New symptom of diarrhea at week 7 sertraline 150mg

[PumpkinSpicedLatte]

Hi everyone,

This is my first post, nice to find a community that shares similar experiences as me.

I think the topic of having diarrhea on sertraline has been raised already but I'm a bit baffled as to why this side effect has developed at week 7 of raising my dose from 100mg to 150mg

I have been on various antidepressants for 12 years. Sertraline was the one I started on when I was a teenager and I remember having diarrhea at the beginning but it got better.

Now 12 years later I have this problem seemingly out of the blue. I went to my doctor yesterday but she said I was probably drinking too much caffeine and not eating enough (true) but now I'm worried I'm going to keep having diarrhea anyway.

I have read on the internet that some people have claimed sertraline caused microscopic colitis, a stomach condition (at about week 6). Obviously this is a concern for me as I don't want stomach problems.

I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced sudden diarrhea after a couple of months antidepressant use? After previously been fine? (I had no diarrhea at 100 mg)

Has anyone had this but eventually got better? I don't want to change my dose as it's the first time in years I feel happier. Even at 100mg I felt apathetic and had continual dread. Is 7 weeks too early to judge?

Hope someone can help x

[MissyMischief]

Hi and Welcome PumpinSpicedLatte,

My best guess is that it's probably your diet at this point. I know caffeine always used to mess up my tummy. Maybe try a few days of healthier foods and no caffeine and see how it goes.

Take care!

[PumpkinSpicedLatte]

Hi Genoire,

Thank you for replying. I think you're right that my diet hasn't helped my stomach problems so far. The sertraline has made my appetite decrease (I have read for lots of people it has the opposite effect and it makes them crave food).

Caffeine has been a bit of a habit of mine (hence my username!) I'm a bit addicted to sugar, caffeine and binge drink weekly. I'm not that good at having proper meals (I had OCD and an ED growing up).

I have a doctor's appointment in a month so I'm sticking out the 150mg dose until then...

I'm going to do some experiments to see if I can 'line' my stomach from the meds. Today I took my calcium tablets (I have brittle bone disease and depression made me not bothered about taking them).

I'm also popping immodium which I used to do quite often because of anxiety at work and hangovers. My liver probably isn't thanking me!

But most importantly I'll have a think about which foods I can manage.

If anyone has tips about helping stomachs cope with pills, I'd love to hear!

Thanks xx :blush:

[wareing77]

Hey! What time do you take it? I was taking mine on waking but was getting bad stomachs/diorhea so started taking it later and having at least a couple of slices of toast and a banana before taking it and it improved dramatically by having some food in my stomach.
They say drinking alcohol is allpwed with sertraline but it makes my stomach a bit funny so i only drink on occasion now and perhaps only a couple. I also dont have any caffine as alot of people post that they are worse after with the shakes, anxiety, etc.

When my appetite was bad at the begining i lived off pasta, rice, toast and bananas!!

[ricardo]

Drink a glass of hot water with squeezed lemon juice first thing in the morning before any coffee or food. It will clear out all toxins and it is very good for you.

[wareing77]

Might give that a go myself, thanks ricardo :-)

Nick

[PumpkinSpicedLatte]

Hey! What time do you take it? I was taking mine on waking but was getting bad stomachs/diorhea so started taking it later and having at least a couple of slices of toast and a banana before taking it and it improved dramatically by having some food in my stomach.
They say drinking alcohol is allpwed with sertraline but it makes my stomach a bit funny so i only drink on occasion now and perhaps only a couple. I also dont have any caffine as alot of people post that they are worse after with the shakes, anxiety, etc.

When my appetite was bad at the begining i lived off pasta, rice, toast and bananas!!

Thanks for replying Wareing77,

I normally take my pills around mid day. I take 150 sertraline and often on just toast plus 2 cups of tea but not much else. Today I didn't have caffeine and just had a sandwich before taking and didn't have any symptoms of diarrhea (did take immodium day before) but I do think lack of caffeine helped.

I think when I started on antidepressants 12 years ago I took it in the evening after small meal.

I'm going to consciously think about my stomach before taking instead of rushing. Bread and bananas have been a good staple so far for helping hunger/upset stomach while being off food. :blush:

---------- Post added at 22:29 ---------- Previous post was at 22:26 ----------


Drink a glass of hot water with squeezed lemon juice first thing in the morning before any coffee or food. It will clear out all toxins and it is very good for you.

Thank you Ricardo,

I am definitely willing to give this a try especially if my stomach feels tired and fatigued from pills and caffeine. Need to think about a better diet for my tummy. :blush:

[MadWomanintheAttik]

I don't know if any of you still post on here but Candy's adventures on sertraline have been helping me for the past couple of days.

I've been on sertraline 100mg for about 13 years and I finally decided that it had stopped working when my panic attacks began to return with a vengeance. I saw a psychiatrist who said that I should try 150mg to see if that helps.

Thus far, the panic attacks have gone away, well, not completely, but enough to where I'm not entirely frightened of them anymore. But I've noticed other side effects that are driving me nuts.

I've been on the increased dosage of 150mg for about 6 weeks now. The first week was god awful, the 2nd week was ok, and the third and fourth and fifth weeks were great.

Six weeks in and I'm really struggling. I feel very tired throughout the day, especially in the evening. I'm constantly thinking negative thoughts, like it's difficult for me to see the positive in any situation that I am in. I'm usually an upbeat and rather positive person, so I know this is due to the increased dose.

I also feel quite dizzy sometimes, and my head feels very heavy. Sometimes I find myself zoning out and have to force myself out of it. I also notice that when I take it in the morning, it makes me jittery and jumpy, however, by the afternoon this usually goes away.

I told my psychiatrist about it and she has told me that I should try 100 mg in the morning and 50 mg at night. I'm a little worried as to how it's going to effect my sleep.

The increased dosage is working on some level, I was able to take a multivitamin that I would have been too scared to take just a month or two ago (health anxiety, panic attacks, always feel like something is physically wrong with me, monitor all of my symptoms and any change in my body, etc.)

So I guess I am posting here just for reassurance and also to help others as well.

My psychiatrist did give me some Xanax to take just in case I have a bad panic attack. I've never taken them before and I'd probably be too scared to take one even if I really needed to. Sometimes just knowing they're there helps though..

Thanks for reading.