Hello

[Daisy1973]

Well I joined this forum yesterday in the depths of despair - today is another day and I feel much better today for making a decision in the hope that very soon I'll be feeling better. The short story is I've been on fluoxetine for the last ten years - a few gaps in between but always going back on it. Only 20mg but seems enough to keep me relatively stable. Anyway, around Christmas I decided I was going to wean myself off them slowly, I had thirty tablets left, was fed up of having to see a doc every three months (getting an appointment being a nightmare) plus I was feeling better and one of the side effects was really getting me down - the hot flushes! 😬 - I've done really well and battled to stay off them but yesterday I admitted to myself I wasn't doing so great after all. I was supposed to go to mum and dad's for Sunday lunch with the family and my gorgeous nephews and I just couldn't face it. These are my nephews who I never give up an opportunity to see! I came into work, spoke to my lovely colleague about how I was feeling and she told me to speak to my mum. So at 930am this morning I rang my poor mum in tears - she said to me she'd been worried about me as I'd seemed quieter recently and that not going to a family lunch was not like me. On talking to my best friend afterwards she admitted to me that she'd been worried about me but didn't want to mention it as she didn't want me to feel like she was forcing me back on the tablets (at this point I did tell her off as I need her to help me with me living alone if she thinks I'm not right as sometimes we cannot see it ourselves?). Anyway got an emergency appointment with my doc, apologised to him for taking an emergency appointment when my arm wasn't falling off as I couldn't wait three weeks to see a doc, and promptly burst into tears! So I didn't need to really explain why I was there! He suggested Setraline as he'd had no complaints of hot flushes so I've got 28 days of these to try and if they don't agree with me, ill be back on the sweaty fluoxetine. Thanks for listening to my rambling x

[Amanda_George]

Welcome to the forum, Daisy!    

The pills can take a couple of months to start working so don't give up on the pills too quickly if you're still feeling down at the end of the first pack... give it 3 months before you decide what to do and it sounds like you've got a good doc there which really helps!  You've done the right thing in joining the forum... keep talking and we'll do our best to help and support you   

[Daisy1973]

Thanks Amanda - I remember fluoxetine having a change in me within a few weeks but of course I think it took longer for them to do their stuff.  I am slightly apprehensive about using this new one with me being used to fluoxetine but my doc says it's the same type of antidepressant so I should be ok just without the sweats lol! Fingers crossed there!

Glad I joined - good to be able to chat without feeling you're being judged or not understood xx

[Amanda_George]

I hope it works for you, Daisy!

[Daisy1973]

Thanks Amanda - I remember fluoxetine having a change in me within a few weeks but of course I think it took longer for them to do their stuff.  I am slightly apprehensive about using this new one with me being used to fluoxetine but my doc says it's the same type of antidepressant so I should be ok just without the sweats lol! Fingers crossed there!

Glad I joined - good to be able to chat without feeling you're being judged or not understood xx

[SteveW]

I am a little confused by your doctor and sweating. You can easily look up the side effects of drugs in information provided by the manufacturers.

Both Fluoxetine and Sertraline have hyperhidrosis, excessive sweating, and cold sweats listed as side effects. They are listed as
occuring at the same frequency as well. I'm not sure Sertraline is necessarily a step forward as regards sweating. But just because
you got it on Fluoxetine doesn't mean it will happen on Sertraline. I think it is a case of keeping your fingers crossed. If you do run
into problems there are something like 25 alternatives some of which don't have sweating as a side effect so the problems wouldn't be
insurmountable.

The most important thing is for the Sertraline to lift your depression and I wish you luck with that.

[Amanda_George]

I understand your apprehension, Daisy, I was the same when I started Citalopram, but keep taking it every day for at least 6 weeks before you make a decision on whether to keep taking it or not... there are loads of different meds to try if it doesn't work for you!  Maybe keep a diary on how it's affecting you and take it with you when you see your doc?   

[Daisy1973]

I think because I was ok on Fluoxetine about from the sweating (no other side effects), I was reluctant to change to Sertraline but if it suits me, I'll be sticking on it    don't feel too bad at the moment, didn't sleep well last night (usually sleep like a log) and usual uneasiness until adjust to new drugs!

[Daisy1973]

Yes Steve - I think the doc thought I may not get excessive glowing  on.this one as he'd had no complaints from his other patients in this regard.  Worth a try eh!

[Amanda_George]

I think because I was ok on Fluoxetine about from the sweating (no other side effects), I was reluctant to change to Sertraline but if it suits me, I'll be sticking on it    don't feel too bad at the moment, didn't sleep well last night (usually sleep like a log) and usual uneasiness until adjust to new drugs!

It was the same with me and the Folic acid... did your doc say when it was best to take the pills?  If not, maybe try taking them at lunchtime to see if it's a side effect?  Can you function today or are you too tired as you didn't get deep sleep last night?   

[Pip]

A belated welcome from me and I'm pleased you have had responses.

[stewart]

Hi Daisy, rather belated but welcome to the forums.
Setraline is one of the better meds out there for anti d's, unfortunately some people have to be on some form of medication for a long time, it is not the fault of the person, its just that the body needs something to replace what it isnt doing.

Never feel there is something wrong with yourself because you need the meds, there are some people who need a combination of meds to keep the body balanced.
In any case, on here you can say how you feel and no one will put you down, we understand how the big D can impact on our lives.

[Daisy1973]

Thank you for all your support. Sorry I've not been on for a few weeks. The sertraline has kicked in - thank goodness although I'm sure I'm not quite 100%. I haven't cried for weeks so I'm taking that as a good sign! I've started sweating with these too and I think I'm going to have to accept it's a side effect of them -but it's pretty awful. The insomnia wore off after four nights - I'm getting occasional bouts of it still but I think that's more down to anxiety than anything else and I am going back to sleep. I haven't ever been advised when to take the tablets - I usually take them first thing - so I have been thinking about trying a different time.

[SteveW]

I am sorry that you have developed sweating again, but very pleased that your depression has lifted. It might be worth talking to your GP about treating the sweating. I have heard of three treatments, one of which completely baffled me. That was iontophoresis. It seems to involve putting your feet in water and passing an electric current through. Sounds weird but it is a genuine medical treatment not fringe medicine. The second is Botox injections, mostly for underarm sweating but I think it is used on other parts of the body. There is drug treatment-anticholinergic drugs which seem a far more civilized option. I am not an expert in this area at all, I have only talked to one person and I spent a lot of my time laughing at iontophoresis. But I think a chat with your doctor would be worth it.

Love

Steve

[Amanda_George]

Thank you for all your support. Sorry I've not been on for a few weeks. The sertraline has kicked in - thank goodness although I'm sure I'm not quite 100%. I haven't cried for weeks so I'm taking that as a good sign! I've started sweating with these too and I think I'm going to have to accept it's a side effect of them -but it's pretty awful. The insomnia wore off after four nights - I'm getting occasional bouts of it still but I think that's more down to anxiety than anything else and I am going back to sleep. I haven't ever been advised when to take the tablets - I usually take them first thing - so I have been thinking about trying a different time.

I'm sorry the sweating has returned... have you noticed it being more sweaty (can't think of the right word) or linked to anything or any particular part of the day or anything?  Could it be anxiety or body temperature or anything like that?  If you've noticed that you sweat more soon after taking it, for example, then maybe try taking it at bed time or something?

Don't give up on it yet, experiment with times you take it and stuff just to see what happens and if there is anything that makes the sweating worse?   2c