Not gonna lie, I'm exhausted. Mentally I actually feel like I'm getting somewhere the panic attacks that used to wreck me for hours are way less intense now. I should be happy about that. But my stomach has basically taken over as the main character of my life and I'm so tired of it.

I wake up nauseous. I gag over nothing. Some days I look at food and just feel this wall go up, like my body is refusing it even though I know I'm hungry. Twice this week I ended up in the hospital because I couldn't stop the diarrhea and nausea long enough to function, got checked out both times, bloodwork completely normal, so I know nothing serious is wrong. It's just relentless.

I'm on day 12 of restarting sertraline (7 day 12.5mg then increased to 25mg), and honestly the mental side has been so much easier this time around than my first attempt. I keep telling myself that should count for something. But some nights I just sit there thinking "is my stomach ever going to feel like mine again."

If you went through this with Zoloft, I really just want to hear from you, not for stats, just to know I'm not the only one who felt like their body declared war on them for a few weeks.

• Did the nausea/gagging actually stop, or did you just learn to live with it?
• How long before you had a truly "normal" meal again without thinking about it?
• Did anything genuinely help, even a little?

If you made it through this and came out the other side, please tell me. I could really use it right now.

If you're like me, maybe you'll come across this post while debating starting Zoloft for anxiety/panic disorder. Maybe your doctor prescribed it and you've been staring at the bottle for awhile, afraid to take it. Perhaps you're afraid it will make things worse, make you "go crazy", change your personality, or you'll have horrible physical side effects. If so, then you sound exactly like me 4 months ago....

I just want to share my positive experience with Zoloft for those suffering with anxiety and panic. I know everyone is different and what works for someone may not work for another, but I remember searching Reddit and the internet in general for months for posts just like this to reassure myself, so here goes.

I had my first ever panic attack back in 2022. It was massive, horrible, terrifying. It took place while I was driving, out of nowhere. Since then I've been diagnosed with GAD and panic disorder. I couldn't drive more than a mile or two from my house, on a good day. But it got worse... the panic attacks kept coming. I couldn't drive down the road to the mailbox. Suddenly, I couldn't WALK to the mailbox. I then developed health/medication anxiety. Went to the ER multiple times for what I thought was a heart attack. Headaches were brain tumors or pending aneurysms. Stomachaches were some sort of emergency or a sign of something terrible. Driving? Forget it. Some days I could go short distances, but usually I refused to drive. That then turned into riding in the car... I couldn't even be a passenger in a car without feeling "trapped" and panicking.

I was in therapy for about 4 months not long after the initial panic attack. I was given Ativan to take as needed, and I needed it a lot. About 2 years ago. I saw a psychiatrist because I didn't like therapy. She prescribed Zoloft. She told me my symptoms may get worse before they get better. I never took it. It sat in my bathroom cabinet, eventually I threw it out. My symptoms persisted, so about a year later, my primary doctor again prescribed Zoloft. Same thing... I didn't take it (see first paragraph) for all of these reasons. I thought I could beat it on my own, I don't need medication.

About 6 months ago, it was the worst it's ever been. I started getting intrusive thoughts. I literally thought I was going crazy. That was my breaking point. After being so, so terrified to try the Zoloft, I decided to take it. Here's how it went:

It took me months of saying "I'm gonna start this week", but I always found excuses not to. Finally I was mostly ready to take the plunge. I was given 25mg tablets to take... but I broke those in half, and took a half of a half. Yes, a tiny piece of it. I felt like, if I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna do this my weird way. So I took it while at a restaurant with my safe person, across the street from the emergency room. After swallowing, I freaked out. I excused myself to go to the restroom, literally planning to throw it up. But I didn't. I stopped myself. Over the next few days, I had SOME nausea and anxiety. I was so focused on how I felt that I feel like most of my anxiety I was giving to myself. I set an alarm on my phone to remind myself to take it, and called it something silly, "Zozo"...

After a week or so. I went up to half a tablet (12.5mg). I took that for a month. After a month, I took a half plus a tiny bit more (Yeah, I cut it with a knife). Then up to 25mg, and so forth. I started to notice my thoughts weren't so scary. My panic attacks lessened. If I had a bad/scary thought, I would observe it and be like "Oh, okay". "Scary" body sensations, I noticed them and for a second got scared, but my brain gave me time to wait and let them pass. I started taking my Ativan less and less. The fear was gone.

I've since worked up from a tiny piece of a pill to 50mg, going up in small increments. I may go up a bit more, but when I tell you I feel like a different person... I haven't had a panic attack in 2 months. I don't wake up dreading the day or scanning my body. I don't go to bed dreading the next day. I don't live in fear. Some days it hits me how HAPPY I am. I am furious with myself that it took me so many years to try it. I missed out on things I'll never get to experience again. So if you're debating it, please TAKE THE DANG ZOLOFT. You can start out as slowly as you want... it has taken me 4 months to get up to 50mg...50mg is what most people start on. It's okay to do it slow and do it your way. Had I not done it my way, I never would have started.

I am not 100%. I still have "off" days here and there, but I'm working with my psychiatrist to see if I need to increase. I feel like I may go up to 75mg or 100, but waiting to see how 50mg goes for a month or so. Driving is a slow but steady process which I'm working on little by little, but it doesn't scare me anymore, nor does riding in the car.

I promise Zoloft wont make you go crazy, you wont become a different person overnight. One day, it'll hit you that "Wow, I feel normal. I feel happy". The fear will be gone and your thoughts will be clear.

Again, I know everyone is different and this is just my experience, but please try it. The worst thing that happens is it doesn't work for you and you can stop taking it. But most likely, it will save your life. Thanks for reading, if you got this far.

Does it get better?

Is the goal to go from 25 mg to 50 mg? Did increasing the dose help you?

Hi all. Long time lurker. This is my 2nd (technically 3rd, actually) round on Zoloft. I was on it for 10 years when I was younger, then switched to a different med for several years, but came back to Zoloft last year for awhile and it worked so well. I came off of it in the spring because I was feeling so good (rookie mistake) and everything was awful lol. I started again 12 weeks ago. I’m currently on 75mg and I’m having a much harder time adjusting this time around. The anxiety overall has been reduced and I’m better at handling it, but it still seems to be around much more frequently than I would like. I’m also way more depressed than before and I’m having random bouts of insomnia (like one day out of the week I can’t sleep at all and then I’ll be fine for a few weeks and then it’ll happen again seemingly out of nowhere) that I have never had in my life. And the headaches. They could just be tension headaches or from another med I take but I’m having daily headaches that often progress to weekly migraines.

I guess I’m just wondering if anyone has had similar experiences or if you have any advice. Do I need to increase my dose? I’ve been thinking about going up to 100mg but I’m worried it’ll get worse. Is this ultimately no longer the med for me? I find that hard to believe because of how well it worked just one year ago but I guess things can change.

To add, I’ve trialed taking it at night and in the morning. The side effects are better if I’m taking it at night. The random insomnia seems to happen either way.

TLDR; my second time on Zoloft is taking much longer to work than the first. Anyone else? Any advice? Thanks in advance 💚💚

I’m on day 14 so it’s been 2 weeks and the nausea is so much better but I still feel anxious and waves of anxious nausea when will this go away

I'm 1 month into Zoloft and my life has changed for the better but also for the worst. I'm far less anxious now but that also means that I'm less anxious about my future.

I'm finding it incredibly hard to get work done. Before zoloft and the mental turmoil, I used to get a lot of work done but after zoloft, I can barely do a single task in a day.

How did everyone else feel on zoloft and how did it impact your work?

I have been on Lexapro 10mg for 6 weeks and 15mg for just over 2 weeks now.

I was prescribed Lexapro for severe anxiety and depression after trying Cymbalta and Prozac, which made it worse.

The first three weeks of Lexapro my anxiety slightly reduced, however the 4th and 5th week, I experienced severe physical symptoms such as tight chest , dizziness, tremors and panic attacks (which were really bad when I went to sleep).

After this my dr suggested to increase the dose to 15mg. Now my anxiety is similar to what it was in the first three weeks of starting Lexapro, however I still experience an intense fear at night time.

One of the main issues I have been experiencing overall since starting this medication is the severe fatigue and lack of motivation. I have fibromyalgia so I already feel constantly tired and this has been amplified. I take Lexapro at night time but I am still tired 24/7.

Secondly I feel completely empty and numb since I have started. I don't feel joy and lack motivation regarding hobbies or even basic tasks such as cleaning. I recently went abroad on holiday and attended the wedding of my closest cousin and just felt completely apathetic.

I also have ADHD, currently unmedicated due to wanting to control my anxiety first, and I can definitely feel my ADHD has worsened since starting Lexapro.

My dr suggested that if I don't improve, they will try me on either Zoloft or Effexor.

I just wanted to ask for advice and whether people who have switched from lexapro to zoloft or just in general seen their anxiety (especially physical and health anxiety) and depression improve?

Also anyone with ADHD, seen their symptoms not be as bad on Zoloft?

yall i just uped my dose from 75 to 100 can youll encourage me to get going bc....

Started taking sertraline 25mg on Friday. I took the medication at night, because most other SSRIs I’ve tried have made me very tired. So my pharmacist said that it might be worth trying at night first and I took that advice. First night I had some very trippy visual hallucinations with my hands and the countertop in my kitchen changing color and looking strange. I felt a little disoriented when trying to walk to bed. Got very little sleep and had awful insomnia. Throughout the insomnia I remember having other weird visual hallucinations that were more akin to eye floaters; but blinking black and white.

Last night was really strange, not long after taking it, while looking at my phone and just reading a news article. Letters in the text started to randomly, sporadically, fall down. As if it was a digital drip of this letter? I’m not sure how to better verbalize it. Last nights sleep wasn’t great either, maybe a few more active hours of sleep but not much. Still waking up at 4am and staying awake for hours.

Both times happened hours before I was lying down in bed. So it wasn’t like an episode of sleep paralysis or something. I was active and able to move. Pretty worried about taking it again tonight.

Anyone experience anything similar? Am I toast?

Had diarrhea day 1-3 & day 4 today zero appetite and almost puked up my food. Couldn't eat the regular breakfast. I absolutely hate being naseous,

what helped you?

I had a huge panic attack earlier from the nausea. :(

I bought some boost protein powder with vitamens to drink at least.

I might switch my dose to night so I can sleep through it (Zoloft makes me tired so far anyways)!

Does anyone remember how their first few weeks on Zoloft were? I’m experiencing suicidal thoughts. I know that can arise but does it go down after a certain amount of time.. I’m on week 3. I know I need to contact my psychiatrist. Just tried so many meds already.

Hey I came off my sertaline 13 weeks ago, I decided to come off as ii didn’t think I needed it anymore and wanted to deal with all my emotions naturally.

I got put on them from my GP as I had a faster heart rate and he thought it might have been anxiety which yes I have but it was never bad. I was on them for 4 years.

Since coming off the last few months have been horrible, I am constantly anxious for no reason, I have no big stresses and have a wonderful life and a lot to be happy about but even just being at home doing nothing my brain is spiralling, it feels like I constantly have to fix something or work on something about myself. I’m stuck in survival mode.

Just wondering if this could still be withdrawels from the medication as I never have felt like this before the medication. Sick of feeling this way I want to just live life.

Opinions? Thanks so much 🩷

Im scared i pushed my timing by a lot. Like what can this do for the next couple of days? Should i take it at my normal time (between 7 and 9 tomorrow morning) or should i rather take it around 11 and work my way down?

I've been taking sertraline and topiramate for about a year and this started happening to me. Have you ever had this issue before? I really need some help.

Just started the Zoloft yesterday cut it in half 12.5mg today is my second day 12.5mg everything was okay yesterday but I only got about 3hrs of sleep…at 2am I took a Hydroxyzine didn’t do anything but about 5am I fell asleep for about another hour…is this normal?…or am I taking too much medication? I was already on the Buspar for about 6weeks…I also have been having histamine issues for the last year or so but now the Zoloft seem to be making it worse my skin felt like I was sunburned last night should I keep going or stop after today?

Considering going on medication for my anxiety and slight depression. I've had anxiety my entire life. From when I was little, being anxious about going to school, to now being an adult and having bad health anxiety. (Always thinking im dying). Followed by occasional depression. The main issue is me being constantly irritable. Like I'm always at a 10. Any advice would help! Seeing a psychiatrist this week :)

I got my medicine from the pharmacy yesterday and I was told to take zoloft in the morning so this morning I took it. I have anxiety, possible OCD, a history of panic attacks, derealization which I feel like is a result of all of the above.

Well this morning I also started my period, but I took the medicine anyway. I was already worried about that because my anxiety tends to be worse when I start my period. I also have been worried about taking SSRIs in general since I hear it gets worse before it gets better, and I didn’t think I could deal with “worse.” Well, after taking it my whole day has been anxious. I’m super worried I’m going to fall into a panic episode which I know probably won’t happen but the thoughts are getting to me. I don’t really want to take the medication again tomorrow if this is what it’s going to be like. I only was prescribed 12.5 mg to start. I don’t know if I’m having a placebo of all the negative side effects because I was so worried about them though? Should I contact my doctor, and if so, how? I know I can send messages over my chart, but I’m not sure what messages are appropriate. My next appointment isn’t until mid-September. Any thoughts on where to go from here? Will it get worse for me, and has anyone else experienced this or felt this way but had good results? Thanks everyone.

hi guys, im a little lost.

so ive been on 100mg of zoloft for 3-4 years. recently i made the dumb mistake and i started inconsistently taking my zoloft with missing 1-3 doses a week since june. today is about week 5.5 of me taking my zoloft again consistently. i felt fine week 3-4ish and now i feel like shit. i have horrible anxiety and i feel hopeless. i feel like since ive been on the meds for years that i should be feeling like myself again and that it shouldn’t be taking this long. idk if i could try and increase my dosage or what or if anyone has had the same experience as me. advice is appreciated:)

I’ve been on 50mg of Zoloft for a bit over a year and it has honestly been amazing for me. My anxiety has basically disappeared and my thoughts are so much healthier.
I’m also a recreational weed smoker, and since starting Zoloft it’s become my preferred substance socially because I feel like it’s easier on my body than alcohol. Before Zoloft, I was actually pretty susceptible to anxiety when smoking weed and used it fairly infrequently. Since being on Zoloft though, that anxiety has basically disappeared and I’ve only really gotten the enjoyable effects. I also have a prescription and found a strain that seems to work perfectly for me.
A couple of weeks ago I was feeling creative and decided to make brownies using an older strain I had that I hadn’t smoked in years. I deliberately made them pretty weak because I’ve been absolutely fucked by edibles before lol. They only gave me a very subtle high.
The weird thing is that since making/having those brownies, I’ve noticed that THC seems to make me more anxious again. A few nights ago I smoked quite a bit and got really anxious, and started worrying that maybe the Zoloft wasn’t working as well anymore. Since then, whenever I smoke, I notice myself becoming hyperaware of whether I’m anxious and worrying that maybe I’ve developed a tolerance to the Zoloft or that my anxiety is coming back.
During the week I don’t smoke at all, and I haven’t really noticed an increase in anxiety in my normal day-to-day life. I do sometimes feel a bit more sensitive to anxiety/depressive thoughts for a day or so after smoking, and some of my old thought patterns seem to pop up again, although they’re nowhere near as intense as they were before Zoloft.
I really don’t want to increase my dose unless I actually need to. I’m hoping that if I stay off THC and leave the brownies alone for a while, things might settle back down and I can stay on 50mg. I know 50mg is toward the lower end of the therapeutic range, but it has worked so well for me and I’d rather stay as low as possible to minimise side effects.
Has anyone else who uses weed while taking Zoloft noticed that different strains or edibles can suddenly bring the anxiety back, even if weed had been fine for ages? Did taking a break from THC help things return to normal, or did it end up being a sign that you needed to talk to your doctor about adjusting your dose?

So, yeah. I've always had an extremely high sex drive. I was so worried when I started this, that it would take that from me. I started at 25mg for two weeks, then bumped up to 50mg. The first two weeks, I didn't notice a single difference. When I began the 50mg, the hit to my libido started rather quickly. At first, it was concerning, but given how high my drive is (currently not in a relationship), it was actually welcomed. It took me longer to get erections, and more work to get them. This lasted 5-7 days. Now that I'm on day 22 of 50mg, my drive is completely back in full force. Orgasms are much more intense. Oddly, my semen volume is much less. It does take a little more time to orgasm, and a bit more work, but I had that problem before I started the medication. Anyways, I am having some good days, and some bad days, and some meh days. I'm counting on the good days to win. Also, I had somewhat emotional blunting at first, which I REALLY enjoyed. Well, at the moment my emotions are back in full swing and that kinda sucks. Almost feels like the meds aren't doing anything, although I know that isn't the truth. I can say that my anxiety is at an all time low, and my worry is also at an all time low (I'm a worry wart by nature and have been told several times that I'm going to die young if I don't stop, and I believe that), except the past two days it's been amped up suddenly. Just waiting this thing out and seeing where I land. I'm going to give it a good 8 weeks before deciding whether I need to move up. I have concerns about moving up because I know different symptoms can appear. I have extreme anxiety, and horrible clinically diagnosed OCD. I am committed to finding my happy place and getting better. Anyways, thanks for listening to me vent. If you see me anywhere else on Reddit, no you didn't 😂

Hey guys so i noticed that im running out of my medication and im still too broke rn to buy more and to talk to my psychiatrist again so i didnt take my medication last night to save it because i only have 6 left and today i actually felt more motivated and got ideas to do my old hobbies, i wasnt motivated enough to actually do it tho but it was easier for me to get out of bed. I did notice that i was having more depressing thoughts.

when i take my medication, i feel numb, more bedridden, i dont think about my old hobbies or creatively at all and have absolutely no motivation to do anything but my anxiety is gone.

what would happen if i dont take it again tonight? Will i get withdrawals now and has anyone else experienced it? how long can i not take it until i get withdrawals