Zoloft & Ativan...long as usual. ;)

[faith21]

Hello Mamas,

I have posted previously. . it's been about 2 months since I had a panic attack, then anxiety, then depression, and then finally a diagnosis of obsessional OCD.
I start Cognitive Behavorial Therapy this week. I am 25 and this is my first experience with this type of depression/anxiety.

I was prescribed Ativan when I went to the ER for anxiety. At first, I was taking only when I was feeling EXTREME anxiety to help calm me down (about .5 - 1 a day at max). I was taking daily about 6 weeks, and begin to taper myself off...it's been 4 days since I have not 'needed' ativan or taken any. I began to be weary of using this as a crutch since it is researched to be very addicitve, I would like to 'tackle' and learn how to cope without.

Problem is now I am feeling a lot of anxiety, not able to fall asleep, ears are ringing constantly, stomach nausea...and just a little more sad then I was before stopping the Ativan. so yeah, really don't want to start back on ativan if i am feeling withdraw....

Are these withdrawal symptoms ? :

I have also been on Zoloft for 6 weeks, I no longer feel extremely hopeless...but to be honest, I am not feeling much of anything at all. I miss being excited about things...

I don't want to increase my dosage, to be honest I am frustrated with meds. I am also on Trazadone to help me sleep, which is giving me disturbing dreams.

TO MED OR NOT TO MED ?? that is the question. I KNOW it's different for everyone....I just don't feel like myself, and I am getting sooooo tired of it.


I have began taking fish oil caplets..and I am so interested in a natural approach...but insurance companies just wont cover ! boo.

mamas out there, will i always feel this down ? i used to be so full of sunshine, i would like the clouds to go away.......:

[BellinghamCrunchie]

Originally Posted by faith21

Problem is now I am feeling a lot of anxiety, not able to fall asleep, ears are ringing constantly, stomach nausea...and just a little more sad then I was before stopping the Ativan. so yeah, really don't want to start back on ativan if i am feeling withdraw....

Are these withdrawal symptoms ? :

Yes, those sound like classic benzo withdrawal symptoms. If you can't tolerate them, you might go to .25 mg (a quarter of a 1mg pill) for a week or two, then stopping.

It also sounds like Zoloft is not working well for you (making your emotions flat). There are better choices for OCD/depression (such as Paxil, Prozac, etc). It might be worth it to talk to your prescriber about making some changes.

I found Trazodone to be too "hard hitting." For me, occasionally using over the counter Benadryl worked well enough to get some sleep.

The cognitive therapist will probably also have some advice regarding medication (even though they can't prescribe - they are often more familiar with medication effects than prescribers are).

You WILL feel better. You won't always feel like this. This is a particularly difficult time for you right now. Sometimes it takes a while, trying different meds, combined with therapy, before you get on an even keel. Then as you develop new ways of dealing with your feelings, you can start to taper the meds and see if you can go off them completely, or manage on a very small dosage.

[faith21]

That is a good description for the traz...'hard hitting'. I don't remember falling asleep, yet I am still up during the night since i stopped the ativan. which is probably a symptom of withdraw from the benzo also. eeek, all these added side effects. :

u can imagine how difficult it is to have hope that another ssri will help me feel better after 7 weeks invested into Zoloft. but, if they don't alll make you feel so blahhhhh, ( i want to humm a song, look forward to SOMETHING, even something small like reading ! ), it's worth a try until I complete my CBT and in hopes try to taper off meds. I really would like to have hope that I won't have to rely on them for several years. that is in no offense to anyone who is very happy using medication. I would like to add another little one to my family soon...and I know SSRI treatment can be difficult during pregnancy.

You were so kind to write back, thank you. I see my psychiatrist for the first time on Monday, (my primary had wrote prescriptions up until now).

[bdoody11]

Originally Posted by faith21

That is a good description for the traz...'hard hitting'. I don't remember falling asleep, yet I am still up during the night since i stopped the ativan. which is probably a symptom of withdraw from the benzo also. eeek, all these added side effects. :

u can imagine how difficult it is to have hope that another ssri will help me feel better after 7 weeks invested into Zoloft. but, if they don't alll make you feel so blahhhhh, ( i want to humm a song, look forward to SOMETHING, even something small like reading ! ), it's worth a try until I complete my CBT and in hopes try to taper off meds. I really would like to have hope that I won't have to rely on them for several years. that is in no offense to anyone who is very happy using medication. I would like to add another little one to my family soon...and I know SSRI treatment can be difficult during pregnancy.

You were so kind to write back, thank you. I see my psychiatrist for the first time on Monday, (my primary had wrote prescriptions up until now).

I'm so sorry for you mama!

As the PP said, please talk to your Dr. about switching meds. Espcially now that you're seeing a psychiatrist. They will have better ideas about what the latest studies are and what medication will be most effective in your situation.

I had a primary put me on Zoloft years ago. It didn't work and I ended up quitting meds altogether. When I finally admitted I did need something I ended up at a specialty depression/anxiety clinic. What a difference! I've been on both Effexor and Lexapro with great results.

FYI, I have been on Lexapro for my entire pregnancy and the baby is healthy. Yes, we will watch for complications after birth and will be doing cord samples and blood samples once BF is established to see how much medication is being trasmitted, but the benefits far outweighed the risks in my situation.

I hope you don't have to do meds for a long period of time, but know that if you need to there is no shame in it and you can lead a normal life and acheive all of your dreams.

[faith21]

your post gave me a lump in my throat..yay i felt something !
thank you. . hope is undeniably priceless when you feel this way.

[faith21]

Hello..just an update...
I feel physically much better now that I have stopped the Benzo's ..it's been a little over a week. Seen my psych for the first time, he did a very through evaluation, like him so far. Based on my ?'s he wants to keep me on Zoloft..saying it's helping with depression and has upped my dosage to 75 mg stating that anxiety is a little tougher to treat then depression. He also commented that my flat feeling was most likely caused by the benzos also, to give zoloft a good course since the side effects were minimal so far. I have practicing my cognitive behavorial excercises. throughout the day i am seeing small but promising glimpses of 'myself'. Since my mother is bipolar I have been hypersensitive to my symptoms , in case there is any chance that I am misdiagnosed, I fear any type of mania occuring while on SSRI's. But am trying not to obsess, key word trying. I have been EXTREMELY irritable the last 4 days, but that's really my only symptom that I detect that could possible fall into bipolar mania etc. so, cross my fingers that I have made it out of the darkest times so far. (with the support of all the mamas also) mood: better than : :

[Oh the Irony]

i disagree with your doc. when i took zoloft, i had that flat line feeling as well. my psych said that many people complained about it--kind of a "i'm happy but i don't care" feeling. i found that i didn't have the low lows but there was no real up side either.

glad you were able to get off the benzos.

good luck to you. glad the cognitive behavioral stuff is helping.

thinking about you. (((hugs)))

[faith21]

Yeah, I'm not so gung ho about Zoloft so far, like you said, flat.

it's so weird i laugh, but it's not that normal happy feeling inside, like I'm aware Im laughing but I'm almost too aware of the fact that it doesn't feel the same. I don't look forward to much, but I don't dread as much. He said his preference is Paxil for anxiety disorders but didn't want to just switch me,so if in two weeks (when I see him) and I'm still feeling this way,I'm going to try something else, because that would be 9 weeks.I know everyone is different but what 'worked' for you ? Oh, and how do you know when it's working ? Are you supposed to start feeling 'like yourself' ? I think I've reached my question limit for the night ...