Beckaysa: Help, Cutting Off Sertraline and SS

[Beckaysa]

I want to know what's wrong. 

 

Hello, I started taking 50mg 

Sertraline/ 650mg magnesium citrate in July 2024, I started with 25mg for a week and then increased it to 50mg, all good. 

Everything was going well for a month and a half, some obsessive thoughts and sadness, the truth is I didn't feel very different but there was no anxiety either, I could handle the problems in a certain way, there was no desrealization. 

Sertraline was prescribed to me by an internist. I must add that I have been under a lot of pressure and stress at home. I started to feel a little desrealization and intrusive thoughts, but not too much at the beginning of September.

 

At the end of September I got sick, I'm asthmatic, so I had to take loratadine, cetirizine, salbutamol, a natural herbal syrup for the lungs. I started to feel strange, desrealization, despersonalization, horrible intrusive thoughts, I thought I was going crazy, after finishing treatment for asthma, I had to start taking pregabalin for my neck pain. 75mg. 

 

Everything got worse, days without sleep, manic states in which I was just on the phone checking the same thing over and over again. When I tried to sleep I would wake up suddenly and not knowing where I was or my heart and body would jump.

 

I went back to the doctor, my neck was quite stiff and they only thought it was my neck pain. I was prescribed:

 

Betahistine (three times a day). Thiocolchicocid/Ibuprofen (three times a day)

meloxicam (twice a day)

Pregabalin (Once)

And of course sertraline.

 

Better not, I started to feel worse, tremors, my body was jumping, I felt hot inside, cold feet, I couldn't sleep, legs without rest, tremors and more tremors, until I decided to look on the internet to find out what was happening to me and I read about the SS, I decided to stop taking everything since the ER doctors didn't believe me. 

 

Neither did the doctor who prescribed everything to me.

 

I stopped everything, including sertraline. I was starting to feel better (physically) for two days, but another dr recommended that I had to continue taking the sertraline, and I did, that day was hell and the next day my neck and throat were stiff and I couldn't swallow.

 

I had an appointment with another internist and she decided to give me fluids and hydrocortisone to remove what was left of the medication in me. I came home, everything kept twitching, especially in my face. I took some blood tests and for the first time my WBC were low 3900, my triglycerides and cholesterol were high, something that had never happened before. My blood pressure was high and my heart was going from fast to slow.

 

That day I decided to buy Cyproheptadine, cuz i read something about it, and I took 1mg, I managed to sleep and woke up relatively better, but quite irritable, and no tremmors, not twitching.

 

The next day I took another quart of cyproheptadine and went back to sleep but woke up with back pain and a feeling of not being able to breathe, then, i was fine, no tremors, not twitching at all but irritable. 

 

I spent the whole day with a lot of uncomfortable palpitations, feeling like my heart was going to come out of my throat, I really wanted to cry, cold feet, nausea, dizziness.

 

The only thing I took was a quarter of atorvastatin that they prescribe me for my triglycerides.

 

I'm afraid of not getting back to normal, I haven't wanted to take more sertraline. The doctor wants to switch to Fluoxetine until my appointment with the psychiatrist in December. I don't want to take antidepressants right now for fear of a bad reaction. I'm sure I suffered from SS, but the doctors don't help at all.

Add: I took hidroclorotiazide 12.5mg one night before the blood test, cuz My BP was high.  

 

Now my body is twitching a little and i feel my heart in my chest. 

[Jane318]

Greetings @Beckaysa and welcome to SA!  We are a community of volunteers providing peer support in the tapering of psychiatric medications and their associated withdrawal syndromes. 

 

From your post, it is difficult to discern your drug history, which is so important for us to know.  Please put the above information in a drug signature.   To create a signature, click the following link, fill in the box, and click save. Your Drug Signature. 

 

I am very sorry for all you are going through.  The symptoms you list are all consistent with AD withdrawal and/or hypersensitivity.  It seems possible that you are dealing with a combination of an initial adverse reaction to Sertraline; withdrawal from stopping Sertraline too quickly; and/or adverse effects from multiple drug interactions related to all the several prescriptions and OTC drugs you have since taken.    You can learn more about drug interactions and check for those you are taking here:  Drug Interaction Checker.  Be sure to bring any concerns to your doctor.

 

Your body needs to stabilize.  To stabilize, you can either refrain from taking any additional AD and wait out this uncomfortable period.  This will take time - perhaps months.  

 

Or, you may want to consider the switch to Fluoxetine as your doctor recommends.  This is called reinstating and it is the only known way to help alleviate withdrawal syndrome.  Some people here have taken this route (called the "prozac-bridge") in order to stabilize, and then completed a slow taper off that drug once they stabilized. Reinstating should be done at very low doses to start and very slowly increased over time if needed.  Rapid changes can lead to hypersensitivity and a phenomenon known as kindling.  You can read more about these subjects here:

 

About Reinstating and Stabilizing to Reduce Withdrawal Symptoms

How long does it take to stabilize after reinstating or updosing?

Hypersensitivity and kindling

 

Whichever route you decide to take, I would recommend you start a symptom journal.  Keep track of each of the symptoms you experience each day, rating them on a scale of 1-10 for severity.  You can use the following list of typical withdrawal symptoms as a template for your journal, if you wish:  Daily Checklist of Antidepressant Withdrawal Symptoms (PDF). 

 

As you hold and your brain is working towards stabilization, it is normal to have periods where you feel better, and periods of time where you feel worse.  This is known as the windows and waves pattern of stabilization, and it is actually a good sign that your nervous system is healing.  Keeping a journal can help you identify your windows and waves.  Read more here:  Windows and waves pattern of stabilization

 

There are a few things you can do to help your nervous system heal.  Eat a balanced, whole foods diet, stay well hydrated, engage in gentle exercise, and get adequate rest/sleep.  Avoid all neurologically active substances, like caffeine, alcohol, nicotine and recreational drugs- these are like pouring gasoline on a fire for your symptoms.  Avoid adding any further psychiatric medications to deal with your withdrawal from psych meds- the effects of these meds on a destabilized nervous system is unpredictable, and taking something else could make you worse.  Here at SA, we only recommend two supplements- magnesium and omega-3 fatty acids.  Be mindful though- it is very common for those experiencing withdrawal to become hypersensitive to all sorts of things, including medications, supplements, and even foods!  So if you start taking a supplement, even those we recommend here, start with a very low dose, and see how you fare.  You can increase slowly over time if you tolerate it well. 

 

If you track the things you eat, the supplements you take, and your activities in your symptom journal as well, you may find that you identify a few things that trigger symptoms for you.  This makes the journey a bit easier, as it allows you to avoid substances and activities that are activating for you.  

 

Dealing with symptoms as you stabilize, and subsequently taper, can be a big challenge.  The above recommendations are helpful, but it's really important to start developing some solid non-drug coping mechanisms as well to deal with emotional and cognitive symptoms.  We have lots of threads on this topic- I link some below.  

 

Non-drug techniques to cope with emotional symptoms

 Easing your way into meditation for a stressed-out nervous system

Music for self-care: calms hyperalertness, anxiety, aids relaxation and sleep

Ways to cope with daily anxiety

"Change the channel" - dealing with cognitive symptoms

Dealing With Emotional Spirals 

The importance of recognizing you're feeling good

 

Most of all, don't lose hope.  Withdrawal stinks, and interrupts our lives, but you will heal!  Give your brain and body what it needs to facilitate healing and recovery, and the journey can be a bit less unpleasant.  

 

This is your introduction topic.  Each member gets one intro topic- please post updates and questions here, on this thread.  

 

Please keep us updated, we are here to support you in your healing journey!

 

Best wishes.

 

Edited October 30, 2024 by Jane318

[Emonda]

Welcome from me, too.

 

1 hour ago, Jane318 said:

From your post, it is difficult to discern your drug history, which is so important for us to know.  Please put the above information in a drug signature.   To create a signature, click the following link, fill in the box, and click save. Your Drug Signature. 

 

Yes, please attend to this before making any decisions about your future medications. It's very important.

 

32 minutes ago, Jane318 said:

Or, you may want to consider the switch to Fluoxetine as your doctor recommends.

 

Dr Mark Horowitz, a well regarded tapering doctor is cautious on this. You end up with WD symptoms from the AD you've stop (you've got these now) and then your body needs to adjust to the new AD. For some, it causes significant problems.

 

But anyway, let's see that signature and Jane and I will try to comment further.

 

A warm welcome to you.

 

Emonda

[Jane318]

Greetings @Beckaysa - How are you doing?