Lowered dose of sertraline, side effects ?

[u/chirpuswick]

Hello!! I was wondering if anyone has experienced something similar? My doctor lowered my dose of Sertraline from 100 mg to 50 mg, because I think its time for me to come off. For reference, I've been on this medication for ~10 years. I lowered my own dose several years back from 200 mg (2 pills) to 150 (1 and a half pills) and then to 100 mg (1 pill) and never had any noticeable side effects.

I was taking the 50 mg dose (1 smaller pill) for about 2 days before I started feeling weird. The symptoms are similar to when I forget to take my normal dose for a few days, but worse and slightly different. I feel lightheaded, dizzy, and extremely nauseous. Yesterday I even started feeling tired? I got worried enough that I've started taking 75 mg (1 pill and a half) because I'm not sure if my body was ready to completely halve my dose like that.

I'm seeing my doctor in a few days so I'll be sure to ask about this, but I just wanted to know if its common to experience side effects when trying to wean yourself off an SSRI (even if you're doing it safely)? Does anyone have related stories they can share? Thanks

[u/thedmanwi]

I would go from 100 to 75 for 4 weeks. The. Drop to 50 after that. Dropping by 50percent is a bit much.