For many people who have been diagnosed with a mental health condition, medication is a key component in their treatment. Your psychiatrist can prescribe you medication to help you manage your symptoms on a day-to-day basis. A common medication for many mental health conditions is Zoloft.
Zoloft is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). It works to prevent serotonin, a neurotransmitter that plays a role in emotional regulation, from being reabsorbed back into the brain. By preventing reabsorption of serotonin, SSRIs increase the amount of serotonin in the brain. Serotonin is found to be low in people with mental health conditions such as major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. SSRIs also work by modifying the brain’s chemical messages.
There may come a time when you want to part ways with your Zoloft; however, it shouldn’t be a rash decision. There are many factors to consider before you stop taking your prescription to ensure that it’s the right decision for you, as well as safe for your health.
We’ll talk about the factors to consider when you want to come off Zoloft, as well as what other treatment options you can consider instead.
5 factors to consider when you want to safely come off Zoloft
Zoloft is the brand name for sertraline. In 2022, it was estimated that more than 39 million people in the U.S. were prescribed the medication. It’s also common for people to stop taking Zoloft, due to one or more of the reasons mentioned below.
It’s important that you talk to your family doctor or psychiatrist about safely weaning off Zoloft. Together, you can decide if it’s the right decision based on a few factors, including:
- Progress — The goal of taking an antidepressant like Zoloft is to improve your mental health condition symptoms that are impacting your quality of life, such as productivity, relationships and goal setting. If Zoloft has accomplished that goal, and you and your doctor agree that you have shown significant improvement, then you might not need to continue taking the prescription.
- Lack of effectiveness — Now, let’s look at the opposite of our previous point. It can take approximately eight weeks to experience the effects. If your Zoloft isn’t doing its job, and you haven’t noticed improvement in your mental health condition symptoms, it may be a good idea to stop taking Zoloft and explore other options. It’s also possible that the medication is making your symptoms worse or that you’ve developed a tolerance to it.
- Side effects — Many people experience side effects as part of taking an antidepressant, including headaches, decreased appetite and drowsiness. While they often go away after the first few weeks, they may be consistent for some people. If your side effects continue for several weeks or even worsen over time, it’s important to talk to your doctor about potential solutions. There are also some less common side effects that shouldn’t be taken lightly, such as sexual dysfunction and weight gain.
- Length of prescription — It’s natural to want to see drastic results immediately once you start taking a medication like Zoloft for your mental health condition. But it’s important to remember that it takes time for the medication to have the intended impact on your brain. Before weaning off Zoloft, you have to make sure that you give it a fair chance to help. Many doctors won’t recommend that people who have experienced improvement to stop taking antidepressants until they’ve been on them for at least six months.
- Awareness of withdrawal symptoms — Before you come off Zoloft, it’s important to know what to expect if you decide to go through with it. It’s common to experience withdrawal symptoms from discontinuing Zoloft for up to two weeks. These symptoms may include heightened irritability, nausea and dizziness.
It takes approximately 26 hours for Zoloft medication to partially leave your body, and more than five days to be completely expelled.
Safety is essential when you’re thinking about coming off an antidepressant, as it needs to be tapered off properly. This decision should not be made without a doctor’s consent. They will guide you through the weaning-off process to reduce the negative mental, emotional and physical complications as much as possible.
What to do when you come off Zoloft
Whether you decided to taper off Zoloft because it wasn’t working, or because it worked quite well, your mental health journey isn’t over. It’s important to find other treatment options to help you find or sustain mental health growth that will help you overcome the challenges that a condition can bring.
Nearly every person who is struggling with their mental health can benefit from psychotherapy, whether they’re on an antidepressant or not. By talking to a therapist about your symptoms and your everyday challenges that contribute to them, you can take control of your mental health. You can learn about the root causes of your condition and develop coping skills to help you manage them on a daily basis.
At Lightfully Behavioral Health, we understand that medication plays a significant role in many people’s mental health journey. That’s why we include psychiatry sessions in our Partial Hospitalization Program and Residential Treatment Centers. They can also be scheduled as needed in our Intensive Outpatient Program.
Change is possible. When you’re ready to take the first step, reach out to our Admissions Concierge Team. We’ll take the next steps together, toward the fullest, brightest version of you.
