Here come the questions... Sertraline - Morning or Night?

[Dazza123]

So, I have my Sertraline and am ready to take it.

When I take an SSRI I usually start to feel weird within a few hours, and then it gets worse.

So, If I take it at night, will I possibly bypass some of the worse side effects? I have 4x5mg Diazepam tablets to take throughout the day, so fingers crossed that keeps most of the extra anxiety at bay.

Also, as its a 'pick me up' is it likely to stop me from sleeping if taken at night, and am I likely to be up early due to my brain wanting some stimulation?

[Tufty]

Hi Dazza,

I started taking Sertraline 22 days ago. As I've also had problems with other SSRI's I started at an ultra low dose, I have 50mg tablets which I broke in half and took half of that so just 12.5mg for a week then I increased to 25mg which I am currently taking.

I take them at night, although they can cause insomnia I take them just before I get into bed so they haven't had chance to work before I drop off. So far they haven't caused early morning waking though I don't sleep as peacefully as normal, I half wake a couple of times in the night but easily get back to sleep.

They have caused some increase in anxiety but not the crazy amount that Prozac caused. It's still early days and I'm struggling but I'd be happy to swap Sertraline progress posts with you and help support you through the start up.

Sam

[Dazza123]

Thanks Sam, I'm not sure what to do yet, I dont really want any disturbed sleep cos my sleep isn't great as it is. Maybe I will take them in the morning, I've got the diazepam to help me and am hoping 20mg over the day is enough to take the edge off. If it isn't I will just try and sleep it off I think. I'm dreading taking them but hope they work, and soon.

I will be interested to hear how you get on.

---------- Post added at 23:14 ---------- Previous post was at 22:43 ----------

Oh well, I changed my mind and thought id just go for it, so just taken one. Off to bed shortly, hope I feel ok tomorrow, keeping my fingers crossed

[skoosh1]

Hi Dazza, I take mine in the morning as don't sleep well either & I feel it gives me more energy through the day so don't want to take them at night just incase.

Thats enough valium you have as the doc only gave me 2mg and that helps with the side effects. I try and take on before bed as it helps me sleep but now I'm nearly out of them and begining to panic!

Hope it goes well for you as I've been on Sert for 31 days now and do feel a difference.

[strat61]

HI Skoosh,what dose of Sertraline are you on?

Cheers for now

Strat

[Dazza123]

Well I had 7 hours sleep so not bad, feel pretty odd today, have a headache, aching, the anxiety, tho diazepam is keeping it slightly lower. On my third now, and will take the fourth later tonight then pop another sertraline before bed. I hope the bad effects wear off soon and I can start to feel some benefits. It's like my brain is telling me something isn't right, but just need to keep it up and it'll get better.

I couldn't manage on 2mg, ssri's are hell for me so I had to demand a strong dose to stop me feeling like I'm going insane, which is what usually happens when I take similar tablets.

Glad you are feeling better, hope I get to where you are quickly.

[Tufty]

Well done Dazza, those effects sound about right, I know the Sertraline is doing something to my brain but I'm just not sure what What dose did you start on?
Take care
Sam

[Dazza123]

Hi Sam,

I went straight in at 50mg, feel awful at the moment, diazepam isn't doing a lot. I just have to trust that the nasty effects will wear off at some point, and hope it's soon. How are you feeling at this point?

[Laheed]

Hi Dazza,

I am on day 23 of 50mg of Setraline. Don't worry, the side effects only last a week and tail off towards the end of that too. The first few days are the worst. I am on them for anxiety although I'm quite weird in that the only thing - when I'm good - I get anxious about is sleep, because I have terrible insomnia. This is almost post-traumatic in that my first anxiety attack kept me away for 5 days. I only get really bad anxiety when I am really bad, and depression too.

For me, I found the side-effects quite easy to deal with. They felt like mild doses of the recreational drug ecstacy, which I used to take quite a lot when I was younger. So I was fine with that. I had Zopiclone to help me sleep and as my sleeping was a mess anyway, I couldn't tell you if they had an effect. Definitely take them in the morning if insomnia is a concern though, because for me it only took about 1-2 hours on the first day for me to feel pretty awake.

The third week of Setraline felt brilliant and I started sleeping well.

I should say that the last few days I had an enormous spiral into depression and full-blown anxiety. However, I am not putting this down to the Setraline and will continue on them as I don't think the week before can have been a Placebo. Basically I got drunk for the first time and that sent me into a bit of a downward spiral. I cannot advise you more strongly not to get drunk - I only had three pints of Guinness - and it sent me haywire. Side effects also returned. Also, I have severe perfectionism issues, so when I have a bad day I tend to spiral and I refused to take Zopiclone, which only made things worse. I have finally begun to calm down, have made my peace with Zopiclone and the Sertraline journey continues...

Don't fear the side effects - especially if you have valium to help. They go away. And don't drink!

[Dazza123]

Thanks for that info Laheed, that gives me some hope, the side effects even with diazepam are pretty rough, but if there is a chance they could ease soon then I'm happy.

No worries about getting drunk, I drink tea or water so no worries there!!

I am going to try to keep taking them at night for now and see how it affects my sleep, I have zopiclone here just in case, and the diazepam should help me sleep a little I hope.

Nice to hear some good stories, hope you continue to get well, and stay off the beer!