Kittylover: Zoloft tapering

[Kittylover]

Hello,

 

i am glad to have found this site!

 

This is probably my 3rd or 4th time taking Zoloft. While I’ve always had some issues with brain zaps when stopping, I’ve never had so much trouble going off it before. I think this is the longest period I have taken it (about 3 years) . I have taken a number of different antidepressants, and the worst for me to go off of was Cymbalta a few years ago. This time going off Zoloft is almost as bad.

 

i was only taking 50mg, when I decided to stop I had no problem going down to 25mg (did that for a couple of weeks) and then down to 12.5...not too bad, though from what I’ve read here it seems I went to too fast.

 

I’ve  had brain zaps, dizziness (like drunk feeling) nausea, insomnia, and just general malaise and extreme fatigue. This is also mixed in with perimenopausal symptoms. So not fun. 

 

i got an rx for 25 as I thought it might be easier to cut the pills to smaller doses. My pill cutter ends up just chipping it.

 

i went down to about 6.25, and stopped that, I guess too quickly, and have been feeling absolutely awful. It sounds like I need to stick with that dose for awhile. But I am having so much trouble getting it cut precisely. Today after reading on these forums I decided to give myself a dose (about 6 or 7mg) as it had been awhile, over a week. 

 

it sounds like I should get a scale and maybe make a powder to get a precise dose? We are going on vacation in Europe soon and I was hoping to be done with all this soon, I’m not sure if I should be messing with powders when away from home

 

for turning it into powder is it better to put into capsules of dissolve in water? (Sounds like it tastes awful)

 

Thank you!! 

[Songbird]

Hi Kittylover, welcome to SA.  In my experience, antidepressants tend to get harder to come off each time, especially if you've stayed on them for longer.  It's also quite common for people to find the higher doses easier to taper, and hit trouble as the dose gets lower. 

 

It does sound like you have tapered too quickly, hence the bad withdrawal symptoms.  We generally recommend dose drops of no more than 10% of each dose, and waiting at least four weeks before dropping again.  This is because every time you change your dose, your body has to make adjustments to rebalance, which takes some time.  Small changes are easier for the system to adjust to.  If you taper too quickly, your system can't keep up with the changes and it can become very out of balance and confused, resulting in severe withdrawal symptoms.  For more info see this topic:  why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

It's also important to take the same dose consistently every day.  See: the rule of 3KIS - keep it simple keep it slow keep it stable

 

For tapering you need to be able to create accurate doses - you will need liquid (either the pharmacy version, or make your own), or you could use a digital jeweller's scale.  See these topics for more information:

how to make a liquid from tablets or capsules

using a digital scale to measure doses

 

Please can you create a signature containing a summary of your med history, including all drugs, doses and dates (starting and stopping).  Your signature appears below every post you make, and helps us see your situation easily without having to read from the top every time.   You could look at my signature for an example.  We particularly need to see how you have tapered Zoloft, i.e. dates and doses.  Instructions for creating your signature are here: Please put your withdrawal history in your signature.  You can edit your signature here: edit your signature in Account Settings.  

 

Please post all your updates and questions about your situation here in your introduction topic, and we will try to help as best we can.

 

 

 

[Kittylover]

Thank you for the tips. I have added a signature, not sure if it’s detailed enough, but i have to admit I wasn’t keeping track of the dates when I started weaning! And I honestly don’t recall what other meds I took when, just that I started at around 23 and on and off since then.

 

I have now gone back to 6.25mg, and intend to keep that for the next weeks and for our vacation.

 

i also have now gotten a micro scale. Now, I have gone to measure a full 25mg pill to see what shows on the scale. It comes out to .77 gram, so I think I’m to understand that there is about .5 gr of filler material? I am extremely bad at math, so I’m not sure how to calculate to determine if my 1/4 of 25 mg pill (6.25 mg) is accurate and how to scale it down from there. I guess I was assuming a 25mg pill would weigh 25mg!

 

can anyone give me some guidance as to what I should go to next? (I guess 6.25 -10% so about 5.5mg next, but I have no idea to figure out if I’m getting 5.5 mg based on the ratio of filler to medication!

 

should I be posting this here or elsewhere in the forum?

 

thanks!

[Songbird]

You don't need to worry about how much filler there is.  Taking 10% off the pill weight takes 10% off the dose.  Some people have concerns about how evenly distributed in the pill the active ingredient is, which could potentially be a problem if simply cutting pills (although I haven't found it to be a problem in my experience).  If you're concerned, you can crush the pills into powder and fill capsules.  There are good instructions in the digital scale topic about how to fill the capsules.  If you tare the scale with the capsule on before you put the powder in, then the scale will show only the weight of the powder.

 

There is a spreadsheet to help you calculate dose weights at the bottom of the 2nd post in this topic:  How to calculate dosages and dilutions? Spreadsheets and calculators

 

[Kittylover]

Hello,

 

 I have a couple of logistical questions. At my next dose lowering step I will need to start crushing/ weighing. I have a scale and empty capsules now.

 

i am currently at 6.25 mg from 25 mg tablets of Zoloft. Say I want to go down by x%. I crush a couple of whole tablets to make a batch of capsule. Logistically speaking what is the best way to get a uniform amount into each capsule?

 

i am thinking

 

1. Crush

2. Weigh total crushed amount

3. Determine amount to go in each capsule (divide total weight by target weight)

4. This is where I’m stuck on the logistics. What is the easiest way to know how much I’m putting into each capsule?

 

can anyone tell me a step by step of their process for making capsules?

 

thanks!

 

 

[Songbird]

hi Kittylover, I've moved your question into your intro topic.

 

Please read these topics thoroughly -  the instructions are in there:

using a digital scale to measure doses

How to calculate dosages and dilutions? Spreadsheets and calculators

 

You will need to weigh each dose.  Weigh a whole pill first so you know the weight of the whole pill dose (some people like to weigh several and take an average).  Then use the spreadsheet to calculate the weight of the desired dose.  If you have a capsule or other container on the scale you need to press the tare button before weighing the powder.