Welcome to our community. Please fill in the following template as a way of introducing yourself, and helping others to understand your background and situation.
Where are you from (country)? Canada
How did you find this forum? Through Reddit
What is your current age, height, weight? 20, 5’8, 185 lbs
What specific drug did you use? Sertraline
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)? 25mg
What condition was being treated with the drug? Generalized anxiety disorder and OCD
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)? 3.5 years total
Date when you started the drug? 2016
Date when you quit the drug? 2021
Age when you quit? 19
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)? fast taper, alternating days.
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects? the last time I tapered in October 2020, my protracted withdrawal began. My adverse reaction to reinstatement in Dec 2021 is what caused most of my symptoms.
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Emotional blunting, racing thoughts, rumination, restlessness, agitation, depersonalization, derealization, brain fog, memory loss, chronic fatigue, loss of personality, aphantasia, anhedonia, accelerated sense of time, trouble concentrating, dream flashbacks, no libido, suicidal ideation, deja-vu, jamais-vu, tinnitus, pudendal neuralgia, PGAD-like symptoms, executive dysfunction, comprehension problems, tremors, poor sleep, breathing problems, no thirst, muscle twitching
Check the boxes that apply. You can save your post first, then interactively check/uncheck the boxes by clicking on them. If your symptoms change, please update your list.
Sexual
[X] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[ ] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[ ] Loss of Morning Erections
[ ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[X] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[X] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[X] Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
[X] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[X] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[X] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[X] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[ ] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[ ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[ ] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[X] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[X] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[X] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[X] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[X] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] Increased hair loss
[X] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[ ] Other (please explain)
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug? None
If you have pre or post-drug blood tests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (please post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
I have discontinued sertraline three separate times. All three withdrawal periods presented their own horrific symptoms but I always returned to baseline upon reinstatement; until my 4th attempted reinstatement. In December of 2021, in the midst of a sleep deprived frenzy, I convinced myself to reinstate. Regrettably, I took one pill on the 8th, one on the 17th, another on the 24th and one last pill on the 25th. (completely stupid). I don’t know what possessed me to take them so sporadically. I woke up to the 26th with all of my symptoms. I “kindled”.
Self-reporting template - ONLY USE FOR FUTURE POSTS TO REPORT ANY TRIALS OF TREATMENTS, NOT YOUR INITIAL MEMBER STORY
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Name of the therapy/substance:
- Dosage:
- How often you took it:
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Status
- Still using [ ]
- Stopped with no lasting change to initial symptoms [ ]
- Stopped with persistent change to symptoms [ ]
- Duration of use: Days [ ] Months [ ] Years [ ]
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Response when you started:
- Greatly improved [ ]
- Slightly improved [ ]
- Stayed the same [ ]
- Slightly worsened [ ]
- Greatly worsened [ ]
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Current response (if you’re still using the therapy/substance) OR Response in the time before you stopped the treatment
- Greatly improved [ ]
- Slightly improved [ ]
- Stayed the same [ ]
- Slightly worsened [ ]
- Greatly worsened [ ]
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Lasting changes to initial symptoms after cessation (if you have stopped for more than 3 weeks)
- Greatly improved [ ]
- Slightly improved [ ]
- Stayed the same [ ]
- Slightly worsened [ ]
- Greatly worsened [ ]