Viewing 28 posts - 1 through 28 (of 28 total)
  • depression and medication
  • stevepitch
    Free Member

    hi guys, I wasn’t sure where to go with this so hope someone can help.

    I’m not even sure what I’m trying to ask or what I want to know, all I know is I need help following number of ‘incidents’ which have seen me exploding over nothing at all, ending up in tears for no reason and upsetting my wife.

    This outbursts have be going in cycles and I’ve noticed that every couple of weeks I will have a really big moment as above with little sprinkles of joy every few days or so. This culminated with a massive outburst last week and the realisation that something was very wrong so I visited the GP and started crying almost as soon as I walked through the door.

    GP has signed me off work (which I don’t want to do as I’ve had enough time off due to an accident) and prescribed me Sertraline as she thinks I have a mixture of PTSD and depression. I have just started 121 session for CBT however as I explained to the GP, filling out a mood diary when I’m about to put my fist through a plate glass window doesn’t really help.

    I’ve started taking the medication (despite my reluctance but I’m keen to sort myself for my wife and I) and have been feeling pretty groggy and dizzy despite only taking 2 days worth, I’ve agreed to take a week off work while I start the medication. I suppose my questions are; does anyone have experience with this drug? If so how did you find the side affects and did you have time off work to adjust? How did you find returning to sport, riding etc? How did you find it long term and if you have come off it how did you find it?

    I also feel like why do I need them, I’ve felt fine the last few days, although I appreciate that it may be the fact that I’ve finally got a number of things of my chest regarding work and everything else going on in my life, but I’m also worried about a repeat performance over the smallest thing.

    I’m not really sure why I’m posting, I guess I’m looking for a bit of help as I don’t really know where to turn and i feel embarrassed that I’m having to resort to medication in a bid to help me cope with things. I just hope it will assist me in getting my lie back on track.

    cheers

    jamj1974
    Full Member

    There is nothing wrong with needing medication to help you get your health back or maintain your health. It’s not a weakness. I’ve taken similar medication for extended periods and it has proven very helpful.

    I’ve not used Sertraline – but the symptoms sound like the typical ones people experience, so they are not unique to you and you are not weird. I would say it will probably take a couple of weeks to settle down. I would probably not go back to work for at least a couple of weeks until you feel comfortable.

    Hang in there.

    J

    enfht
    Free Member

    Sorry of this is an obvious question to you but was the accident traumatic?

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    aracer
    Free Member

    Not sure how much I can add, as I didn’t find medication helped me at all (though clearly it does for a lot of people), but just wanted to chip in to let you know you’re not alone – and yes anger is a typical symptom of depression/anxiety (it’s one I’ve struggled with). I’m not sure if STW has the typical demographic for struggling with this, or it’s just that we tend to be quite open about it and the amount of people suffering is just typical for society 🙁

    Oh, and the counselling seems to have helped me a lot – at least I’m in a happier place right now than I have been for a long time. It is sometimes tough, but in the long run it should be good for you to go through that (I spent one week just discussing why filling in the stuff I’d been given as homework got me so down, and that was possibly the most useful session ever, coming off the back of a few days where I’d been really, really down as a result of being forced to think about things).

    sharkbait
    Free Member

    have been feeling pretty groggy and dizzy despite only taking 2 days worth, I’ve agreed to take a week off work while I start the medication. I suppose my questions are; does anyone have experience with this drug?

    I believe that Sertraline side effects can last up to two weeks but they can disappear much quicker than that.
    Stick with it – there’s no quick fix for these conditions but I bet by Xmas you’ll be feeling better.

    DrP
    Full Member

    Not specific to this case, but basically ask antidepressants make you feel ‘ill’ before tut you feel better.. Knowing tis helps you through the first few weeks.

    Antipsychotic, however, make you feel better before the SEs kick in. Odd..

    DrP

    Sandwich
    Full Member

    Some of the drugs take up to 6 weeks to get things settled down so you can get on with fixing things. Hang on OP and it should get easier. If you still have side effects 3 weeks in go and get the GP to try a different drug. Good luck.

    stevepitch
    Free Member

    Hey guys cheers fro the responses its interesting to hear that meds worked for one and not the other.

    Aracer, I’ve found the CBT to be a bit naff although its moved from an online self help to a 121 phone call. Interestingly the first session is actually what triggered one of my mood swings. I forgot to pick up the homework drove half way to work then had to turn around to go home and pick it up as I felt guilty for not having it. Ended up flipping out and nearly breaking my hand! That was a shit morning. I’m going to persevere with it though as I want to get better and realise I can’t carry on like I am. I think you’re right about the forum along the lines of people are willing to talk about things which I guess is why I posted.

    enfht er I guess so, I was in an RTA that nearly killed me but that was last August, in my head I should be over it by now although I’ve just been told that I need to have more surgery to sort my broken leg which is a bugger.

    h4muf
    Free Member

    I’ve been on Sertraline for 5 yrs now! stick at it and it becomes easier!
    Mine stemed from an industrial accident too!

    stevepitch
    Free Member

    HI h4muf how long did it take for things to calm down and what dosage are you on? I realise I’m only on a small dose so find it a bit crazy that its affecting me so quickly. Do you think you will ever come off it?

    theotherjonv
    Full Member

    I’ve suffered off and on for years but finally took action earlier this year with a visit to the GP, we opted not to start meds in my case but I’ve just started counselling and I think it’s helping; as yu said just the act of getting help and starting to address it is already comforting.

    To answer other points; you can’t feel embarrassed that you need help to get things on track, particularly with a PTSD reason for you feeling like you do. It’s like blaming you for having a physical ailment caused by an external accident, it’s not of your doing. We are still quite backward in this respect, but thankfully society is changing.

    And while there are quite a few on here that admit to needing proper help, I don’t think it’s a particularly high / unusual ratio. Mental health is a far bigger issue than people realise, and secondly there’s something for me that enables me to be more open about it on a ‘semi-anonymous’ forum than I could be talking to mates down a pub.

    And one other thing; I struggled for a while to convince myself I had ‘depression’ because I don’t sit at home sobbing or meeting what I thought were the classical signs. Instead I find myself getting angry, frustrated, irritable, hopeless, panicky, rather than ‘sad’. But it’s very much the same thing, my internal responses to external factors, and hence why CBT seems to be the avenue we need to look at.

    funkmasterp
    Full Member

    Not had experience of Sertraline, but when I first started taking Citalopram for similar reasons I felt nauseous and dizzy for the first couple of weeks. Is Sertraline an SSI, if so the effects may be similar? If it’s any consolation the tablets are working for me and I too was reluctant to take them. Should have done it years ago. Hang in there.

    MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    I’ve been on a relatively low dose of Citalopram for 9 months now. Slightly nauseous and “weird” for a few weeks, but now just feel “pleasantly” numb when situations that would have made me flip occur.

    Keen to get off it at the review in the spring. I’m a bit more dozy than usual on it and I want to get the sharpness back. I’ve done a group CBT course and some 1-2-1 counselling which have helped me get the issues in perspective

    Been several similar threads just today alone. You aren’t alone with this type of problem.

    devash
    Free Member

    Citalopram is awful. I would advise to avoid that one at all costs, even though for most GPs it is the first one they offer.

    I’ve tried them all over the years. The best (and I do mean best by a long shot) for me at least was Mirtazapine. I took it for 4 months at the start of this year due to having a pretty bad relapse due to being unemployed and it really helped me get through the tough spell. I found it very easy to stop cold turkey, unlike Citalopram which gave me side effects for months after stopping.

    Worth a shot OP. Don’t feel defeated that you may need medication. Its a tough world to live in nowadays. However, it was counselling that properly sorted me out many years ago. Worth looking in to if money is there.

    ThePilot
    Free Member

    I was loathe to take anti depressants too but they really helped. Off them now.
    Not Sertraline, can’t tell you what they were, but they do make you feel funny, and headachey in my case but did really help.
    I’ve had CBT too, which for me for useless (positive thinking from what I could work out), but found other counselling (you’ve just got to keep trying until you find the right person for you) really helped.
    I hated it and was very glad to stop but it definitely helped a lot.
    Good luck, OP.

    dmck16
    Free Member

    I’ve recently tapered off Sertraline after starting them near the start of the year. They aren’t magic happy pills, they just take the edge off things to allow you to get through whatever shit period you’re experiencing.
    The main negative I experienced was feeling sleepy, quite often I’d end up having an afternoon nap which is very unusual for me.

    If you’re offered cbt alongside your meds, take it – I’d love to have some proper counselling but where I stay there is next to no NHS provision (and can’t afford private).

    It’s nothing to be embarrassed about, you’ve probably already done the hardest part by seeking a bit of support.

    vickypea
    Free Member

    You’re definitely not alone.
    Sertraline is an SSRI antidepressant, in the same group as citalopram and fluoxetine. I’ve tried them all at one time or another, and in the first few weeks, some people can feel sleepy and spaced out, while others feel anxious. The first week can be tough but they become more tolerable after 2 weeks.
    I’m a big fan of counselling and also CBT. I found that I didn’t think the CBT was much good while I was doing it, but months later I realised that it had taught me a few useful things.

    yunki
    Free Member

    I spent about 25 years after being diagnosed with clinical depression thinking that I was too tough or too clever to need medication..

    25 years of my life wasted, either angry, or self medicating with booze, or miserable or exhausted and I will now continue to take prescription medication until such time as I achieve my dreams…

    Life is short and can be very bloody difficult, if there is something available that will make life slightly easier then I feel now that I’d be a fool to resist

    aracer
    Free Member

    Well there’s counselling and then there’s counselling. I’m still not even sure exactly what CBT is, or even if that’s what I’ve been doing – it’s what it was originally supposed to be, but I have a feeling I might have taken it a bit off track with the meltdown I mentioned above. I’m not sure how useful an online thing is – certainly I don’t think it would have helped me the way a 121 meeting has, I reckon just having a chance to talk to somebody is what has helped me (and I don’t think a phone call would have been anywhere near so good either). It certainly seems to be accepted that what you get out of it depends on how you click with the counsellor, and that seems to have worked for me this time (the previous time I had counselling, if anything I ended up feeling worse after it).

    Though clearly if you’re going through the NHS what you can get depends on availability. I was kind of surprised you’d got counselling so quickly – I got referred by my GP in December and started in September!

    kayak23
    Full Member

    I can’t remember what it was like starting Sertraline as it was several years ago now. This following trial periods on many others including Prozac and Fluoxetine.

    Started on 50mg Sertraline and gradually went up to 150mg which I was taking until relatively recently.

    Decided I wanted to try to cut it out and so have started to reduce it over the last few months to the point where I’ve just dropped onto 25mg.

    It’s definitely a weird one with withdrawal symptoms etc. I would miss a day now and then due to forgetfulness and quickly feel very spaced out, dizzy etc.
    I’m getting bouts of that now too which I presume is due to cutting down.

    I think it can exhibit the symptoms you are having but you should stick with it for a bit and see how you feel.

    It helped me for a while but I want to feel real again now or at least try to see what feeling real feels like again.
    Chances are, it’s still shit… 😉

    theotherjonv
    Full Member

    there’s online and there’s online

    I tried a self help website, books, etc., and didn’t get on with any. Which then made things worse because I have the feeling of ‘you can’t even summon up the motivation to help yourself when you know it’s what you need!’

    Now I have an online consellor; it’s a 1:1 hour session but of written exchanges much like this. She sets me work, questionnaires, etc., through the week and we review and discuss why i have answered as I have. There’s just no physical presence aspect.

    mikey74
    Free Member

    Funnily enough, it’s the side effects that have largely put me off medication to help depression. I’ve been prescribed them before, and even picked them up from the pharmacy: However, I put them on the side and stared at them for a few days, before deciding I didn’t want to go down that route, especially after researching the side-effects.

    I do struggle sometimes, especially when it comes to making big decisions, and I am ruthlessly hard on myself, to the point that if I forget a fact at uni, or get something wrong, it can send me into a bit of a spiral.

    On a positive note, I have noticed that having big nights on the booze really don’t do me any good and can lead to me feeling really down for the subsequent week or so, and longer if I repeat the pattern the following week. Hence, i am trying to avoid situations that involve big, boozy events and focusing on Uni and my day job (mainly Uni). It certainly seems to help.

    I’m not sure if this helps the OP (I doubt it), but it’s good to talk, hey? 😀

    yunki
    Free Member

    to follow on from my earlier post… regardless of medication I still haven’t fond anything more effective in combating depression than daily exercise

    mikey74
    Free Member

    to follow on from my earlier post… regardless of medication I still haven’t fond anything more effective in combating depression than daily exercise

    That helps as well, although I find running to be better for me than cycling, for some reason.

    aracer
    Free Member

    Agreed – which is maybe why I felt the drugs did nothing for me (at the time I tried them I was still exercising pretty much every day). I do wonder whether it would have been worth trying the drugs again in the last few years when operations and injury have stopped me doing anything for long periods – it’s all very well having exercise/adrenaline as your drug of choice, but what about when you can’t get it?

    Back to some sort of physical activity every day now though – I’ve found it doesn’t actually take much to get the benefit.

    BoardinBob
    Full Member

    Sertaline user in the past.

    1st couple of weeks were ok for me. Noticeably more emotional at times but apart from that no major side effects past the first couple of weeks. Only one worth mentioning is my appetite went through the roof.

    However overall it was a great success. Helped me enormously coupled with CBT. Been off it for a year now after taking it for just over a year. Possibly considered going back on it a few months ago but went back to some of the things I learned in CBT and focused on that to resolve any issues.

    Really positive overall experience. I was on 50mg a day

    speedstar
    Full Member

    Hi folks,

    What a great thread! You are all showing what a diverse experience taking anti-depressants can be and the fact that one drug won’t always work for everyone with depression. I have an admission to make: I am a psychiatry trainee so I work with people every day who suffers both depression but also significant volatility of mood that can’t always be ascribed to depression per se. The type of anger you are expressing is very normal for depression, particularly for us men-folk who seem to be programmed to express emotions this way. Many people never realise this is what’s causing their irritability is caused by this.

    I think you are doing fine and you need to persevere with what you are doing. Sertraline is a great drug but like all anti-depressants takes at least 4 weeks to work. You may experience some difficult side-effects but persevere. The body needs to adapt as the nervous connections it affects don’t just affect that target regions in depression but are global over the whole body. I hope it works for you and things get better as it sounds like it’s affecting your life detrimentally.

    All the best!

    aphex_2k
    Free Member

    Lots of medication side effects will go if you stick with them a little bit. 2 days for a AD is not long enough and you’ll probably find the unwanted side effects will pass. As mentioned, 4 weeks is around the time it really starts to work. 6 weeks even better. Don’t give up and don’t stop the meds suddenly without consulting the doc and tapering off.

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