Positive experiences of sertraline?

[Laurap25]

Ive been suffering from depression & anxiety for most of my life, it's been particularly bad these past 5 years, I've been so reluctant to go on antidepressants I've been trying everything, like herbal remedies, hormone balancing vitamins, nothing is working. My doctor prescribed me sertraline 50mg a few months ago, I tried them for around a week but the side effects were terrible, I couldn't stick them. I'm at a point now where i need to do something, I can't live my life like this anymore, I've started the sertraline agian but I've cut the tablet in half to make it 25mg, hoping that the side effects won't be as bad. I'm on it 2 days now and I feel awful, my anxiety is through the roof. How long will this last? I'm reading reviews on line and they are quite mixed so i was looking for some people's positive experiences to give me hope! I'm determined to stick it out this time because I need something to change

Another one who found it made things worse before getting better, but 6 months in and they've been a great help. My GP saw how anxious I was about starting them and said I could take 25mg (half tablet) for 2 weeks to ease in - this helped me psychologically. I was also prescribed a few low dose valium to take alongside initially if needed, as the sertraline can make you feel more anxious at first. Still having the incredibly vivid dreams though, but overall feeling much better.

Lauraap25 what did the doc say? Did he put u up to 50mg? So today was day 5 for me and I actually felt ok apart from the odd weird few mins here and there. I'm praying it only gets better and I'm not in for a bad day tomorrow x

Hi all am new around here. Did you all get bad side effects again when you uped your your dose. Gp uped me last night and I feel awful today already. Almost like I did at the start. Will it take weeks to settle again. Thanks

Well as i expected my doctor put me on 50mg yesterday. Took my first one last night before bed. This morning I feel a bit spaced out, anxiety is bad again. Just got that feeling like something really bad is going to happen. I know it's all in my head. Cant wait till I start feeling normal again. Its been a long time

Hi all, I am now a week and a half into sertraline. Still feeling anxious in the mornings but better in the afternoons. I am still waking up in the night (I do eventually get back to sleep) but I'm not sure if that's the meds or my stress. Hope everyone is doing ok

I felt relief within days.
It saved me and I can't live a happy life without them, sad but they really did save my life.

Morning all, I’m just popping in to hopefully offer some reassurance as when I started my tablets I spent so much time trawling threads hoping to find something to make me feel better. Im on day 19 of 50mg sertraline and also 40mg propranolol which was 3 times a day but now twice a day. I feel so much better, I am sleeping through the night again and no vivid dreams. For the first ten days or so I felt spaced out, sick, no appetite and heightened anxiety which is why I was given the propranolol. I have found work and keeping busy really helpful, as watching tv and trying to relax just wasn’t working, I was so anxious I’d have to get straight back out of a bath because my brain wouldn’t let me relax. It does get so much better, hang in there and you will soon start to see some changes.

2 weeks of hell followed by blissful relief. Wish I’d tried it earlier

Sertraline is fine to cut in half. Many of my clients have 75mg which involves pill cutting. Sertraline pills often has a line down the middle making it easy to break in two

25mg is a young persons dose and can be helpful for adults also. 50mg is usually the lowest adult dose

Hi OP,

Sorry you’ve been having these side effects. I was put on 50mg Sertraline for anxiety a few months ago and was super lucky in that I didn’t get any side effects. What I do know is that it’s made a phenomenal difference to my life- my general day to day anxiety has been significantly reduced and I feel so much calmer now.

I know friends have suffered the side effects but say after a week they have disappeared and it was worth bearing through them.

Good luck OP.

These are all very helpful messages to read on a jittery morning! Thanks everyone, hope this helps you too OP.
Everybodylovesablankie I know exactly what you mean, the bath is normally my safe space but I have felt so anxious in it I've had to get out too. Really hoping the next couple of weeks settle for me and the others here.

I'm day 8 into it now and definitely feeling better than those first 4 days. Still jittery and spaced out at times. I'm hoping I'm through the worst. I do find I feel worse in the morning than in the afternoon and evening. Could be because I take my tablets at night? I couldn't bare the nausea that came with the first one I took in the morning. Can't wait to feel normal though x

I promise it does get better! The first few weeks I felt rough - just extremely tired etc. But they made me feel so much better slowly but gradually. I eventually went up to 100mg, but for the last 5 years been on 50mg. It's my therapeutic dose. I still have my ups and downs, but as my GP explained, they are 'normal' ups and downs, Setralline makes them 'normal'. Stick with it, it will get better!! I take mine in the morning when I get up (as I will forget otherwise). I just don't think about it, I just pop it and get on with my day. Good luck and keep well!

I started taking them 6 weeks ago for PND and they have really helped. The first week they actually made my anxiety worse and I felt quite sick at some points. I also had really vivid dreams but found that taking the tablet after dinner rather than right before bed helped. It also helped me feel less sick as i had something in my stomach. The dreams were weird but actually helped me figure out some of the sources of anxiety. I had a horrible dream that my stomach was full of worms. Thinking about it i was stressed that I kept forgetting to flea and worm the cat but that really sparked me into action! I was also a little worried I might be pregnant - I wasn't. Keep going and please take the prescribed dose in the prescribed away as this is when medication works best.

I started again yesterday morning.

Was first on Sertraline Sept 2015 and worked up to 150mg from 50mg over 4 months and stayed on that till April 2017.

Realised Wed past that I was having anxiety attacks and needed to get back on them. Only stopped cause I felt back to normal and stress free.

Started yesterday at 8am and half tablet as had a meeting yesterday afternoon and will take the same this morning as have another meeting this afternoon.
Not back into work until Wed so will take a 50mg as of Saturday morning.
Side effects so far; started the big yawns at 2pm yesterday, didn't fall asleep until past 3am and this morning I have a slightly achy jaw due to the yawning.

Not looking forward to the extreme tiredness I got the last time.

Good to see some more positive stories 👍
Cabininthewoods2016 - did the extreme tiredness leave you?
I'm two weeks into taking Sertraline in the morning and I do feel quite tired around midday. I could sleep now.
I've had a good couple of days but today have hit a really low mood which might be PMS related. It's hard not to feel disappointed and like the sertraline isn't working.

I only felt tired in the afternoon if I was not active, usually about 2pm if at work I coped much better than when I was lying about the house it was driving that worried me as I felt spaced out. Trying to not do any unnecessary driving until more settled.

Verytired2019 the docs told me it could be about 4 weeks before we think they are working. I'm about 10 days in. And I think the horrible side effects r slowly going. My tiredness is in the morning but then I take the tablet at night?!?

Yes cabin, I've noticed the same, if I am busy I can manage the tiredness but if I'm at home I can't keep my eyes open.

Sienna, I take mine in the morning as they affected my sleep at the beginning. I don't think I'm experiencing too many side effects at the moment, more like my mood hasn't lifted yet.

Hope we can keep chatting here

I had a really rough day today, just feel constantly tired, my body feels so tired like I've just run a marathon! Still having tummy aches and like an indigestion feeling? Has anyone else had that? Haven't seen that mentioned. I'm only on day 4 of the 50mg so just need to stick it out. Its bloody hard though. I feel like the worst mum too, I'm finding it so hard to show interest in the things my kids are talking to me about, getting headaches so I'm taking paracetamol everyday, I don't think that's healthy but I need something to get rid of the headaches. Sorry for being such a downer amongst all these uplifting comments, hopefully I can come on soon and say I'm feeling better

Paracetamol everyday for me too about 6pm and then I am good for the evening

Laurap25 I felt absolutely horrendous for the first 4 days of 50mg anti am taking at night. I'd wake up feeling so hangover and sick and it would last all day. Thankfully as the days have gone on it's getting less and less. I think those first few days you just had to persevere and get through :( you can do it x

Hi Laura, I find that anxiety gives me indigestion anyway so I haven't noticed anymore. I think I swallow a lot of air which gives me weird burps.
I'm a week into taking 50mg and have had a rough night, couldn't get back to sleep but couldn't keep my eyes open. I just laid in a weird limbo with racing thoughts. And that's after a couple of good days of sleeping.

Also Laura, I know what you mean re the kids. I feel so flat or elsewhere in my head that I don't feel 'present' and can't muster any excitement. It's not a nice feeling.

Just realised that the Sertraline tablets I have are 100mg. So the past two days I have been taking 50mg (Was half a tablet) and this morning I have just taken a 100mg. shit shit shit!

Don't have to go anywhere today and glad I checked before tomorrow.

This should be interesting