Starting Zoloft

[Jess73]

Hey everyone. I recently started Zoloft and I need advice or something. I don't even know! I'm an anxious, panicked mess and terrified this is my life from here on out. I see no healing and I'm feeling guilty for that too. I'm having terrifying emotions that make me feel like I'm going to come out of my skin and go hysterical.
I prayed long and hard before going on meds. A good Christian friend finally convinced me with wise godly words that medicine may be God's answer. I'm needing encouragement, please.

 

[kat]

HI,
I hope I can encourage you. I'll never forget the time in church someone close to me told me she felt I needed to get on medications. I did not want to do that. I don't like having to be on something, I think a lot of people feel that way. I took her advice and did start to feel more normal. I can tell you I've gotten off many times when I thought I was okay to do that (without dr's knowing which isn't recommended) and when I'd be angry and not want to be on them... but eventually went back on and yes felt more normal. I think if you give it time and see how you feel you'll see what I mean. Be careful about what I did - just choosing on your own to get off of them.
People had to keep telling me its no different than other people with physical off balances inside that need a medication to balance it out better...
I'm on 100 mg. if you wanted to know...

Of course I don't know your situation but I have been healing from abuse and as you heal its normal for anger to surface and lots of other emotions that aren't pleasant and the intensity esp when I'm not used to feeling anything is so hard to deal with, I'd encourage myself with telling myself it won't last forever, it won't always feel like this... and just like the weather, the feelings will pass too... Thats what I have to hold on to.
and if its any help besides the medication and counseling, journaling, all the things I'm suppose to do if its just a hard day I either sleep or watch a tv series or movies all day to distract myself from what I'm going thru, just what works for me, not saying its the right thing to do... Finding a safe way to work thru the emotions without drowning in them is the tricky part... If you are going thru anything close to what I am in that respect...
sorry if I said more than you needed, hopefully some of it encouraged you!

 

[Jess73]

HI, I hope I can encourage you. I'll never forget the time in church someone close to me told me she felt I needed to get on medications. I did not want to do that. I don't like having to be on something, I think a lot of people feel that way. I took her advice and did start to feel more normal. I can tell you I've gotten off many times when I thought I was okay to do that (without dr's knowing which isn't recommended) and when I'd be angry and not want to be on them... but eventually went back on and yes felt more normal. I think if you give it time and see how you feel you'll see what I mean. Be careful about what I did - just choosing on your own to get off of them. People had to keep telling me its no different than other people with physical off balances inside that need a medication to balance it out better... I'm on 100 mg. if you wanted to know... Of course I don't know your situation but I have been healing from abuse and as you heal its normal for anger to surface and lots of other emotions that aren't pleasant and the intensity esp when I'm not used to feeling anything is so hard to deal with, I'd encourage myself with telling myself it won't last forever, it won't always feel like this... and just like the weather, the feelings will pass too... Thats what I have to hold on to. and if its any help besides the medication and counseling, journaling, all the things I'm suppose to do if its just a hard day I either sleep or watch a tv series or movies all day to distract myself from what I'm going thru, just what works for me, not saying its the right thing to do... Finding a safe way to work thru the emotions without drowning in them is the tricky part... If you are going thru anything close to what I am in that respect... sorry if I said more than you needed, hopefully some of it encouraged you!

You have encouraged me! Today has been really hard. Starting up on meds is really tough for me. I really love all the things you do to make it through a tough day. Movies are a great distraction, I agree. Do you remember how long it was before the side effects leveled out & you started seeing improvement? Thank you!

 

[kat]

I'm not sure if depends on the individual and the medication and I don't remember from when I first went on the medication but for a guess I'd say a week or two, it wasn't any longer than a month...
Another thing I need to do is find my song and play it more often, you know most of us have at least one song that makes us feel good, if you can get lost in that & not focused on the emotions, its helped me, I just have to do it...
If you have people close to you that know you are going on them you can ask them to give you input - people that have told me what a difference they can tell when I am on them... that can be an encouragement that they are helping and its worth being on them, I know how you feel I still hate being on them and I tell myself its just a chemical thing, but that doesn't always make me feel better, I'm still working on that part- accepting it... Hang in there

 

[NoddaProbBob]

Hi Jess!

Congrats on taking such a huge step to try medications. I have always been anti-meds until I realized how much a help they can be. I think if you stick with it and don't give up, that you have the potential to really feel better. I on the other hand get frustrated and give up easily. I have messed around with a few meds, including Zoloft, and I still haven't quite gotten it right yet. For now I just take what I feel has the least side effects, which right now is 300mg of Wellbutrin XL.

A word about Zoloft for you. Zoloft made me extremely tired. So I couldn't distinguish whether or not I was depressed or tired. This was not a good mix for me because my depression is generally worse when I am tired. On top of it, I was taking 7 classes to finish my Bachelor's degree and it was really beginning to interfere with my learning process. I would suggest that you pay attention to how you are reacting to it. It doesn't affect everyone this way, but what I did was instead of taking the medicine in the morning as directed, I would take it in the evening a few hours before I would go to bed. It actually helped me sleep quite a bit better.

Obviously, I am not a medical doctor and you should talk to your doctor if it is making you tired before you switch when you take it.

Also, please monitor your eyesight. Zoloft was beginning to give me some vision problems. Not like blindness or anything, I was just experiencing odd visual sensations. I don't know how else to describe it. It kind of reminded me of when you look into a kaleidoscope and see those zigzag lines. Either that or when you look at a swirl picture for too long and then look at a white wall and see weird optical illusions. I had never had that before and when I stopped the Zoloft, that stopped too.

Don't let my story discourage you though. I'm convinced I have medication resistant anxiety and depression, so I am the odd man out in this story. Millions of people have taken Zoloft with no effects other than positive results. It has been on the market for a long time and is backed by significant evidence based research. It is safe. And Kat is right, the medication effects everyone differently and as such it will be different for each person to see the dissipation of side effects.

Just listen to your body and keep in touch with your doctor.
And, most importantly, look forward to feeling better. That's the best part!

 

[Jess73]

Thanks, everyone. I've not been on here much...trying to take it easy & heal. It's been two weeks on Zoloft & I feel a little better. I just started 50 mg this week though. Ssri's make me very edgy & sometimes I have horrible panic attacks. I'm hoping as I get used to the meds, those will mostly stop. My faith is pulling me through but if I think too much about dealing with anxiety/panic/depression for the rest of my life, I feel lower than low. Prayers are appreciated.

 

[OldHat]

I take Zoloft everyday, my Doctor says it will take a while till the Zoloft effectively stops anxiety.

 

[Jess73]

I take Zoloft everyday, my Doctor says it will take a while till the Zoloft effectively stops anxiety.

Thanks for telling me that. I'm a little impatient. I'm assuming you like it? How much do you take?