Zoloft / sertraline / health anxiety update

So, yesterday was the first day of the week where I go off Zoloft and wean off every other day. Omg I felt so much more like ME. The day was SO foggy, though, and headachy. Had a couple mood swings throughout the day but I kept them to myself; I just feel more sensitive!

I went out to eat later that night and midway through dinner my head felt WEIRD. Like, that feeling you get when you feel like you’re forgetting something or you just forgot something and you’re trying to remember. I was so spacey after that and it freaked me out - the whole time I was thinking “omg what if I lose control? Omg what if I’m about to have a seizure for the first time? What if I faint?”. It passed and once we went to the car, I felt more calm, more like me pre anxiety.

Got home, took my sertraline half.. watched GOT and felt pretty numb after. Slept like a brick but had soooo many bad dreams about money, health, if I’m going nuts, my gym being closed? It was a lot. I woke up feeling less foggy like yesterday but back to that weird Zoloft blah feeling again.

Feeling a bit anxious right now cuz I hate being alone and realized I won’t have company til 9, but it’s getting easier to cope. Excited to have my motivation back to some extent.

Still struggle with fears of being crazy/going crazy, and fears of brain issues despite MRIs and EEG. I have therapy tonight and I’m looking forward to it.

[Pearwig]

You don't say whether you are coming off Sertraline under direction from your doctor. I made a big mistake last summer by upping my Sertraline from 50mg to 200mg for three days when I knew my life would be stressful, and then dropping back to 50mg a day again. AS A RESULT I WAS ILL AGAIN FOR MONTHS! I should have used Propranolol, which is a beta-blocker, to cope with those three days and kept the Sertraline the same. I am now back on 50mg per day and expect to need that dose for the rest of my life. PLEASE come off Sertraline VERY CAREFULLY AS GUIDED BY YOUR DOCTOR. And if your doctor says that you will need Sertraline for the rest of your life, so be it.

[Hidden in reply to Pearwig]

Thanks for your concern! Yes - I talked to 3 doctors and a pharmacist after 2 weeks of being on. One doc said to stop abruptly and I didn’t trust her opinion, the others said to taper off. It’ll be one month in total; first two weeks were 25mg, then 12.5mg for one week, then 12.5mg every other day (that’s where I am).

Omg that’s so scary! I’ve heard that beta blocker is good. I hope you’re ok. How long were you on sertraline? The first doc said my dose is so small that stopping abruptly would do nothing but I wanted a second, third, fourth opinion. I’m sensitive to medication so I wanted to taper off slowly!