Sertraline - going from 50mg to 100mg - positive stories only please

[Belle82]

I have been on sertraline for 5 weeks, I spoke to the doctor yesterday and she advised going up to 75mg and perhaps 100mg if I don't feel any "better" after that.

I am curious, if you are on sertraline, which dose worked for you?
I know it works differently for everyone but trying to get some encouragement that there is a possibility it might help at a higher dose.

Thank you❤

[Zone2NorthLondon]

50mg is the minimum.The recommended starting dose is 50mg and if that’s not a therapeutic dose it can be increased. Everyone is different and plenty folk are on higher doses up to 200mg. I’ve had patients on much higher than 50mg and they’re working,parenting, doing their thing and are well. Staying well in community

[Lwren]

Hello fellow sertraline Queen!
I am a 200mg one myself after going up gradually and I'm probably happier than I've ever been. You'll get a sweet spot and hopefully you'll be back to living your life without the black clouds over you.
Always recommend taking it of a morning as it can fuck sleeping, not everyone finds that but some do.
Good luck and if you've any specific questions ask away x

[FantasticMax]

I’m on 100mg - it’s really helped my anxiety and I feel like myself again. I didn’t notice any adverse affects moving from 50mg to 100mg, but I know that 50mg wasn’t enough.

[NurseInTraining]

I'm a student mental health nurse. Sertraline is a really common antidepressant for GPs to prescribe. I asked a psychiatrist why so many people on the ward I was on placement on were on sertraline and he said that it tended to be the first antidepressant that GPs try as it is generally well tolerated and works well.

Most people will need a higher dose than the starting dose, almost all antidepressants start on a dose below the therapeutic dose as it helps reduce side effects while the body adjusts to it.

I took sertraline for a while about ten years ago. I did have side effects every time the dose was increased but these only lasted for about two days before fading.

If you do get side effects when the dose is increased then don't be afraid of telling your doctor as they can often give you medication (most likely just needed short term) to combat these - don't feel you need to suffer.

You might find that even at the highest dose you don't feel the benefit. Again don't be afraid to tell your doctor this as they can try something else.

The maximum dose of sertraline is 200mg so you may find that you need a few increases to find the right dose for you, don't worry if this is the case, it is totally normal and is depended on genetics, body mass etc.

Be patient, sometimes it takes time to find the right dose. Good luck and well done, asking for help is the hardest step and you have already done this.

[Uni68]

I was on 200mg. I have OCD but came off meds after dad died. I found my side effects reduced as well as symptoms of OCD the higher the dose I took. It’s just about finding the right balance.

[Fluffluff]

I went straight from 50mg to 100mg and had no side effects.
I did have bad nausea and insomnia for weeks on the 50mg but no return when I went up to 100mg.

Best of luck

[Evvyjb]

I am on 200mg pretty much permanently. Have been on 250mg + others previously. Sertraline has saved my life and I cannot speak highly enough of it.

[Motherland2624]

200mg here It’s great lol I’d rather have no emotions than having a mental breakdown over everything I’m happy

[Hibye23289]

I went from 50mg to 100mg, I have been on them for around 3 months, I feel like they have took a while to work but these weeks I do feel good and naturally more smiley which is what i wanted

[Belle82]

Thank you so much.
I really needed to hear this feedback, ❤

[sagalooshoe]

They take at least 12 weeks to fully kick in so I would wait before increasing as you may end up on higher dose than you need.

[OneFrenchEgg]

My 13 year old is on 200mg - it's been life saving. I took 50mg and it was good. No side effects for my child aside from yawning (still) and diarrhoea initially.

[Belle82]

Thank you so much to you all.
I have gone up to 75mg, initial high for the first few days now I'm hitting the side effects, nausea and massive tiredness, but I will try to push past them like I did last time.

[MynameisTuesday]

@Belle82 Good luck. I'm about to got up to 75 too but don't feel I'm stable on 50 yet so hanging back a little while longer

[Ihatecocomelon]

Max dose of 200mg and I'm fine, no worries don't lose my temper and get upset.

[Notimeforaname]

I am just wondering if anyone has ever started on 150mg?
That's what doctor did with my partner a couple years ago.
He was given 150mg straight off the bat having never taken antidepressants before and was told to take it alongside a sleeping tablet from the first day, even though he didn't have sleep issues.
It turned him into a different person for a few weeks he was abusing the sleeping tablets too...and he ended up weaning himself off them as the doctor wouldn't reply to him.

I'm just wondering if any of that was normal because I hear people saying it helped them so much but never hear of anyone starting on such a high dose and with sleeping pills.
It's a time we'd like to forget but partner sometimes will bring it up and say he doesn't understand if that was normal or not.

[Notimeforaname]

Weaned himself of the antidepressants and the sleeping tablets*

[Notimeforaname]

Off*
Christ in a cartoon 🙄

[Angela7741]

I love Sertraline

[FarmGirl78]

@Notimeforaname It's impossible to tell whether that was right for your husband without having full knowledge of his medical history, current conditions, what he was going through at the time, along with a hefty chunk of medical and pharmacological knowledge. While it's not normal or typical there adequate reasons why it might have been deemed utterly necessary. Given it was also signed off and dispensed by a Pharmacist I wouldn't automatically assume it was wrong. The sleeping pills were likely to combat the expected disturbed sleep from starting in that dose.

[KreedKafer]

I’m on 100mg. Started on 50mg and then went up to 100mg fairly early on I think. It definitely helped and I didn’t get any additional side effects from increasing it.

[Sparklybutold]

@Belle82 my increase meant I stopped crying and obsessing over suicide.

[madeindevon2]

can I ask a few questions about taking Sertraline?
What are the most common side effects?
Do you get more sleepy generally?
Does it help with anger issues?
What are the guidelines about having alcohol?
Thanks in advance

[ssd]

I tried setraline a few years ago. My main issue was health anxiety. The first couple of days i really noticed a difference. Then i started bleeding, which i hadn't done for years. This set my health anxiety right up. Dr advised me to stop setraline immediately. I am too scared to try another tablet incase the bleeding returns.

I dont know anyone else who had this side effect.