Sertraline and any other ADs support thread

[hathorinareddress]

Following on from a suggestion by LittleWhiteMice on a thread I have going on here, I am starting a support thread for anyone taking Sertraline or any other AD.

I started taking it yesterday after eventually plucking up the courage to go to the doc on Thursday.

I feel a bit weird but not too bad.

Am off to get dinner sorted and have my massage at 7pm, so probably won't post again today (will do if I get half a chance though), but I hope you are keeping your chin up . I will be on tomorrow. Yake care til then OP{{hugs}}.

so a miracle happened I went to bed last night and slept all night woke up about 6.20am tried to go back to sleep but couldn't, which has never happened normally I wake about 7.30am with my alarm clock and snooze till I'm nearly late then I'm knackered all day till about 7pm and bang awake, today was a different matter woke up and was out of bed for 6.33am never ever been known, stayed alert and awake all day again never been known. Took my 50mg tablet tonight at about 4pm and now tired not a crushing tiredness like last night just drowsy, hopefully I'll get a good nights sleep like last night as I have a driving lesson tomorrow, tbh this is working faster than I thought it would or is it just the placebo effect?

Finding it very hard to tolerate people at the moment. Especially friends. Literally no patience with anyone and feeling very very irritable.
Kind of want to hibernate for a while, ok I know the cold weather doesn't help, but going places and seeing people is setting me right on edge.
And god help me if someone texts or rings me. I'm literally screaming at the phone ready to throw it out of the window. help.. Surely this isn't normal behaviour??

How are you feeling today Stars? Do you feel any better today and not as irritable after some sleep? You should go see your GP about the irritability because if it's one of the side effects, then it's not a very nice one and certainly one that people will want to tolerate for too long.

Can you see your GP and ask if there are any other's you can try, that may not have as many side effects?

Sounds like you sleep was disrupted and possible went back to some kind of routine Trinn. It could well be just the AD kicking in.

You know, sometimes it takes disrupted sleep to really appreciate how good it feels to have a good restful, peaceful night and wake up refreshed.

I'm on 25mg Amitriptyline at night and I can't tell you how good it feels to get a full night's sleep without waking up at stupid O'clock.

Good morning Magenta. How are you this morning? I hope you're feeling a bit better today.

Well, I hate to love you and leave you ladies, but I'll have to get myself ready to go to college for my ritual of coffee before class. I'll be back on MN just after teatime and will be on most of tomorrow due to it being my day off.

Anyway, take care ladies and I will be back later.

Hi trinn it sounds like the ads kicking in - I always found they were like a smart drug sorting out so many aspects of my life.

Uptothestars sorry to hear it you are brave to come on here and talk about it when you feel at your worst I hope u feel better soon. are you on ads?

Hello packitin now I like that you are so active on this thread we tend to go a bit quiet understandably given our troubles.

I quit fluoxetine in august cause preg and am finally feeling so much better just sort of not desperate and not irritable and able to enjoy small pleasures. Any major stress and I'm still pretty bad. Not able to deal with minor stresses as charmingly as I could when on ads but can deal with them.

Four months of hell to get to this state which I do think is vaguely tolerable though I miss my enhanced alert state on fluox

Xxx

Not feeling up to posting much but am checking in everyday, thinking of everyone hope today is a good day xx

Sorry to hear you're not in a great way Somewhere, but I will say that you should keep your chin up. Why don't you take the time to sit down when the kid(s) are in bed (if you have any) and watch a really stupidly funny comedy like Mr Bean or something you like. I especially like the Christmas one where he loses his watch inside the Xmas bird and ends up with the turkey stuck on his head LOL. I suggested the comedy because having a good laugh can make you feel like life isn't so bad.

I have found that the problem with depression, is that we seem to dwell on the negative things in life. We need to keep reminding ourselves that there are also good things happening in life too.

One thing I have found that works for me, and please feel free to try it if you want, is when I have a bad day/feel depressed, I take a minute or two out to think of people worse off than myself or think of something really comical that happened to my kids. It brings a smile across my face and I realise that life isn't really all that bad. It also helps knowing that

Bugger. Pressed "post message" before finishing the sentence. Meant to say that it also helps knowing that the good things can be something really simple, such as a walk in the fresh air, and I always make sure I go for walk every day.

Just checking in, hope everyone's ok

Good morning Susie. How are you today? Are you feeling a bit better from the last time you posted?

Hello. Started tabs on wednesday evening. I feel very sick and moderately drunk which is really horrible-keep crashing into things. Everything seems to happen in slow motions which is also realy disconcerting-are these normal side effects. I didn't want to read the info as I don't want to pre-empt anything. I don't want to be on meds-tis a last resort as so tired and want to feel better for the children and not be an irritable mum!

Don't worry Turned. Even if your sypmtoms aren't a known side effect, make sure you speak to your GP about them so they can be put on the leaflets.

Saying that, it may help to read the listed side effects so you know whether it's to be expected or not. That way you can manage themby yourself or with the help of your GP.

I didn't want to take the Amitriptyline I was prescribed, but I suppose it was better to take them as they helped my back pain and lifted my mood too. I eventually took them and deliberating for a couple of days, but I haven't looked back since.

Anyway, am off to bed as the AD has kicked in and made me drowsy, so will bid you ladies a good night and will be back in the morning. Good night and take care .

That was meant to be after deliberating. May as well fall asleep on the keyboard LOL.

somewhere not brave..just stupid! Ad's seem to be working in other areas, just so irritable at times.

packitinnow don't think I could handle another change in medication. Been on these ones nearly a year now. Not seen gp in a while though. Making do with the medication I stored up a while ago.

hope everyone is ok

i may be late to this but im marking a place to read later - im starting sertraline tonight again after a failed attempt at it in the summer.

50mg dose - it made me feel quite sick and spacy last time so im attempting to take it again while im signed off sick with something else.

im actually really worrying now about taking them.....how long are the side effects meant to last for?

i chickened out very quickly last time but i couldnt work on them, i just felt horribly sick and spaced out - im hoping that within the week i have left off work the side effects might wear off?

vicar I have just started taking sertraline I started on 25mg for one week and have now had a week on 50mg, nausea is a problem but starting on the lower dose and taking it with a small snack about an hour before bed has helped me get used to it.

I have no advice about the Sertraline as I've never been on them before, but if they're anything like Amitriptyline, then like susiedaisy says, maybe it'll be better to have a small snack when taking it.

I have to take my AD around teatime because if I take it at bedtime, I'd be sleepwalking around college until home time.

I have noticed that having something to eat when taking any tablet seems to reduce the nausea a bit.

thanks for the advice - i will try that tonight and see how i go. Last time i tried it i gave up after a few doses as i could not cope with the nausea and whoozyness.....felt absolutely terrible and knew i could not go to work like that. i just dont want to miss an opportunity to feel better and if i can get over the worst effects while im already off then i want to try.

I started on 50mg yesterday.. I've had them for 2 weeks but only just struck up the nerve to take them.

No side effects so far.

I just want to feel normal again.

im debating whether to take mine with my evening meal or not, i usually dont really eat anything later on, but im really dreading the nausea, that said i dont have much of an appetite anyway, and i think im just going to have a sandwich. i might brave it and then if i feel really pukey i can go to bed. im trying not to be too negative but i know how it left me feeling last time and i didnt dare take another.....ill let you know how i get on.

well i took mine around an hour ago and already feeling that horrible whoozy, light headed feeling.

im trying not to think about it too much, but ive no idea how im going to time this stuff when im back working the weird and wonderful shift pattern i have to do.

hey ho. at least i might get an early night tonight. im finding it quite hard to focus and ive involuntarily bitten my tongue

If nothing else Vicar, eating something should ease the nausea and even if you vomit, you'll have something to throw up. If you are finding it hard to cope with the nausea, go back to your GP and ask for another AD or maybe another type of treatment.

The best thing I did was to let my tutors know what I was taking and that it may take me to be off sick for a bit before I am well enough to come back.

Fortunately I was a little light-headed only for a couple of days and was back at college in no time at all.