webby33 Posted October 31, 2023 Share Posted October 31, 2023 Hello everyone. Im thankful for this forum, it has really helped me understand what im doing through. Here's a short-ish decription of what im experiencing: Im hyper sensitive to noise. Normal and even low sounds do a 'thud' in my ear. After Zoloft, i hear more acutely and at the same time am more bothered by sounds. My own voice is overwhelming, its like it resonates in my head. When people around me speak normally, it sounds so loud. Im like Varys in that Game of Thrones scene where Joffrey yells 'I am the King'. Thank god my family is understanding and they whisper around me. Going outside is a challenge, especially in places with car noise. When i get home, its like my senses are overloaded and i need at least 30min of total quiet in order to relax. I constantly hear the thuds of neighbour's footsteps in other apartments and generally alot more neightbour noise - something ive never noticed before. Other effects i feel: some painful and tingly fingers for the last month, anxiety Ater skipping days for two years(my own uninformed way of slowly cutting dose), ive been doing a regular dose every day for the last 3 months. I feel like its time to start taper, especially since the noise sensitivity has been getting worse with time. I need some advice. Is is safe to start tapering at this point or should i hold more? Has anyone had similar sound sensitivity stuff? Even knowing others have had it helps. Has anyone had their effects get worse with time, rather than with dose? Jun. 2021: Started Zoloft 25mg/ every day Aug 2021: Zoloft 25mg/every 2 days Jan 2022: Zoloft 25mg/every 3 days Mar-Jul 2023: Reduced 25mg to 16mg every 3 days (reduced by 10%/month) 24 Jul. 2023: Zoloft 9mg/every day. 7Nov 2023-29 May 2024 - Tapered from 9mg to 5.4mg (got nasty WD) 3-5 Jul. 2024 - 25mg Magnesium Glycinate/day (crashed and WD become worse, possible overdose with other drugs) Sups: Melatonin 3mg; Aboflex 15ml/day [Glucosamine, Chondroitin, MSM, Hyaluronic Acid, Mangan and Vit C] Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus getofflex Posted November 1, 2023 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted November 1, 2023 Hello, and welcome to SA. We are a volunteer-run community of people who have been or are getting off of psychiatric drugs. I'm glad that you have switched to taking your Zoloft each day instead of skipping days. This is much easier on your nervous system. Q: Are you currently having any other symptoms besides the noise sensitivity? If so, what are they? How is your sleep, eating, and basic daily functioning? Here is some important information about how these drugs actually work. This explains why we get symptoms from going off of these medications, and why it's so important to taper slowly and carefully, and be very cautious about changing our doses: How Psychiatric Drugs Remodel Your Brain Tapering is best done extremely slowly, and we generally taper by 10% of the current dose no more than once every 4 weeks, so that the reduction becomes exponentially smaller. Why Taper by 10% of my Dosage Tips for Tapering Zoloft 18 hours ago, webby33 said: Is is safe to start tapering at this point or should i hold more? We suggest that you have at least a couple of weeks of stability before resuming a taper. These links should help. Stability WD Normal This link will help you see that you are not alone in your sound sensitivity. Increased Sensitivity to Light, Sound, etc. 18 hours ago, webby33 said: Has anyone had their effects get worse with time, rather than with dose? Not sure what you mean by this. It could be that almost 2 years of skipping doses has caused your nervous system to become more destabilized over time. It's a good think you are now taking the drug every day. You may want to hold on your current dose for several more months before tapering again. Please do not private message me. Only tag me for urgent questions about tapering and reinstating - thank you. ***Please note this is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a doctor who understands psych meds and how to withdraw from them, if you can find one. Lexapro Started Apr 15 2010 - 10 mg; started taper August 2017, recent taper info: Apr 2 '20 0.18 mg; Jul 16 0.17 mg, Aug 23 0.16 mg, Oct 7 0.15 mg, Nov 8 - 0.14, Jan 16 '21 - 0.13, Feb 7 - 0.12, Feb 22 - 0.11, Mar 26 - 0.10, May 21 - 0.09, June 15 - 0.08 Aug 16 - 0.07, Oct 6 - 0.06, Nov 21 0.05, Dec. 17 0.04, Jan 14 '22 0.03, Feb 19 0.02, Apr 18 0.01, May 15 0.005, Jul 8, 0.00. Psych Drug Free as of July 8, 2022!! Woohoo!!! other meds: Levothyroxine 75 mg magnesium in small amounts at 4 AM, before bed suppl AM: fish oil, flax oil, vit C, vit E, multivitamin, zinc suppl 8 PM: magnesium 350 mg, extended release vitamin C, melatonin 2 mg Paxil 2002 - 2010, switched to Lexapro 2010 Trazodone 50 mg. 2002 - 2019, fast tapered in 2019 Xanax 0.5 mg as needed 2002 - 2019, up to 3x weekly Link to comment
webby33 Posted September 13 Author Share Posted September 13 Hello and TY for your answer. ive been incognito for a long time, but ive always been reading here. Here's a quick update on my story: I know now what withdrawal is. I started tapering on 7th Nov and did 5 steps in 6 months, from 100% to 60% or 9mg to 5.4mg in my estimation. I dont know where i went wrong in those 6 months of tapering, maybe i did it too fast or wasn't cutting them right. I crashed several times during April and May where i didn't sleep decent for days. I finally read all the signs and it hit me that im experiencing pretty nasty withdrawal. I returned to the previous dose and been staying at it since June. (60% of 9mg). What really screwed me was when i took Magnesium Glycinate 25mg at the start of July. I took it for 3 days and after that my WD became worse. Turns out other drugs i was taking already had Magnesium so i think i overdosed? . I was taking Talcid 3/day for stomach reflux, Collagen Complex, which apparently had 55mg Magnsium in it already but i had forgotten. Sensitivity to sound, to movement, anxiety, dizziness, electric zaps, i have it all now. Collagen Complex also includes: Calcium 140 mg Magnesium 55 mg Vitamin C 55 mg Hyaluronic Acid 5mg Zinc 4 mg Vitamin D3 2 mcg And Here's what the label says about Talcid, an antacid: "In case of severely impaired kidney function, it is possible that taking medications containing magnesium and aluminum, such as. Talcid, lead to an increased magnesium content in the blood (hypermagnesemia)" I have a couple of questions and any feedback is appreciated. Q1: Supplements Im taking are Melatonin 3mg and Aboflex for joints (Glucosamine Sulphate, Chondroitin Sulphate, MSM, Hyaluronic Acid, Mangan and Vit C - been taking it for years before Zoloft). I dont think i can stop them atm, but since Magnesium really inflamed my symptoms im unsure: Are they safe? Is it ok to take them during WD? Has anyone reported bad reactions to any of these? Q2: Im thinking to get a scale to be precise with my 5.4mg Zoloft, but seems i cant post reply in the Scales topic. Ill ask it here: Is any of these good? For example this one? Would i be able to measure 5.4mg with it? Or where can i order a reliable scale for my dose that ships to EU. Q3: Is my only course of action now to hold at 5.4mg dose in order for the withdrawal to wane? All ive done for the majority of the past 3 years(bar 3.5 months) is either skipping days or tapiering, so i imagine its been constant destibilization. Ty to anyone who reads this. Jun. 2021: Started Zoloft 25mg/ every day Aug 2021: Zoloft 25mg/every 2 days Jan 2022: Zoloft 25mg/every 3 days Mar-Jul 2023: Reduced 25mg to 16mg every 3 days (reduced by 10%/month) 24 Jul. 2023: Zoloft 9mg/every day. 7Nov 2023-29 May 2024 - Tapered from 9mg to 5.4mg (got nasty WD) 3-5 Jul. 2024 - 25mg Magnesium Glycinate/day (crashed and WD become worse, possible overdose with other drugs) Sups: Melatonin 3mg; Aboflex 15ml/day [Glucosamine, Chondroitin, MSM, Hyaluronic Acid, Mangan and Vit C] Link to comment
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