Will sertraline help with this?

[Gettingonabitnow]

Hi

My anxiety is bad but I function - two kids who are well looked after, hold down my job etc. Had some counselling sessions which have helped, but my allocation of 6 ends soon.

My main challenge is social situations. I try to be engaging, input into conversations and relax, but increasingly I’m finding friends I see ask ‘are you ok? You seem tired / quiet / not yourself / etc’. To me I’ve felt none of those emotions and was trying my best and thought I was being quite chatty! 😂 but clearly in reality, I must seem different to my friends and I’m tired of feeling like this. These are good friends btw.

I’ve got a prescription for sertraline sitting at the pharmacy. Will that help with getting me back to how I used to be I guess, any experiences?

thanks x

Many people find it life-changing, others don’t get in with it so well, but are often helped more by another SSRI or an SNRI medication. What stops you from picking up the prescription?

I’ve been on 50mg for a few months and I think it would, yes. I’m on it more for health anxiety but definitely have some of the social anxiety side - particularly if I’m not drinking!

What it has done is very subtly lowered my filters, I find myself saying things or cracking jokes that before I wouldn’t have and would have second guessed what people would think of me etc and then not said it.

(In my experience sertraline was very helpful - gave me more energy, made me less irritable, and I generally was able to feel more warmly disposed towards people around me and experience more pleasure in life. Also little things like no longer needing to write and rewrite emails a billion times before pressing send.)

The main thing is coming off it - I’ve read and the GP has agreed it can be difficult to come off, and I guess I don’t like something being able to have a hold over me like that? But I’m a shadow of my former self I think, so it’s maybe time.

Also, I have suffered with hair loss in the past, and also read that it can trigger it…

thanks for replying, I appreciate it.

@Gettingonabitnow
I am literally you. Throw in some stress related dermatitis on my scalp that I cannot get rid of.
Sertraline has been sat in my dresser for two months, as I am such a bad sleeper I am petrified that insomnia will be a side effect.

I’ve came off it twice in the past. No issues.

take your time, don’t rush it. Taper off over weeks & months if needs be. Wait til you’re in a good place & feel happy.

im starting back on it again for work related stress & symptoms of SAD. My anxiety gets very bad. Will have no problems tapering off again in summer 2025