Sertraline - how long bwfore I feel better?

[worriedoncemore]

Only been on 50mg for 3 days and actually feel worse at the moment which I know is normal. Insomnia, anxious, headache jittery, nausea. How long before it starts working in your experience? I was on Citalopram years ago but don't recall feeling this bad.

GP also suggested taking Beta Blockers alongside the Sertraline. Will discuss further with GP at review in a few weeks. Any views on that?

My main problem is health anxiety btw. Have a cbt assessment next week.

Thank you x

Just spent my 4th awful night after starting this drug. I fall asleep straighaway but then wake after a couple of hours and can't go back to sleep with the anxious feelings getting worse as the night goes on. I'm also very hot and sweaty. The symptoms seem to subside somewhat as the day goes on. I've been taking the tablet at 6pm.

Hi OP,

I take mine in the morning as it can make you feel a bit wired otherwise. It takes about 2 weeks plus to really start to make a difference but it has changed my life after suffering with anxiety for 25 years. Stick with it x

My mum tried beta blocker propranolol and she said it made her incredibly drowsy. She thinks the amount prescribed was too high however. My mum likes a powerful medication so to speak so coming from her it must have been too strong. She felt conked out and not with it. Worth a try maybe but just make sure the dosage isn't too strong ? I'm not an expert. Sorry to hear you're feel like this. Hope you get better soon.

@cigarettesNalcohol thanks. Did she take it with an anti D such as sertraline as my GP has suggested?

@LunarPhase thanks. Did you feel worse, like me, before you started feeling better?

I was up and down for the first couple of weeks. Had a few moments of weird cold sweats and intense anxiety but only for a few minutes then it would pass. My usual 'background' anxiety felt less severe almost straight away, and then things seemed to even out when I hit the 10 day mark and got better and better from there. I'm now almost completely stable on 100 mg and anxiety virtually completely gone.

I'm almost on my 4 th week of taking Setraline. Felt crap for the first 4-5 days, then got covid so not sure what symptoms were side effects or covid but now I feel completely fine on them.
I have anxiety about driving in the dark, however having done it on the weekend, I never gave it a second thought.
I have had the odd night waking up and not being able to get back to sleep and one night of very anxious thoughts. I take mine at night before bed.

I take mine at night and the vivid dreams and night wakings. The first 4-5 days were the worst. After a fortnight it had totally settled, and I felt better than I had in years.

Thanks for the replies. Day 7 here and felt much better yesterday, not sure if the tablets or that something that has been stressing me for ages was resolved yesterday (big weight off shoulders) although I kept waking last night with heartburn (another side effect I believe) so don't feel so good this morning.

Glad you had a better day @worriedoncemore! It was a few days to stop feeling awful for me and then a gradual improvement from there. I'm not 6 months in and feel so much better. I take it in the morning, around the same time. I did take it super early once as going away and found the evening a little tough so it's important to try and stick to regular times. Hope you continue to feel better!

You may know this already but take the tablet with a BIG drink (milk or water) and never with fruit juice. Take at least ten gulps of liquid and then stay upright for at least 15 minutes.
This may sound excessive but twice I have taken Sertraline with too little liquid and the pain is terrible! You can Google; it's a known thing.
I think Sertraline is amazing and it's helped my anxiety hugely but I learnt (the hard way) to take it carefully.

Stick with it OP. I felt exactly the same when I started sertraline. Its changed my life, my anxiety was shocking. It took a couple of weeks for the side effects to settle down with me.

Hold on in there, it will get better, I promise

You may know this already but take the tablet with a BIG drink (milk or water) and never with fruit juice. Take at least ten gulps of liquid and then stay upright for at least 15 minutes

I didn't but I do now - thank you! I'm guilty of not drinking enough water at the best of times and just popped it in my mouth, near bedtime too!

First 2 weeks you'll feel like shit. Always with lots of water. Never anything hot or acidic or you'll get the mother of all reflux.

You'll start feeling the benefit after about 6 to 12 weeks. They're a build up drug, unfortunately.

How are you now worriedoncemore? I’ve just started on 25mg currently waking up shivering with anxiety? Did you experience this at all?

Umm. I had to come off it after 4 weeks as I ended up in a&e with huge unexplained bruises! No damage done thankfully but am not willing to go on any ssri after that. Please be assured that this is a rare side affect and it does help most people x