never got answer to question still waiting, any advice?

[kcdem]

just got off horrid multy med cocktail, i am through the mental confusion part. they had me on 3 ssris remeron and daily klonopin allthough low does. feb 9th i stopped smokong my nightime weed to sleep and went right into the prescribed remeron klonopin mix that put me out in ten minutes sleeping like a rock but with weird lucid dreaming. i was sure that when i returned last night from the hospital after not sleeping for four days ( stopped all meds and went on 50mg zoloft at bedtime starting three nights ago) i would sleep like a rock..hey i am at home afterall. i realize now that the weed was my sleeping agent and then the remeron and klonopin. i have weaned off all the cymbalta , prozac, remeron and will only take klonopin on an as needed basis for anxiety.

to get to my question i am as it seems very med sesitive, even though i am a manly man...could 3 days of 50 mgs of zoloft at bed be causing increased panick or more importanly these horrible bed soaking pungent night sweats, resulting in large daily laundry loads for my wife, and as some know you dont want your wife thinking you are stincky.

i trust the advice of the phsychiatrist at the hospital he was very candid about what his colleage had over prescribed but his answer is always it is your anxiety...any thuoghts?


peace..Kevin...kcdem

[kcdem]

What is an MJ? I have had therapy for twenty years, and my fear of being alone and depression never went away unless i am with a woman...that works for a while or until i finally relented and took an ssri and o of corse must have the woman as well. i had some major life events and trauma job insecurity, wife cheating and the rest is history. with 40 total mental health 80/20 sessions one must be prudent. the trauma sent me in a downward spiral of anxiety that i hope will never happen again.

[JSGeare]

The fact that ONE thing (anxiety) is at work does NOT mean that others (med cocktails) don't also play a part, and sometimes it is hard to know who's on first, really. Best thing is to get some talk therapy from that psychiatrist, together with whatever meds you are taking. I can't speak to the role your MJ may be playing -but it might be interesting to stop for awhile (with medical consent) and see where it factors in to the whole thing.

After all is said and done, the acuses of panic and anxiety -if not due to some independent agent, arise from deep down psychological and emotional adjustments you've made over the years -which no loger work. So the answer is therapy to identify and correct the prime movers. Its a lot of work, but trust me, having suffered with it for 40 yeasr -and now at last being free of it (for the past 8) I can tell you that it is a journey well worth pursuing.

Please keep in touch.

[eronski]

Yes I noticed you were a painter too, pretty cool.  I love it here too - though this winter is grinding on me it's a blizzard today!  January is the worst and the older I get the harder it is.  My hubby and I went to Florida a few weeks ago and he loved it so much he wants to get a place there.  Can't imagin anything better than taking off to the Gulf of Mexico for January every year!  Our kids a pretty young still so it will be awhile before we can do it, I better start saving $$$.  

My husband is a drummer and is in lots of different bands.  His main band is Auto Body Experience (maybe you have heard of them since you lived here) check out their web site  www.autobodyexperience.com.  He too is a sales man by day & I was too, sold Oriental Rugs at Dayton's, then quit to raise my kids.  I did the Soul Asylum thing too - my favoirte hang out used to be Wiskey Junction and the Caboose.  And then, well, I had kids but they are great too - never been happier in my life then now in my 40's.  Still get out to all the cool bars in the cities often, now it's to see some jazz or funk.  My hubby is a jazz freek.  I paint watercolors, used to have a web site but got rid of it cause wasn't doing much painting or selling.  I just got asked to be featured in a new shop in down town Stillwater (have you been there) - I am quite excited because it gives me tons of incentive to get painting.

What do you sell?  Time to go to work - gonna have to put on the 4 wheel drive today!  Take Care, Erin

[kcdem]

than you for response.look at my profile, we have alot in common. i am a painter as well and am in several galleries in ohio, never hardly sell anything but this is ohio not the twin cities. i lived in minneapolis for several years, i lived the husker du, soul asylum thing, i was an extra in purple rain ...blah blah blah. i was supposed to be attending horst, but i got side tracked. you and i are the same age as well. what type of painter are you? i am married happily so please dont think i am a weirdo. i just thought it was remarkable that the only response i received was from a painter, the same age, from the only city i have ever lived in other than **** hole dayton ohio. my buddy who went with me never left, he is a chef at some downtown hotel. if i move anywhere it will be the twin cities, it is the best accept for the cold winters and extremely hot summers...you know that darn jet stream. i hope the noodle thing does not happen and if it does i hope it is temporary, i am not worried abot taking in the morning because it seemds to be an upper for me as well.

[eronski]

Hey there - Did your doctor originally tell you to take it at night or to experiment?  My brother-in-law is a Neurologist so I am constantly picking his brain about Zoloft..... he said since Zoloft is an "upper" for many people it's a good idea to take it in the morning to start out.  I must say though, that I have heard some people say on the Forum that it makes them tired.  It's amazing how the same drug can effect people in so many different ways!

I really struggled with the sleeping thing for the first  6-7 weeks.  I could not sleep, I was relaxed, I wasn't anxious, I just couldn't fall asleep and if I did I had crazy dreams and I would wake up covered in sweat.  I tried taking quite a few things to help me sleep.  My doctor said to take Xanax (similar to Klonopin) every night but I only did that a few times because I didn't want to get hooked.  Then I tried Trazedone - didn't work - sleeping pills- didn't work - Melatonin - didn't work.  I was considering quitting the Zoloft but then I started to sleep better and now I don't have any problems.

As far as taking 25mg - that is usually the dose people start out at and if your having uncomfortable side effects I would think only taking 25 would be OK - It's good your going to talk to your doctor.  Do you have a good relationship?  Mine is OK but takes days to call me back when I have a question.  Thank goodness I had my brother to talk with.  I was so scared to take Zoloft - I have had anxiety for 30 years and have always refused to take something daily.   I'm glad I have tried it though - I feel better.

As far as sexual side effects....I am a women so it may be effecting me a little different but I have had some.  Delayed orgasm, if any and not much interest in general.  Those are pretty big issues for me.  I've been very happily married for 12 years and being with my hubby is so nice and important.  I figure I can handle anything as long as it's temporary so I will continue on this course and if it starts to effect our relationship I will quit.  It had made me feel much better so it has benefited us too.  Don't worry about getting personal - it takes allot to offend me!!

I got your invite to be a Friend - great!  Then you can keep me posted on how the Zoloft is working.  Erin

[kcdem]

last night i broke my 50mg in half, i had no sweats and slept for 6 hours. i am thrilled to get your advice. i took 50mg about 1/2 hr ago, i will see if i can sleep and if i get the terrible sweats. if i get the sweats and cant sleep that would tell me something. i will ask my doc tomorrow about taking it in the morning. i would be so grateful if that would allow me to sleep. i also would like to know if you experienced any sexual side affects. i was on prozac and the noodle problem went away after about a week and i was fine. i am concerned about zoloft affecting my sex drive. i hope that is not personal. i have never done this before, this is the first time i have ever been involved in a forum of any kind.thank you for responding.

[eronski]

Absolutely!  Those side effects sound very similar to mine when I started Zoloft - 3 months ago..  Zoloft is an upper for me so I must take it in the morning or it is impossible to sleep - I have been told this is quite common.  It can make you feel more anxious too but that should get better after a few weeks.  After taking it at 25mg for about 3-4 weeks most all my side effects were gone.  It took a while longer to sleep but I don't have any problems there now either.   I also had night sweats, dry mouth, constipation - I felt agitated..... I just felt nasty for the first week especially.

I am extremely sensitive too which is why I am only taking 25mg.  My doctor wanted me to double to 50 after a week but I was having some icky side effects like you and I didn't want to make it worse.  Even with such a low dose my anxiety is soooooo much better.  I may have a little at times which is OK - it keeps me working on my issues.  I too have taken Klonopin when my anxiety gets bad - which THANKFULLY is rare.  Good thing you quit the weed - that can make you really anxious and it takes so long to ware off.

Hang in there with the Zoloft - you have decided to give it a try and you won't know if it helps you for a few weeks and hopefully the side effects will lesson soon keep us posted.  Good Luck, take care, Erin

[kcdem]

patience is a virtue...but you know how anxious i can get. thanx for the suggestion, i will do it.hopefully it is slow because people including agoraphobics are out enjoying life. thanx again for the response.



kevin

[Jade59]

Hey kevin, sorry no ones answered, but if you'll notice, it's very slow today on the forum and few people have had a response.  Your not the only one so try to be patient.  

What you can do in the meantime though is put Zoloft up in "Search Medhelp" and read old posts on this med.  Maybe you'll find the answer to your question while you're waiting.  

Congrats on stopping the weed!

Take care...