Zoloft & muscle spasm / pain

[AliceF456789]

Hi. I'm new to this forum. I've been on Zoloft (100mg) for 2 months. I have a debilitating side effect - it creates muscle spasms in my heat, jaw, neck & back. Not able to function normally. Pdoc put me on Trepiline 10mg a week ago, as it's a muscle relaxant. It has helped, although I am still having bad pain & earache. Has anyone has any experience with Zoloft causing painful muscle spasms? I would be most grateful for any input. Many thanks.

[Paxiled]

Muscle spasms and cramps are a common side effect of antidepressants.  The reason most likely is interference with the absorption of magnesium.  Rather than using a muscle relaxing medication, possibly increasing side effects, I'd try a magnesium citrate or taureate supplement and see if it does the trick.  I got this problem when I started antidepressants, and the magnesium solved the problem.

[Paxiled]

But don't take the magnesium at the same time you take your medication -- they both use the magnesium pathway to get to the brain, so they interfere with the absorption of the other.  Usually the best time to take magnesium is with a meal, but for this purpose it's often good taken before bedtime.  And eat your green leafy veggies -- that's where the magnesium is.  Eating a lot of dairy can also affect magnesium, as dairy is very high in calcium but deficient in magnesium and the two are in balance in the body.

[AnxiousNoMore]

Most side effects go away with time, but you have been on it 2 months so hard to say what the future holds. There are many things that can cause pain so also hard to isolate whether the med is doing it, just because you noticed it at the same time. For example you can get severe earache from a necrotic tooth, which can't be diagnosed until the thing creates a cavity or its crown falls off..

I would give Z another month or so and stay in touch with the doctor - did she say the Zoloft was likely causing this, or just noted the pain and gave you the script to help alleviate it?