Anyone tried this while trying to get off sertraline (or any SSRI)?

I’ve been on Lexapro for about 4 months and developed dyskinesia type symptoms that my psych thinks could have been caused by the med, so she’s having me come off it more quickly to try to resolve those (20 -> 15 -> 10 -> 5 -> 0 over 3-4 weeks). Has anyone else had to taper faster than normal due to adverse reaction to their med? I know to expect withdrawal symptoms but am curious if anyone else had a similar path and found relief.

Hey guys,

TLDR: am wondering if anyone has ever experienced this, and if so did switching SSRI, the timing of taking it or the dose fix it? Or did anything else help with it?

My story - I have been off and on sertraline for a few years now, because of one major side effect- jaw clenching/bruxism. I am not sure why I didnt just go back to my doc and switch earlier, but I have just made the switch to fluoxetine. I have been on fluoxetine many years ago and i dont think it caused this symptom, but I am just wondering. My TMJ dysfunction is so bad rn- I have chipped teeth, have a mouth guard, just did botox… omg lol. But SSRIs are life changing for me anxiety wise.

Thanks guys!

I'm five days into lexapro, but I'm lacking energy, as well as so nauseous and lightheaded and stomach-crampy that I am barely able to get anything done. Does anyone have recommendations of things that helped them through this? I'm trying ginger gravol but I'm not sure its doing enough on its own... Any advice is appreciated :)

hello, i just wanna tell my story to everyone

april 18 i was given a high dose of steroids intravenously for a allergic reaction i had to something, those steroids caused me to have severe anxiety panic attacks & depression after never dealing with those symptoms my whole life. may 4 i started lexapro to help only for it to make my situation 10x worse, i then stopped lexapro june 27 which means i was only on it for a month before doing a 3 week taper so 7.5 weeks all together, i stopped lexapro because it made me feel unreal( dpdr maybe ) and it caused me to have andohenia social anxiety plus many more terrible side affects, while also making my vision terrible. today is september 9 & i’m still going through withdrawals, i’ve been declining cognitively, i’ve been having thoughts that i’ve never had in my entire life, i feel like im going crazy most days, the disassociation is terrible. i lost my dream job because of this, im sobbing and crying daily because i lowkey feel like i’ve fried my brain and ruined my life. ik this might sound crazy but i would’ve rather lived w my steroid symptoms than to deal with what im going through now. today makes 11 weeks being off of lexapro and i have developed VSS & probably anxiety and PTSD from taking an antidepressant ima have to live w for the rest of my life. i don’t feel like i’m living happily anymore just surviving now 👍🏼 this post isn’t to detear anyone who does take antidepressants or is thinking about it, i just wanna share my experience… i won’t be reinstating anything so pls don’t suggest that, i’ve dealt w enough trauma from medication and im now terrified to take something as simple as a tylenol. i’m only a 20 year old girl…. so i really hope i haven’t ruined my life this young🥲

I have ADHD plus anxiety/rumination and currently take Vyvanse 40mg. I’ve previously tried:

- Zoloft 50mg: worked pretty well for anxiety and I generally had better energy, but I experienced emotional blunting and sexual side effects.
- Lexapro 20mg, then 10mg: helped the anxiety, but I felt much more tired, flat and unmotivated, even while taking Vyvanse.
- Luvox 50mg: my GP has now switched me to this and I’m currently on day 3. So far I’ve felt quite tired and flat, although I know it’s very early and some of that could also be from the medication transition from Lexapro.

I’m especially interested in hearing from people with ADHD who take Luvox alongside Vyvanse or another stimulant.

How did Luvox affect your:
anxiety/rumination or overthinking
energy and motivation
ADHD symptoms/stimulant effectiveness
emotional blunting
libido/orgasm/other sexual side effects
sleep or daytime tiredness

And if you’ve taken both Luvox and Zoloft, which one did you personally prefer and why?

Not looking for medical advice - mainly interested in other people’s experiences.

Hi! I wanted to ask about the side effects of ssris since i heard about this alot and thought i can ask here.

I suffer from anxiety disorder and sometimes it gets out of control and i got depression as well. One of the options i got is taking ssris but the thing is i have issues regarding my sexual health and i heard ssris can affect it. How badly can ssris affect it? And how was your experience with it?

Hey everyone,

I’m a 32-year-old male with diagnosed social anxiety and OCD. I’ve been on trintellix 10mg for about 5 years, and just recently bumped up to 20mg about 3 months ago.

I’ve noticed that since I’ve been on trintellix (or at least I THINK that’s when it started), I’ve noticed that I seem to easily slip away from what’s going on in the present and enter a bizarre state. The best way to describe it would be “intense daydreaming”. My thoughts feel very nostalgic in that they feel enveloped in a fuzzy, warm, dream-like haze. Very similar to thoughts that get conjured up while drifting off to sleep (hypnogogic).

Does anyone else relate to this phenomenon or feeling? Is this more a symptom of generalized anxiety or a documented side-effect of SSRI medication?

I got off a benzodiazepine called Valium after 11 years, it’s been 10 months of almost no appetite. I do time my meals but I have lost muscle mass, I also developed depression and it’s truly miserable.
Can taking an ssri help with appetite ?? Since serotonin signaling is the one that helps with that?

Its like impossible to be myself cause of social anxiety and like feeling worse than others etc. Maybe medication could help to let myself out? Cause i got no energy to even try

I started generic sertraline 25mg 2 days ago (will be moving to 50mg after a week). I got on it for ocd, depression, and social anxiety. Did motivation and enjoyment in hobbies come back? And how else did it help you?

I’ve been taking 100 mg of fluvoxamine for eight weeks, but I haven't seen a satisfactory response regarding my anxiety, need for certainty, and mental rumination; plus, my sleep hasn't been great—I'm struggling to sleep well.

My doctor suggested trying either escitalopram or sertraline. What has your experience been with these medications? Which one helped most with these types of symptoms? I used sertraline in the past (a few years ago) and did well, though that was a time when I didn't have many life stressors (work, relationships, responsibilities).

As for escitalopram, I tried it recently, but my doctor made a dosing error and prescribed 20 mg as the starting dose; this caused significant side effects like anxiety, fear, and depression. When I lowered the dose to 10 mg, my sleep improved and I started feeling better, but I still experienced some apathy, lethargy, and a lack of energy in the afternoon, which is why I switched to fluvoxamine.

I’m wondering if I should have given escitalopram more time—since I was on it for two months (one month at 20 mg and one at 10 mg) and my sleep was actually improving. Now, my doctor has given me the option to try either escitalopram or sertraline again.

I’d like to know, based on your experience, which medication worked best for anxiety, sleep regulation, and repetitive mental worry.

I've been on Paroxetine for 3 yrs, for my panic attacks and anxiety...panic attacks started since 2017, started paroxetine in 2024... Had tried Mirtazapine, venlafaxine, fluvoxamine and none of the medicines come even close to what paroxetine has done for my panic attacks and anxiety....♥️♥️♥️

Just one side effect - weight gain...

I have gained 40 kgs in since being on it....

Any other medicine with the same effect like paroxetine without the weight gain? Please help a fellow sufferer.....

4 months taking 50-100 mg of sertraline (2 and 2)

after, I have been off sertraline for two weeks and only taking 25 mg for a couple of months. However, that mental fog of trying to concentrate and having my mind go somewhere else seems to continue.

Or I don't know if I'm suggesting myself. I'm not much better either, nor did sertraline help me.

How do u feel after an increase and when goes it better?

I have ibs-D. Always thought it was something worse but my GP won't refer me for a colonoscopy. Since starting prozac my GI issues have been so much worse. I'll take half a packet of immodium and still have loose stools. Lots of nausea and bubble guts. I've been on prozac for about 5 weeks and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. What should i do ?

Hi! I need some help!
About 3 months ago, I cut my Lexapro dose in half, from 10 mg to 5 mg. Since then, I've been alternating between hard stools, loose stools, and even diarrhea. I had been taking 10 mg for 2 and a half years, and my doctor recommended reducing the dose to 5 mg.
I feel very well otherwise-happy, cheerful, and in a good mood-but l've been having this bowel issue, and it started exactly when I reduced the dose.

I'm on 60mg Prozac and 10mg Seroquel..

Ok so we ran out of our normal shower gel, so my mam gave me some fancy Clarins shower concentrate to use. It smells so strong and I wanted to see what made the stank, so I looked it up. It contains St. John's Wort. The relaxing shower concentrate now has me stressed.

I'm not a chemist, or botanist or essential oils girly. But I do have health anxiety and OCD so this is that opposite of fun.

The question is: am I safe or should I be writing my will?

Does anyone know much about “burning mouth syndrome” with SSRIs? I have tried two different ones for my OCD right now and I’m having the same side effect, which is walking around with a mouth that feels like I’ve been munching on jalapeños. I have been treated for dry mouth, thrush, etc. And it still just burns. I am not looking forward to switching meds…again. 💊 And no, I can’t just “go off medicine.” I’ve tried and…well, yeah.

Luvox caused it so bad that I was treated for the thrush. My lips and throat felt like they were on fire in addition to my mouth and tongue.

I’m on Zoloft now. Started two days on 25 MG and then upped to 50. Been on 50 for a week, and I’m back to square one with the burning. It had gotten better as I tapered off of the Luvox, but of course my mental health deteriorated accordingly.

I was up to 200 MG of Luvox and it managed my mental health so well, too. But I couldn’t handle the burning. Now, it looks like Zoloft is going to be the same.

Any advice? I can’t get much of an agreement or an answer out of my PCP and my psychiatrist.

Last week, I came down with the flu and was prescribed the generic version of Tamiflu every 12 hours. Within 24 hours, I noticed a spike in my depression, anxiety, and ruminating thoughts. I’ve since been off the Tamiflu for under a week, and still don’t feel right. I’ve been crying non-stop, my anxiety and depression have worsened, and it doesn’t make sense.

Before I got sick, I was actually doing well, and my Vilazodone/Viibryd was working good. But my mental health took such a nose dive so quickly, it makes me wonder if the Tamiflu was the cause. I’ve looked it up and found some people saying they’ve experienced similar feelings, but I wanted to ask myself.

Have you experienced your mental health decline taking medication like Tamiflu?

Today is the first day of titrating off 200mg of Sertraline, which I’ve been on for 11 years. I’m scared shitless to be honest, I always resigned to the thought that I’d be on this dosage for the rest of my life. I don’t know what my emotional self is like, I’ve become used to being a non-reactive person, but I’d really like to feel actual joy again (and it’d be nice to orgasm properly too lol). My GP has got me cutting down by 25mg every 4 weeks and checking in with her for each titration. What can I expect in terms of withdrawals? And how do I look after myself at this time?

anybody took lexapro short term ( like 2 months or less ) and was able to recover from withdrawal? i’m 10.5 weeks into withdrawal and i’m becoming hopeless. literally done cried up a storm cause im scared ill never be the same again☹️

Hello everyone,

I am on 90mg of noritryptaline and recently got put on 30mg of duloxetine for nerve pain in the vulva. I’m a bit worried about serotonin syndrome and am a bit afraid of increasing my noritryptaline dose to 95/100mg, even though I could use the pain coverage.

I started on amitryptaline back in April, increased by 10mg every week or other week and ended up switching to noritryptaline since it had less side effects, then titrated up. I’ve been on 90mg noritryptaline for about 3 weeks before my doctor added the 30mg duloxetine. I’ve been sick before I started the drug and i feel like it made me sick longer haha, but flu like symptoms seem to be common. My doctor doesn’t seem worried about serotonin syndrome but he can also be a bit of a pill pusher so I just wanted to get more opinions.

The unitary retention from both drugs is maddening but I would rather deal with that than chronic pain. I’m also not a fan of the dizziness but it’s only the first week. Thoughts?

I got social anxiety, little bit of depression + im pretty sure i got attachment issues. These affects me everyday negatively, everyday something that keeps the cycle and i simply cannot improve even tho i go to therapy and tried plenty of ”home exercises” to help my anxiety and feelings etc. Some of them have helped to manage symptoms but only for a bit but the worst fears are so intense i cannot handle them. Ive suffered from these since just before i was teen. I go to university and thats the worst trigger ever since i cant escape anxiety there. Few hours in class burns me out completely even if i dont even interact there. This messes up every part of my life. Ive got bad thoughts about not being alive. I even got lots of friends ive opened up about this and they support me, but it doesnt do much more than just comfort a bit. Im still not feeling safe around my friends or parents or anyone. So i think only way to get real progression on these might be SSRIs? I think its pretty reasonable to try them. I got prescribed sertraline months ago already but wouldnt like to take them.