hi,been on sert 50 mg for 6wks now.After 4 wks of bad side effects turned a corner + felt good for a week,then crap for a few days,then gd for few days now crap for 3 days-when i'm bad i cannot function at all -without my wife i wld be lost.Anxiety has been back for 3 days + also feel like i did at start with side effects.i have tel appt with doc next tues.What do i do? Anyone been here with ups + downs within 1st 6 wks ? Do i increase dose (after talking to doc) ? i thought sert was the one after feeling so gd for a time -been very disillusioned these past 3 days.
I've not been on set sugar but I think all anti depressants can take anywhere between a few weeks to months to feel the improvement. And then you have to take into consideration any increases which can also sometimes be like starting over and take weeks to settle.
Write everything down that you need to say to your doctor,that way you won't forget anything. Tell him your worries and that you seem to of taken a step backwards and ask where he suggests you go from here.
I know it's very frustrating but we all have times where we feel better and then have a few bad days and think we are going back to square one. It isn't always the case. Even people without anxiety have good and bad days,we just feel them worse because we have anxiety.
See how you feel up until that day and if things haven't changed then maybe you do need a increase.
Keep as occupied as you can and keep telling yourself that it's just anxiety...It's uncomfortable but it can not hurt you.
I do hope you feel better soon xx
Hi Sugarloaf, ups and downs are normal my friend.
look upon recovery like a curve, first downwards then it flattens out and then the curve goes upwards as you get better, however it's not a smooth curve, it's got humps and bumps in it which are the good and bad days, as the curve goes up the humps and bumps smooth out and are less noticeable.
The other thing I noticed from previous episodes is that other people notice an improvement before you do, then when you look back you realise you have improved.
I'm on Venlefaxine (Effexor) which I've taken for years at a maintenance dose but it was increased 5 weeks ago as anxiety kicked off, also take buspirone 30mg daily for anxiety but it takes 4-6 weeks to get therapeutic benefit so I'm hoping my recovery will be noticeable in a week or so.
Keep chugging away and you'll get better.
There are ups and downs yes, its all normal... Frustrating because you are convinced you are going backwards when you are in those down moments, but you will start to recognise that it is just a blip and your mind will tell you you are ok and will get better, and the blips become shorter and shorter....sounds easy peasy i know but its not but it happens to us all, its part of recovery... We all wish we could wake up tomorrow morning and be back to what we remember normal to be, but its a slow process xx
thanks for reassurrance -unsure if i shld sit it out or i shld go back to docs + increase meds.The periods of wellness are such a relief but i really start to question dosage afetr 6 weeks + feeling like this
I would give it only a couple more days and if you dont see some improvement see the doc again to check on dosage, hope you feel better soon x