Sertraline withdrawal

[WhiteRabbit4]

I stopped taking my Sertraline just over a week ago. I thought I was doing okay but the last couple of days I just feel really teary and shit. I’m assuming it’s just withdrawal from the medication and I’ll be fine after a bit.
How long do withdrawal symptoms usually last?

@WhiteRabbit4 how long have you been taking them for?
I was on fluoxetine and had to come off them as they were too strong and made me hallucinate and have huge panic attacks it was really scary - prior to this I had anxiety linked to phobias but nothing like this sort of panic, the dr prescribed me wrong and apparently should've tried sertraline instead...I don't want to try anything anytime again soon!
But I had side effects like headaches, panicky, nausea, bad belly, vibrating? at night (Only way I can describe it) and feeling scared for a week after, I'm starting to feel more like me this week and it's been almost 2 weeks now since my last tablet.
Hope you're feeling better soon x

What dose were you on and for how long?

I'm just winding down from sertraline 100mg. Started the process 3 weeks ago by taking 100mg and 50mg alternately for 2 weeks, the next 2 weeks are 50mg every day, the last 2 weeks is 50mg every other day.

It's a slow process, if you came off them correctly you shouldn't have these side effects. Too quick a withdrawal can result in brain zaps and all manner of shit feelings.

If you can't ride it out contact your doctor on Monday but seeing as you have started the withdrawal you may as well continue. It will get better, try and sleep it off as much as you can x

Thank you - I was on 100mg for just under a year. I’d run out of my prescription on the Friday night and hadn’t realised the pharmacy was closed for the back holiday weekend and didn’t reopen until Tuesday, so I just stopped taking them.

How are you feeling now?

I was on sertraline for 5 years ...started out on 50mg I had two young children at the time and my dad was diagnosed as terminally unwell with weeks to live and I called the doctor in a state and the answer was go up to 100mg. Looking back I would have never gone up...doubling up never made any difference so I soon went back down to 50mg although I felt a bit wobbly...I was quite settled on the 50mg but had gained sooo much weight (4-5 stone) in March 2020 I just decided I wanted to come off them so I started weaning off between March 2020 and August 2020...so 5 month...I was relatively OK and didn't notice much...after I was properly off them i started feeling weird waking in the night with digestive issues, waking feeling vulnerable and scared, feeling overly stressed I also had a horrendous cold and I believe it was body purging these toxic tablets out my system...in the November 2020 I started feeling severe anxiety again I persevered and at times I wanted back on the tablets...i know they say they are not addictive BUT I do believe they are!!! If it wasn't for my family encouraging me to keep going I would have went back on them...I'm fact I went to take one morning and it literally flew out my hand I knew this was my dad saying 'you don't need these' I started to feel better but just different I suppose years being numbed down you forget who you really are...since novemenr 2020 I have lost the weight, I feel much clearer headed, i do have bouts if anxiety sometimes and sometimes it can be quite engulfing but I use ksm66 ashwagandha now and it helps massively...never ever would I go back on these again...at the end of the day why you go on them masks the issues so as soon as you come off them you have to face the issues so unless you decide to be on them for life you will always have to go through and work out the reasons why...I don't judge anyone going down this road of medication but it is definitely not for me anymore. I wish I had never ever went on them...yes it made life 'easier' for a few years I was just numbed to so much. Coming off them I would come off as slowly as possible. I did and still had so many horrible withdrawals from them but I am over it and would never return.