Answer From Daniel K. Hall-Flavin, M.D. When depression symptoms improve after starting an antidepressant, many people need to continue taking medication long term to prevent symptoms from returning. However, in some people, a particular antidepressant may simply stop working over time.
Do not use sertraline with buspirone (Buspar®), fentanyl (Abstral®, Duragesic®), linezolid (Zyvox®), lithium (Eskalith®, Lithobid®), methylene blue injection, tryptophan, St John's wort, or some pain or migraine medicines (eg, rizatriptan, sumatriptan, tramadol, Frova®, Imitrex®, Maxalt®, Relpax®, Ultram®, Zomig®).
As with many psychiatric medications, a patient may develop a tolerance to Zoloft. Doctors may increase the dose in order for the drug to keep working.
Chocolate, red wine, and antidepressants.
Along with many beers, aged cheeses, processed meats, and smoked fish, chocolate and red wine contain an amino acid derivative called tyramine.
Grapefruit and other citrus fruits can have harmful long-term effects on your body when taken with certain medications. This is likely because fruits like grapefruit inhibit how you metabolize certain drugs.
On antidepressant medication, it is possible that you might experience a sense of feeling numb and less like yourself. Though the symptoms of depression have decreased, there may be a sense that other emotional responses – laughing or crying, for example – are more difficult to experience.
It's important to remember that Zoloft works gradually and builds up, so you shouldn't take more than your recommended dose if you're not experiencing the results you want. Talk to your doctor if you feel that your symptoms are not improving after 1–2 weeks. They'll be able to advise you on the appropriate dosing.
Zoloft (sertraline) has a half-life of 24 to 26 hours, which means that it will take a person roughly a day for the drug's presence to reduce to half the amount. In another 24 hours, the amount in a person's body will decrease to 25% or half of the remaining amount.
If you frequently take ibuprofen for pain and you also take Zoloft, you're at a greater risk for bleeding issues. In addition, if you are elderly, or have kidney or liver disease, your risk for bleeding is even greater.
The maximum Zoloft dosage for intermittent dosing is 100 mg per day.
Zoloft won't make you feel better right away. Some improvements in mood may appear within 1 to 2 weeks, but Zoloft can take about 4 to 8 weeks to fully kick in. It's important you continue taking the medication even if you don't see any changes for the first few weeks.
“Your sertraline is working if you feel calmer. Your negative moods or anxiety will not be as intense. You should be enjoying activities more. And your sleeping and eating habits should be more stable,” says Doughty.
It simply means that your body has either not yet adjusted to the new antidepressant or that the medication may need to be tweaked to reduce the anxiety response.
Jitteriness/anxiety syndrome occurs with antidepressants in general [3], and there have also been reports of sertraline causing jitteriness/anxiety syndrome [4], though this is generally considered very rare [2].
For most people, antidepressants are the main cause of emotional blunting. In most cases, feelings of numbness go away when you stop taking the antidepressant that is causing you to feel this way. If you feel emotionally numb, it's important to tell your doctor.
Fatigue and drowsiness are two of the most common side effects of sertraline (Zoloft), as well as several other SSRIs. If you're using sertraline to treat depression, fatigue and tiredness from the medication can also be compounded by the effects of depression on your mood.
Signs Your Antidepressant Dose Is Too High
They usually get better in a week or so. You feel numb. Some people who take depression medications say that they don't feel any emotions – happy or sad – as fully as they did before they began their prescription. This is called emotional blunting.
Blueberries
When we're anxious and stressed, our bodies crave vitamin C to help repair and protect our cells, and blueberries are packed full of it. Small but mighty, blueberries are bursting with antioxidants and vitamin C that have been shown to provide anxiety relief.