Change of Medication inquiry

[eant65]

I have been on sertraline for nearly ten years, and I still go through depression. I have changed my doses myself, which i know is NOT recommended. I just got a new psychiatrist and our first meeting is in a few weeks. I have had also problems with drinking at times which has affected the meds according to all professionals. I KNOW i need to quit drinking, however should i change my meds to another medication and change the doses due to the fact I may be immuned with Sertraline. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

[sushinala]

I took sertraline for about 5 years (and other antidepressants for a total of 11 years). I also messed with the dose. I think it may have increased my suicidal thoughts. I don't recommend increasing it above 200 mg/day. I was also concerned with my alcohol consumption during that time. I noticed when I drank I got drunk quicker and had worse side effects from drinking. I hope you can meet yourself where you're at and simply cut back on the number of drinks you have each day and week. If quitting alcohol cold turkey is too much, limiting the number of drinks is the most loving thing you can do for yourself. It might be worth your time to try another antidepressant that doesn't conflict with alcohol as much. Or you might want to try herbal remedies or acupuncture if you can. In my experience prescription anti-depressants cause SO many unpleasant, even debilitating side effects long term and offer such a small amount of relief. I've been off antidepressants a year and a half. I haven't had serious suicidal thoughts until January of this year. To me that is saying something since I have severe clinical depression. At this time I take a high count probiotic, Vit D & Iron for mood/neurological health and some other vitamins. Adaptogens like Ashwaghanda and maca provide a boost for a month or so (for me at least). I am now trying to get my hands on some new herbs...hope that will show results too.

Sorry if I went on a tangent and was long winded. I hope this response helps in some way. Best of luck with your mental health eant65!

[Kam360 in reply to sushinala]

Hi Sweetie, In the UK, taking herbs with antidepressants is a big no no as they interfere with the chemicals in your brain...therefore, antidepressants will not work properly. You will also impair your kidney's ability to function properly. Avoiding alcohol too is imperative as it will hammer your liver. Please look into cleansing your body, and you will improve significantly. Sending love and hugs.❤️🤗🤗

[designguy]

I was on zoloft for a number of years but it didn't really work for me. I also drank alcohol while I was on it without any issues but it could have been because the med wasn'thelping. One of the difficulties with meds is that we all react differently to them. I also tried a number of other meds without success. I wound up doing a psychopharmacological test that used my dna to determine which meds were best suited for me genetically. I live in the US and the one I used was from Genesight and it was paid for by my insurance. The test showed that zoloft and none of the other meds I had tried except for a benzo were right for me. I started on one it recommended (Pristiq) and it has worked well for me. I do drink alcohol now with the Pristiq without any issues but I limit myself to once or twice a week but it's typically not recommended to mix alcohol and and meds. I did wait to start consuming the alcohol until after I had stabilized on the Pristiq and felt good consistently.

The thing that helped me also with the thoughts was learning and practicing simple mindfulness to be able to detach from my thoughts and let them flow in and out. learning to never believe anxious thinking no matter what is the key. Understanding that the thoughts are a misguided attempt by your body and mind's built in self protection system helps to diffuse them and take away their power.