Not feeling any better, actually worse than when i started

Treatment and medication
1

Hi There,

I've been on sertraline since the end of Nov 2013 now & still not feeling any better, if not even worse than ever & don't know what to do anymore.

The dose over this time has gradually been upped & i am now on 150mg daily & still don't feel any benefits at all.

I can't sleep at all

Have terrible daily constant headaches

Cant stop worrying & having anxiety attacks worse than ever before

Feel so low & even more depressed than when i started due to this & honestly don't know what to do.

Is anyone else feeling this way & any advice as i'm now at a loss????

Butterfly#1

2

Hi

It is sad you are feeling like this after this long, it does not sound good that after all this time you are feeling worse not better. You should go back to your doctor and tell them, they should listen to you and perhaps consider trying something else'

Wish you luck with this, don't give up,

3

Hello Julie,

Thanks very much for replying.

Do you think i have given it long enough or just bare with it a little longer?

Every time the doctor ups the dose it is like being back at square one as all the side effects come back 10 times worse. Have you found this or am i just kidding myself?

Butterfly x

4

Hi

There is no way you should be feeling like this after almost 4 months. Any symptoms you have initally should only last for a few weeks, so I am told. My symptoms were so bad on Sertraline and Citralopam that I gave up after 10 days on both. Go back to your GP and review it with them, as soon as possible.

Hope you get it sorted.

5

Hi,

I am also on 150 mg. It has been 50 mg and 100 mg at different times before, but 150 mg for months now. Nothing out of the ordinary has been noticed by me, but it doesn't do much for my anxiety either because I still panic because of my disorganization and procrastination. I am 62 though, and just not satisfied with running tasks, chores, and errands all day while working full time with no support, so I guess none of it is surprising.

Worst part is my short-term memory is shot, it seems, and just pray I am not a basket case someday. Too bad the docs cannot inject dopamine or some such substance directly into my brain just to not give a darn about anything. But I strive to drive on, be calm (not easy), and enjoy life (don't always choose the right ways), and play the cards I was dealt (don't do that very well either sometimes).

Never get headaches or sleeplessness, but got so many other ailments, I just might not notice.

Hang in there and do good things for yourself too.

Cheers,

Dave

6

Hi Butterfly, what you have gone through sounds very similar to what I experienced. I was started on 50mg of sertraline and steadly increased to 150mg. I really suffered, couldnt sleep, experienced much worse anxiety, I was in a very bad place, and I stuck it out for over a month, before this I also was on Citralopam and experienced also terribe side effects. My phyciatrist took me off when I saw him and placed me on 300mg Seroquel, reducing it to 150mg (one can cross over from sertraline to Seroquel) and 300mg Luvox. Luvox and Seroquel work wonders for severe depression, bipolar, post traumatic stress, OCD, anxiety, social anxiety. The problem is Seroquel is very expensive, so I have had to cut back on everything in order to pay for my meds, but it has been well worth it, plus Seroquel has a sedative effect so sleep is great.

Please note that many people respond very well to sertraline / citralopam, but it can be a living hell for others. Please seek help as soon as possible, good luck, Rob

7

I think 4 months is far more than long enough to give the sert chance to work. It really doesn't agree with everyone who takes it. I recently took it for only 26 days, and it was a living nightmare for me. I had massively increased anxiety, zero appetite and had suicidal thoughts.

I also took it ten years ago for PND, and was desperately miserable while on it back then, but I just assumed it was down to the PND. It wasn't, as soon as I stopped the sert I was feeling fine within 3 days.

This drug works wonders for most people, but for me it stole 26 days of my life recently, and 10 years ago it stole 11 months of my life.