Some help, advice, support please. I have some sertraline but I am so terrified to start. I have severe depression and very severe anxiety. Am currently finding the days unbearable and at night sleep is so difficult as I can wake and start to panic if i thing about the future (or lack of it). Getting up requires all my strengh and is also unbearable.
I have been off work for ages and am not really functioning properly or seeing friends or enjoying anything i used to. Because of the severity of my symptoms I am so scared of starting sertraline. My resiliance and coping are an all time low and I could not deal with an increase in anxiety and agitation yet that is what seems to happen. It would be torture lying awake with agitation and racing thoughts. I also have a very senstivie gi system so nausea and stomach problems would add to the severe stress an sanxiety. I take a stomach acid reducer (a PPI) but hate taking it as it makes me feel tired and unwell as well as increasing my anxiety and depression. I live alone and having scary side effects with no support adds to the fear. I am in such a dilemma i seem to spend all my time searching for the magic med which does not exist. Sertraline seems pretty powerful and energising which I don't need as I hae too much nervous energy anyway. Suggestions and help would be much appreciated - also any good alternatives to sertraline though i realise we are all different.
ps I am having cbt but am in such a bad space mentally that the techniques aren't really working.
Hard as it is Caroline .... ride through the storm , try the meds. It works for so many people, it can work for you too. Chin up , stay strong and believe in yourself.
ok I was also like you very severe depression and anxiety racing thoughts , I thought I was going mad, I was soo scares to take sertraline too, I was prescribed 50mg . took me a week to pluck up the courage. so I started the first 2 days with a quarter of the tablet then a half the after 10 days I was on the full pill of 50mg , and yes I did get worse to the point I was suicidal and went to a&e. I was given some Diazipam 2mg I was also scared of that too. but I thought nothing can make me worse than I am! I kept on taking it and counted the days to 4 weeks , how I did it was lots of walking trying not to be alone. I couldn't eat or sleep list loads of weight. at 4 1/2 weeks I felt a lot better not 100% but so much so that I could smile put makup on and laugh.
plz plz take the meds and do what ever you have to to take ur mind off it. Maybe ask dr for Diazipam just for wen it's really bad it really does help. you will get better. talk on here to me as much as you need.
I have taken citalopram and Sertraline for the past 5 months and dont feel like the tablets are doing me anygood.I've got permanent nervousness and sweats and dont seem to be Improving at all..
Caroline,
Sorry to hear you are going through all of this. I have found from reading through many posts that anxiety strikes most of us from out of nowhere. While what we worry about is real, the constant over worry and ruminating thoughts are not normal.
I have the same issues as you. I worry about my future....constantly. Sertraline has helped me a lot. I am now able to get through my days calmly and I only have blips of anxiety some days (like today).
Everyone is different. Only you can decide what is right for you. No one else can do that. I've been on 100mg of sertraline for about 7 weeks now and I am so much better than when I started. It took me about 6 weeks to get past the side effects and to start feeling the positives of the drug. It got worse for me before it got better, but it has gotten better.
Hope this helps.
Mark
Hi Lattifa - A&E that is so scary - did you call an ambulance. I would be scared to do that as I have been rerferred to the community mental health team I would be frightened they would section me. Did you get worse gradually or when you were on the 50mg?? I am living alone and don't have anyone to support which is wy I am particularly scared if i get worse symptoms or get suicidal. I find walking so difficult - well anything really - in such a bad place.
Thank you Mark. My issue is at the moment I feel so unbearable it is all I can do to keep going so anything that makes me feel worse don't know what I would do particulary re. depression and agitation. What side effects did you get and how did you deal with them? Are you working? I've been off for nearly 7 months - it has got very entrenched ...
Hi Lattifa - I did reply to you a while ago but it is not showing - I don't know why. Anyway am replying again so you might get duplicates. I am so scared to go to a&e as I am with the community mental health team I would be frightneed of being sectioned - the thought of being in a mental health unit terrifies me. I don;t know how you managed to cope. I feel so terrible I don;t know what to do. When did your side effects kick in was it right at the beginning or later on.?
not straight away no, I think a week into the 50mg, I don't know how I did it either to be honest , I remember walking so much and crying a lot, spoke to samaratans too, tried to give my self a talking to, but above all talk to god, ask him to help he is the creator of all things. xxx
big hugs to you sweet hear I know what you are going through. YOU WILL BE OK
Caroline,
Yes, I am working and have been through my entire ordeal. I am 52 yrs old and have never had anxiety before like what I went through just a few weeks ago. I was barely in control, but pulled myself up and got to work. I did miss 2 work days from side effects, which were: increased anxiety, nausea, head aches, jaw clenching and sexual side effects. Please note that all of these have passed.
I have many more good days than bad now, but I still have bad days. Today, I have some mild anxiety, but it is manageable. Not like it was just a few weeks ago. I needed Xanax (a mild tranquilizer) every day then. I took one .25mg Xanax today, which is a very low dose. Before today, I have gone 8 days feeling normal and enjoying the things I used to.
My advise, for what it's worth as a fellow sufferer, is to take each day, hour and even minute as it comes. Thoughts are what are causing our discomfort, so let them come and go as they will, but try not to let your thoughts, which are not reality, control you (us). Try to live in the moment and enjoy the little things.
This will pass in time. If you feel you need help, seek it out. Life can be so wonderful if we let it! If you are religious, pray. Be thankful and try to smile and laugh!
Mark
Mark
Hi Caroline...I really do feel for you, but you DO need something to help you. You need to be brave and start taking your meds. Yes you'll have some discomfort but I promise you it won't last forever. What's the alternative? Things are pretty grim at the moment and can only get better. Do you sit out in the sun to get Vit D, do you take B-complex (50mg of each), or Omega 3 oils....all helpful to naturally increase serotonin in the brain. I'm not keen on cooking at the moment, but I buy ready cooked chickens, salmon in an oven bag, oven chips, microwave veg, salad boxes, etc etc. do you eat such foods to keep you healthy? You need to take positive steps Caroline....the first step you've already taken by communicating in this forum. Keep in touch. Iris
Thank you Mark. The worry is I have been off work for nearly 7 months with this. This depression and anxiety came on after picking up a parastiic infection overseas which took ages to diagnose and treat that led on to other health problems and then depression and anxiety. It is so bad at the moment I feel uncomfortable in my own skin - it is like torture so it is almost as if the physical sensations are causing the mental issues and of course the negative thoughts feed into the physical, I could not imagine working at the moment and do not see friends as I am so uncomfortable. It feels really extreme and I am so scared. I try but cannot be thankful it is so powerful and frightening. I feel ashamed of feeling so hopeless but I am really at my wits end and so worried that ad's will make it worse.
Don't worry about being sectioned....:it means nothing to the outside world. It would only be done if you weren't eating/drinking, not taking care of your basic needs, or doing anything dangerous to yourself. It means you'd be taken into temporary care for your own safety.
Hi Caroline, I too have been perscribed sertraline 25mg to take a day and I am terrified of taking any medication (health anxiety and panic disorder)
From my experience on citalopram I am pretty positive about the idea of taking it but I am too scared of the side affects when I am alone at night.
Citalopram was pretty heavy for me when I began them at 18, i was constipated, couldnt eat much and just slept and woke in panics but 4 weeks into them I was a different person, I went back to college and got my life back together; i flourished and overcome all the darkness.
I am hoping to start sertraline soon but not the recommended 25mg, I am hoping to cut in into a smaller peice 1/3 and take that for a day or two.
Last time I tried citalopram after years of beign off it I was vomitting, couldnt eat and sat panicking for the night, so that has put me off taking anything again.
Doctor said i must've had a bug at the time, I dont really know.
I cant live in fear of taking medication, or fear of going out and my syptoms, I'm hoping to build courage and just take it.
I know how you feel though, been researching meds myself in the hope i can convince myself to take it or try no meds at all
Hope to hear back from you soon
take care
K
Thank you Kerry - I feel immobilised with fear at the moment - feel so bad I could not cope with feeling worse - also the not sleeping would be terrible. It is so hard isn't it? I've never experienced anything like this before and it is hell. Let me know if you start taking it. I hve been prescribed 50mg due to the depression and anxidety. Take care yourself C
Caroline,
I indeed feel your pain. You are not alone in this. You might be surprised by the number of people who suffer from anxiety. It can strike anyone at any time. It is nothing to be ashamed of.
You have taken the first steps to reach out for help, but it seems you may be avoiding sharing with your loved ones and close friends. They can also help you feel better and provide support. If they don't understand, are they really good for you?
Everyone will agree that there is no magic pill to make all of this go away, but Sertraline has helped many people like me and you. It will absolutely get worse before it gets better, but at this point, what do you have to lose.
We are all in this with you. Personally, I want the best for you.
Mark
Hi there,
I know you are scared but there are other options if the sertraline doesn't work. It may be that you need some meds to open you up to the CBT, psychotherapy. If you are feeling very low / suicidal I would ask your GP or psych team if you can have a CPN linked to you. Community Psychriatric Nurses ( CPNs) are really friendly people, used to dealing with crises and can listen to you. It takes on average 2/3 weeks before you will start to see a positive response to any medication ( antidepressants ).....however, I think in your case from what you say having a CPN to be able to go to or Crisis Team number ( just in case ) would be handy to get you through those first few weeks. Don't be afraid to tell the GPs how bad you feel, motivation is one of the first things to start to improve, so seriously if you feel that bad it would be worth having a contact if you are living alone and have no one to turn to. No every SSRI suits everyone, so be prepared to swap if it doesn't suit you. Of all the SSRI's it is fluoxetine that is known to be more '' of an upper''...so if anxiety is an issue then fluoxetine would generally not be the medication of choice. sertraline is meant to be more ''balanced'' in effect, for most people. Some people take 50mg, personally I found I needed 100mg to notice a benefit, and then psych team increased to 150mg which I found better again. I persoanlly have benefited from it, I live with chronic pain which has led to depression in last 2 years, and I got quite bad, so it keeps me going, as to say. All SSRIs have the potential to cause GI side effects, the main are nausea / diahrhoea vomitting, stomach cramps...it is because of the majority of serotonin receptors are in the gut ( these drugs work on the ones in the brain, but only 20 % in the brain )...I didn't have too much issue starting, just when I accidently went away for a few days and forgot my pills, then again to go from 150mg to nothing is not to be recommended at all, you would step up at start and step down gradually when coming off. SSRIs are the mainstay of modern antidepressant therapy, the older TCAs are much dirtier in terms of side effects. There are a couple of diff. options your dr can try that don't come under either category, so if it doesn't work our for you then there are other options. Regarding any damaging effects on your stomach the lansoprazole at 30mg should do the trick, as very effective at 30mg, in fact I take it prophylactically as I occasioanally take NSAIDs such as naproxen, iduprofen too, and the two together would be very bad long term in terms of stomach problems, ulcers etc. I assume the dr who came you the psych meds know about your stamch problems ....good luck
Thank you Holly. I am worried as i am feeling so bad at the moment. I want to get off lanzoprazole as i think it is making me feel worse.I haven't any resliance to deal with side effects which must sound feeble. Don;t know what has happened but i suppose that is what depression can do.
Caroline, hopelessness and helplessness are both symptoms of depression.....I've felt it. You want to move on, but you don't know how to, or what to do. I'd still say take the meds