3birdsandrobin: Adverse reaction

[3birdsandrobin]

Hi 

I am new here. I am a wife and a mom (of 4) and experienced what I believe to be an adverse reaction to Zoloft in January of this year. I was prescribed the pill after I approached my Dr. My kids all had whooping cough for months and I had not slept, was irritable, and was looking for a quick fix. A friend told me she was on Zoloft and I thought it would be a magic happy pill for me. Well, I took one dose of 50mg and literally was sent straight to hell about 20 mins later. I never took another pill. In short, I have experienced almost every weird and awful symptom that I have come across online. I don't want to go into details as it is all so fresh and triggering for me still. I went from a normal person to having my first panic attacks, paranoia, thoughts of harming myself, cognition problems, vision, auditory and muscle issues, restlessness, hopelessness.... this list goes on. 

I am 7.5 months after taking that pill and I am feeling quite a bit better. Not recovered, but I have seen good improvements. I would say I am about 75% on good days. 

Anyway, I wondered if there was anyone else who has experienced a severe reaction.

There is hope I will feel normal again?

Thank you.

[baroquep]

Hi 3birdsandrobin,

 

Welcome to Surviving Antidepressants. You have obviously had an adverse reaction to Zoloft and thankfully you didn't push through the discomfort and continue taking it like so many people do.  You may have very well saved yourself from years and years of suffering down the road.   Sorry to hear that you are still not at 100% 7.5 months later but from what I have read, this isn't uncommon.  When the central nervous system becomes destabilized, it can sometimes take a long time for it to recover.  I don't think you have anything to worry about, imagine that it will resolve over time and good to hear that you are feeling quite a bit better, that is a good sign.  

What symptoms are your currently experiencing?  Not to worry if you don't want to go into detail, it's understandable, so don't feel that you have to.  I would recommend taking Omega 3 and Magnesium to help ease what symptoms you may still be experiencing as many people, including myself, on this site have found them to be very helpful.  Magnesium relaxes the muscles and Omega 3 can help calm the nervous systems.  The links below will give you further information.   

 

Omega-3 Fish Oil

Magnesium

 

Unfortunately for me, I didn't have a reaction to anti-depressants though I have read about other people having an adverse reaction to Zoloft, among other drugs, and thought you might find this link helpful.

 

Immediate Adverse Reactions to SSRIs - How Long for Recovery

 

Hoping you get to 100% soon, keep in touch and let us know how you are doing.  Feel free to connect with other members in the forums, SA is a very supportive community and knows what you are going through.

 

 

[KarenB]

Hello 3birdsandrobin (sucha beautiful screen-name),

 

Wow - such a strong adverse reaction!  Even after being on this site for a couple of years I am still amazed at what the drugs can do.  I am glad to hear you have improved to some degree.  So hard to be a mum, let alone while dealing with all that.  We have had others here who also had strong initial reactions, and as the link Baroquep provided above details, they do recover, but sometimes slowly. 

 

Personally I have found meditation and gentle yoga very helpful in managing both the physical and emotional aspects of w/d.  We have this thread (one of my favourites) with many other ideas:  non-drug-techniques-to-cope-with-emotional-symptoms

 

Lovely to have you here 3birds,

Welcome to SA,

Karen

[LexAnger]

I can't help but chiming in by saying the same as baroquep already did, that you saved yourself from years and years suffering from stopping the drug immediately! Brilliant decision! Those doctors are true killers in this regards to millions innocent lives.

 

thanks for sharing the great progress on the road of healing! I'm truly happy for you surviving this ordeal!

 

there is a guy who took one dose of 10 mg lexapro, was paralyzed the next day and been like that for quite a few years, but even for him, healing has been occring I think he is about 70% recovered 4 years later. 

 

Wish your full recovery coming soon!

 

 

[3birdsandrobin]

2 hours ago, baroquep said:

Hi 3birdsandrobin,

 

Welcome to Surviving Antidepressants. You have obviously had an adverse reaction to Zoloft and thankfully you didn't push through the discomfort and continue taking it like so many people do.  You may have very well saved yourself from years and years of suffering down the road.   Sorry to hear that you are still not at 100% 7.5 months later but from what I have read, this isn't uncommon.  When the central nervous system becomes destabilized, it can sometimes take a long time for it to recover.  I don't think you have anything to worry about, imagine that it will resolve over time and good to hear that you are feeling quite a bit better, that is a good sign.  

What symptoms are your currently experiencing?  Not to worry if you don't want to go into detail, it's understandable, so don't feel that you have to.  I would recommend taking Omega 3 and Magnesium to help ease what symptoms you may still be experiencing as many people, including myself, on this site have found them to be very helpful.  Magnesium relaxes the muscles and Omega 3 can help calm the nervous systems.  The links below will give you further information.   

 

Omega-3 Fish Oil

Magnesium

 

Unfortunately for me, I didn't have a reaction to anti-depressants though I have read about other people having an adverse reaction to Zoloft, among other drugs, and thought you might find this link helpful.

 

Immediate Adverse Reactions to SSRIs - How Long for Recovery

 

Hoping you get to 100% soon, keep in touch and let us know how you are doing.  Feel free to connect with other members in the forums, SA is a very supportive community and knows what you are going through.

 

 

Thank you for your response and kind words! A few of the symptoms that I deal with still are vision issues, a bit of dizziness, brain fog, clogged ears, some muscle spasms, intrusive thoughts, and the very very worst symptom is derealization. However, these symptoms are less severe than they were, any many symptoms have gone away all together. I feel stronger than I did just a month or two ago. My anxiety is almost gone (well from like a 10 to a 1-3). I haven't had a panic attack in 3 months. 

I constantly do worry that I may never recover though, or that if I do, it won't be for 5,7,10 years... it's been so awful and sad and unfair. 

 

Thank you all for believing me. That means so much. I am always nervous to tell my story because it's all so unbelievable, even for me sometimes. BUT it did happen, it is happening, and it is real. 

[3birdsandrobin]

3 hours ago, KarenB said:

Hello 3birdsandrobin (sucha beautiful screen-name),

 

Wow - such a strong adverse reaction!  Even after being on this site for a couple of years I am still amazed at what the drugs can do.  I am glad to hear you have improved to some degree.  So hard to be a mum, let alone while dealing with all that.  We have had others here who also had strong initial reactions, and as the link Baroquep provided above details, they do recover, but sometimes slowly. 

 

Personally I have found meditation and gentle yoga very helpful in managing both the physical and emotional aspects of w/d.  We have this thread (one of my favourites) with many other ideas:  non-drug-techniques-to-cope-with-emotional-symptoms

 

Lovely to have you here 3birds,

Welcome to SA,

Karen

Thank you for your warm welcome Karen. My screen name is for my 3 girls and my son, whose name is Robinson (Robin!). 

Thanks for your suggestions to help cope ❤.

[3birdsandrobin]

1 hour ago, LexAnger said:

I can't help but chiming in by saying the same as baroquep already did, that you saved yourself from years and years suffering from stopping the drug immediately! Brilliant decision! Those doctors are true killers in this regards to millions innocent lives.

 

thanks for sharing the great progress on the road of healing! I'm truly happy for you surviving this ordeal!

 

there is a guy who took one dose of 10 mg lexapro, was paralyzed the next day and been like that for quite a few years, but even for him, healing has been occring I think he is about 70% recovered 4 years later. 

 

Wish your full recovery coming soon!

 

 

Thanks for your kind words! You all have made me realize how grateful I should feel for discontuing quickly and honestly how grateful I should feel for not dying! I hope I have a success story soon.

[virgo43]

Dear 3birds my life was taken away from me with zoloft. Unfortunately my family and doctor forced me to continue. I am crying constantly. U are lucky. 

Now all of them are gone. They poisoned me and left me alone. If u have time please read my story.

It is always my fault. 

[bhasski]

11 hours ago, virgo43 said:

Dear 3birds my life was taken away from me with zoloft. Unfortunately my family and doctor forced me to continue. I am crying constantly. U are lucky. 

Now all of them are gone. They poisoned me and left me alone. If u have time please read my story.

It is always my fault. 

Virgo,

I want you to believe its not your fault.

Being a patient, you have to trust doctors...  now how come its your fault if they ill diganosed or meds reacted adversely.

 

99.99%  people here suffering were given antidepressants by doctors.  None of them chose or taken it by themselves. Its only trust misplaced.

 

In my case, I trusted my family and doctor who put me here.

 

So, try to stop thinking that its your fault.

[rupa]

3birdsandrobin such a thoughtful screen name

I wish you speedy recovery.

[Mort81]

I would like to say the same as LEXANGER , you did yourself a great justice from stopping right away , those awful symptoms could have been more intense and lasted much longer had you stayed on the poision . u have made big strides already and its only a matter of time before u are healed , it may take a bit longer than you would like but it will come

[Mort81]

One other thing to tell you , is this is much more common than you think , We just never hear about it in mainstream news because its all filtered out. I dont know how doctors will live with themselves when or if they find out the harm they inflicted on a massive amount of people.   But this one website has over 15,000 people with a similar story and symptoms as you. 

[AmyK]

Welcome, 3birdsandrobin! 

You will surely recover. Just stay calm and believe in the process. 

 

Hugs, Amy

[Fallout]

Hi 3birdsandrobin

 

I'm so sorry you are going through this, but pleased you had the insight to stop after one dose. 

I had a similar experience (with Sertraline 50mg...Zoloft in disguise) in December 2016, but pushed on for three days before quitting. I have been suffering from tinnitus, terrible insomnia...2 hours sleep per night, memory and cognition problems and total loss of libido. Just staggering how so little can cause so much suffering. 

I must say the memory and cognition have improved quite a bit....I think it helps to play memory and word games. As for the other symptoms, they do fluctuate a bit but no real permanent improvement.

I try to keep positive, exercise and get out and socialize, but is hard work!

I hope things turn around for you soon....celebrate every tiny improvement.

 

With love

 

Fallout

 

 

[rupa]

On 8/29/2017 at 8:38 PM, 3birdsandrobin said:

A friend told me she was on Zoloft and I thought it would be a magic happy pill for me.

Your friend does not know about Zoloft?

Did she warn you that it is not a happy pill?

 

[3birdsandrobin]

Thanks everyone for your encouragement. I wish all of you quick healing as well. 

[3birdsandrobin]

One thing that has greatly worried me over the past nearly 8 months is.... since I reacted to just one dose, am I worse off? Since my body had such a violent almost poisoned reaction, could mine possibly be a case that is permanent? I have heard that I will heal from others, but it may take awhile.... does this mean 2 years or does this mean 10 years?

I appreciate all of you who have helped me the past couple of days, more than you know. This has been the worst thing to ever happen to me.

[ChessieCat]

24 minutes ago, 3birdsandrobin said:

does this mean 2 years or does this mean 10 years?

 

Unfortunately nobody knows.  It's an unanswerable question and it is best to accept it as such.  Continually trying to answer the unanswerable is stressful and stress slow healing.

 

Here's a discussion:  Acceptance

 

[ChessieCat]

And healing is not linear:  Windows and Waves Pattern of Stabilization

[Waiting12]

We have very similar stories except I was on Zoloft in the past. I had a severe adverse reaction when trying to restart the medicine after being off of it for a year & a half. It has been the worst thing I have ever been through as well. I hope you feel better soon!

[3birdsandrobin]

I'm feeling so discouraged and hopeless today 😭

[AmyK]

You are on the right track. You are healing every day, even if it doesn't feel that way. 

75% on good days is very good, more of those days will come.

 

I know it's hard. But hold on. You will feel better. 

[3birdsandrobin]

Thank you Amy. I hope you are right.

[3birdsandrobin]

It's just so torturous that one day, I felt fine, took a pill, and now my life has been in shambles for the past 8 months. I'm so worried this is permanent.

[AmyK]

I understand! It's so unfair! 

But the brain is fantastic in healing, it's looking for stability. 

Maybe it could help you to write a diary, short notes every day. In that way you can see the small improvements in a bigger pattern. 

 

(Sorry for my English)

[3birdsandrobin]

Good idea. Thanks for your response. This feels so lonely.

[oskcajga]

Be grateful that you only took one dose.

 

[3birdsandrobin]

I am very grateful that I only took one dose. BUT that doesn't help me right now. Everyone tells me to be grateful, but I am a mom of four kids whose life was ripped from her. I know there are people worse off, but my symptoms are severe some days and it's hard to function. I feel no love for my kids. That is so miserable. My life has felt like a real life nightmare for 8 months. With no end in sight. So although I am eternally grateful I only took one dose, the ramifications have been hell and I am having an extremely hard time making it through. 

[brassmonkey]

We have a sizable number of members who are in the same boat. Each having taken only between one an seven doses.  They are the really unlucky ones who got an immediate adverse reaction to the drug.  A horrifying experience to go through and then face the prospects of a long challenging recovery, all from one pill.  The shock factor alone is staggering. The fact that it was only a few pills doesn't diminish the impact that the adverse reaction has on ones psyche or life.  If it was one pill or a daily pill for 18 years, it makes no difference.  The result is the same, a shattered life filled with mental and physical suffering.  We say that each of our journeys is different, and they are.  But in many respects they are all the same and the root cause makes no difference.  We all need to be grateful that we are alive, we have the support of this community, are making progress in our recovery.  We also need to be secure in knowing that no one is more important or suffering more than anyone else just because they took their medication for a longer time.

 

3B&R--  I'm so sorry that you've found yourself in this situation.  The shock of it all must be overpowering.  I have helped many of the members I mentioned above and they are all well on the road to recovery.  Several of them were very young when this happened and have since gone back to college and med school and are graduating with honors.  Sadly recovery can take a long time, but it does happen and will happen for you.

 

I wish you a speedy recovery.

 

Brassmonkey

[Fallout]

Hi again

 

I think the first thing we must do is to accept what has happened, no matter how difficult that is to do. I struggled with this a lot after I took my 3 life changing doses of Sertraline. 

 

I found myself constantly trying to re hash in my head the circumstances that led me to popping that first pill, for example:

 

Did I really need this stuff in the first place? maybe I should have just talked to friends

 

If only I had a phone call just before taking that first pill

 

Why did I listen to the stupid analogies my doctor came up with regarding antidepressants

 

Why did I listen to my friend who is a mental health nurse who told me she was taking this herself and it was very safe?

 

I waited 6 months before taking them, they were in my cupboard all that time, why didnt I throw them out?

 

Why didnt I stop after one dose?

 

Then I start to bargain with myself....maybe I would swap the loss of a  limb in exchange for not taking those 3 pills...well, maybe a few fingers, or half my life's savings or all of it etc.

 

Ive now come to the realization that none of this is of any use in helping me accept what has happened....its happened and now I must deal with the wretched consequences.

 

I think this is a grief reaction....we have certainly lost something(s) very precious to us...even though there is every chance we will improve in the long to medium term. 

 

If you google Elisabeth Kubler-Ross you will find some interesting stuff on the five stages of grief briefly they are:

 

Denial

Anger

Bargaining

Depression

Acceptance

 

I have found in the past that the journey through the above steps is not linear or indeed in just one direction...I find myself going back and forth between the stages....but have always ended up with acceptance after a long and torturous journey.

 

Have faith in the journey, I know it hurts like hell at the moment, but it will get better.

 

With love

 

Steve 

 

 

 

 

[BAT]

How are you doing? 

[3birdsandrobin]

Hey thanks for asking. I feel like I have improved a bit more. I have days when my sxs are still intense, but many days also when they are much less. Today I felt almost 90% myself almost all day long. I feel like I am having more of these better days/hours recently. It gives me hope that I will recover fully eventually. When I look back to a couple of months ago, I feel like I have really made great strides in the right direction.

[BAT]

That's really good news!  Sounds like you are going in the right direction.

How long have you been off now?

 

It's crazy what one pill has done.

[3birdsandrobin]

You're telling me. 8.5 months.

[Fallout]

Hi 3birdsand robin

 

I'm so pleased to see you here again, I was a bit worried that I hadn't seen you post for a while. 

 

Great news that your symptoms are easing, albeit in a patchy way....it must be good for your sense of hope.

 

Keep improving 3B....your story gives me hope things will start looking up here too.

 

Please keep us posted on how you are getting on!

 

Regards

 

Fallout.

[Lindsay625]

Wow our stories are so similar you practically told my story!!! I am a mom of two, my kids were sick with Croup and so I wasn’t sleeping and was very worried about them! I took ONE 50mg dose of sertraline and had an awful adverse reaction to it as well! It’s been 6 weeks since I took it. It’s very hard going through this and trying to be the best you can for your little ones. It’s so hard as they are my world and I hate that I am going through this when I should be focused on them. I see you haven’t been on since October I am hoping and praying that you are fully recovered! If that’s the case and you ever come back please feel free to share as it would give me so much hope!!