Depression Recovery

Question:

I have just been put on zoloft.  Could some of you give me some information on it?  How long did it take before it showed any kind of good effect?  Did anyone have any side effects?  How did you feel when it started to work?  How long have you been on it for?  Is it a long-term thing?  Will I have to take it for the rest of my life? Julie

Response:

Hi Ya Julie!!!!!!! Im on Zoloft  50mg. I have been taking it for over a year now.   I noticed I get better after 3 days.  Better not perfect….but better. Side effects are tollerable.  It does mess up your sleeping patterns a little bit at first….but that shall pass.   Meds tend to throw your ballance off a little some times….  It changes your appitite some what. And you may have some er well diarrhea….   Zoloft works for most people but not all. It may do wonders for feel. Good Luck. I love my little blue pills…..and I hope you do to. Hugg Hugga Chip * * * * My best friend is my teddy bear!

Response:

Hi Julie, and welcome to alt.support.depression.recovery (ASDR)! My experience with Zoloft: was on it for about four years… I have a severe enough depressive pattern that it may be unlikely I’ll ever be off anti-depressives for the rest of my life, but I sometimes take a few months break. I started out at 50mg, felt fairly good effects after 3 or 4 weeks. after about nine months, I noticed that I also had an anxiety problem, perhaps uncovered by the lifted depression, so I was given Buspar, 30mg/day.  I think one of the side effects of Zoloft is that it subtly augmented a feeling of my thoughts racing; the Buspar helped, and it is practically free of any side effects. Then, I had some stressful life events all at one time, and the 50mg was not enough… I was boosted to 75mg, then 100, then 150 eventually. I stabilized at that dosage and definitely benefitted from the higher dose… I began to thrive, not just survive… I started a home-based business and took over responsibility for a monthly newsletter for a women’s group I was part of. In research that I did, one statistic I found was that one of the most common reason anti-depressants didn’t work was the Dr. didn’t try a high enough dose or give enough support for side effects.   I know taking more than one pill seems like a drag, but for me it was the key to putting all the puzzle pieces back in place, so that I could, again, thrive and not just survive. One of the stresses was having to move out of the flat I shared with my girlfriend… I was functional enough to be able to learn the ropes of house buying and searched and searched & finally found & bought an inexpensive house… a long term dream of mine & I thank the Zoloft for the lifted ability to function in the adult world to be able to accomplish this.  I also had some insomnia and very increased appetite.  If I had known then, what I know now, I would have requested a ’scrip for 2mg of Klonopin to take at bedtime as a sleep aid; and taken over-the-counter chromium picolinate mineral supplement to help control the increased appetite.  Some people also experience some decrease in sexual functioning. I have tried different anti depressants since then, am now on prozac. Whether you have to be on it the rest of your life depends on how severe your depression pattern is. If its fairly mild, then maybe 6-9 months or a year… then try to go off, see if you can stay off.. Hope this helps, I’d be glad to go into more detail if you wish… my best to you, Julie Dannia – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > I have just been put on zoloft.  Could some of you give me some > information on it?  How long did it take before it showed any kind of good > effect?  Did anyone have any side effects?  How did you feel when it > started to work?  How long have you been on it for?  Is it a long-term > thing?  Will I have to take it for the rest of my life? > Julie

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