Feedback on Zoloft Side Effects and Usage, page 18
About Zoloft
If you use Zoloft, please help others by adding your feedback. What would you tell your best friend about this product? Please remember that we do not give medical advice. That is for your local health care provider, who is familiar with your medical history.
Subj: Nightmares about dying
Date: 7/15/2008
I started on 25mg of Zoloft a year ago and soon went on to 50mg. Initially I felt like my heart was racing and I felt fidgety and restless. I felt like I had had an enormous amount of caffeine. This got better eventually but I hate the nightmares that I have every night. Without fail, I will have nightmares about dying, only last night I dreamt I was dying. I am always fighting in my sleep and dreaming of bad things. I am positive that this is the Zoloft. But I need the medication. Without it I get so I cannot function properly, I will just sit and worry constantly, I can’t face people and I cry all the time. I have a little son so it is important to me that I function properly. I worry that my doctor will take me off Zoloft soon because I’ve been on it a year. I don’t want to come off it really because I have to be able to cope with things. Can my doctor take me off it even if I disagree, or could I just find another doctor if she does?
Emma
AskDocWeb: If your doctor thinks that the Zoloft is doing more harm than good then yes, you can be taken off of it even if you disagree. Finding another doctor just to get a prescription would be a bad idea because that would ignore the possible harm that may result. When you talk this over with your doctor, you need to be sure you understand what may happen.
Subj: NIGHTMARES/INSANE VIVID DREAMS (ZOLOFT)
Date: 7/15/2008
I was on Zoloft for 4 weeks, and feeling dizzy, blurred vision, loss of appetite, irritable to noise, agitated, more depressed than I’ve ever been. Finally that’s all gone. My doctor upped my dosage from 50 mg a day to 75. 6 weeks has gone by and I feel better than ever. In my opinion the whole world should be on Zoloft. It makes me feel myself, yet so happy. I no longer have social anxiety, and the best part is my ocd thousand dollar shopping disorder is gone. It makes me think before I talk, and actually pay attention to the little things in life..Ex: I stop to smell the fresh air, or look at the clouds.
NIGHTMARES: so, so, so, so, vivid that u wake up believing they happened. I should call them wild dreams. Turtles, and fights, and people chasing me, and so on. So weird they cannot be explained.
INSOMNIA: at 1st I slept like a baby, and now I wake up in the middle of the night, and have a hard time sleeping again. At least 1 hour. I must say the positive outweighs the negative. I love it, and will never go downhill again 🙂
Adina
Subj: Sex drive vanished
Date: 7/23/2008
Hi, I’m 22 and a doctor has just prescribed me zoloft. Yesterday I had taken it for the first time and my sex drive vanished. (tried that night) It was near impossible to reach sexual climax. I was very confused so came online to see if my new med was doing it. This is the first time I’ve taken a medication stronger then panadol. I don’t even like to take panadol and prefer natural remedies like water. The sex problem isn’t necessarily a bad thing for my partner as I am wanting sex so much more then her as she is currently pregnant, but I wasn’t as hard as I normally am. I sustained a very bad headache and my stomach felt horrible for the entire day, I couldn’t work out if I wanted to throw up or not. Tingly feeling was going through my entire body and my hands where quivering non stop. I couldn’t sleep at night, tossed and turned as if I was to hot. This morning my hands where still shaking. Its now the afternoon I haven’t taken it again, I think its wearing off. I didn’t think this sorta stuff acted so fast? I thought side effects would take time to develop. Is this a major problem I am having. Should I keep taking them? I’m not even sure I feel any different as I wasn’t entirely sure I was depressed anyhow. Confused guy,
Julez
AskDocWeb: Even though you may not think it’s be a big problem, a decrease in sex drive, impotence, or difficulty having an orgasm are things that should be reported to your doctor.
Subj: More confident in myself
Date: 7/24/2008
When I first started having panic/depression, I started to take Zoloft 50 mg. I am a 21 year old male. At first, I had diarrhea, dry mouth, but I started to feel better after about a week. Unfortunately, my stress was triggered by school and I started to feel great after about a week. I told my doctor that I felt pretty much ‘normal’ and she upped my dosage to 100 mg. Now, 2 months later, I feel the way I used to and am more confident in myself in general. I really cannot say whether or not I feel better because of the drug or just because of some sort of libido effect/my summer has been very relaxing. Either way, I cannot complain. The only effects of this drug for me are delayed ejaculation and sometimes when I sleep in, my dreams feel very intense almost like I cannot get out of them. I wouldn’t necessarily call this a bad experience but just a little strange. Hope this helps. I remember reading these things during my bad times and I loved hearing positive things.
Smave
Subj: Antidepressant complaint
Date: 7/25/2008
Do doctors check hormones levels? Food allergies? Gluten intolerance? Why do they always hand out antidepressants? Low hormones can be a cause of depression. This really bugs me that they hand this stuff out like candy. Why are so many people so depressed and anxious? We fill out bodies full of chemicals every day, get no exercise then take an antidepressant to make it better.
Mary
Subj: Cannot achieve erections
Date: 7/28/2008
I have been taking a combination of zoloft (200 mg) and Wellbutrin (150 mg) for three years. Prior to that, I was a late stage alcoholic and suffered from melancholic depression. Instantly the desire to drink vanished and I haven’t had a drink during this three year period. The bummer is the side effects of zoloft as so many have previously described. I am a 39 male with a very active sex drive. The problem is that I often cannot achieve erections, and if I do, they are only half what they used to be. It is very discouraging. I also gained 50 lbs (which I have almost lost all of now) during that same three year period. It is tough to say if that is a fair trade off or not, but I miss the sex!
Matt
Subj: No magical pill
Date: 7/29/2008
I started 50mg of Zoloft 2 months ago. Thought it would be a happy pill but boy was I wrong! I couldnt sleep so that turned into being late an cranky at work. I never gained any weight in fact I lost some. The worst was I thought of committing suicide on a regular basis. I’ve never once thought of suicide until taking this. I am so against taking (Med’s) unless you’re physically sick. Never again will I think there’s a magical pill.
Chris
Subj: The best choice I have made
Date: 7/31/2008
I remember reading online people’s opinions of the drug before I took it and it scared me away from it. But then I finally decided to give it a try and it has been the best choice I have made. I have been on it for over 4 months and I feel great. I’m on 100mg and I don’t have any side effects. When I first started I did notice that my hands would tremble but then it subsided. So honestly, don’t listen to all the negativity, cause what doesn’t work for others works amazing for others(but it may not be the best for you). So go based on yourself and not everyone else. It may be a blessing in diguise. And the pill is not meant to make you be all happy go lucky and see “butterflies and roses”, its meant to help put the chemicals in your mind in balance so you can just be who you are and not overly depressed. I still get sad some times, but that is normal, that is life, and its up to people to take control to make a change. And I did so by getting on this pill.
Believer
Subj: Only mild side effects
Date: 7/31/2008
I have recently weaned myself off zoloft and have had only mild side effects. I was on 50mg per day for six months and I decided to see if I could manage life o.k. without it. On my docs recommendation I took 25mg for 7 days then halved that again for 7 days then took that half every other day for 7 days and am now day 10 of complete withdrawal. I am getting some hot flushes, a little confusion and forgetfulness, and have a horrible taste in my mouth, but aside from that, no real problems as yet. I have also lost 1kg ( I gained 6 kilos in 6 months during my time on Zoloft!) Just hoping the depression doesn’t return now that I am off of it. Hope this helps.
Shaz
Subj: Zoloft side effects
Date: 8/3/2008
I have just started to take it 25mg until next week… side effects have been headaches, strange dreams, and vision problems,(smoke like strings floating around).
Laura
Subj: Nightmares and suicidal thoughts
Date: 8/12/2008
I hate Zoloft. I’m 18 years old and I have depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, and anxiety. I started taking Prozac (and I was put on Ativan which I remain on and LOVE) in June (now August) but I was switched to Zoloft because of rare bruising with the Prozac. I started Zoloft at 50mg but then after a month I was put up to 100mg and now a month later the medication is not working at all. I haven’t been taking it the last few days because of feelings of deep depression and even the frequent appearance of sudden suicidal thoughts. I haven’t been able to get to my doctor yet but I see him in a week or two. Hopefully he will put me on Lexapro or something. And yes, with both meds I have been on–I have the nightmares too. I love the Ativan and it works amazing!
Nicole
Subj: Anyone been in my shoes?
Date: 8/13/2008
Hi I’m male 26 I have been taking zoloft 50 mg for about 3 weeks for anxiety and mild agarophobia it started working in about two weeks and really helped with both so much so that I was able to travel back to my home country Albania. I have been here for a week I was fine in the beginning but now the last 3 to 4 days I have had bad mood swings and now I just feel depressed. Anyone know if it is gonna help? I was not depressed before, is this gonna go away? Please, if anyone has been in my shoes write me your experience I would greatly appreciate it thanks in advance.
Lorenc
Subj: Vivid dreams and hair shedding
Date: 8/13/2008
My second time on Zoloft – first time at 25 MGs my hair started shedding. This time doc slowly took me to 100MGs. I have to agree that it seems to lose its “punch” after a while (4 months), but the dizzyness/stomach side affects also diminish with time. Sometimes get the vivid dreams however, and hair is beginning to shed again. Pdoc may inject Wellbutrin into the mix next month if no real progress shown. I guess the combination of the two is more successful for some? So great, I’ll be happy but bald..LOL.
Marcia
Subj: Vivid dreams and weight gain
Date: 8/20/2008
I have been taking Zoloft for about 10 years as well as tried everything else every so often. It’s always worked great for me as far as depression goes. While I do tend to have more vivid dreams when my dose goes up, I have never had any nightmares. Weight gain is definitely an issue with Zoloft and pretty much any other antidepressants but I find that if I maintain a high carb and lowfat diet, I do not tend to have this problem. For whatever reason… some antidepressants tend to cause an insatiable craving for sweets (AKA carbs), so if one beats the cravings to the punch by eating healthy carbs I think one can find a happy median. Now, here’s my question… I have recently started to take 250 mg of Zoloft. I have never heard of anyone taking that high of a dose. I have not been having any problems thus far, but I was wondering if this high of a dose was dangerous?
Malaena
AskDocWeb: That does sound high so we suggest you double check with your doctor to make sure that is the correct dosage for you.
Subj: Decreased sex drive
Date: 9/1/2008
Zoloft has been okay with me. I have been on it for 2 years due to depression and anxiety. However, it did decrease my sex drive tremendously, and when I dont take it I feel dizzy and disoriented. Also, I have experienced losing more hair than normal.
Havalyn
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