Has anybody ever taken Zoloft for a panic disorder?

i took zoloft…no side effects.

so does my mom.

I took Zoloft for 2 years in the 90’s for clinical depression and an obsessive compulsive spectrum disorder. My personal experience was a very negative one, but I was prescribed extremely high doses… which is probably why I had such a bad time. I couldn’t sleep properly, I had sexual dysfunction, and I just felt like a zombie. I would “wake up” in the morning and my pupils were so dilated that my irises were like tiny slivers, which means that I was insanely photosensitive. Light was excruciating, which lead to my eyes always being sore and I frequently had headaches. My dreams were vivid and frightening, and I never felt like I was fully asleep. I also experienced uncontrollable trembling and shaking, as well as teeth chattering. Especially if I yawned or stretched. My muscles would tense up and my teeth would chatter uncontrollably. Toward the end of my time taking the medication, I started to experience hallucinations. That was when I decided that I couldn’t take the pills anymore, so I talked to my doctor (at the time) and had him take me off of the meds. After stopping medication, I realised that my anxiety was far worse than it was before starting, and I began having panic attacks. It was a long road uphill from there.

Now, I’m not saying this is the norm, or that my experience is a common one. 50mg is a significantly smaller dose than what I was taking, and I was also taking other medications at the time, to counteract the side effects from the Zoloft. In fact, the dose I was taking then is now well over the current highest recommended dosage of Zoloft, so I was badly over-medicated.
However, having said that, I don’t know if the side effects would still be there if I had been on a lower dosage. Perhaps just less intense. I don’t know if my anxiety would have gotten so much worse after stopping medication. I have met other people that took a lower dose of Zoloft, and also experienced sexual dysfunction, sleeplessness and the trembling/teeth chattering. I don’t think there is any way to know for sure if the medication will work for you, without frustrating side effects, unless you try it.

My son has panic attacks and the other night we got a call at 3:00 in the morning. He was in the hospital because of an attack which caused his heart to be off balance. When they checked him his two upper values were beating incorrectly. They actually stopped his heart and then shocked him back which corrected the beat. He now has to see a specialist but is feeling a bit better. Some form of drug would be a good thing if this is a real problem for you. I have taken Zoloft before and didn’t have any negative side effects and in time I came off of them. Drugs shouldn’t be used unless you really need them. Just pay close attention to what you feel and keep the doctor informed. He will change it or adjust things as need be but keep him posted.

This answer is from my wife. She was prescribed Zoloft for fibromyalgia years ago. She tells me it has made her feel as though a ton of bricks have been lifted off her shoulders. This is a good thing. She further tells me to tell you to go for it.

Zoloft has made her a better overall person with her personality and I love it.

She has no regrets and no bad symptoms from using Zoloft.

I was prescribed zoloft after my mother died of cancer and in reality its a medication that makes you have no feelings, I couldnt even concentrate, or get anything done.. Now this is a pill that makes you feel nothing, which means you pretty much not dealing with reality, which in some situations is not a good thing, but I am not sure why they provided that to me, but it was something that I regret.

I too take 50 mgs/ daily for Fibromyalgia and the anxiety associated with chronic pain. The Zoloft enabled me to slowly set up a regular exercise routine…floor stretches, 5 lb weights and 45 minutes on treadmill at 3.5 mph.

I have noticed no odd side effects or personality changes. I am the person I have always been, only slightly more cheerful.

I don’t agree with what @Marodr13 said at all, because as I said in your other question, medications affect all people differently. One thing to really keep in mind is that with ANY anti-anxiety or anti-depression medication, you need to make sure that you start gradually with, say, 25 mg/day and then tick it up according to what an experienced physician or psychiatrist says. It usually will take at least 4–6 weeks for you to feel the positive effects of a new medication. Similarly, if and when you are going to come off of it, you have to wean off it. Nobody should ever go from taking 0 mg up to taking 200 mg, and vice versa. There have been times where I just skipped doses for several days at a time because I was lazy or just forgot or whatever, and while it didn’t affect me immediately, because I had gone for 3+ days without my 100 mg+ dose, I went haywire if I didn’t start my medication again simply because my body was going from getting 100+ mg to 0. That being said, I still believe that the medication is extremely helpful for my depression and anxiety.

Additionally, as I said, Zoloft is just one of MANY, MANY SSRIs/anti-anxiety medications that you can be prescribed. If it doesn’t work for you, you can try something else. Just because it doesn’t work for one person doesn’t mean it can’t help another.

It didn’t work for me. I do have an anxiety issue, but it just wasn’t meant for me. I never noticed a difference and had to go a different way to deal with my anxiety. It’s important to let your doctor know what is going on while you are taking anything like this, that way they know if it is for you or not.

Before I found the Zoloft,, i had tried 5 other SSRI’s. Prozac gave me terrible nightmares, Wellbutrin did nothing, Effexor make me vomit…Finding the right med. is an art and not a science.

20 mg daily plus weekly session set my world right. 100 %. Improvement with my OCD. And Pstd…oh and the dissociative issue…......zoloft was my life saver”’ combbined. With mmy dr