Zoloft for OCD

I'll try to make a long story short. I was on 8mg of Xanax over the course of 5 years, and it has been hell on earth coming off of this poison. After tapering off for 6 months, I still managed to have a seizure, and I was literally up 6 days straight, and no, I didn't even nod off for a damn minute. Slowly but surely, I've made some great progress over the past 6 months, and I'm doing much better. Am I doing well? No I'm not doing well at all, but doing much much better. I'm sleeping about 4 hours a night, as insomnia seems to be one of those lingering symptoms. I would say my worst symptom (which is probably due to the insomnia), is OCD. Debilitating OCD, to the point where I can't even hold down a job or enjoy doing anything because I'm controlled by these intrusive thoughts. Just like everyone else here, I'm anti medication, and actually frightened to even take any meds ever again. Shit, I don't even take Advil anymore if I have a headache. Though I would never ever resort back to benzos, I've been considering taking Zoloft lately. I hear it's great for OCD and has minimal side effects compared to other Ads. My plan is to only be on Zoloft short term, until my body fully recovers from the benzo withdrawal. That's even if I decide to take Zoloft. Has anyone here ever tried Zoloft for benzo induced OCD? Did it work? What were the side effects? Was it difficult tapering off of it? I know nothing could ever compare to benzo withdrawal, but like I said earlier, I have PTSD when it comes to any medication. I'd appreciate your feedback. Thanks!

A few of us Have tried Zoloft during withdrawal. I was on Zoloft for many years...went off of it and tried to go back on it during withdraw. never have I ever had such bad depression such bad side effects. Your OCD and depression  will lift  as time goes by. I  didn’t really have withdrawl symptoms when I went off the Zoloft and it’s supposed to be the lesser of all evils. But man did it mess me up when I took it during withdrawal.

I tried that many years ago, pre-benso. It worked for my OCD then. After being on oxazepam for a year and having interdose withdrawal, which has worsened my OCD, I have tried a lot different AD to help my OCD. Nothing seems to work anymore.

When I was first diagnosed with OCD, Citalopram helped me A LOT, almost cured my OCD. I tried that again, after being on oxazepam, and it didn't work. Since being on oxazepam I have also tried Anafranil(Clomipramine) which did not work, mirtazapine which does not have any effect on my OCD, Prozac which did not work, although it helped me for 8 years before I went on oxazepam.

 

 

Right now I'm on

45 mg Anafranil

45 mg Mirtazapin

80 mg Prozac

100 mg Lyrica (Pregabalin)

20 mg Oxazepam

 

and my OCD is awful. I don't think the ADs work at all, but I'm afraid to taper them while tapering the oxazepam and the Lyrica, so I will continue to take them until I am stable enough to do so.

I'm thinking that the reason the ADs does not work at all has to have something to do with the benso withdrawal. I think that it somehow makes it impossible for the ADs to work.. But that's just my opinion.

From what I've been told, I agree, it does seem like Zoloft is the lesser of all evils. It sounds like Zoloft has the least amount of side effects and it doesn't seem to have nasty withdrawal symptoms. I'm still debating on what to do, but I will definitely consider Zoloft as an option. Thank you for responding.

I cannot take SSRis. But tradozone has helped me a lot with sleep and other problems. I am not advocating you take another drug, I'm just mentioning mine. Good luck.

Zoloft is the lesser of all evils.

 

Maybe, but have you investigated what Zoloft might really do to you? I recommend reading about it in one of Dr. Peter Breggin's books. Medication Madness is a good one, as is Your Drug May Be Your Problem.

 

Before I educated myself, I took Zoloft and it turned me into a care-about-nothing zombie. That was from 2 days on Zoloft. I almost missed a very important work appointment because it really didn't seem that important anymore. My cat developed pneumonia and taking her to the vet didn't seem important, either. I dropped it after 2 days with no ill effects.

 

SSRIs/ADs are pretty powerful drugs which work by essentially numbing your brain. After having been on many of them over the years with no good results, I wouldn't touch them.

 

And my OCD was cleared up by psychotherapy -- not drugs. You say your OCD consists of intrusive thoughts -- a perfect target for psychotherapy. Once I truly understood my obsessive thoughts, I was able to defeat the compulsion part of it myself.

 

I marvel at the fact that so many of us have gotten deep into the weeds because of drugs and yet we persist in thinking another one will fix us. Unfortunately that's our culture -- we are told, and believe, pills will fix everything. And we never bother to research what we are putting into our mouths.

 

You have to work at psychotherapy and you have to work to find the right "fit" between you and the therapist. And he/she should NOT be a psychiatrist. Psychiatrists are not trained to do therapy anyhow. They prescribe pills, which will fix everything, right? Unfortunately psychotherapy is not fashionable anymore. It requires commitment -- you have to make the appointments, show up, be honest, be committed to gaining insight into your behavior, and try your best to bring your "A" game every time you go.

 

If you suffer from insomnia, there are so many things you can try before you throw yourself back into the world of mind-altering drugs. Several threads on here discuss insomnia.

 

Anyhow, the above are just my opinions, based on my experience.

 

But I would sure hate to see anyone take an SSRI without considering the alternatives.

 

My best to you,

 

Katz

I'll definitely have to read that book and see what he has to say. I'm actually going through therapy at the moment, and it does seem to help some. I actually just got approved for medical marijuana, so I'm hopeful that will help alieve my insomnia. Thanks for the thoughtful response!

I actually just got approved for medical marijuana, so I'm hopeful that will help alieve my insomnia

 

It has definitely helped me, Lancer. I use a high THC Indica, and make my own tincture. Just a few drops at night is very soothing and relaxing. No "high" feeling -- that comes from Sativas.

 

Good luck.

 

Katz

OP, my ocd is not debilitating, but does spike and become intrusive when I'm generally stressed or anxious. A few months ago (maybe Oct or Nov) I decided to try ssri's again to help with my spike in ocd due to my taper, as I've found them moderately helpful in the past for my mild to moderate ocd. I take 10mg prozac per day, as I've found it a good middle ground between making my ocd symptoms more tolerable without causing the issues of lethargy and apathy (I've got adhd too, so the latter is a real issue I need to consider). I've read much higher doses of ssri's are needed for ocd, but I do find some relief - even if just moderate - with my super low dose of prozac (most dr's try and push me to at least 20mg, but the lethargy and apathy just get too high and make me anxious in other ways from not getting stuff done). Once I'm feeling more confident about my recovery from benzo wd, I'll taper off prozac, which has a long half life and is like the diazepam of ssri's; I've tapered off it a few times in the past and never had issues.

 

A major word of warning through: the break-in period of starting ssri's is very uncomfortable and caution should be taken during benzo taper or wd. I had issues with it spiking my anxiety to panic levels in the past, and had a pretty severe reaction to it when I started it during my taper. I had to leave work after just a couple hours because I felt overheated, had tingling all over my body (I had to take my shirt off while driving home, it was so bad), very manic thought patterns, and terrible jaw clenching. In the past, I had experienced the manic thoughts and overheating. It goes away after a day, maybe two, so maybe consider introducing it Friday afternoon and just anticipate an uncomfortable weekend. Even with this, I still think it's been helping make wd more tolerable, and don't regret going on it again.

 

All that said, have you heard of the book Brain Lock by Jeff Schwartz (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44096.Brain_Lock)? I found it a really helpful book for reframing my relationship to my ocd symptoms.

@[Or...]

 

@MichaelJaques: I also hear the break in periods can be tough. With AD's, you usually feel worse before you feel better. I think I made a final decision to stay away from meds all together. I feel like I've come too far, and it's only been 6 months since I jumped. I'm a strong believer that time is the only real healer when it comes to benzo withdrawal.

I would definitely give Zoloft a try, if your pdoc suggested this psych med to you. It’s very good for OCD. But activating. I suggest you start from a minimum dose and see how you feel. Even 25 mg for a start (half of a 50 mg pill). For like 3 weeks. Zoloft also helps sleep. It’s pretty safe. It’s the only SSRI (along with Prozac) given to children. I think Zoloft makes one less anxious. But we all have different reactions to SSRIs.

 

Both Prozac and Zoloft are considered "activating" SSRIs. Most calming SSRIs (also good for OCD) are Luvox, Lexapro, Paxil. The last one causes considerable weight gain. Made me depressed, demotivated and indifferent. Don’t know how ppl manage to take it. The best psych med for OCD is an old TCA, Anafranil. But it comes with lots of nasty sxs. It saved my life at one point. I had severe OCD well before benzos. Cannot take it anymore. The sxs are unbearable for me.

Thanks for the advice guys! I vaped medical marijuana yesterday, and it helped tremendously. The Indica strain helped me relax and get a few hours of sleep, which ultimately improved my OCD.

The Indica strain helped me relax and get a few hours of sleep,

 

I use it for that, too, Lancer. It's never-fail. I make my own tincture, and just need to use a few drops in juice or cocoa.

 

Glad it helps you.

 

Katz