coolhandluke40: very short term users - big side effects

[coolhandluke40]

Hi All - new to the forum but happy I found it. Looking for experiences from people who used one of these medications very short term but had lingering and terrible side effects. Any personal experience or guidance to other areas of the forum are appreciated. 

 

About Me: 31M - very healthy, active, good job. Have general anxiety, panic attacks over 10 years. Effected my life but usually pushed through it. Overall happy social lifestyle. Never took any medication.  Finally went to my general physician and he prescribed me zoloft. 

 

My Terrible Experience so far: 

Week 1 - took Zoloft for only TWO days. 10 mg. Felt weird so decided to stop. Day after stopping had Extreme Depression followed by worst panic attacks of my life. lasted 3-4 days. 

Week 2 - Awful anxiety, could not concentrate

Week 3- Same as week 2 but started to get muscle spasms in legs, thoughts of doom that im stuck like this forever. By end of week I literally could not get out of bed, couldnt focus on TV. Zero libido. Sleep started to get worse

Now on start of Week 4 - I'm out of bed. But still cant concentrate well, feel totally off, emotional unplugged, cant focus. Cannot sleep whatsoever. Wake up every few hours. Zero appetite. 

 

Im trying to be active and exercise, but very difficult. Focusing on eating but tough. I do seem to have some 'windows' where it goes from Terrible to less terrible. 

 

Had follow up with my general physician today. He was very defensive, told me impossible from only taking for two days. Told me I had underlying Mania that was induced by medication and that I should go to psychiatrist and probably needed bi-polar medication...Told me mania was 'always' there... 

 

Either way - Im not going to another Dr to get prescription meds. Going to try and fight this and hope I will feel normal again. 

 

[Carmie]

Hi coolhandluke, 

 

Welcome to SA. I’m sorry you’ve had such a bad reaction after only being in Zoloft for two days. It looks like you had an adverse reaction. 

 

Thanks for doing your signature.

 

Doctors don’t normally know much about withdrawals, so it’s no surprise he was defensive. They usually just label people and add more meds. They only know what they learn in school and they aren’t taught about withdrawals. Adding more medications to the mix usually just makes things worse. 

 

As regards exercise, it’s best just to do something gentle, like walking, as strenuous exercise can ramp up our systems even more. Some people do okay with strenuous exercise, but the vast majority find that it makes their symptoms even worse. 

 

As regards sleep, are you going to bed and getting up at the same time each day, regardless of how much sleep you’re getting? Do you stop looking at screens a couple of hours before going to bed?

 

It’s good to hear you’re getting some windows. Your brain is trying hard to find some equilibrium again. You will eventually stabilise.

 

Are you on any other medications or supplements?

 

Please let us know how you’re doing, 

 

 Sending hugs🤗

Edited April 25, 2019 by Carmie
Addition.

[coolhandluke40]

Hi Carmie,

 

Thanks for your reply. Honestly without this site I would have thought I am totally losing it...

 

I am seeing some improvement. Appetite is getting better. Focus is getting better. 

 

Sleep wise I would fall asleep around 11 and wake up at 2:30am for multiple days in a row. Then kinda of lay there not really falling back asleep. Felt almost like i was twitching. 

 

I have taken melatonin the last few days and that has helped actually. However, my dreams are very weird. Able to sleep a good majority of the night but wake up here and there but then fall back asleep. 

 

I've started taking some Magnesium L-Threonate after reading some posts.  Not on any other medication or supplements. 

 

Big issue I'm having with is repetitive thoughts. Can't stop obsessing about the whole situation and how I could have prevented it and how difficult I made things for myself. This then makes it harder to focus b/c I am just thinking about how I feel. Mentally I just don't feel as stable as I was prior to the medication, its very easy for things to trigger my anxiety that then leads to spirals which seems to exacerbate my feelings. I understand this pattern makes things worse but it's hard to control it. 

 

Prior to trying the meds, I felt I had 'control' of my anxiety. But now simple things I took for granted seem harder b/c how my mind feels. It's very confusing and hard to tell what is related to my GAD or whether I was affected by the medication. I'm working on mindfulness and reading alot of techniques on here to deal with it. Finding windows where I do feel better but then at some point in the day the waves of anxiety and doom will hit me hard.

 

Do people find help going to a therapist/psychologist (non med prescribing type)?  I feel that anyone I talk to is not going believe it was the medication that put me into this cloud. 

 

Thanks again. 

 

 

 

[puthappinessfirst]

First of all, your doctor is an idiot. I am sorry about that. 

When doctors say that you couldn't possibly have a bad reaction after a couple doses... It makes me want to ask them if they think that people allergic to peanuts shouldn't be having a bad reaction after just 1 peanut. It makes no sense. 

 

You're not damaged forever, dont worry! 

I remember my first BIG panic attack. I didn't know what was going on, thought I was going crazy. 

I stayed in bed for 1 week and cried all throughout the days, was afraid to be alone, was afraid of the world. 

My vision felt off and everything jarred my system. I remember trying to talk a walk with my dad and we walked by a driveway and i thought the car parked in the drive was backing out and I almost jumped out of my skin. 

Panic attacks can really take a toll on the body, especially when you've not been familiar with them. 

 

I definitely think that you could get some help with a good therapist, the one's I have had have all been kind and caring. 

Just keep taking care of yourself as best as you have been, it'll be ok! 

[Carmie]

Hi coolhandluke, 

 

Glad to hear you’re seeing some improvements. Repetitive thoughts and emotional spirals are really common in withdrawals. Just go to the first page in Symptoms And Selfcare, and have a look at the threads entitled “Neuro-emotions,” and “Dealing With Emotional Spirals.” You’ve already done a lot of reading on here, so you may have read those already. The mental confusion you’re experiencing is caused by the medication, our emotions can be heightened because of the meds. It’s chemically induced. 

 

As Puthappinessfirst said you’re not damaged permanently. It may take a while to recover, but you will recover. Our brains have an amazing capacity to heal.

 

Wishing you all the best in your recovery💚