Sertraline - Wow!

[youngsyr]

Caddyshack said:

I think that we all react differently to different strengths of drugs. I couldn’t imagine having 100mg but lots of people are on that amount. I am 80kilos but I don’t think it is just weight driven.


One of my friends could eat disco biscuits like sweets back in the day where as 1 for me was enough…both same build.


I sometimes wonder if DRs know enough about some drugs…I know my doc just looked in a little book.

Totally agree about dosage - body weight is completely irrelevant. I'm now much heavier than you but was slimmer in my younger days and have always been sensitive to mood altering drugs.

I also know a much lighter woman than you who takes heroic dosages of hallucinegens.

Agreed on the GPs too, but rest assured, even if you see a psychiatrist who are the most highly trained in this area, it's still trial and error on both dosage and the actual drug. They can't tell you in advance that one drug will work and another won't, or what does is best.

[youngsyr]

redrabbit29 said:

Thanks mate good advice. No I didn't take it with food but tomorrow I will do just to see if it goes any smoother. It's been fine all day except that 1-2 hours after.

The new job is working from home. But I think you're right. At the moment I have absolutely no purpose. I went from a job where I led about 10 others and was a key person across the whole organisation. Now I'm a nobody! I know that's not true but it feels a bit like that.

New job is way outside my comfort zone and much more money. Both good I suppose but still really overwhelming.

Stupidly I misread the email and counselling is not until end of February. So I have a whole other month to wait.

My new job has private health care. So I may try to jump on that immediately if that's allowed. Book a private counsellor and keep it going for a while

How's your stomach today?

Good news about private healthcare, definitely give that a try. It might have access to a private GP, which could be very useful to get a referral to a private psychiatrist (sounds dramatic, but they are the experts in mental healthcare and would be worth speaking to get their advice).

One thing I have picked up on your posts is a lot of negative self-talk. You've mentioned a few times about how stupid you are, how you feel like a nobody and how you're out of your depth with the new job.

Frankly, this is nonsense and it's something you'll need to tackle to get a grip on the anxiety.

If I told you "I have a job where I led about 10 others and was a key person across the whole organisation and had just been offered a job with more responsibility and much more money", would you think I was stupid, a nobody, useless?

Of course not! Your old job clearly recognised that you were a person with a lot of skills and your new job must have done the same to offer you the job!

That's not opinion, it's fact. Other people don't think you're useless or stupid, so why do you? And more importantly, does it help you or harm you to think you're stupid when no-one else does?

Try to start combatting those thoughts - almost like having a discussion in your mind. Whenever your mind conjures up a negative thought, such as "You're out of your depth with this new job" push it back by saying "That's bullsh!t, I can do this job and will do it well". Say it out loud if you can, if not just repeat it internally in your mind.

It might be difficult to even notice when the negative thought occurs, let alone push back against it, but with practice it will get easier and then eventually it will become automatic. At some point you'll notice that those negative thoughts rarely even make it into your mind anymore and that's when you'll know you're getting on top of the anxiety.

Edited by youngsyr on Wednesday 1st February 10:25

[Scabutz]

Has anyone tried different drugs and found any differences?

Had anxiety all my life. It comes and goes in phases and at times, like now, is really strong. Lot of work stress and being the dad to two teenagers.

I tried Sertraline twice in the past and never really felt like it did much, and had some side effects. Wonder if its worth seeing the GP about something different?

[Caddyshack]

Use what works for you but also do all the other things to stop anxiety as it is far better to work on curing yourself. I have written a lot about how to do that on this thread.

[Scabutz]

Caddyshack said:

Use what works for you but also do all the other things to stop anxiety as it is far better to work on curing yourself. I have written a lot about how to do that on this thread.

Thanks. I should say I'm doing the other good stuff. Getting out for walks, exercise. I have done counselling and CBT in the past as well and might get a few more sessions of that.

Trying to tackle the source of a lot of the work stress head on, and actually that may mean moving jobs so looking into that.

Just feel like I need a bit of additional help with it right now.

[Caddyshack]

Scabutz said:

Caddyshack said:

Use what works for you but also do all the other things to stop anxiety as it is far better to work on curing yourself. I have written a lot about how to do that on this thread.

Thanks. I should say I'm doing the other good stuff. Getting out for walks, exercise. I have done counselling and CBT in the past as well and might get a few more sessions of that.

Trying to tackle the source of a lot of the work stress head on, and actually that may mean moving jobs so looking into that.

Just feel like I need a bit of additional help with it right now.

Sounds like you are on the right track. I would suggest at least 10-20 mins each day of guided meditation using a recording such as the stuff on audible. You need to also become a black belt in noticing stressful and anxious thoughts and nipping them in the bud. It’s amazing just listening to peoples conversations and you can hear all of the deeply ingrained negative self talk…and that’s the stuff they verbalise.

[redrabbit29]

youngsyr said:

How's your stomach today?

Good news about private healthcare, definitely give that a try. It might have access to a private GP, which could be very useful to get a referral to a private psychiatrist (sounds dramatic, but they are the experts in mental healthcare and would be worth speaking to get their advice).

One thing I have picked up on your posts is a lot of negative self-talk. You've mentioned a few times about how stupid you are, how you feel like a nobody and how you're out of your depth with the new job.
.....

Hey, stomach is fine now. I'm about a week into taking the medication and all side effects have subsided. I still feel insanely tired a lot of the time though, but that may just be me. I wake up even after sleeping well and feel like I want to sleep again for hours. During the day it is OK but around midday I feel really sluggish.

I'm exercising lots (possibly related to above). Cycling or running each day, plus 5000+ steps a day to get out the house.

Well spotted with my negative self-talk. Thanks for the advice too, you're right, I should stop it really and I'm now making a concious effort to be more mindful of everything including the way I think about myself and general situations.

I started my new job yesterday. It is quite strange. I am part of a global team but my boss who recruited me actually resigned and left before I started. As a result I am the only UK based person. The rest of my team are in the US. They are recruiting some UK people though. Anxiety is down as I have finally started the new job and put the old one behind me (for now) - that was by far the biggest issue, that whole build up, then the waiting, etc.

Will definitely be doing the private health care psychiatrist. I have a meeting next week with the external company to talk about benefits so will find out more then.

To conclude that, I think the sertraline is doing its job pretty well so far

[youngsyr]

redrabbit29 said:

youngsyr said:

How's your stomach today?

Good news about private healthcare, definitely give that a try. It might have access to a private GP, which could be very useful to get a referral to a private psychiatrist (sounds dramatic, but they are the experts in mental healthcare and would be worth speaking to get their advice).

One thing I have picked up on your posts is a lot of negative self-talk. You've mentioned a few times about how stupid you are, how you feel like a nobody and how you're out of your depth with the new job.
.....

Hey, stomach is fine now. I'm about a week into taking the medication and all side effects have subsided. I still feel insanely tired a lot of the time though, but that may just be me. I wake up even after sleeping well and feel like I want to sleep again for hours. During the day it is OK but around midday I feel really sluggish.

I'm exercising lots (possibly related to above). Cycling or running each day, plus 5000+ steps a day to get out the house.

Well spotted with my negative self-talk. Thanks for the advice too, you're right, I should stop it really and I'm now making a concious effort to be more mindful of everything including the way I think about myself and general situations.

I started my new job yesterday. It is quite strange. I am part of a global team but my boss who recruited me actually resigned and left before I started. As a result I am the only UK based person. The rest of my team are in the US. They are recruiting some UK people though. Anxiety is down as I have finally started the new job and put the old one behind me (for now) - that was by far the biggest issue, that whole build up, then the waiting, etc.

Will definitely be doing the private health care psychiatrist. I have a meeting next week with the external company to talk about benefits so will find out more then.

To conclude that, I think the sertraline is doing its job pretty well so far

That all sounds very positive and is great to hear.

Don't forget your life has included some very stressful events recently and they would make anyone feel a bit shakey, so don't give yourself a hard time over it.

[simons123]

Those taking Setraline and have had a positive experience. How does it work exactly? Does it remove the nerves in the pit of the stomach for example?

I have never suffered with depression but do get anxious at certain times particularly work meetings for example where I get really nervous for some reason which effects the way I come across I feel. Would it be worth taking for that?

[Luke.]

simons123 said:

Those taking Setraline and have had a positive experience. How does it work exactly? Does it remove the nerves in the pit of the stomach for example?

I have never suffered with depression but do get anxious at certain times particularly work meetings for example where I get really nervous for some reason which effects the way I come across I feel. Would it be worth taking for that?

Take a look at Propranolol (Beta Blockers) they help take the fight and flight feelings out of stressful situations. You'd be amazed how many people take them for presentations and whatnot. Musicians also take them when they've got a big performance on to get handle on the shakes etc. Non habit forming too.

[simons123]

Luke. said:

simons123 said:

Those taking Setraline and have had a positive experience. How does it work exactly? Does it remove the nerves in the pit of the stomach for example?

I have never suffered with depression but do get anxious at certain times particularly work meetings for example where I get really nervous for some reason which effects the way I come across I feel. Would it be worth taking for that?

Take a look at Propranolol (Beta Blockers) they help take the fight and flight feelings out of stressful situations. You'd be amazed how many people take them for presentations and whatnot. Musicians also take them when they've got a big performance on to get handle on the shakes etc. Non habit forming too.

Thanks for the heads up. Take it id get these from the doctor? Do they make you really tired though?

[Scabutz]

simons123 said:

Thanks for the heads up. Take it id get these from the doctor? Do they make you really tired though?

Yeah talk to your doctor about them, and other options. I found they made me extremely tired

[Luke.]

simons123 said:

Thanks for the heads up. Take it id get these from the doctor? Do they make you really tired though?

It shouldn't make you tired at all and, yes, talk to your GP about it. You just use them as and when you need them rather than having to take them for weeks before they start having an effect. So, say 40 minutes before a meeting.

[redrabbit29]

simons123 said:

Those taking Setraline and have had a positive experience. How does it work exactly? Does it remove the nerves in the pit of the stomach for example?

I have never suffered with depression but do get anxious at certain times particularly work meetings for example where I get really nervous for some reason which effects the way I come across I feel. Would it be worth taking for that?

For me yes it did help a lot with anxiety. I mistook depression for anxiety (well about 20% depression and 80% anxiety). This was due to a significant job change and at its worse I was shaking for large parts of the day, unable to sleep properly, really on edge all the time.

Sertraline really helped me with this

[redrabbit29]

As I said above, sertraline is still going well. However, I am finding two things with it, both good and bad:

Sleeping

The good is I sleep very well now. I never have done all my life but now I regularly get about 8 hours and now I am WFH it means I don't have to get up really early to commute.

However, even if I sleep well, I still wake up tired and wanting to sleep.

Last night I slept 8 hours. My watch said it was good, lots of REM. But I had to have a mid-morning nap as I was just yawning like crazy.

[FishOutOfWater]

Dropped into here because I’ve been using sertraline and have been since august last year when I was having anxiety attacks. Back ground is that I’ve had depression/anxiety for about 10 years after the death of my mum.

Since my most recent bout my life has kind of imploded.

The summary of events is that I was off work with anxiety
Came back to work
Got close to a colleague
Had an affair with that colleague
Left my wife and children
Went back to my wife
Didn’t try to make things better
Got kicked out.

Now, all this is out of character and I’m a bit concerned that I have a complete lack of emotions.

Could my behaviour and subsequent lack of emotions be as a result of my anxiety/depression or my sertraline?

Or is that just me trying to justify what I’ve done and shift the blame away?

[hooters123]

redrabbit29 said:

As I said above, sertraline is still going well. However, I am finding two things with it, both good and bad:

Sleeping

The good is I sleep very well now. I never have done all my life but now I regularly get about 8 hours and now I am WFH it means I don't have to get up really early to commute.

However, even if I sleep well, I still wake up tired and wanting to sleep.

Last night I slept 8 hours. My watch said it was good, lots of REM. But I had to have a mid-morning nap as I was just yawning like crazy.

Interesting, I have similar sleep issues. Seem to sleep ok but can be absolutely shattered anyway! I suspect I'm not getting as deep a sleep as I normally would as I used to when I was more stressed, even if the sleep time was actually shorter.

How much coffee do you drink as I upped my intake to cope with the initial sleepiness and now wonder if that's half the problem?

[redrabbit29]

FishOutOfWater said:

Dropped into here because I’ve been using sertraline and have been since august last year when I was having anxiety attacks. Back ground is that I’ve had depression/anxiety for about 10 years after the death of my mum.

Since my most recent bout my life has kind of imploded.

The summary of events is that I was off work with anxiety
Came back to work
Got close to a colleague
Had an affair with that colleague
Left my wife and children
Went back to my wife
Didn’t try to make things better
Got kicked out.

Now, all this is out of character and I’m a bit concerned that I have a complete lack of emotions.

Could my behaviour and subsequent lack of emotions be as a result of my anxiety/depression or my sertraline?

Or is that just me trying to justify what I’ve done and shift the blame away?

It is probably a little of both, we all make mistakes or act out of character. I cringe at some of the things I have done over the years - all my own doing but still it "wasn't me" in terms of my usual behaviour.

You even say this is all out of character. So I would be kind to yourself as you would a close friend. Recognise it for what it is and just try to be positive with what you do each day.

I've had a rough few months and one thing that helped me is to not even worry about tomorrow/next week or next year. Today is all that matters, I will try my best today, and if it's a bad day, I will get through it and wait for tomorrow.

Have you had any form of counselling or bereavement therapy?

[redrabbit29]

hooters123 said:

Interesting, I have similar sleep issues. Seem to sleep ok but can be absolutely shattered anyway! I suspect I'm not getting as deep a sleep as I normally would as I used to when I was more stressed, even if the sleep time was actually shorter.

How much coffee do you drink as I upped my intake to cope with the initial sleepiness and now wonder if that's half the problem?

I switched all coffee to decaf so it's definitely not that. I used to down espressos and coffee for fun. It's only been a few weeks of no coffee so maybe that's another thing my body is getting used to + exercising regularly which I stopped for a long time.

[youngsyr]

redrabbit29 said:

hooters123 said:

Interesting, I have similar sleep issues. Seem to sleep ok but can be absolutely shattered anyway! I suspect I'm not getting as deep a sleep as I normally would as I used to when I was more stressed, even if the sleep time was actually shorter.

How much coffee do you drink as I upped my intake to cope with the initial sleepiness and now wonder if that's half the problem?

I switched all coffee to decaf so it's definitely not that. I used to down espressos and coffee for fun. It's only been a few weeks of no coffee so maybe that's another thing my body is getting used to + exercising regularly which I stopped for a long time.

I have a strong suspicion that many people with depression drink a lot of caffeinated drinks to try to combat it.