zma1: Lexapro withdrawal on very low dose?

[zma1]

I started taking generic Lexapro for anxiety about a month ago. I started with 2.5 mg and never went up to 5mg as my doctor recommended. She said 2.5 mg is a subtheraputic dose but I felt better on it, which I did, than that would be fine to stay with 2.5. I had a few typical side effects but the deal breaker is insomnia. I caught a bad cold forgot to take my Lexapro one morning, then didn't take it on purpose for almost a week so I could get sleep and heal the cold. 

 

I spoke with my doc about starting again, she said that would be fine, start with 2.5mg and I could again raise to 5 after a few days. Well after starting 2.5mg in two days I had my first full blown panic attack since I was 20--Im almost 50 now. I felt waves of chemicals surging all morning and I would use CBT techniques and slow breathing to keep it under control, finally took half dose of ativan, then had the panic attack. Shaking, racing heart, uncontrollable crying. I was taking CBDoil for the last two nights to try to offset the insomnia but the nurse said I may have had serotonin syndrome--CBD oil and SSRIs are not a good combo.

 

My doc wants me to switch to a combo of Zoloft and Buspar. 

 

I feel lost. I don't want to be on any of this. I don't know if I had withdrawal from stopping Lexapro or reaction to CBD oil or if I should stick with the lexapro and eventually the insomnia will wear off? But these forums scare me in to not wanting to be on any drugs at all

 

I need to get a handle on my anxiety. I know my psychiatrist will offer more drugs. My psychologist will offer CBT but I can't afford to keep seeing her and those techniques take practice. I did feel better on the lexapro but the insomnia made me worry about the long term effects of losing sleep. And made me feel awful and anxious about nighttime. Valerian and melatonin work to get me to sleep but Im up several times a night and often unable to go back to sleep once Im up. 

 

Do you all think anxiety drugs are not worth the withdrawal? Im not depressed-just major anxiety. GAD and hypochondriasis mostly. Im obviously very sensitive if a subtheraputic dose can effect me so severely so Im expecting bad withdrawal if I move forward with even a low dose of anything for 6 months to a year. Any thoughts or input would help. Thanks

[ChessieCat]

Hi zma, welcome to SA,

 

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Once we can clearly see your drug history we will be better able to offer suggestions about your own situation.

 

This is your own Introduction topic where you can ask questions and journal your progress.
 

[zma1]

Hi all

Im trying to taper off of Sertraline 25 mg. Ive reduced to 18.75 mg 3 weeks ago with some physical issues: headaches, muscle tension, joint pain, tendonitis flare ups all over, teeth aches-nothing I cant handle or that can't be attributed to harsh menopausal symptoms. In my third week I'm noticing anxiety spurts and then melancholy.

 

My substitute psychiatrist told me to do a direct switch to Prozac if I thought Sertraline was going to be too hard to reduce. He said to take my regular dose of sertraline, then skip a day, then start the Prozac. I never filled the Prozac prescription because it seemed way too abrupt. I just stayed the course.

 

A few months later, I informed my regular psychiatrist that I wanted to get off the meds and would like to slowly taper and asked for a prescription to liquid Zoloft. She said a slow taper is good, but that I should switch to liquid Prozac when I get down to lower doses. I understand that switching to Prozac is the protocol due to its long half life etc. But from what I understand, switching can be a jolt even in low liquid doses-- should I stick with liquid Zoloft or switch to liquid Prozac?

 

Thanks!

[getofflex]

Previous post moved to your intro topic to keep your history all in one place.  Please post questions and discussion about your situation in this one thread, to avoid confusion and duplication of efforts.  Thank you.  

[getofflex]

Hello, and welcome to SA.  We are a volunteer-run community of people who have been or are getting off of psychiatric drugs.  

 

16 minutes ago, zma1 said:

Im trying to taper off of Sertraline 25 mg. Ive reduced to 18.75 mg 3 weeks ago

You are probably having symptoms because you made too big of a reduction.  We suggest reducing by no more than 10% of your current dose.  Going from 25 to 18.75 is a 25% reduction.  This is too sudden of a change for your nervous system, and the symptoms are a result.  

 

Here is some 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 so slowly and carefully, and be very cautious about changing our doses: 

 

How Psychiatric Drugs Remodel Your Brain

 

 

This helps you understand what withdrawal syndrome is: 

 

Video on Recovery from Psych Drugs

 

What is Happening in Your Brain

 

Windows and Waves Pattern of Stabilization

 

We generally suggest that people don't switch to another drug to taper.  That is one more drug change that the brain must adjust to, and many people have trouble doing this.  I believe it is better to just do a very slow and careful taper of the drug you are on, Zoloft.  Also, if you switch from a tablet to a liquid, we advise you to gradually cross over from the pill to the liquid gradually.  Below is a link for how to do this. 

 

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 taper becomes exponentially smaller.

 

 Why Taper by 10% of my Dosage  

 

Tips for Tapering Zoloft

 

Cross Over from Tablet to Liquid, or vice versa

 

 

Also, as we are recovering, we suggest keeping things slow, simple, and stable. 

 

Keep it Simple, Slow, and Stable

 

Considerations About Stability - Stop Jumping Around

 

Here is a link with checklists of common WD symptoms: 

 

Dr Joseph Glenmullen Withdrawal Symptom Checklists

 

 

Here are some techniques to cope with symptoms: 

 

Non Drug Ways to Cope with Withdrawal Symptoms

 

 

We don't suggest many supplements, but 2 that many of us find helpful are magnesium and omega-3 fish oil. Here are the links for info about those. It is suggested to add one at a time, and start with a low dose to see how it affects you. 

Magnesium

 

Omega 3 Fish Oil

 

Are you symptoms tolerable?  If so, my suggestion to you is to hold on your current dose of Zoloft 18.75 mg for at least a couple of months or longer, and stabilize, before you do any further reductions.   Here is a link about stability: 

 

Stability

 

I've given you quite a bit of information here.  Please read through it, and mull it over, and we will take it from there. In the meantime, take care of yourself, and take heart.  We in this forum have been through this, and we understand first hand the pain and discomfort you are going through.  Please know that the brain is amazing in it's healing abilities.  It takes time, but healing can and will happen. 

[zma1]

Today my symptoms are becoming intolerable. Appetite is GONE and I'm so down and anxious and weepy. I was having a hard time cutting the oblong pill into quarters so Im wondering if the inaccuracy of my 18.75 +- mg dose is causing more problems than just a the reduction from 25 mg. I ordered a mg scale so that I can measure more accurately. Can I ask if the Estrogen you are taking helps with anxiety?

 

I really don't know anymore what is menopause, what is SSRI, what is a result of drudging things up in therapy, what is just me.

 

I really appreciate your response and all of the info you replied with. Thanks so much.

[zma1]

I'm a bit curious and fearful that my symptoms are weirder than those I've read about as typical SSRI withdraw. I do have health anxiety so this is always a trigger and why I have a tough time discontinuing SSRIs. 

 

I've noticed the following after tapering then stopping lexapro, while on Zoloft, tapering zoloft:

 

Blue Lips (after a run on a 90 degree day, where I was alternating 25 mg/12.5 mg doc said it was probably mild Raynauds?)

Bluish Toe Nails (when cold)

Burning Mouth

Metatarsalgia in ball of right foot for 3 days, then Plantar Fasciitis in left foot for 3 days then, Plantar Fasciitis in left foot for 3-4 days, then all gone.

Hip pain

Neck/Shoulder/Jaw pain

Headaches

Muscle knots in back

Golfer's Elbow

Feeling Cold, hard to warm up

Teeth pain- only certain individual teeth for a few days then gone

Blood shot eye

Dry Eyes

Allergies flare

Tail Bone pain

Knee aches

Breast pain

Tight chest muscles

Heartburn pain

Trouble staying asleep

Not feeling excited about anything 

Extreme anxiety

Sadness

Crying

Suicide Ideation

Lump in throat

Tinnitus

ZERO Appetite

The Yawns

Deep Breaths like I can’t get enough air

 

Some of these may be due to perimenopause?

I guess Im just looking for reassurance that Im not dying.

 

 

 

[zma1]

Sertraline: Switch from tablet to liquid

 

I’ve been slowly tapering sertraline since about last Halloween. I’m down to a point where it’s getting difficult to shave my tablets down accurately so I switched to liquid sertraline 7 days ago. I usually feel the symptoms of a taper about 4-10 days later. My question is can a switch (learned from this site “crossover”) but with the exact same medication and dose cause the same sort of side effects as tapering? I feel physically awful (fatigue and digestion problems) and my anxiety is very high. 
to be clear I went from sertraline to sertraline, not from sertraline to zoloft or Vice verse and I’m almost positive my math is correct with mg dose to ml dropper.

 

thank you

 

Edited February 21, 2022 by ChessieCat
added topic title before merging with intro topic

[ChessieCat]

Q:  Did you make a reduction at the same time as changing over to liquid?

 

Q:  Did you change straight over from tablet to liquid?

 

A cross over, 3/4 + 1/4, 1/2 & 1/2, 1/4 + 3/4, is gentler on the system.  And you stay on a combination for as long as you need to.

 

cross-over-changing-form-eg-tablet-to-liquid-of-drug-or-changing-brand-of-same-drug

 

[zma1]

Hi ChessieCat,

I did not make a reduction but I did do a straight change-over from 100% tablet one day, next day 100% liquid. I thought it would be pretty easy. Then I read here that some people do have a reaction to just the form of the drug changing but that it is also not usually severe. So I guess Im just feeling more off than I expected and its triggering my health anxiety. It's hard to remember that this is all just drug withdrawal. It doesnt seem possible to be so stupidly extreme with something that is "supposed to be easy" if you just taper for a month. What the hell! 

 

But thank you so much for your response. I feel supported and that helps a ton.

[ChessieCat]

Changing from tablet to liquid is a changing in the "delivery system" to your body, so it's not withdrawal per se but an effect of the drug entering your body differently to how it had before.

 

You could try going 1/2 + 1/2 and see if that helps.  Then stay on that until you feel "normal" then do the 1/4 + 3/4, then stay on that before going to all liquid.

[zma1]

Thank you🙏

[zma1]

Sertraline taper

 

2/22/22 

min not sure if I’m using this site properly but I’m in the midst of a sertraline taper. I’m at about 1/4 of the dose I was initially tapering from. I switched from tablet to liquid a week ago without reducing the dose but I am having some symptoms. Chessiecat offered some info about a slow crossover. If my symptoms don’t seem to improve I will try partial tablet and partial liquid.

 

Symptoms today are

headache

fatigue

general body aches

 

The last few days have been mostly diarrhea, nausea and reflux but those symptoms are very slowly improving. Too slowly😕 I’ve also had tight muscles especially chest and back. 

Im embarking on smaller and smaller reductions over the next few months but I know that symptoms ramp up as doses get smaller so I will try to keep this as more of a journal to help others going through. 

For some reason generic Zoloft is much harder to get off than when I was on generic Lexapro. Maybe my nervous system is getting more annoyed as I get older and try different drugs. I’m hoping my mental health journey will no longer point me to drugs as a solution for acute problems.
 

EMDR therapy has helped immensely and I think the SSRIs may help for a moment but it seems to prolong the suffering when you try to get off. I guess the difference is that there’s some sort of reassurance when it’s withdrawal that it’s not just you losing it— it’s the drug affecting you, but at the same time when I’m feeling the worst of the emotional/psychological  withdrawal it’s hard to remember that it’s just that. This site is so helpful to remind you that withdrawal is real and the symptoms are varied and many. 

I hope everyone feels some calm and healing very soon

 

 

Edited February 23, 2022 by ChessieCat
added Intro topic title before merging with intro topic / spacing

[ChessieCat]

12 minutes ago, zma1 said:

min not sure if I’m using this site properly

 

I've merged your new Intro topic to your original one.  Each member has only ONE Introduction topic. 

 

On 10/27/2017 at 2:59 PM, ChessieCat said:

This is your own Introduction topic where you can ask questions and journal your progress.

 

It also means that you do not have to repeat your story.

 

Please remember to keep your drug signature up to date.

 

Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature

[zma1]

Mon Feb 28

Sticking w .3 ml liquid sertraline this week.

Most of last weeks symptoms are easing up but I’m still a bit edgy and some reflux is still happening.

Very tired even though I’m sleeping and napping every day. Not tired enough to miss work, just enough for the day to seem extra long and I can’t wait to get home to nap. I’ve woken about 430 am twice this week but I’m able to fall back asleep which is not common when I wake too early. 
Also some strange intense dreams. I’m wondering if my sleep quality is bad even though quantity is extra.

 

Crap. And here comes the yawns😕. And weirdly NOT because of sleepiness. 

[getofflex]

 

15 hours ago, zma1 said:

Mon Feb 28

Sticking w .3 ml liquid sertraline this week.

This sounds like a good plan.  

 

According to your drug signature, 

 

"Oct 10, 2021: 18.75 mg dose/ 60mg weight; Nov 7, 2021: 50mg weight; Nov 21, 2021: 12.5mg dose/40mg weight

Dec 26, 2021: 30mg weight; Jan 23, 2022: 6.25mg dose/20mg weight; Feb 13, 2022: crossover from 6.25mg dose tablet to 6.25mg dose/.31ml liquid:" 

 

You are doing a linear taper, and you are reducing more than 10% of your previous dose.  When you reduced from 30 mg to 20 mg on Jan 23, that is a 33% drop.  We at SA suggest that you taper  no more than 10% of your current dose, so that each reduction becomes smaller and smaller.  This will miniminize/eliminate withdrawal symptoms.  Even at low doses, SSRI drugs have a strong effect on us.  Please see this link to understand why.  

 

SERT Transporter Occupancy Studies

 

 Why Taper by 10% of my Dosage  

 

Pay attention to the graph in the first link.  See the steep, almost vertical curve on the left side?  This means that as we get to the lower doses, it is especially important to go very slowly in our taper.  At this point, even a small reduction will affect a significant number of serotonin receptors, and our brains must work hard to up level our serotonin receptors to make up for this change.  

 

I would suggest you hold for for a little while, and allow your nervous system to adjust to the tapering you have been doing. Wait until you are nice and stable before doing another reduction.  If you follow the 10% rule, your next reduction would be to 18 mg.   Here is a link that explains what we mean by stability: 

 

Stability

[getofflex]

Here is a great topic that helps you understand when to do a reduction: 

 

WD Normal

[zma1]

Thanks so much @getofflex. I was rushing it I guess. I just really want to be done and my impatience is just making me want to white knuckle through the symptoms. But yeah not the best way to proceed. Thank you🙂

[ChessieCat]

13 minutes ago, zma1 said:

I was rushing it I guess. I just really want to be done and my impatience is just making me want to white knuckle through the symptoms. But yeah not the best way to proceed.

 

The aim is to get off the drug with as minimal discomfort as possible so that we can live our lives as normally as possible.  There are SA members who have tried to go too quickly and it is has ended up taking them longer to get off than if they had followed the 10%/4 week taper.  Some have ended up switching drugs (which does not always work) and some have ended up on an additional drug which then needs to be tapered.

 

And getting off a psychiatric drug has nothing to do with how strong or determined we are as a person.  It is the brain which needs to adapt to not getting as much of the drug.  When I got down to the very low doses, which seemed ridiculous to be on, I reminded myself that my brain needed the drug, not me.  I also kept telling myself that I had put in a lot of hard work to taper and it was silly to try and speed things up and possibly cause issues so close to the end.

 

I also found that posting about my frustrations helped because other members would encourage me.  And usually by the time I finished typing my post I had decided that trying to get off quicker was not a good idea.  And I'm a mod who has seen a lot of members have issues from going too fast.

[zma1]

Thanks ChessieCat 😊😊 very helpful❤️

[zma1]

Horrible day. Horrible few days. I can’t tell if it’s withdrawal, PMDD or just plain old perimenopause. Crying spells, extreme anxiety, depression, suicide ideation. This is about 3 weeks since I crossed over from tablet to liquid sertraline and I’ve not reduced the dose. I wonder if the liquid comes and goes quicker and causes abruptness somehow but I take the same dose at the same time everyday. 
If this is peri or PMDD I wonder if I should be on an ssri. Im wondering if this is my “normal” menopausal hormone hell? Am I on such a low dose of the ssri that it’s not helping my normal insane symptoms but just exacerbating them? Should I stay on this f-I get drug until my periods stop? Should I switch to Prozac instead? 
the way I feel today and for the last three days is not sustainable. I even took at Ativan a couple evenings ago just to try to feel less on edge. I do t know if it did anything because I never take them they’re so old. Or I was so freaked out I needed a higher dose? 
 

Bad day. Really really bad

[getofflex]

On 3/9/2022 at 4:49 PM, zma1 said:

Should I switch to Prozac instead? 

We generally suggest tapering off the drug that you are already on, instead of switching to Prozac.  We suggest switching to Prozac to taper as a last resort. Sometimes, switching to Prozac can fail, and this is riskier than just very slowly and gradually tapering the drug you are already on. Here is a link with information about that: 

 

The Prozac Switch

 

Your symptoms may very well be a combination of peri/PMDD and withdrawal.  

On 3/9/2022 at 4:49 PM, zma1 said:

Am I on such a low dose of the ssri that it’s not helping my normal insane symptoms but just exacerbating them?

It's not necessarily that the low dose of SSR is exacerbating your symptoms.  It's likely that, since you were tapering fast over the past several months, your nervous system has not had time to catch up and adjust to the lower doses.  That is why we try so hard to convince people not to taper faster than the 10% of current dose every 4-6 weeks.  This is what tends to happen to people when we taper to quickly.  

 

Can you please help us out by listing your dose strength in mg for each of your reductions, and not just the weight?  That way we can more easily give you suggestions about updosing or reducing your dose.  I've gone ahead and calculated this info for your recent previous doses, and added this to your drug sig to clarify things.  

 

The one thing you might consider doing is an updose if your symptoms have become unbearable.  If you do choose to updose, I would suggest updosing to 7.75 mgai (milligrams active ingredient) which would be .39 ml of the liquid sertraline.  Please give this at least a week to work, as it can a week for a dose change to get in your system and register with your brain.  Take this precise dose every day, no missing doses, at the same time of day each day.  Let us know what you decide to do, and how it goes.  

Edited March 11, 2022 by getofflex

[zma1]

Thanks for the input getofflex. I will try to update the mg rather than the weight but my math skills are pretty bad. 
I felt perfectly fine a day later after my period started. Like a switch to “everything’s fine and normal😊”

so I think it was a PMDD sort of surge.

[getofflex]

I'm really glad to hear this.  It indicates that your problems may have been mostly hormonal.  In that case, perhaps you may hold off on updosing.  I would only updose if your symptoms were unbearable day after day.  

[zma1]

Went from .3 ml to .28 four days ago. A bit of anxiety spikes here and there. Kind of tired and depressed.  I’m not sure what the dose equivalent is but if I remember the reduction is less than 10%. I should find a dose calculator since my math skill is questionable. 

[zma1]

Today the yawns.

[ChessieCat]

On 3/18/2022 at 9:07 AM, zma1 said:

I should find a dose calculator since my math skill is questionable. 

 

Heath posted this recently:

 

you can use this taper calculator it’s easiest one I know of. It works for ml or mg. 
http://www.taperoff.co/

[zma1]

Thank you! At what dose does one typically stop tapering and finish?

[ChessieCat]

It is generally suggested to get as low as you can go, within reason.  A hyperbolic taper never gets to 0!

 

A dose of 0.025mg is an approximate dose to jump off from.  But it depends on your situation.  For me I went to 0.0025mg Pristiq because I had other health issues and wanted to minimise the risk of getting WD symptoms because if things had worsened after I jumped off I would not know whether it was WD or the unrelated health issues.

 

When to end the taper and jump to zero?

[getofflex]

On 3/17/2022 at 5:07 PM, zma1 said:

Went from .3 ml to .28 four days ago. A bit of anxiety spikes here and there. Kind of tired and depressed.  I’m not sure what the dose equivalent is but if I remember the reduction is less than 10%.

That was a 7% decrease that you did.  Can you please update your drug signature to show your recent reductions?  Thank you.  

 

As Chessie Cat suggested, it is good to go as low as you can reasonably go.  I'll probably go to 0.005 mg, just because Lexapro is such a strong SSRI.  You're on the home stretch!  As Brass Monkey, a member of our very experienced staff told me, it's extra important to go slowly and carefully at the very end of taper.  

[zma1]

Reduced to .25 ml liquid which I believe is 5mg dose of sertraline. Im having a difficult time finding and then understanding a ml liquid to mg dose equivalency calculator. But I created this chart to follow. Not sure why I arbitrarily stopped at 0.020ml but I'll prob go lower if I can find a smaller dropper.

 

20 mg                           1 ml

10 mg                          .5 ml

6.25 mg                   .3 ml

                                 .28

5 mg                            .25 ml

                                    .22 ml

                                    .20 ml

                                    .18 ml

                                    .16ml

                                 .14 ml

2.5 mg                       .125 ml (.13 ml)

                                    .12 ml

                                    .11 ml

                                    .09 ml

                                    .08 ml

                                    .07 ml

1.25 mg                     .0625 ml (.07 ml)

                                    .05 ml

                                    .045 ml

                                    .0405 ml

                                .036 ml

                                .032 ml

.0625 mg                  .03125 ml (.031 ml)

                                    .028

                                    .025

                                    .022

                                    .020

Oral Sertraline dose reduction.docx

[ChessieCat]

You can dilute a small amount of the prescription liquid to make it easier to measure your doses.

[zma1]

So I’m at .2 ml of liquid sertraline. It’s difficult when Im close to my period and I get some waves but manageable ones at various times throughout the month. Im considering a switch to Prozac but I have no idea how to calculate what .2ml of sertraline is, not to mention what the equivalent would be to Prozac. I talked to a psychiatrist months ago about this possibility and he said to skip a day of the sertraline, then start the next day w Prozac. 
 

any advice here? Im not getting much help with my psychiatrist and I’m not sure that the advice is wise anyway— it’s Kaiser protocols—and she’s so busy I’ve had substitute psychiatrists or no response at all. 

[getofflex]

1 hour ago, zma1 said:

So I’m at .2 ml of liquid sertraline. It’s difficult when Im close to my period and I get some waves but manageable ones at various times throughout the month. Im considering a switch to Prozac but I have no idea how to calculate what .2ml of sertraline is, not to mention what the equivalent would be to Prozac. I talked to a psychiatrist months ago about this possibility and he said to skip a day of the sertraline, then start the next day w Prozac.

First of all, we don't suggest a bridge to Prozac except as a last resort in dire situations.  There are too many risks involved in this, and they can fail, and make the situation worse.  From what you describe, your situation doesn't sound dire.  What are you trying to accomplish by doing a Prozac bridge?  

 

The way your psychiatrists suggests doing it is not the way we do it here.  And psychiatrists are notorious for causing their patients abrupt drug changes, which then puts them in withdrawal, hence this forum.  

 

This link will talk about the Prozac bridge.  

 

The Prozac Bridge

 

It looks like you are reducing your drug pretty fast.  You've been making reductions every 1-2 weeks.  This may not give your nervous system a chance to adjust to each dose change.  If it were me, I would hold for a while, as in 6-8 weeks, and allow the nervous system to catch up.  That would be a much safer way to try and stabilize yourself, than switching to another drug.  

[zma1]

I was attempting minor reductions more quickly. I was feeling pretty good after the minor reductions at the 4 day mark which was my usual time to feel the reduction so I speed up the when while keeping the amount very minor. Maybe it’s catching up w me know but when I get close to my period the side effects are so unbearable I start to look up suicide hotline. This is why I’m considering a switch to Prozac. I’ve read here that the lower you go the worse it gets and I’m afraid for the next few months and at the same time I want to be done w zoloft so that o can try other things. 

[ChessieCat]

So that we don't get confused about how much Zoloft you are taking please always state your dose in milligrams (mg).

 

Please edit your drug signature - thank you:  Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature

 

3 hours ago, zma1 said:

It’s difficult when Im close to my period and I get some waves but manageable ones at various times throughout the month.

 

Do you time your reductions around your monthly cycle.  I was post menopausal when I started tapering, but I would reduce on a Saturday to fit in better with the days I was working.

 

6 minutes ago, zma1 said:

I was attempting minor reductions more quickly. I was feeling pretty good after the minor reductions at the 4 day mark which was my usual time to feel the reduction so I speed up the when while keeping the amount very minor. Maybe it’s catching up w me know but when I get close to my period the side effects are so unbearable I start to look up suicide hotline. This is why I’m considering a switch to Prozac. I’ve read here that the lower you go the worse it gets and I’m afraid for the next few months and at the same time I want to be done w zoloft so that o can try other things. 

 

Yes going too fast can catch up with you.  And the solution is to slow down.  This is a much better option than trying to switch to Prozac, which does not always work.  Taking and tapering Prozac has its own issues.  From what we see here at SA Zoloft is a much easier drug to taper.  And your issues do not seem to be with the drug itself but your tapering speed and/or method.

 

When tapering, the goal is to keep withdrawal symptoms to a minimum as we sneak the drug away and at the same time being able to live our life as normally as possible.  It is not a race.  It is better to get off the drug slowly than to go too fast.  We have members here who have tried to go too quickly and it has ended up taking them longer to get off.  Some have changed drugs and had issues, and some have ended up on an extra drug which also needs to be tapered.

 

It is important to listen to your body/symptoms and hold for longer if you are not stable.

 

Dr Joseph Glenmullen's WD Symptoms Checklist

 

Stability

 

WDnormal

 

And Brassmonkey talks more about it here:

 

tao-of-the-brassmonkey