Scared to take Sertraline 25mg for anxiety and panic disorder

[Isabelle728]

Hi,

After many tries of trying natural remedies for my anxiety and panic disorder I have decided to try meds as a last resort (Sertraline 25mg), my trouble is I have severe health anxiety, to the point that taking meds can cause me to have panic attacks.
I am so scared of dying or having a serious reaction from them, and even if I have a small reaction that is listed as very common I will not think this and will just think the absolute worst!

Some reassurance would help me massively or to hear your stories on taking Sertraline. I have been suffering since I fell pregnant in 2021, my son is now 2 years old and I am not any better, if anything it is the worst it has ever been, especially the anxiety. I just don’t know what to do. Will this make me worse or better? Please help. Thank you.

Being scared to take the medication is a symptom of the problem. Don’t let it win, take the tablets.
I was very wary of taking HRT but I could see that I needed it, so I committed to a 3 month trial. I wrote down my symptoms before I started, then again at about 2 months, and I could see the benefit.

Well done for taking action!

I was on 50mg sertraline for PND following the birth of my daughter. I took it for about eight months and it was an absolute life changer. I had a few headaches and a bit of nausea when I first started taking it, but found having my tablet last thing at night helped with that. Within a few days I felt so much steadier and more positive.

Sending you lots of love and strength xx

Hi Isabelle

I’ve been on Sertraline for years, at higher doses than yours. It does feel daunting to start taking them but is so worth it. 25mg is a very low dose, I have no side effects at 100mg. Sertraline has helped me enormously with anxiety. Expect 2-3 weeks to see an improvement but definitely worth while.

Please take it, it's safe. I gave this to my 8 year old son with autism with anxiety + depression it changed our lives for the better, he became more sociable, happier within himself and a loving boy again. 25mg is such a low dose sweetheart. Honestly, try it, give yourself 6 weeks and keep a daily diary of how your feeling, I bet you will be surprised looking back in 8 weeks time. Best wishes + good luck. You can do this, you've got this hunni xx