Doctor is thinking of putting me on Zoloft. As you can see, it has a myriad of side effects. But how common are they?
Anyway, I’ll cut to the chase. I have three main concerns: glaucoma, sexual side effects and (moderate) alcohol intake.
I asked my eye doctor about my preëxisting glaucoma. And she sees no problem. I trust her, she’s a good doctor. But she will monitor my eye pressure just in case. My plan: I will take the Zoloft for a week, and have my eye pressure checked then. If my eye pressure (which is already a little bit high—but being treated with Lumigan eye drops) gets higher, bye bye Zoloft I will say.
Anorgasmia is my main concern with Zoloft. How common is it? Is it a big concern? As you saw in the article I shared, delayed ejaculation is one likely side effect. That one actually doesn’t bother me as much (ejaculations, who needs 'em?). Again probability is my question. EDIT: Just to be clear, apparently Zoloft can delay ejaculation but NOT orgasm.
Lastly, will I be able to still drink alcohol in moderation? As many of you will likely point out, that one is not a necessity. And I think that I would probably agree with at least that one.
Just to be clear, despite the title of my thread, I’m not asking for medical advice for myself. My question is purely hypothetical: like I said, what are the percentages?
I’ve been on almost every anti depressant you can name. I’ve had every side effect from anorgasmia to premature ejaculation. The percentages are not relevant. The only way to know for sure is to take the pills.
@Jim_B
From Pfizer’s information leaflet for prescribers:
Table 3: Common Adverse Reactions in Pooled Placebo-Controlled Trials in Adults with MDD, OCD, PD, PTSD, SAD, and PMDD* ZOLOFT
(N=3066) Placebo
(N=2293) *
Adverse reactions that occurred greater than 2% in ZOLOFT-treated patients and at least 2% greater in ZOLOFT-treated patients than placebo-treated patients.
Denominator used was for male patients only (n=1316 ZOLOFT; n=973 placebo).
Cardiac disorders
Palpitations 4% 2%
Eye disorders
Visual impairment 4% 2%
Gastrointestinal Disorders
Nausea 26% 12%
Diarrhea/Loose Stools 20% 10%
Dry mouth 14% 9%
Dyspepsia 8% 4%
Constipation 6% 4%
Vomiting 4% 1%
General disorders and administration site conditions
Fatigue 12% 8%
Metabolism and nutrition disorders
Decreased appetite
In even finer print, specific male sexual dysfunctions occurred in 0%-8% of patients. Ejaculation delay, erectile issues, etc.
That said, the most sure fire way to experience side effects is to “do your own research” and dig for exact percentages. The power of suggestion is even stronger than sertaline. Listen to your doctor. Don’t on your own abruptly stop taking it. Talk to your doctor and follow their directions on how to taper off if it’s decided you need to (usually over the course of a week or so). There is a reason medical school and residency takes a minimum of 7 years after undergrad-it ain’t an internet googling club sport.
Each person experiences each drug differently. I cannot underline that enough. Talk to your doctor about the side effects you are worried about.
I was on Zoloft for about 6 months. Because I’m female and have female parts issues, I can’t speak to the sexual end of things. I was told it would take 3 months or so to feel the effects, but I had one side effect the very first day. I saw pastel dots of lights randomly flash in my vision. It was a bit disorienting when on the escalator at work but I was afraid to tell anyone any of what I was going through. The dots did lift my spirits the way Christmas lights do. They never appeared after that first day. I did feel an uptick in my mood for a couple of months but at the 6-mo. mark, it had disappeared so they changed my med.
Now, a drug working only three month does not seem to be much, but it gave me hope that there was a drug out there that would work for me. And, we did, eventually find something. I considered the effort very worthwhile. I dragged around for something like 13 years with depression before I begged for help. After getting the much needed help, I realized that I should have asked for it years previous. And if you don’t feel comfortable asking your doc those questions, find one you are comfortable with.
The serious question should be: Are any of the potential side-effects long-lasting or permanent?
Some drugs can have adverse reactions that do actual long-term or permanent damage. I don’t know if SSRI’s or SNRI’s would do this. Certain industrial-strength antibiotics can do this.
Those are the drugs you need to avoid like the plague they are. But mostly, the worst that can (usually) happen is you get some unpleasant side-effect so you stop using the drug (with appropriate taper-down as needed) and it goes away.
It’s kinda being a jerk. Are you asking because your have personal concerns? Are you asking for a friend? Are you just curious? Saying you need help and calling out specific individuals is a strong ask. Then backpedaling to “just curious” makes it feel like your are jerking people around.
Maybe you have some private reason that it’s important to you that you don’t want to share. But don’t waffle between “this is very important to me, please help me” and “i just have a casual curiosity”. It’s rude.
A couple years ago, I was walking across a field in a park to get a view of Fourth of July fireworks. It was, of course, dark, and my night vision is still pretty good, so I had pocketed the glasses. Saw at the edge of the field a beautiful light display; figured it was some kinda Fourth thing.
Then I heard the wop-wop. Looked up at the helicopter, and saw that it, too, was creating a light display…
So I puts on my glasses, and see that the thing on the ground is an ambulance. Later learned some poor drunken crazy bastard had been waving a screwdriver menacingly in a crowd, and the nearest cop had ventilated him. I was watching a medevac.
(He didn’t make it.)
Regarding side effects of antidepressants, keep in mind that they are self reported, and often filtered again by PCPs.
I am not a physician, so just please use this post as a jumping off point for your own research or to ask your own doctor, but a physician told me that Zoloft has a shorter half-life (about a day) versus something like Prozac (about five days), so tapering needs to be done more gradually and carefully.
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. EDIT: that’s of course just a joke