I haven’t taken it, but one of my best friends was on it. She told me that it made her feel better, overall, but sometimes her emotions felt fragile. Like she could feel the drug lifting her up, even when she wanted to feel down.
I noticed she was a lot happier, more open, and generally more present to be around.
I was put on Prozac when it first came out, had a terrible reaction, then was switched to Zoloft. I was on Zoloft for about 6-7 years, went off it, was put back on Celexa because the Zoloft wasn’t working anymore, taken off that and now I’m on Wellbutrin. Whew!
Anyway, about the Zoloft. I remember the sleepiness and the sexual dysfunction most of all because they both hit me like a ton of bricks and stayed there. I felt like I was sleepwalking through life. It did something to my emotions in that intellectually I knew I should feel this or that, but I couldn’t feel anything. I remember thinking, “Gee, it would be nice if I could cry” at one point. But I couldn’t.
I’m also positive it’s done something to my long-term memory. While I was on it and even now, I have trouble remembering significant events, people, places, etc. I was never like this before the Zoloft.
My current p-doc told me that, in a few cases, SSRIs don’t work for some people, including me. It has something to do with body chemistry. She went on to say that, in general, those for whom SSRIs don’t work usually have something more than depression going on – in my case it was a chronic undiagnosed anxiety disorder.
Here’s hoping that you don’t fall into the same place as me with the Zoloft!
I was on it for a small while. Then I got a fun little side effect that I couldn’t stop moving. Acathasia, or something. Started out as finger tapping, then went to hand, food, leg tapping. Fun stuff. Got it on Paxil as well. Apperently in the same family.
Well then, my kids wouldn’t make it to 18. I have 2 daughters with severe OCD and without medication, they would be paralyzed with anxiety. Healthy coping skills aren’t even a part of the equation, and if you suffered from an anxiety disorder or depression, you’d know that. Both my children have also had intensive cognitive behavior therapy, but the medication made it possible for them to do this. Without the meds, the behavior therapy would have been impossible.
That’s like asking a child who needs glasses in order to see the board to wait until she is 18 in order to give her eyes a chance to do it on their own.
Please note, I am not disagreeing that they need to be taught how to cope. But please understand that without the help of the medication, many people, children especially, cannot learn these coping skills. This was not an easy decision for my husband and me to make, and it really upsets me when someone who has no experience with a crippling anxiety disorder makes pronouncements such as “it should be illegal for persons under the age of 18.” Why should a child have to suffer for over a decade to get help?
I have seen some somnolence and a slight drop in appetite in my daughter who takes zoloft. But those are minor inconveniences when weighted against the paralyzing anxiety she would otherwise be forced to live with if denied medication.
There is no justification for witholding medication from children who need it just because they are children.
I don’t know what current psychiatric thinking is about giving soloft to children. I can tell you from experience, however, that an SSRI has allowed me to take control of my life and exercise coping skills. It allows me to be who I am and I take it from there.
It doesn’t magically make someone high or serve as a “happy pill.”
Here is a link to a very recent study from Harvard that supports some of your concerns:
I had a Zoloft then went to sleep.
Six days later I woke up. Though it relieved some depression and my sleep problem, I had to call sick. I may need a smaller dose.
I had a very bad reaction to zoloft where it tipped me into suicidal depression. Very scary stuff but unusual.
Mr P did very well on it for a year but then developed disinhibition which was startling to say the least.
P the Elder went on it when he was 7 and we had a good 6 months before it ceased working effectively. He’s not responded to any of the SSRI’s since then. Well, he’s responded but it wasn’t pretty.
Aries, I’m really confident about the meds we use with both our kids because I have confidence about the paed we see. While I’m distressed that meds are necessary, I’m sure the diagnoses are right and that the kids suffer more unmedicated than they do medicated. P the E is very clear about preferring life with meds than life without.
But what Sauron’s ex is doing is dangerous. It’s OK to give ritalin sporadically as it clears the body but zoloft depends on a steady dosage and if the levels are bouncing around, that’s potentially a very Bad Thing Indeed. P the E decided one week to spit his tablets out behind the sofa and we ended up in the ER with him hallucinating. Once the meds were stable again, he was fine but OMG it was terrifying until I figured out what had happened :(.
Ehm, you were responding to a post that said medication should only be used in “extreme cases” - you don’t consider being so paralized with anxiety that you would die without medication to be “extreme”?
— G.
I’ve been taking 10 mg Lexapro (SSRI) for about 7 months now, and though I don’t feel 100% different, people around me notice very much. I don’t have the severe mood swings, self-loathing for weeks at a time, or the desire to beat myself with a hanger 
The side effects I’ve noticed most are VERY vivid dreams, and a slight drop in libido. Besides that, the side effects are very minimal.
Actually conventional thinking on OCD is to treat long before it becomes extreme and the brain is kindled. We waited too long to treat P the E and I wish the moment he crossed the line into anxiety and OCD we’d treated it.
My father has been taking it since last April. Mom died in Feb, he had his annual physical in April and the dr put him on Zoloft, which I’m not sure I agree with. My parents weren’t a together 24/7 unit, and as far as I can tell, the dr asked dad if he was a bit down (well, yeah, but …) and handed over the prescription. Of course he’s sad, though I do not think he needed drugs (hard for me to say as I live 3,000 miles away).
Does anyone have any cites of Zoloft use in the elderly leading to more frequent ‘senior moments’? I know it has been a stressful year for him, and he is 72, but he does seem to have deteriorated since March. I spent the summer with him, and it was q
… and it was quite obvious that he isn’t as sharp as he used to be. Could this be a side effect of the drug? I have looked online, but mainly find studies relating to the use in children and :younger: adults, I’ve not been able to find info on use in over 60s.
(apologies … the hamsters ate the end of my thread. First time that’s happened to me, I’m almost flattered)
Again, thanks for all your replies.