Sertraline relapse

[irrationalrainbow]

I was on sertraline for 3 years then felt like I didn't need them anymore went off them then 3 months later I'm having irrational thoughts fears that are out of my control and extreme anxiety I can't eat or sleep been back to the doctors and he's put me back on but at 50mg how long till I feel normal I want to enjoy Christmas

Did you come off then suddenly or gradually? There is such a thing as rebound anxiety if you had been taking them a long while and stopped abruptly. The usual advice is that they take 6-8 weeks to work but in my experience it was a gradual thing not an overnight 'yey'!. I also found that, whilst the drugs helped, I also had to do self help which for me involved more exercise, eating better and prioritising sleep. It sounds so simple but it really does work.

I weaned myself off them 14 weeks ago and now I'm in a terrible state worrying about death and thinking something catastrophic is going to happen

I'm still feeling crappy and an anxious mess been upped to 150mg I need these horrible thoughts to go away I can't remember how I was the last time I was on these I don't know if I was as anxious as this after 3 weeks and I can't stop catastrophizing

Try not to think about what it was like last time, let the drugs do their work, and in the meantime, hard though it is, try and stop the rumination and the catastrophic thinking, allow your brain to focus on happier and calmer things and create new neural pathways and habits for it to follow. You will get there. X

Umbongo are you on sertraline did it help?

Yes I was, and technically still am on sertraline, I've been taking it nearly four years now but have very very very slowly cut down and am now only on 12.5mg which is obviously sub-clinical. I was up to 100mg at one point. I think it did really help me although as I said originally there was no magic moment, it was a very gradual transition. And I still have blips now - and lord knows it's so easy to slide down the rabbit hole of panicking about it and ruminating - and it takes effort to get out of it - but it can be done. My own personal view (and I'm open to challenge) is that drugs alone will not solve the issue, an individual has to work at their own mental health themselves also, and each will have their own ways of doing that. For me, exercise and sleep are my mainstay, but it may be different for you. It's also so important, for now when you're in the midst of unfathomable panic and you don't know which way is up, to sit back, take some time for you and rest as much as you possibly can. A tired brain which is whirring 24.7 is not going to recover, you need down time. Hope this helps a bit, message back if you need to. Things will get better, promise x

Thanks. Last time I was on it I was seeing a psychiatrist I was diagnosed with pnd and gad and I was on 200mg for 3 years then weaned myself off and was alright for about 2 months then it all came back suddenly it's 3 weeks today now since I've been put back on and I'm at 150mg. The anxiety I wake with in the morning is unbearable and completing normal daily tasks are extremely hard as all I can think about is anxiety and panic and dread. At the minute I can't seem to find enjoyment in anything either and this deeply upsets me the last month of my life has been ruined by this. X

I so know that feeling of morning dread and panic, it's debilitating and exhausting. Have you been able to work? The most helpful thing anyone ever said to me about mental illness was to try to do the opposite of what your symptoms tell you. So if you feel like stopping in bed all day, get up and do something, if you don't feel like eating, eat. Very difficult to put into practice but when I was at my worst (and I was pretty goddamn bad) it helped me to take tiny steps back to normality. Do you have kids you can use as a distraction? Xx

Yes I have kids and I feel awful that I'm am like this around them not being able to look forward to Christmas etc and I work also part time and have taken days off due to the way I feel I struggle to smile and if I do it's fake I can't remember feeling normal and it's only been a month x