dose too high?

[slowfish]

Hi

I started on 50mg sertraline in August and in early December after still not feeling any better the dose was upped to 150mg. If anything I've felt worse over the past two months - could it be that 150mg is actually too high a dose?

I also gave up smoking a month ago and I realise that this would have affected my brain chemistry.

Should I just stick with the 150mg for the time being?

Thanks

[unspoken]

Hi, I've found that at 50mg and 100mg, Sertraline prevents me feeling depressed fairly well. However at 100mg and 150mg, I found it eventually seemed to make my anxiety worse as I wasn't sleeping well and had a lot of trouble with eating. If it's not making you feel better at 150mg, I'd suggest speaking to the doctor who prescribed it, as RainbowGirl said. You might be better trying something else. Quitting smoking (congratulations by the way) may have altered your brain chemistry and may be making you feel worse.

I'm currently taking Mirtazapine 15mg and Sertraline 50mg and I feel more stable than I have done in months - the Sertraline seems to work for my depression and the Mirtazapine is helping me to sleep and eat and slowing down the nervous energy I get from anxiety. There are many different medication options out there and it may be that Sertraline isn't the right one for you.

[Consider]

150mg is a bit of a leap, isn't it? He should've went to 75mg, then 100mg, you leaped too quick, too fast in dosage. Not your fault, though, as the doctor who prescribed you it, took a shot in the dark thinking it was the best decision. It wasn't. I would first, before giving up, talk to your doctor, convince him to go down to 100mg, then stay, if you manage it, stick with it. If not, go down to 75mg, slowly.

I am not a doctor by any means, but by personal experience, do not up the dose that quick, the side effects are 10x more harsh that way.

[MyNameIsTerry]

I agree with Consider, that jump is far too high.

Something GP's are keen on is upping doses even when you feel ok on a current dose. Maybe your GP is like this in that they seek to put people on what they believe to be the correct therapeutic dose rather than listen to the patient? So, he jumped over the other doses?

I really think you should talk to them and reduce the dose and see how you are then. You may need to increase again but to a lower level than this.