View Full Version : Sertraline - just started and feel horrendous...should I keep going?
I have been suffering with fatigue symptoms for a few years now and am still dealing with depression as a result of it (the fatigue and the depression probably keep each other going)
I was also diagnosed with thyroid cancer earlier this year so it's been a very stressful time and I was at the doctors last week to discuss my thyroid tablets, thyroxine, to talk about upping the dosage. After telling him how I was feeling, he also recommended I give Sertraline a go. I have been on 3 or 4 different antidepressants in the past but never this one. I don't really want to be on them but something has to change as I am feeling so low, so I agreed to it.
I've been taking them for 4 days and feel absolutely woeful. I feel like when I walk my feet are not connecting with the ground, like I am walking on air, and also feel anxious and panicky. My fatigue is also much worse.
All in all I feel pretty shocking. I don't know whether to carry on with them and hope this feeling disappears or to stop? Any advice would be great.
Thanks
I'm on week 2, had some issues but I cut them in half. My anxiety is worse at the moment. Just had to take a diazapam actually.
When you say you cut them in half do you mean you take half of one a day or twice a day?
What sort of issues did you have Lee?
I can't stop grinding my teeth these past few days and also just feel floaty/drowsy/not all there.
I also feel so, so on edge.
3 weeks on 25mg, half a tablet once a day then I will go up to the full dose.
Sleep is badly disrupted, stomach is playing me up abit, and anxiety is 10 times worse some days.
I am on week 9 now and in the beginning I was so much like you I felt tired and anxious I was waking up in the night feeling scared, I didnt want to eat much but then after about 3-4 weeks I noticed a gradual lift, I laugh again and it is proper laughter not fake laughing, I got my playfulness back and I get up in the morning no issues whereas before I would struggle to get up. I couldnt leave my house for the first few weeks the anxiety was so bad, the anxiety is lifting a bit now Im about to increase my dose from 100 to 150 because although my depression is better my anxiety is taking a long time to decrease but I was hugely anxious before. I can go out with my kids now and have fun at the park and stuff... stick with them they do unfortunately make you feel a bit shit at first but it does get better! x x x
---------- Post added at 17:04 ---------- Previous post was at 17:02 ----------
oh the teeth grinding and jaw clamping was a thing for me too and also a tremor, I find it is best to eat little and often it really does help
I go along time without eating sometimes and start to tremor abit, think I'll eat less but often if that helps, thanks for that.
S1ckandT1red
02-09-15, 18:36
Hi ncfcfan85, I felt truly awful when starting on sert.
Still feel like that in the mornings although my evenings have improved.
I too felt spaced out at first but that has also improved.
What dose are you on? If its too much half the dose for a week or 2? I was awful at the start and i only started on 12.5mg! Had all the symptoms everyone is describing and more! The last to go was the morning anxiety and that did take quite a few weeks to subside im afraid. Its worth sticking with it if you can unless you are having severe bowel troubles like a few on here have had. I still get the odd blip lasting a week or so but its managable (anoying) but i'm still working, spending time with my family and going out with mates etc. if you read my story you will see how bad i was before i started sertraline. I was housebound, off work, depressed and thought what was the point in living like this, it does get better honest :-) and things should settle down in time.
Nick
Unfortunately all of the above is normal, I felt absolutely rubbish for atleast a month when starting Sert. I felt disconnected and foggy headed, also had very bad nausea, increased anxiety, sickness, shaking, teeth grinding, hot flushes, headaches, night sweats, nightmares etc, it does get better but does take time. I worked my way up to 150mg but still suffered anxiety in mornings as well as shaking, teeth grinding and night sweats after 4months of bring on the drug.
I've now reduced down to 25mg and will be stopping them in a month or so.
You need a lot of will power and do things to help yourself to get through the first stage, fingers crossed it works for you!
Thanks for the replies, all.
I am on a dosage of 50mcg.
The worst feelings is the intense aching throughout my body - already suffering with fatigue issues and this has been made worse by the Sertraline (at least I believe it is the Sertraline, as I started the increased Thyroxine dose at the same time) and also the feeling of just not being there, my head feels foggy and empty, and I think my vision feels worse :(
I've also noticed my sex drive has rapidly decreased, which I am hoping is something that is just an early side effect? Has anybody else experienced this?
Thanks for providing me with some insight that things do indeed settle down, I just want things to settle instantly as this is an awful feeling. It feels such a struggle to even move my legs. I also do NOT like this teeth grinding, for some reason it just keeps happening.
Does anybody know if it is safe to try herbal remedies such as Nytol when on Sertraline? My sleep has been severely effected since starting Sertraline and I have never tried things like Nytol before, but was thinking of giving it a go. But then I saw on the instructions that it mentions not to take if you are taking any medications for anxiety?
Thanks for any further information.
My psychiatrist told me nytol was fine but not the herbal one. Think its an anti histamine. I was also given sleeping tablets for a while as my sleep at the begining was so bad, they got me a couple of hours sleep but not much more. Gradually my sleep got better as time went on.
Teeth grinding and lack of labido are common tho ive had the complete opposite, my sex drive has gone thru the roof since starting sertraline ha! I didnt have teeth grinding but i used to wake up with awful jaw pain so must have been clenching or grinding in my sleep. Its settled now tho. I also had wierd vision, small wrighting used to be blurred if it was too close to a point i could hardly read what was on my phone, it comes and goes now.
Yeh my sex drive completely went, would go through phases of just feeling numb and no emotion. Now that I've dropped my dose it's all coming back, and my headaches, night sweats and vivid dreams are getting less.
It's a difficult situation to be in, the doctor tells you to increase our dose, but many find that they get increased side effects?
Gav.
Thanks for replies.
Today is a bad day and it must be down to the Sertraline :( my legs feel all seized up and it's SO hard to lift them just to go up the stairs. My joints feel all stiff too. How long does it take these side effects to go away?
I saw the GP this morning and he said I should go upto 175mcg of my thyroxine and he wants to keep me on the 50mcg Sertraline. He explained to me that the way I am feeling is "to be expected" when starting the Sertraline. Except I am not coping at all because I already had fatigue issues and now everything is worse.
I explained that I can't sleep and he said Nytol wouldn't do much and prescribed me something called Pericyazine, 2.5mg, not as a sleeping tablet but for something I should take if I start to feel anxious - but I thought Sertraline should make you feel less anxious, not more anxious!
I totally forgot to mention about the sex drive stuff to my GP. I really hope this isn't a long-term thing?
It's good to hear that sleep improves as time goes on, but I don't know how much longer I can give these tablets to kick in and start working properly. How on earth do you cope?
Yes my vision has noticeably dipped, but I am starting to wonder if it's just because I am incredibly exhausted?? Maybe my eyes are just tired. I don't know. I can't stop yawning!
This is the worst I have felt in a long time and I'll be honest, I'm scared. I am so fed up of feeling this way :(
MissyMischief
04-09-15, 21:55
Thanks for replies.
Today is a bad day and it must be down to the Sertraline :( my legs feel all seized up and it's SO hard to lift them just to go up the stairs. My joints feel all stiff too. How long does it take these side effects to go away?
I saw the GP this morning and he said I should go upto 175mcg of my thyroxine and he wants to keep me on the 50mcg Sertraline. He explained to me that the way I am feeling is "to be expected" when starting the Sertraline. Except I am not coping at all because I already had fatigue issues and now everything is worse.
I explained that I can't sleep and he said Nytol wouldn't do much and prescribed me something called Pericyazine, 2.5mg, not as a sleeping tablet but for something I should take if I start to feel anxious - but I thought Sertraline should make you feel less anxious, not more anxious!
I totally forgot to mention about the sex drive stuff to my GP. I really hope this isn't a long-term thing?
It's good to hear that sleep improves as time goes on, but I don't know how much longer I can give these tablets to kick in and start working properly. How on earth do you cope?
Yes my vision has noticeably dipped, but I am starting to wonder if it's just because I am incredibly exhausted?? Maybe my eyes are just tired. I don't know. I can't stop yawning!
This is the worst I have felt in a long time and I'll be honest, I'm scared. I am so fed up of feeling this way :(
I feel your pain. Starting the medication was awful for me. I started to feel the side effects begin to lift in week 3 and felt quite a bit better by week 4. Then I upped my dose and the side effects came back...but that is another ordeal.
Xanax for the increased anxiety, and a strong family support system are what got me through the worst of it.
Try to hang in there.
helena8888
07-09-15, 04:15
After 2-3 weeks you will start noticing an improvement on the side effects. The first time I started sert it was at 50mg and I know the pain of starting the med at that dosage. I had a very tough time at the begining, was barely able to function but all got better after 2-3 weeks.
Thanks for the replies again. Encouraging to hear that the side effects should pass.
I don't think my mood has been too bad last few days since being on the tablets, but I am still feeling very unusual in myself. I think the worst things still are grinding my teeth (even during the day, I can't seem to stop myself doing it), blurred vision (either down to the medication or my sight has just suddenly worsened!) feeling cold all the time, painful calfs (I keep getting cramp there too) and my loss of sex drive (I have little interest in it and now my girlfriend thinks I don't find her attractive)
I've got doctors again tomorrow morning for a review. I will mention some of these. But they seem no closer to going away :(
S1ckandT1red
10-09-15, 16:00
I know what you mean about feeling very unusual in yourself,I still get that now 8 or 9 weeks in.
It's not so bad when indoors but when I am out it can be disconcerting as it can make me feel vulnerable for want of a better word.
That's a good way of putting it, SickAndTired.
I have also been feeling quite anxious when out and about, but this is subsiding, thankfully.
However, I still feel extremely "woozy" and light in my head at times, get hot and cold flushes, and the teeth grinding is still very very noticeable, I can't stop! Also, I still can't "finish", in a sexual sense :blush:
I'm coming up to 3 weeks usage so hopefully I will start to notice some benefit soon. I'm really struggling in general with exhaustion, not helped by the fact that I am suffering with fatigue issues anyway and they seem heightened by this medication.
Hi, I'm on day 3 (although dropped my dose from 50mg to 25mg from day 2) and feel absolutely shocking. Prescribed for health anxiety and OCD which has crept back up over the last few months. I've had sertraline before (for around 10 months until feb 14) and cannot recall the initial effects being this bad. I am taking diazepam as and when needed but really don't want to become reliant upon it to get me through the day.
little scientist
21-09-15, 10:14
Do try and stick with it if you can - I noticed a real different around week 7 or 8 - I know thats a long time but they do take time to work, and I felt great. I am dealing with stress 10x better than I was before and trust me, I'm under some stress right now!
Let us know how you get on x
Just me again for a small update.
Thanks for all the replies so far. I think I must be at around week 4 now and I am still feeling rotten. The heightened anxiety symptoms seem to have lessened a lot but I feel flat and some days I am really really low. Also the "bedroom problem" still persists, and I *still* cannot stop grinding my teeth for long periods. Also I am almost certain my vision has been significantly effected.
I saw my GP today and he said to keep on with it. But I do feel dreadful.
Just a quick point whilst I am here, was wondering if anybody knows if Vitamin D tablets can cause bad side effects? Basically in August the docs rang me after I had a blood test to check my Vit D levels and told me I was low (30 but should be in 50s or something) and she said to just take a vitamin D tablet daily. I got some and started taking them on Tuesday this week. Ever since then I have noticed I have had a very upset stomach, dreadful diarrhoea and a bad headache. I also ache all over. This has got me in more of a panic, as I feel dreadful enough as it is, without all this. Now it may just be coincidence, but I just wondered what people think? Without going into too much detail, I have literally had to be running to the bathroom on multiple occasions a day :(
S1ckandT1red
25-09-15, 18:31
Sorry I can't help with your Vit D but I felt pretty bad for the first two months, the combined low mood, nausea and heightened anxiety was really bad. The first to go was the nausea and then my mood started to lift. My anxiety I wake with and decreases slowly through the day, but I am coping with it a lot better now I have not felt depressed for a week or so now.
Also at my worst I believed I would never get better but I am better than I was and I believe I will get better still.
Stick with it and take one day at time.
MissyMischief
25-09-15, 22:32
Just me again for a small update.
Thanks for all the replies so far. I think I must be at around week 4 now and I am still feeling rotten. The heightened anxiety symptoms seem to have lessened a lot but I feel flat and some days I am really really low. Also the "bedroom problem" still persists, and I *still* cannot stop grinding my teeth for long periods. Also I am almost certain my vision has been significantly effected.
I saw my GP today and he said to keep on with it. But I do feel dreadful.
Just a quick point whilst I am here, was wondering if anybody knows if Vitamin D tablets can cause bad side effects? Basically in August the docs rang me after I had a blood test to check my Vit D levels and told me I was low (30 but should be in 50s or something) and she said to just take a vitamin D tablet daily. I got some and started taking them on Tuesday this week. Ever since then I have noticed I have had a very upset stomach, dreadful diarrhoea and a bad headache. I also ache all over. This has got me in more of a panic, as I feel dreadful enough as it is, without all this. Now it may just be coincidence, but I just wondered what people think? Without going into too much detail, I have literally had to be running to the bathroom on multiple occasions a day :(
Hi. I also had blood tests and was told my Vitamin D was low. Personally, I don't have a problem stomaching the supplements. I suggest going off them for a few days just to rule out that it's the supplements causing your stomach upset. Also, maybe try a different brand or ask your doctor for a recommended brand....there are so many different ones out there (I take one that's made by my local health food store).
Hi. I also had blood tests and was told my Vitamin D was low. Personally, I don't have a problem stomaching the supplements. I suggest going off them for a few days just to rule out that it's the supplements causing your stomach upset. Also, maybe try a different brand or ask your doctor for a recommended brand....there are so many different ones out there (I take one that's made by my local health food store).
Thanks for the details. I have tried to stop taking them since Friday. I'm still feeling very weird though. I may indeed try a different brand. I used to take the Haliborange chewable ones (A, C and D vitamins) and I never had any problems with them, so may go back to them. Not sure if they are as effective though? My GP actually said the other day that if taking the tablets for Vitamin D continues to make me unwell with stomach upset etc, then "just don't bother taking them" - which is odd considering another GP contacted me a few months ago to tell me my levels in D were low after a blood test.
Sorry I can't help with your Vit D but I felt pretty bad for the first two months, the combined low mood, nausea and heightened anxiety was really bad. The first to go was the nausea and then my mood started to lift. My anxiety I wake with and decreases slowly through the day, but I am coping with it a lot better now I have not felt depressed for a week or so now.
Also at my worst I believed I would never get better but I am better than I was and I believe I will get better still.
Stick with it and take one day at time.
Thanks also for this response. It's good to hear it is working for you. However, I am still feeling very unusual in myself and I am wondering if I need to stop taking this. The biggest problem right now, that I've noticed since starting the sertraline, is by far the teeth grinding. I have not been able to stop, and this is when I am awake - what if it's happening even more in my sleep?? I have never done teeth grinding in my life until starting these tablets so it MUST be down to them. The issue is, I now have severe pain not only in my teeth on the right side (where the grinding takes place) but also in the right side of my jaw and I am worried it has caused me some damage.
The other issues I am having is I just feel very unusual in myself. Unfortunately I don't have a review with my GP until a week on Friday. Did you have any issues with teeth grinding? If so, did it wear off?
Thanks for the details. I have tried to stop taking them since Friday. I'm still feeling very weird though. I may indeed try a different brand. I used to take the Haliborange chewable ones (A, C and D vitamins) and I never had any problems with them, so may go back to them. Not sure if they are as effective though? My GP actually said the other day that if taking the tablets for Vitamin D continues to make me unwell with stomach upset etc, then "just don't bother taking them" - which is odd considering another GP contacted me a few months ago to tell me my levels in D were low after a blood test.
Thanks also for this response. It's good to hear it is working for you. However, I am still feeling very unusual in myself and I am wondering if I need to stop taking this. The biggest problem right now, that I've noticed since starting the sertraline, is by far the teeth grinding. I have not been able to stop, and this is when I am awake - what if it's happening even more in my sleep?? I have never done teeth grinding in my life until starting these tablets so it MUST be down to them. The issue is, I now have severe pain not only in my teeth on the right side (where the grinding takes place) but also in the right side of my jaw and I am worried it has caused me some damage.
The other issues I am having is I just feel very unusual in myself. Unfortunately I don't have a review with my GP until a week on Friday. Did you have any issues with teeth grinding? If so, did it wear off?
In struggling with the teeth grinding too but have to try and be conscious of it as much as I can to stop myself from doing it. I've had quite a lot of dental work done in past (ie Veneers on four teeth) and don't want to damage them. I do think however that a bit of jaw ache is a small price to pay for hopefully reducing my anxiety.
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