normal? few people have said this is normal untill a couple of weeks but i very scared


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## Cletis (Oct 10, 2011)

I've been taking Zoloft for years and it's been great. Very few side effects. Calms me down a lot which I *really* needed. I had to take it about 6 weeks to get the full benefit from it. At first it gave me insomnia, now it makes me sleep like a baby so I take it about an hour before bed. I have anxiety not OCD so I can't say how it works on OCD but it works very well on anxiety and very, very well on depression---knocked my depression out completely!

Side effects in first few weeks for me:

* Dry mouth
* Jitters
* Hot tingly sensations on the skin
* No sex drive
* Stomach upset

Side effects now:

* Delayed orgasm


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## Cletis (Oct 10, 2011)

bufster said:


> Hi, i have been taking sertraline since last thursday and have found that i am getting more panic attacks, depression, dizziness, tiredness, aching and stiffness of muscles is this normal? few people have said this is normal untill a couple of weeks but i very scared


Perfectly normal. Should disappear after a few weeks. Try taking a benzo like Xanax to counteract these side effects. :idea


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## nito (Nov 7, 2008)

I am taking them. Started for days ago, and tried 12.5 mg, and 25 mg respectively. Is this even a therapeutic dose? Anyways, at first i had problems sleeping because i took it at night but it's fine now. Nausea in the morning is slightly bothering but it goes away quick. My jaw is more tense as well. Personality wise, im more mellow and flat. Not sure if i should continue or not, it doesn't help me study harder, although i have felt slight reduction in anxiety.


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## moke64916 (May 31, 2011)

Alys said:


> If you do or have, how does/did it work for you? Also, how quickly did it start to have an effect? And for people who have OCD as well, did you experience a significant lessening of your syptoms?


Your doctor is smart. Zoloft is a great medication for OCD. I took it for 10years. It helps a lot. The rest is coping skills.. It helps the symptoms but doesn't treat the underlying cause.


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## curtis12121 (Feb 4, 2012)

It worked well for my OCD which started when I was 9 years old. It was horrible and eventually led to bad depression. As for my mood.....I grew into an emotionless zombie with no mood changes. I do not blame the meds totally but I am now trying to get off of it. I have been on it for 15 years. While I feel I did need something at that time I do not feel that I need to take it for life. I lost a relationship due to this stuff as it adversely affected my libido, energy levels, motivation etc. I hope that the rampant, raging OCD i once had will not return. It was absolutley debilitating and screwed up my educational pursuits and social life. 
As for social anxiety. It did help a bit. I was a completely shy introvert that avoided social setting and started to panic when in a group. I cannot say that these types of drugs are harmful or bad.....my natural state.....the one that put me in a mental hospital with slashed wrists was bad enough! Anyways, I hope that I do not need this stuff long term and that I can do without......


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## Nesty (Apr 5, 2012)

My first post..

I have been suffering depression & anxiety for years - started back in the mid 1980's - now suffering my 3rd visit to somewhere between a rock and a hard place.

First time I didnt know what was happening - I still blame Docs for giving me a 14 day prescription for Benzos, then stopped taking them - then started crawling the wall. Anyway long time ago. 2nd time 5-6 years ago, but all this time I have never felt "normal". Was put on Citalopram 20mg - and stayed on it - which is now what I would call a maintenence dose. So no wonder around January this year I went into another deep depression & Social Anxiety

The doc upped the Citalopram but didnt touch it - so slowly tapered over to Sertraline (50mg to start) then just under 5 weeks ago onto 100mg

I am just beginning to feel a tad better - I can function but still very anxious all the time, head tight, hardly sleeping. I have tried most natural things that dont clash with the SSRI (like cant take Nytol or Kalms due to the Valerian content), and have tried Rescue Remedy but doesnt scratch the surface. I go through a bedtime routine of light snack, hot milk & honey, shower and listen to relaxation I got from Linden Method (thats another story - I dont think again that anything like that is any use for chronic sufferers? ) but sleep is hard to achieve enough sleep to refresh me.

I am sure I am getting better and read comments that say that expect 4-6 weeks to start showing signs - and 6 - 8 weeks to reach full therapeutic levels. If that is the case then I feel I am just about on track.

The remaining problems are lack of sleep, feeling tired and drowsy day time (tried napping cant go to sleep!) and occasional headaches started a week ago.

What I want to ask others is do these symptoms of tiredness and headaches go away? when ? when will I sleep ??!!

When will I feel "normal" ??


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## barry1685 (May 25, 2011)

Vini Vidi Vici said:


> it started to work for me after about a month, and it did reduce my OCD symptoms as well. It didnt completely take away all the OCD, but it definetly helped alot with it. it helped alot with depression also....but i didnt like the apathy feeling it gave me...i was tired alot, and didnt feel like doing alot of stuff....but when i drank some caffeine that feeling went away. its a nice med, not perfect, but it helped me.


Ditto to exactly what you said. Zoloft kills a good portion of my OCD and has reduced a chunk of anxiety but I now suffer from really bad apathy. I just don't enjoy things like I used to, I also feel extremely lazy.


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## Cletis (Oct 10, 2011)

Whooooops! Didn't notice I had already posted here. Hee hee.


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## Inshallah (May 11, 2011)

Cletis said:


> Whooooops! Didn't notice I had already posted here. Hee hee.


Act before you think is my mantra as well. Let's start a club together


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## mut (Jul 9, 2010)

it gave me too many side effects .. i had to stop it and getting off it wasn't an easy ride for me.. but this doesn't mean they won't work for you.. you just have to find the right meds that work with you


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## molly354 (May 12, 2015)

bufster said:


> Hi, i have been taking sertraline since last thursday and have found that i am getting more panic attacks, depression, dizziness, tiredness, aching and stiffness of muscles is this normal? few people have said this is normal untill a couple of weeks but i very scared


I was like that for the first couple of weeks hang on if you can it gets better


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