I’ve have been taking 50mg of Sertraline for three years, but I have decided to stop. I originally started the medication for a sudden bout of panic attacks that occurred randomly three years ago. While Sertraline successfully stopped the panic attacks, I cannot help but feel that its side effects continue to affect me. I still experience tiredness, fatigue, and brain fog—similar to a hangover after a night of drinking, though not quite as severe. I do not know whether this is due to underlying anxiety—in which case increasing the dose might help—or the medication itself. In any case, I would prefer to stop taking it.
The last time I tried to stop, I tapered by splitting the 50mg tablet in half to make it 25mg. During that one-month tapering and discontinuation period, I felt low and zombie-like, which ultimately prompted me to restart the medication.
My question is: Has anyone else experienced this when tapering off this drug? If so, is it normal, and will the low, zombie-like feeling eventually disappear after a month? Perhaps it takes longer to overcome discontinuation symptoms, or perhaps it does not. I really want to stop taking Sertraline, but I need to know that things will eventually get better after stopping the drug.