Coming Off of Zoloft

I've been on anti-depressants since I was 17. I'm now 24. At one point I was taking 200mg of Zoloft a day. I have managed, over a period of years, to bring it down to a minimal 6mg daily. I am literally cutting a 25mg pill into fourths. I know that I am taking such a small dose that it may not even be doing anything. . . but I'm terrified to stop taking it completely. Last time I went off I went so crazy that I dropped out of college for a semester.

Does anyone have any experience with coming off of anti-depressants completely after taking them for many years? What was it like for you?

I haven't been taking Zoloft for very long but I stopped it completely after about a week of being on it. It made me so sick I couldn't function. When I stopped I almost immediately felt better (physically).

I've tried other meds as well some for months at a time but I have found that I just can't take anti-depressants without them making me sick. My doctor is working with me to find the right dosing of the right pill but for now I'm managing without it because I can't stand that sickness.

I didn't do a gradual stopping with any of my meds because of how sick they made me feel but it seems like with such a small dose you aren't getting any benefit. I would tend to think it's your own hangups about what happened last time you stopped. I'll bet the dose you had in college was alot more than 6mg and it was effecting you in a different way, which is why stopping cold turkey on a higher dosage isn't recommended.

I'm not your doctor obviously but I would bet that if you stop them completely you won't see any problems. You just have to keep in mind what happened before and keep your eye on any triggers that may spark a different behavior in you.

Good Luck.

There may be some helpful information here, Hope and Despair: http://forums.psychcentral.com/showthread.php?t=175759

I was on 200mg for years as well. The stupid pdoc I was seeing at the time cold turkeyed me and I was so sick it was unbelievable, that was done though because the zoloft stopped working and I needed to swap drugs.

Zoloft is known as being a hard one to come off but I have previously done it by reducing it down and stopped it and while I may have had a few upsetting days I was ok because I was coming off it because I was well. I then led a great drug free life for a year. If you're well you should be fine. Remember now you'll also have the skills of knowing if you do need to go back on it so if you do you do it quickly and it won't upset your life again, you've just got to keep telling yourself that.

6mg sounds more like a crutch, I know the feeling. I'm now on pristiq and missed a dose as my daughter was in hospital and I went into major withdrawals within 14hrs only. After 2 days back on I feel ok again but I have that fear in my mind too, what if it stops working and I have a major meltdown and spend six months in hospital which is what happened after the first incident I mentioned.

It's a scary world when you take drugs that mess with your brain, I've been on them for basically 16yrs and it looks like life because they finally worked out it was a chemical imbalance so I know the exact fear you're feeling.

i'm dependent on prozac, i really wish i could take a holiday from it but i'm too scared, i'm one of those who had huge gains on ssri

Zoloft - that's sertraline, right?
Not sure why you want to come off - or if you should - have you discussed it with doctor? - but assuming all those things are covered and it's right for you - it sounds like you are going the right way about it - now maybe one of those quarters every second day for a couple of weeks, then every three days for a week or so , then stop.
I have come off it a couple of times over the years - very gradually as you are doing - or else I got the tingling in my feet and the electric shocks in my body and head.
Unfortunately for me after I had been off it completely for between 3 and 6 months I went really down - and kind of weepy /panicky - and had to go back on it or another anti-dep.
Good Luck

Tavia wrote:now maybe one of those quarters every second day for a couple of weeks, then every three days for a week or so , then stop.

I think this would be beneficial, maybe talk it over with your psych or doctor. And remember that you've grown since the last time you stopped taking the meds. This time will most likely be very different to last time.