Zoloft 50mg

[theman88]

I was just prescribed Zoloft 50mg for my really bad anxiety/social anxiety, also i have agoriphobia, im just wondering what are other's experiences with Zoloft? I took Effexor for a month & it just made me too lathargic & zombie-ish, so i quit. I still drink probably about 4 times a week, im also wondering if the Zoloft will be like Effexor where i would drink a 6 pack & black out & p.i.s.s my bed each freakin time, hopefully not, any help is appreciated

[warrens]

Please do not confuse me with a doctor or a pharmacologist. I do however have personal experience.

I have suffered from anxiety/depression all my life. It just took me 55 years to admit it. I was totally opposed to medication.

Finally, a very close friend, who happened to be my doctor, sat me down in a social situation, and educated me. Because of my age and 60's experience, I thought that antidepressants were "zombie drugs" that so many I knew took recreationally and to great ill effect.

Boy was I wrong. At his urging, I began to take 50 mg of zoloft (get the generic sertraline)/day. Seemed to help. But I'd go off it during summers (I was a school principal).By the time school resumed I was a mess.

I followed that regime until recently. About 6 months ago I began to have crushing anxiety (not really depression). It was not situational. I was (and am) completely rational. No fears, nothing irrational, just anxiety that wanted to kill me.

Told my therapist. She said that 50 mg was barely a therapeutic dose. And that Zoloft is the only SSRI that can show real increased effectiveness by upping the dosage.

Well, in order to save my life (I was never suicidal, just incapacitated, which is no life at all), I increased to 150 mg/day. The results have been miraculous. I have virtually no anxiety.

To further validate my experience, I just weeks ago split from the love of my life. I am utterly heartbroken. There are other major stressors in my life. Guess what? No anxiety, no depression. And other than issues with my wee-wee, I'd never know I was taking it. I'm 61, BTW. And although now partnerless, Levitra took care of my wee-wee issues.

I am recommending nothing. Nada, zippo. I hope 50 mg assists you. Many find that other choices are better for them. Even psychiatrists admit that finding the right one can be "pharmaceutical roulette." But millions of lives have been changed by finding the right one. Give it a try, just don't suffer for decades like I did.

Good luck

warren

[MCake]

Unfortunately, the only way to know if Zoloft will help is by trying it. I had a good experience with this med, as it helped my anxiety without turning me into a zombie. After 6 months, I had to discontinue taking it because it was making me lose a *lot* of weight.

I don't know if you're planning on quitting drinking - doing so is probably the best thing you can do to ease your anxiety.

[Rediscovering]

Originally Posted by warrens

Boy was I wrong. At his urging, I began to take 50 mg of zoloft (get the generic sertraline)/day. Seemed to help. But I'd go off it during summers (I was a school principal).By the time school resumed I was a mess.

I followed that regime until recently. About 6 months ago I began to have crushing anxiety (not really depression). It was not situational. I was (and am) completely rational. No fears, nothing irrational, just anxiety that wanted to kill me.

Told my therapist. She said that 50 mg was barely a therapeutic dose. And that Zoloft is the only SSRI that can show real increased effectiveness by upping the dosage.

Well, in order to save my life (I was never suicidal, just incapacitated, which is no life at all), I increased to 150 mg/day. The results have been miraculous. I have virtually no anxiety.

I just found this thread. I was prescribed 50mg of zoloft and the anxiety was incomprehensible. I was not functional and as you described had NO rational reason to feel like I'd been chased by a monster for 5 miles all day long... My doctor suggested upping the dosage but I was terrified after that experience and stopped taking the medication. Can you please elaborate on your experience/knowledge? I'm intruiged by your experience. The first 3 days I took Zoloft I felt like a free person...like myself again..but from day 4 on I couldn't handle the anxiety. After reading your post I'm wondering if maybe I should have stuck with the Zoloft and just increased the dosage...

Thank you for your openness about your situation. You just gave me a springboard towards a solution perhaps

[jacknscoob]

Hi Everyone

There has been such a mixed bag of information on here relating to this drug.

I understand that it is an anti-depressant. Does it help you sleep also??

Does it help with social anxiety?

Thanks

J.x

[myheadhurts]

I took it three times. Just three pills. The first two were like taking ecstasy, the third one led me to planning suicide. Suffice to say I stopped taking them. After researching them I decided I would never take an antidepressant again, in my opinion they have no idea if or how they work.

[Isaiah]

I never went on Zoloft, but with most anti-depressants if you drink on them there will be nasty interactions.

I have felt positive results taking Celexa though, which is a similarly classed drug. Thing is it did take a few adjustments before it seemed to do the optimal good. Whatever you have don't be afraid to speak up if you want to try an adjustment, and let the doctor know if it seems to work.

[sleepie]

I take Zoloft and am tapering off. It was great in the beginning but ended up helping me gain weight.