Sertraline, Serious Side Effects?

[LizC]

For over a year now I have been experiencing a very severe myriad of symptoms, headaches, tremors, shooting pains in limbs, tingling sensations in limbs, restless legs, memory loss and extreme fatigue. This all came to a head when I had a seizure. I was sent to the doctor to be tested for everything from MS to Epilepsy... nothing. I kept being told it was all 'anxiety' and became so frustrated that I gave up and stopped asking for help.

I only realised a few weeks ago that my symptoms started just a few months after being put on SSRI's for PTSD. So just about a month ago I decided to take a risk and stop taking my medication, I had a slight inkling my symptoms were being caused by the Sertraline.

Astonishingly these past two weeks my daily symptoms have almost completely disappeared. I still get this electric like shooting sensation in my limbs now and again but that is very mild in comparison. Has anyone else had symptoms like this on SSRI's?

Do you think that this has worked for me like a placebo and I really was imagining my symptoms or does Sertraline do this to people? I was warned about no such symptoms by my doctor.

P.s Mentally I am doing okay without the medication :)

 

[Truthful_Whispers]

Psersonally, I have never taken Sertraline, but I have had the electrical nerve impulses before.

 

[LizC]

Psersonally, I have never taken Sertraline, but I have had the electrical nerve impulses before...

Have you been informed by a doctor what those sensations actually are? They have always been completely dismissed.

 

[Truthful_Whispers]

Have you been informed by a doctor what those sensations actually are? They have always been completely dis...

I haven't been told much. Doctors just want us to blindly swallow the pills. Best to research on the web.

 

[Justmehere]

This website shows the many side effects that are possible with Sertraline: http://www.drugs.com/sfx/sertraline-side-effects.html

Generally, if something is listed as a side effect, it is something occurs at a higher rate than those who were taking a placebo. Most everything you describe is on that list.

So it's not likely you only imagined your way into your symptoms.

I have been on a couple of SSRI's and one had no side effects, another made 3/4 of my hair fall out, and a third caused such bad night sweats I would soak through layers of sheets on my bed every night.

The electric zinging pain could be a peripheral neuropathy that was caused by the drug. I have heard of others developing it.

When my hair was falling out, my dermatologist initially blamed even that on anxiety and stress. It took over a year before I figured out it was a rare but known side effect of the antidepressant I had taken. It lasted a little while after I stopped the drug, and my hair has finally grown back in. (I'm a girl and it was really embarrassing.)

I am glad your symptoms improved so much! I hope the electric pains go away soon too.

 

[PollyScotland]

I take Sertraline to control anxiety as it was giving me terrible heart palpitations, plus the usual worrying about everything, insomnia, etc. My side effects initially were nausea, upset stomach, occasional mind zaps, and total lack of libido. I already suffer from RLS but it seems to be worse, although not painful just the need to move my legs at night. The nausea seems to have gone away but the rest remain, along with the inability to care about a lot of stuff anymore, and a lack of feeling towards a lot of things. Hard to explain but its like I don't feel much emotion anymore, I'm detached, almost uncaring.

I believe my anxiety is under control however it doesn't stop me feeling really low at times, with occasional self harm and SUI thoughts.

 

[NoWhereKnowWhere]

I was on sertraline. Be aware if you've just stopped without tapering off you will have withdrawl (or discontinuation symotoms)
I got brain zaps when coming off

Yeah side effects i had was bad circulation my fingers and toes would go white.
Feeling empty and emotionless
Inability to find words (more so than normal) and comunicate
Easily confused.
Suicidal (more so and for longer periods of time than normal)
Dissociation or maybe more like i didnt feel real, nothing felt real. Felt detached but not quite like dissociation well not like the dissociation i usually experience.
I just felt like a a shell walking around and I would go back to the doctor and they would just up the prescription every time i was up to 200mg before i was like f*ck this and took myself off.

I've had some bad reactions to other antidepressants:
Hallucinations
Sleeping 18hrs a day
Dangerously lowered blood pressure (I was fainting all over the place like a Jane Austen novel)
Heart palpitations

 

[Ocean5]

I was warned about no such symptoms by my doctor.

Told similar thing by old p-doc. She said she never heard of my side-effects. She said anyone can post anything online. I guess the NIH and WebMD are just anyone.

I told my new p-doc today no more SSRIs. "They destroy me."

But I'm tapering down dose. @Link Removed as suggested.

 

[NoWhereKnowWhere]

Even if tapering off you'll probably still have some discontinuation symptoms. Well I did but then I was on quite a high dose and everyone's different. But keep an eye out for them I had to take diazepam to get through coming off them.