OCD meds - conflicted and need advice!

[Froggles1]

Hi all,

I’ll keep it brief but I’ve suffered with ocd and anxiety for years. Luckily it is mild/moderate and compulsions are mainly mental rather than physical.

I’ve had lots of CBT, ERP etc and tried many different things I.e. meds, herbal remedies, mindfulness etc etc

anyway, I’ve been on 50mg sertraline for 2 years. Recently a mental health nurse told me that 50mg is simply not enough for ocd and that it is will not have a therapeutic effect. However, I definitely think 50mg helped me from where I was 2 years ago; I just wonder if my body has got used to this dose ?! My worry is if I up it to 100mg then will that eventually wear off then I’ll end up increasing again and again etc

i have libido side effects on 50mg but similarly I am having some down periods with ocd atm especially around my cycle :( can anyone offer any thoughts?

I am on 200mg sertraline. I don’t really suffer too much with OCD now. (I have multiple MH issues that aren’t responding well to treatment but OCD is the one I’ve seen progress with).

How did the conversation with the nurse come up? What does your doctor say?

Can work at 50 but often prescribed at higher doses for ocd,it shouldn’t really need constant dose increases to achieve the same effect

My DS was also told this by the dr. 50mg is not enough for OCD, his was upped to 150mg and he is having the best MH he's had sine he was about 7yrs old.

@Eyesopenwideawake my gp referred me to primary mental health services as I have always paid for counselling but wanted to see what was available on the nhs. The nurse was great and actually seemed more knowledgeable in some ways than the gp xx

@LadeOde that is great that your son is feeling better! OCD is so difficult and I find it hard to get the right treatment. It’s a lonely road sometimes

@Scutterbug glad to hear ocd under control- hope you see improvements with other MH issues soon. Xx

It is indeed a very lonely road at times. Not only is it difficult to get the right treatment but trauma from intrusive thoughts is very hard to share with those with no understanding of the condition. Please don't be scared to try a higher dose under medical supervision and see how you get on.

Hi. Psych nurse here. 50mg is the lowest therapeutic dose, I agree that for OCD a higher dose may be more effective (although sometimes SSRI’s aren’t helpful at all, it’s very individual). The maximum dose is 200mg. There is a possibility to you could have experienced a placebo effect, and remember everything will have an impact on your mental health - what you eat, whether you are getting enough sunlights, jobs, social stressors, relationships… is there a possibility that there was something else changing that actually impacted your mental health positively at the time?