Moiz987: Hello new here and think I've messed up!

[moiz987]

Hi there, just signed up.

 

DD has anxiety and selective mutism, she is on also on the autism spectrum (for which she has been on nemechek protocol since May - and for her it was working, her social anxiety was reduced considerably but she still did not speak to others).  Thought medication would help her with her selective mutism so started her on 25mg Sertraline on 20 Aug 22, moved onto 50mg after ten days, and then upped to 100mg on 3 Nov 22

 

Things were going well, in that she was stable, but no difference to her selective mutism.

 

I then lowered her meds on 09 Dec 22 to 50mg and further to 25mg on 20 Jan 23, and she has been all over the place, extremely irritable and lots of mood swings.  I now realise this was wrong and too sudden and fast.

 

My question is should we just let her stabilise on 25mg or should i increase to 50mg or higher even and then start all over again.  Any advice would be appreciated as she is really struggling and we do not have Dr appointment till another 3 weeks.  Daughter is 14 and does not share how she is feeling, when asked says she is fine, but we have lost the ability to reason with her and she just gets extremely angry over little things.

 

Thank you for your help

[Gridley]

Welcome to SA, Moiz987.

 

To give members the best information, we ask them to summarize their medication history in a signature -- drugs, doses, dates, and reduction. Just the basic information in your post is fine.   A list format is best.

 

Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature.

 

As you've seen, the reductions were much too fast and large.  Likely the best action at this point would be to reinstate to 50mg and hold there.  See how she does on 50.  It takes about a week for an update/reinstatement to take effect.  I wouldn't jump to 100 at this point. It could be too much and you don't want to overwhelm her system.   Monitor how she's doing.  For your background understanding, here's a link on reinstatement.

 

About reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms. -- at least the first page of the topic

 

In terms of starting over again to get her off the drugs (which is our focus here) once she's stabilized, we recommend tapering by no more than 10% of current dose every four weeks.  You mentioned a doctor's appointment in 3 weeks.  Please be aware that doctors have very little (if any) understanding of the effects of withdrawal from these drugs and almost invariably taper their patients much too rapidly.  

 

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

This link is specifically about tapering Sertraline.

 

Tips for tapering off sertraline (Zoloft)

 

We don't recommend a lot of supplements on SA, as many members report being sensitive to them due to our over-reactive nervous systems, but two supplements that we do recommend are magnesium (glycinate is a good form) and omega 3 (fish oil). Many people find these to be calming to the nervous system. 

 

Magnesium, nature's calcium channel blocker 

 

Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) 

 

Add in one at a time and at a low dose in case you do experience problems.

 

This is your introduction topic -- the place for you to ask questions, record symptoms, share your progress, and connect with other members of the SA community.  I hope you’ll find the information in the SA forums helpful for your situation.  I'm sorry that you are in the position that you need the information, but I am glad that you found us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[moiz987]

Thank you Gridley so much will definitely be having a read of everything you've shared. I've upped her back to 50mg and will keep you posted. She already is already on a high dose of fish oil has been since before the SSRI, but will incorporate the magnesium into the mix also.  Fingers crossed this works as currently we have a monster living with us.

[Gridley]

35 minutes ago, moiz987 said:

will keep you posted

Please do. 

[CeruleanSea]

Hi @moiz987!

 

I am here for myself but I also have a kid with selective mutism.  IT sounds like you're dealing with a kid going through puberty/teen years on top of the SM challenge.   She has good reason to have anxiety, no?

 

I would try to slowly taper. If she gets moody here and there, it is truly to be expected for this age group.   I am guessing that if she has sensory sensitivity, the jump from 50 to 25 may  have been fast for her.

 

Good luck to you and your daughter in this!

 

 

 

[moiz987]

Hi @CeruleanSeaYep we are, navigating this is a minefield.  SM truly sucks, hadn't even heard of it before and never recognised any of her anxiety just thought she had low confidence issues.  We will get there hopefully.  I'm not in the states but Ive seen and read lots of great info about SM over there, have you tried any of the SM camps they hold?  Exposure therapy has helped dd but i found once i stop her progress stalls, although Nemechek protocol helped her greatly in reducing the anxiety, just being a parent we want to see fast results but it takes time to heal.  Thanks, good luck to you too!