Well, it looks like I made it to 9 weeks! It is a rough road that we walk on, between the side effects and lack of patience to get some relief from our own minds. I am happy to say that I haven't had a real bad day in about 10 days now. I've had my ups and downs but not like they use to be. I've posted week after week with the desperate need for reassurance because I had no idea it would take this long to feel some relief. I do still have fear of my intrusive thought but I am working on that and I'm sure one day it will all be okay. The transformation I have had in the past week was really something to watch. My husband is so happy to have his wife back😀. I know there may be some more bad days ahead but I feel so good that I had to share, especially for those that want to give up because they think it will never work.
😍
That's so reassuring to hear I still think it's a hideous drug, I'm on the 4th week of 150mg and like you it's been the worse feeling if anxiety I have ever experienced. I have had two good days out of 3 I'm hoping I'm coming out the other side as I don't think I can take much more. Now dreading coming off this eventually. Am considering changing. Thank you. And well done you x
Im feeling the same as u vanessa
Sorry not vanessa chick
fantastic news vanessa!
i was really hoping things would work out for you because i (like many others here) know that awful neverending feeling where you have crashed and are stuck, and feel like you will never get better.
it sounds like in the end you didn't add anything (another med) to take along with the sertraline?
for others here who are still at that awful low point of depression and anxiety, please do remember that for so many of us like me and vanessa we needed 8-12 weeks to start coming out of that place of being stuck and trapped with depression/anxiety (and it doesnt end at 8-12 weeks... you will continue to get ongoing benefits and improve further as the months pass).
i assure you guys that about 12 weeks ago i had the worst, worst depression and anxiety i have ever had in my life. i was extrememly suicidal and my thoughts and thinking were so negative that i felt like i wasnt really even part of reality anymore. i had completely lost interest in everything, and didnt like anything, or anyone. each day i would really hope night time would come fast, so i could sleep again. but fast-forward to 8-12 weeks ahead, and im back and feeling really good, happy, calm, and enjoying life again. dont get me wrong, i still feel a little down or worried sometimes, but it's mild now. i can deal with it just fine, just like regular people do. sertraline has removed the low point, so i dont sink down low anymore. if a bit of depression or anxiety shows up now, i can just brush it aside (when it shows up now i can just say to myself "nice try..." and laugh). it's a great feeling. personally, sertraline has saved my life, literally!
if anyone reading this is really struggling while waiting for sertraline to get working on your effectively, during the initial 8-12 weeks you could always take something fast acting to help you along the way, such as one of these meds: alprazolam (xanax), diazepam (valium), lorazepam (ativan), clonazepam (klonopin) ... these meds will help you feel calmer and more relaxed, and decrease anxiety/worrying etc. i know the temptation to switch to another med can be strong, but without giving sertraline enough time to work, it would be a shame to give up when it might have turned out that you only had a few more weeks to go before feeling so much better. and rememeber, if you can stick it out for the 8-12 weeks, then noone can say you didnt give it a really good try, and then at that point you can cross it off your list and try a different med. remember that increasing in dose too fast isnt the way to do it, and that can often make your journey more difficult rather than easier/faster. so dont rush up to an overly high dose, and try to be patient (i know it's difficult guys), but once you get past the low point, and you will, then you can then look forward to many years of back to coping, enjoying, living life again. it's really worth it so please dont give up. we are all on a journey and you dont walk it alone because there are many of us with these problems out there, and we have forums like these were we can chat and help each other when we are down. so keep talking, and dont suffer in silence (because that's what the depression/anxiety wants.. so let's not give in to it so easily).
well done for sticking it out your a star it's a very very hard hill to climb but with positive thinking willpower and pure determination you have shown that there is light at the end of the tunnel so to speak
Thanks sparrow! Your encouragement helped a lot. Like I said, I'm still having my difficulties but I can see they are working for me. I go to the psychiatrist today and I don't think I will add anything to it because I feel I will be fine if I give it another couple of weeks.
Thanks! You don't know how strong you are until you actually have to be strong.
Congratulations! On not giving up and to continue to fight your post have given me some insight on my day will come as well. God bless you and your family
My pleasure meleka🙂
Thank you for your post that's made me feel a whole lot better. 2 nd day of feeling much better, still a bit wobbly this morning but got through it. It's so nice to be able to talk about this and everyone understanding. Thank you x
totally agree I thought I would never beat my anxiety but I'm definitely getting there as long as the good days outnumber the bad as far as I'm concerned jobs a goodin
How long did it take you to get to a good place?
around 6months I would say only really suffer now with
depersonalisation / derealisation thanks to anxiety but this will go in time so for most part I'm happy one day at a time
Hi everyone,
Need some reassurance today, have been on sertraline 100mg for just short of 18 weeks.
This is my second bout of anxiety which I was treated for 3 to 4 years ago.
Ok so my journey started again in April started having intrusive thoughts and juts worrying that something bad would happen all the time. I would wake in the morning feeling sick and my heart racing.
I spotted the signs straight away and went to see my doc and was prescribed sertraline, they have done a amazing job and I really felt like I had turned a corner. I start CBT in the next week.
Then bang out of nowhere on Monday morning I woke up felling panicked and anxious and couldn't think why? Why after weeks of being carefree have I been hit with this again? The feeling took me back to my lowest days and that's all I keep thinking about now. It's like my mind has erased all of the good days I've had over the last few weeks?
This morning I have woken and just sat and cried. I know my fear is how I feel and that my fear is feeding the fear but I can't stop it.
I had an a amazing summer and a holiday of a lifetime, my daughter went back to school last week so the only thing I am wondering is whether I am having a come down from an amazing summer? I also know that I need to stop trying to find an answer as to why I feel like this and that I need to refocus and get on with it.
When I went onto sertraline I was determined that I wouldn't let it change my appetite. I was concerned about gaining weight so I started running. I have gone from 11 stone 4 to 10 Stone and feel and look great. This last week though I have lost all momentum with it, not sure if that is due to work and school runs again and the darker nights?
Can anybody offer me any advice? I have made an appointment with my doctor for later in the week to talk about how I feel. I will also know by then how I feel after my first CBT session.
Wondering whether I need to increase my dosage or not?
X
hello emma, couple of questions if that's ok, what age are you?, and, do you take your sertraline when you wake up, or before bed?
and also, you said you woke up with anxiety a few times, can you remember if you had the anxiety literally on waking up, or do you mean you woke, and for a few seconds (or longer) were ok, but then got hit by the wave of anxiety? (i'm asking if to find out if you are getting anxiety in your body when you are actually asleep, .... as opposed to being ok when asleep, but then the anxiety beginning just after you wake).
Hi I am glad I read your story how are you doing ?,I am getting worried because the intrusive thoughts won't go I have been on sertralin for 12 days and noticed a big improvement in depression & anxiety just want these thoughts to go x
Hi I am going through the same thing been on sertralin for 12 days seen a big improvement but last 2 days getting intrusive thoughts which is now making me think I'm going to get ill again x
Wow,that was like reading my own story I have been so ill for 15 months the depression is exactly how you describe it,I started sertralin 12 days ago and have been totally surprised by the difference it has made,however I'm stilling suffering with intrusive thoughts I'm hoping they go it's bringing me down and now I'm questioning if the tablet is working.....I so desperately want to be the old me again x