Can you take sinemet and sertraline (Zoloft) together ?

[LAJ12345]

Can you take them together or do they need to be spaced out. Hubby has been leaving a gap between sinemet and breakfast with his sertraline and vitamins but I’m wondering if he can take the sertraline at the same time as the sinemet to get it into him earlier in the morning. He is struggling with the getting going in the morning at the moment as it is mid winter.

He has gene SNPs which mean both his seratonin and dopamine pathways are blocked. Sertraline is a seratonin reuptake inhibitor but what do you do if you don’t have seratonin to start with. With dopamine you take l dopa. What can you take for seratonin? Because his enzymes are not working to produce much of it all the usual natural ways of eating precursors don’t work. Winter is the worst time. Summer the light is better and longer and that helps. I’ve had his vitamin d checked and it is at the top of normal so it’s not that.

[Maltipom]

Yes, I took both for 2.5 years. My MD changed me to Lexapro when it was no longer working as well for me. I never had a single problem taking both.

[LAJ12345 in reply to Maltipom]

Thanks.😊

What time of the day did you take the sertraline? Did it make you anxious, or make it hard to sleep? What were the signs of it not working and how was Lexapro better? Thanks again.

[Maltipom in reply to LAJ12345]

I took it at bedtime. It was prescribed for in the morning but my bedtimes are more predictable than when I get up so it helped to remember and helped keep my dosage consistent, which is very important. I started taking it mostly for anxiety and it worked until health issues with my parents made it worse so my md changed mine to Lexapro. Sometimes they change them because after so long you can become resistant to their benefits and if you're on the highest dose as I was they will to something different.

[LAJ12345 in reply to Maltipom]

Thanks. He takes it in the morning so maybe bedtime would be better.

[answerseeker]

Has he tried a lightbox from fall to spring? This helps many people with S.A.D. Seasonal Effective Disorder. It is the wavelengths of red light in the morning that help, not the Vitamin D difference in this case.

[LAJ12345 in reply to answerseeker]

Hi, yes he has but not routinely, more when he remembers which is less and less as he feels bad. I have now set it up next to the bed on a timer to come on at 7am so it is regular. Thanks for the reminder😊