sammie: Looking to come off Sertraline..

[sammie]

Hey Everyone,

 

I've been lurking around here for a while, so I thought I'd start here and see where this takes me.

 

I've been on Sertraline for 6 years. Initially I started in 2017 as I was dealing with an extremely stressful time in my life, resulting in anxiety and depression. I experienced a slew of side effects for around 3 months while acclimatising to my final dose. I spent no more than around 3 weeks per dose. Started at 50 and with 25mg increments, ending up on 125mg which I'm on currently.
 

While I did feel fairly content on them, for the last year I intuitively feel like they're no longer working. My depression is pretty intense these days. I can still function, and work, but with some difficulty. I did attempt to go up to 150mg about a year ago, and after a month I felt just like I was getting worse with new side effects I hadn't experienced before, so I took that as a sign that I should revert back to the 125mg.

What I do know about how I react to Sertraline is that I'm very sensitive to the slightest adjustment. I can't take another brand of Sertraline as my side effects spike. If I miss a dose, I'm in hell the next day. (However, at the start I could miss one and be fine).

I knew there were side effects for when you were getting on the medication, but I didn't realise that you can potentially get long term affects that only kick in after some time. I've noticed my libido for the last 8 months has been pretty much zero. I've had my Testosterone checked and it came back fine. I also have much less enthusiasm, motivation and a general lack of drive. I didn't have this experience for the first 4 years or so.

 

I can only assume they're not working anymore, as I can't explain what I feel otherwise. I'm just terrified of tapering off them as the memories are still fresh from what the side effects were like when I started. But deep down, I know I need to get off them. I feel like I only continue to take them everyday to avoid the side effects.

 

And what has been stopping me from weaning before now, is that I always thought that if you do start to come off your AD's, that you should have certain parts of your life sorted out, in order to compensate for how you could potentially feel. i,e, having a supportive family/partner/a solid job/good social connections etc. I feel like I don't have all of that where I want them to be, but perhaps I'm over thinking that aspect of it.

 

Thank you,
 

Edited June 21, 2023 by manymoretodays
name to topic title

[Altostrata]

Welcome, @sammie

 

It sounds like you have accidentally skipped doses? When was the last time. you did this? What was the last drug change you made?

[sammie]

Hey,

 

No, I don't think I have. Perhaps I didn't write it properly in the signature. Is that what you were referring to?

 

I started at 50mg and tapered up to 125mg over the span of about 5 months, but that 5 years ago.

 

Or are you referring to when I mentioned I went up to 150, and then back to 125? That was just upping 25mg, and then lowering it again.

 

I'm not sure I'm completely clear on what you're referencing :)

[Altostrata]

On 6/20/2023 at 5:57 PM, sammie said:

If I miss a dose, I'm in hell the next day. (However, at the start I could miss one and be fine).