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  • BDD Moderators: Keif’ Richards

I want to abruptly come off of Zoloft.

masumune

masumune

Bluelighter
Joined
Feb 7, 2012
Messages
125
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The 9th Circle
I have tried before and was met with horrible withdrawals so i nvr rode it out. At this point i would like to know if any real harm can come from the withdrawals. If it wont kill me or anything i want to ride it out. If i have to i'll taper off i will do it but i don't want to wait the time that will take me.
I appreciate anything anyone can tell me =D thank you. Yay.
 
Umm.. Im not an expert but heres my exprience. Ive been off and on zoloft a few different times. I eventually figured out that I really did HATE what it was doing to me, even though my doc said that just meant it was working because I didnt think I needed it anymore. First time I tapered off slowly. I kinda felt drunk and light headed for a week. Secondtime I went cold turkey, was expecting to have a horrible reaction but it didnt happen. GIVEN I did have my lorazepam to fall back on which Im sure helped a lot. I use lorazepam legitimatly for anxiety. It helps. As for my depression Im convinced theres now pharm that will truly help that, jyst cover it up. Do want you want but I dont blame you for wanting to get it over with. Just go easy for a few days and you will be fine.
 
mal3volent said:
Umm.. Im not an expert but heres my exprience. Ive been off and on zoloft a few different times. I eventually figured out that I really did HATE what it was doing to me, even though my doc said that just meant it was working because I didnt think I needed it anymore. First time I tapered off slowly. I kinda felt drunk and light headed for a week. Secondtime I went cold turkey, was expecting to have a horrible reaction but it didnt happen. GIVEN I did have my lorazepam to fall back on which Im sure helped a lot. I use lorazepam legitimatly for anxiety. It helps. As for my depression Im convinced theres now pharm that will truly help that, jyst cover it up. Do want you want but I dont blame you for wanting to get it over with. Just go easy for a few days and you will be fine.
Click to expand...
Thank you for sharing your experience. I appreciate the input.
It would be nice to have some benzo's to help me through.
 
Zoloft withdrawal can be unpleasant, but it is not known to be dangerous to one's life like alcohol or benzo withdrawal.

Not everyone gets withdrawal symptoms (studies say around 60% get them and for many people it can be relatively mild) and they can be largely reduced or even avoided by tapering off gradually instead of stopping abruptly. Even a quick taper over the period of a week would be better than no taper. You should really talk to your doctor about stopping though.

Common symptoms include: weird skin sensations, dizziness, electric shock-like sensations or "brain zaps", insomnia, restlessness, sweating, nausea, emotional instability, depression, nightmares, headaches, and generally feeling weird or "off". But many people do not get all of these symptoms. I don't know how long you were taking Zoloft? That can be a factor. When I came off an SSRI the withdrawals were pretty mild for me, the things I noticed most was feeling kinda weird, a bit dizzy, brain zaps, and awareness of heartbeat, and these things were not constant and didn't last all that long. But if you got horrible withdrawals in the past, maybe you are more prone to them. Just in case you do get bad withdrawals or feel extremely depressed, hopefully you are in a situation where you can see a doctor pretty quickly?
 
In my own personal experience with taking and coming off ssri drugs the only real danger is rebound depression and all the terrible things that come with it. Suicidal thoughts feelings of worthlessness possible mania are all possible dangers.
 
I wouldn't just stop abruptly, it'd be most wise to just taper off. Because some times these problems
Stated before can be longer lasting to the point where it'd be much more uncomfortable than before, even to the point where
I have read some perminent problems can occur from stopping right away. And imo, can be very unpleasant. After stopping Zoloft abruptly, I suffered even more severe depression and depersonalization than before. My stress levels
Went through the roof, and other problems seemed to occur along with a several month withdrawal including constant
"brain zaps" and light headedness. So in a sense, you won't die, but be wary of the post-long term
Effects of SSRI drugs.
 
I tried cold turkey and on the 8th day of increasingly worse symptoms I broke down and got my script refilled. It took over a year to taper after that. It has been about 4 years since I stopped completely and I still get brain zaps when I'm tired. I also now seem to have perminate issues with premature ejaculation (I last about 10-20 seconds) While on Zoloft it was impossible to cum. Before Zoloft I had what I consider normal sexual stamina.
 
Talk to the health professional prescribing your zoloft and voice your concerns. Ask him the risks of suddenly stopping your medication and if its not life threatening, tell him your plans. Hes there to help and at the end of the day, it is your decision. He can not force you to taper off only advise.
If you explain to him your adamant you're going to go through with what you've described, he may even prescribe you something temp to combat withdrawls.
Coming off zolofr after extended use will come with many side effects. The severity is very subjective. Having you're health professional on board to help you through the worst. Whether it goes against his advice or not, is worth a lot more than our varied opinion and experience here on bluelight.
You make the decision, and even if you're health professional disagrees and isn't happy with your choice he is obligated to advise and supervisor your care.
He has the last say on prescriptions and referrals, you decide the rest. He's a healer afterall.

Here on bluelight we can give our limit knowlege and share our experiences, but it only goes so fatr
 
It's not life threatening, just don't be a bitch and start crying alone in your room and kill your self. You may be a little more depressed while coming off it, how ever i wasn't. There was one day while in withdrawal i felt really stressed and thought my life was shit but it was only 1 day. I liked that i could feel my emotions again, even the negative ones . Anyways the worst part of it for me was the light headedness and dizziness, it seriously pissed me off cause it lasted so long. Apart from that the withdrawals weren't too bad, considering iv withdrawaled from all types of drugs.
 
Abrupt discontinuation of SSRI antidepressants like sertraline / Zoloft can result in withdrawal symptoms such as electrical "brain zaps", or even seizures, in the worst cases.

One option is to replace it 10% daily with fluoxetine / Prozac, stabilise for at least a few days, then taper off 10% weekly. Or just taper off Zoloft by 10% weekly.

Alternatively, go to theroadback.org and follow their advice on SSRI withdrawals.
 
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