Hello All
Im currently in the process of withdrawing from Zoloft / Sertraline and finding it a lot harder than I thought it would be.
I was on 50mg a day for 6 months approx, then I moved down to 50mg every other day and then finally down to 50mg every 2 days.
I took my last pill 9 days ago. The first 5 days were absolutely fine but then on the 6th day the extreme dizzy spells and brain zaps started to occur, 4 days later they are no better.
Has anyone else been through a similar experience to me? was i foolish in thinking that tapering off would result in zero side effects? how long are they likely to last and is there anything I can do to take the edge of the side effects ?
thank you guys.
It sounds like you're going about it a sensible way by spacing out the tablets but you haven't said what period of time you've done it over . . . so I am just wondering if it might help to do it over a much longer time scale? and even more gradually? NB most tablets have a line across so you can snap a 50 mg tablet into two 25 mg portions. (I trained as a physician so that's based on orthodox advice not something off the wall!). That way, you could tail off the dose more gradually. That's how I came off it a few years back. (Yes I went back on it . . . but I use a lowere dose these days, as a maintenance for now). NB I know exactly what you mean by those unpleasant withdrawal symptoms - like mini electric jolts - I have noticed them when I've forgotten to take my dosage or run out of stock so have used them as a reminder. Working from first principles, do you think it might be worth taking a 25 mg portion, just to relieve you of the symptoms? Then go without any again until you get those withdrawal effects and if they get unpleasant again, just a 25 mg to stave them off. By increasing the number of days in between each portion, eventually the side effects don't show. That worked for me. Just watch out for rebound depression though because our underlying vulnerability may remain and so might the underlying issues, so make sure you have support from someone sensible and take care of yourself.