I have a close friend that was prescribed Zoloft about 2 or 3 months ago to treat his depression. As far as I know for the first few weeks he took them as prescribed, and it seemed to make him more social and outgoing. But just recently we have noticed very odd changes in his behavior, on few occasions he has had hallucniations, and seems very hyper all of the time then suddenly he becomes very sleepy. I don't know whether or not I would beleive that he is abuseing Zoloft, but that is what alot of people are saying. He also had a cesure, the cause was unknown but was thought to be his inhaler? He has also lost quite a bit of weight, wouldent the doctors have changed his meds by now? I also know that it could not be any type of drug that shows up on a drug screen because he is drug tested every two weeks. just wondering if those could be signs of him abuseing zoloft or some other pharmisuitical?
Hey, I am not on Zoloft only was long time ago. Now I am on Effexor XR as one. Anyway, Your friend really needs to discuss this with a Doctor or Pharmacist. Only what I know from experience, is if abuse is occuring a sign would be if your friend 'loses' his medicine about a week or two it is time for it to be refilled and has to go to or call the doctor in an attempt to get early script, such as 'someone stole it' or "I lost it" as far as Epileptic Siezures? Has he had history of seizures in the past? I do not know if seizures are a side effect? Also, some persons who take anti-depressants and have an underlying mental illness such as bi-polar disorder may go into 'drug induced mania' or periods of hyper and insomnia. He may want to be checked out by a psychiatric doc for dosage and evaluation if he is not already. Hope it all works out-Peace
He needs to talk to his doctor. ANYONE who has had hallucinations or seizures should. People with BiPolar Disorder can get REALLY manic from SSRI antidepressants, as can psychotics, but it is really for his doctor to deal with. SSRIs can lower the seizure threshold, especially in high doses.(Lowering the "threshold" makes it easier for one to have a convulsion.) They can also really fuck up your heart's electrical activity. There is no antedote for a fatal SSRI OD, so I hope he isn't taking more than he is prescribed. He needs to see his doctor NOW.
damn, i didnt think it was possible to abuse zoloft! i was on 200mg zoloft: 750mg depakote: 6mg clonazapam: 40mg adderall: & 1.5mg risperdol...... well the doc took them ALL away from me! well im crashing hard now, it sucks, now i have severe mood swings and deep manic depression. i have taken quite a bit of zoloft at once and never had hallucinations or seizures or anything you talked about. however: i do have a friend who took an a typical anti-psychotic, "Geodon". He had an adverse reaction and suffered severe hallucinations, enough to keep him in bed all day, and this is my 25 year old hardcore acid eatin party type a' guy. so it was weird to see him in a state where he was WORRIED about his hallucinations, not enjoying them. well he finally came down and the doctor gave him his Paxil back, which he had been taking for a while, well after the geodon, the paxil started to make him hallucinate, which it never did before. MY THEORY: there are a couple different types of seratonin in the brain, each regulating something different. I think the geodon somehow changed his brain chemistry or seratonin receptors so that now the seratonin effected by the paxil now effects him like the seratonin effected by acid and mushrooms ect. im no brain chemist, just a HS senior, so i may be way off here. STILL: he needs to see a doctor NOW. the only problem is, if he doesnt WANT these events to stop, he wont get any help from his doctor. He needs to be honest and shit. and if he was abusing the zoloft it would go missing every month, unless he stops taking it at the end of the month. Is there any difference in him at a certain time every month? He could also simply be taking a>too much b>taking it irregularly c> just taking something else he isnt supposed to.
crackforkids, that's very good that you aren't on any more medications. I'm no doctor, but you were taking way too much. It could have been a serious health concern, both physically and neurologically. I've never heard of people abusing Zoloft, but I guess it isn't impossible. However, it is very dangerous. The person should see a doctor immediately. It sounds like he's suffering extremely acute side-effects of the medication and NEEDS to discontinue use ASAP, before it's too late for him. His health is in serious jeopardy.
I really don't know what to think, however I know he could get as much Zoloft as he wanted without worrying about running out. his father is a child psyciotrist, and he has stolen many sample pharmisuitcals in the past without anyone knowing. i was talking to one of my friends about him and he said that he (zoloft abuser) had a bad experince with E that they did not think he would live thorugh but some how he did with out even going to the hospital, my friend claims he thinks he has been different ever since that night. if that is true i wonder if that could have messed up his brain chemistry, because i do know a few people thats brains seemed fryed from to much E. also if it did mess up his brain chemistry, could the zoloft have differnt effects on his brain? which could be why he is abuseing the zoloft, if he is. other than that i guess it could be something like manic depression? but i really have no clue the best advice is for him to see a doctor as many of you have said, i just dont nkow if he would be up for that
CFC, your doctor took you off of TWO anticonvulsants cold turkey? (Klonipin and Depakote.) WHY? In many circles, this would be considered Medical Abandonment.
I agree! You should not have D/C's that many meds at once, and they should have been tapered, not stopped, or you should have been inpatient for it! This seems negligent to me. None of the doses you listed are too high, and it is not too much medication, but it IS too much to stop abruptly! The Geodon reduces dopamine activity in the brain (just FYI) ...back to this thread, the Zoloft could have induced a seizure, but it is not typically a drug of abuse. If it is being abused, it is purely a placebo effect.
@Magni: There´s been no sign yet, that you can get PHYSICALLY addicted to Zoloft, I´ve never read anything in that direction in the medical press. But of course there´s a possibility, that you can become MENTALLY addicted. Maybe your friend has raised his dosage, without asking his doctor. Or maybe, in case he sometimes uses drugs, that affect the serotonine system, his serotonine level has risen too high. Recommend him, to see his doctor!
There is no evidence that zoloft is addictive! Someone may be dependent on the medication, but that does not mean the medication is addictive! All of the SSRI's, save buspirone, which is similar, are not habit causing drugs...
Hmmmm. A lot of people tend to disagree, especially those who take it. there is even a warning on the label to taper off of it and NOT to stop taking it without medical attention. I've gone off of it CT, and felt like absolute shit. You sweat, and get sugar drops, and your stomach gets messed up, I mean it isn't like opiate withdrawal, but it is VERY unpleasant. I have even had this happen when I take old Zoloft (sometimes I forget to refil and take what I have lying around in a drawer, my doc says Zoloft loses potency faster than any med he knows of.) I've had Zoloft less than a year old that was not potent. If my pharmeceutical knowlege serves me, I beleive it ISN'T a true additiction, in most people. You don't crave more and more, you don't become obsessed with it, you don't take it, even when you know it is doing bad things to you. It is more a reaction to your serotonin levels crashing. I've heard it explained like as if people who need Zoloft get "back to normal" when they are on the drug (if you are in chronic pain or depressed, your serotonin levels and levels of other neurotransmitters are wacked) and go into a state of worse neurotransmitter production when they go off of it cold turkey. It is really best to taper off of SSRIs. Unless you have had an allergic reaction, then the withdrawal (if that is what it is called) wouldn't be worse than the symptoms. But real allergies to SSRIs are rare.
I've been on zoloft before, up to 100 mg a day. I quit cold turkey and had no ill effects or desire to take it again. However, I do NOT recommend that anyone quit an antidepressant cold turkey. the good fortune I had quitting zoloft did not extend to wellbutrin and I had a very rough time dealing with the aftereffects. Zoloft can cause nervous tics, but I've not known of any cases where zoloft caused seizures. I suppose it could be possible with the higher doses, tho. 200 mg is an awful lot. As an aside, I was on zoloft the first time I took E and it didn't even affect me. I suspect my brain was already flooded with serotonin from the zoloft and so the E was useless. Shocked my friends, who thought I was some kind of superhuman for taking E and remaining so reserved. What they didn't know.
I took Zoloft for 11 years ( after losing my first born in Iraq, then his twin to suicide & an ugly divorce...and then, the unexpected & tragic loss of my sister due to a sexual predator), and when I stopped, I had so many recurrent seizures that after 2 days I ended up in intensive care for 2 Weeks in a medically induced coma.....before that, about 2 years after I initially started takinv.it, i missed a few days worth of doses & I had these awful, painful electric shock type attacks....anyway, afted my ICU stint and, after I'd been off it without anymore seizures, I was working in the ER when a patient was admitted with same problem....seizures. So, don't underestimate the power of these drugs....I've long heard, as a nurse, patients telling me how awful the withdrawal is after a few years of use. I was SO SICK & in SO MUCH PAIN in the 2 days before ending up in the ICU I thought I was going to die....& I had no clue it was from Zoloft....I thought many other things had caused it....then my neurologist told me he'd seen this a dozen times before. That said, every one is different....but I highly recommend TAPERING if you've been on then for a couple of years!
dude, my mom takes this shit for her anxiety and stuff. it seems to work for her but she still seems to be "on edge", if u know wut i mean. i took Zoloft for a while and after a month it fucked me over. as for addiction, yeah it's possible. if u take Zoloft for a long time, it is hard to quit cold turkey. i was lucky and got to quit it right away after i got a new medication for my mental conditions (autism, OCD, and borderline syndrome). Of course it is addicting. if my mom misses a day of her dose, she isnt alright. it makes her sick if she misses it. when i was on Zoloft I accidentally missed a couple days and it made me dizzy, light headed, tired, and kinda sick feelin. it sucked, and to make it worse, the med was makin shit worse after a month. my emotions got harder to handle, as well as my obsessive thoughts and stuff. that's when i knew this shit wasnt right for me. it sounds like ur friend is either overdosing on Zoloft, or he is takin the right dose but it's reacting with him badly. it can happen, the effects he experienced are rare but still possible. i'd talk to him. say you're concerned and u are worried about him cuz of those side effects. he should talk to his doctor or whoever prescribes him the meds..
I didn't know you could abuse Zoloft If he is then maybe those medical problems are from it. But if he isn't abusing the medicine and not allergic maybe he is having some type of medical issue that's what I would lean towards but I'm not sure. Make sure he gets in to see his doctor immediately. Hope this helped. Peace.
