Sertraline for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder User Reviews (Page 4)

• Neal
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 15, 2020

Zoloft (sertraline) "I have moved on and off sertraline, as well as increased and decreased doses, for the last few years. Consistently (at all doses) I find that it has helped alleviate obsessions, as well as the anxiety and distress associated with the obsessions. Thus far I have found the best results when mixing a medium dose (~100mg/day for a 200lb male) with exercise and CBT. I’ve found 50mg doesn’t help me very much with obsessions but it does help with some of my GAD symptoms; 200mg w/ CBT alleviated almost all major obsessions, but the dose was too hefty and I was struggling with side effects such as energy levels and fatigue. I am currently on 50mg and planning to push it back to 100mg while maintaining CBT & consistent exercise."

• Chels
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 29, 2019

Zoloft (sertraline) "I have bipolar type 2 and have been diagnosed for 10 years. Once I turned 29, OCD manifested itself into my life. I could no longer drive, performing poorly at work, and could barely leave the house due to checking. After a year of trying various Combos of lithium and anxiety meds, I had enough and begged my doctor to put me on antidepressants. They were reluctant because I could induce mania, but heard me out and started me at 200mg. It changed my life. Two months and I was free of OCD symptoms and driving again. No side effects, however I tolerate medication well. This is a life saver."

• Linda
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 5, 2020

Zoloft (sertraline) "I was on Zoloft about 15 years ago under the care of a psychiatrist. She had me on a few different things at once and I remember feeling great for the first time in a long time. I haven’t been on medication for over 10 years, however the pandemic has brought my OCD to the surface. My general practitioner gave me 50 mg of zoloft because I told her it worked in the past. I am on day 25 and I feel awful!!! The mornings are the worst. I feel jittery and emotional. I have to take xanax to even function. I have had this weird pressure and tingling in my head for about 10 days and I wake up 4 times a night in a sweat. With my OCD I, of course, thought I must be dying. Then I started reading this thread and realized that the sensations and emotions could be coming from the Zoloft. I made an appt with a psychiatrist who specializes in psychopharmacology, but I have to wait until next Monday (6 days away)."

• Engli...
• April 27, 2021

"25mg for the first week - this was hands down the WORST week of my entire life. Crippling anxiety, suicidal thoughts, OCD in overdrive.. just horrendous. I then moved onto 50mg for 2 weeks and noticed some improvement but left with terrible anxiety and OCD thoughts. I was really questioning whether this medication was right for me but I was encouraged to stick it out which I did. I upped to 75mg and noticed the OCD thoughts were dulling down but my anxiety was still there. I also started to get some muscle twitches which were quite annoying. I upped to 100mg, which was always the target from the start. I was apprehensive about upping to 100mg as I thought I'd get more unwanted side effects but still yet to see any. Week 7-8 is where I noticed the real difference. It literally felt like a switch overnight and I was me again. I still get thoughts but they are less regular and cause me no distress. Sertraline has been a life saver for me."

• Anonymous
• November 24, 2011

Zoloft (sertraline) "I was diagnosed recently with purely obsessional OCD and social anxiety and started on 25mg/day of Zoloft. Aside from a brief period of what I would call adjusting to lack of anxiety and a few mild side effects (nausea from time to time), Zoloft has given me peace and stability. The obsessive thoughts are mostly gone, but even when they do rear their ugly heads, the anxiety isn't there. It's also had an awesome mitigating effect on my ADHD. The side effects show up once in a while, but I'm willing to take a little bit of nausea over constant obsessing and crippling anxiety any day."

• FlBa
• April 18, 2015

Zoloft (sertraline) "I've suffered from OCD for about three years. It was pretty bad but still manageable, but then two months ago it became unbearably horrible, my life was a nightmare. I would spend almost every waking hour ruminating about my obsessions while feeling intense anxiety. Then I began taking zoloft. I was started on 25 mg and I noticed some improvement within 5 days, and there was massive improvement within 9 days. I've been on it for a month now, and I'm at 100 mg. The OCD is definitely still here, but it takes up much less time and I am able to ruminate without feeling intense anxiety. I didn't have any major side effects. At the beginning I was yawning a lot and I felt more irritable. There's also lack of appetite, and I've lost 4 pounds."

• H23buxx
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 28, 2020

"Best medicine ever for CD, Panic Attacks,Anxiety, Depression, it has been a real life saver. I have been on this medicine sertraline for 11 days and feeling great, first 4 days were rough due to lack of appetite and lack of sleep which comes with negative thoughts in the middle of the night. No panic attacks neither. Negative thoughts and my anxiety decreased as 80%. I'm still a little depressed But it's because of the fatigue side effect but otherwise its perfect. Never give up, Life is great we don't deserve to be sad. PS: I started 100 mg but due to the fatigue I'm taking 50 mg now at night before sleep."

• Leetl...
• June 1, 2015

Zoloft (sertraline) "I have suffered from OCD for over a decade and it has taken over my life. I've been on zoloft for three months and am seeing progress. It has helped mildly with the anxiety. I am finding that my life choices are changing. I am eating healthier, going outside more, taking up new hobbies, reconnecting with old friends, maintaining a healthier relationship with my family members, my anger has decreased significantly and I am not ruminating on repetitive thoughts quite as often. This medication is very helpful for getting on the road to recovery. I am using it in conjunction with meditation and mindfulness therapy. The only drawback is that it gives me diarrhea and short term memory loss. I have been using post it notes."

• georg...
• May 10, 2017

Zoloft (sertraline) "I had OCD for 3 years. I could not sit down. I was eating while I was unable to concentrate on anything else than my thoughts. I would avoid going to the bathroom because I could not seat down on the toilet. In order to avoid my thoughts I was walking about 11 km per day. I would fall asleep thinking about something and in the next morning I would wake up thinking the same thing. I had the same exact thought for 3 days until something else stuck in my mind. I am taking 250 mg a day now and everything is good. The only think is that Coffee and Alcohol messes up the medication. One day after two coffees I had to take something else to calm my self down."

• laney
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• July 14, 2022

Zoloft (sertraline) "I told myself when I started this drug, 10 months later I would come back and write a review because I remember when I first started Zoloft, how helpful the reviews were. We are 10 months in! I had a baby 10 months ago and suffered from severe Postpartum OCD. I also suffered from Postpartum depression and anxiety. I cried everyday, had very bad OCD thoughts and would make me depressed and have anxiety. I started Zoloft and all the reviews said to give it time. I started out at 25mg and I got a little better but it was still very bad. She moved me up to 50mg. It was about the same. After she moved me up to 75mg I quit crying everyday and was happier but still was having OCD thoughts and it was still bad and not where I wanted to be. She put me on 100mg and I am so much better. I think I finally found my dosage. I’m very happy I didn’t give up on this drug. I still have OCD thoughts, but it’s 90% better. Zoloft saved me. I hope you decide to give it a try."

• jimwest
• October 19, 2015

Zoloft (sertraline) "I started having panic attacks when I was 20. The docs put me on zoloft and it helped me tremendously. Not only that, I stopped being the shy person that I had been prior to that. However I stopped taking it after a year because I figured I had been cured. I spent years after that without any anxiety until I had a severe bout of OCD at the age of 27 which was threatening to really destroy my life. I resisted taking medication for 2 years which was such a stupid idea. I don't know why I chose to suffer even though I knew zoloft would help me again. Anyhow, I went back on zoloft and poof! problem solved. But then I quit again and now after many years that I tried going back on it its not working as much. I wish I had stayed on it :("

• OhNoL...
• April 16, 2011

Zoloft (sertraline) "Got diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in February of 2011. Started taking Zoloft at 50mg in the morning on April 8 (1 week ago) and my oh my what a difference! The depression is lifting significantly! - I'd say it has gone from a 2 to about a 7 in just a week's time. The intrusive/obsessive thoughts have dropped about 75-80%, the compulsions are all but gone and the general anxiety is all but gone. The next to go are the annoying ruminating thoughts and the difficulty concentrating and organizing thoughts (but since I've been so depressed for so long, I think those parts of my brain had forgotten how to function). Starting tomorrow I kick it up to 100mg a day. Hoping for the continued improvement. "

• 2Pilots
• March 1, 2008

Zoloft (sertraline) "Very effective in controlling OCD and associated panic disorder. However, gained 70 lbs (not by changing eating habits, but it's as though it raised my metabolic 'setpoint'). Decreased sex drive. Despite the side effects, this medication has been a Godsend."

• sonoria
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 21, 2022

Zoloft (sertraline) "Zoloft actually saved my life. I'm currently on 50 mg, which I do need to bump up after talking with my doctor. I've been taking it for around 6 months, and the difference between then and now is incredible. I have always dealt with debilitating OCD, intrusive thoughts, and mainly just constant obsessions. I was consistently awake and detached from my surroundings because I was trapped in my head panicking about how I can't fix everybody's lives. I still get those feelings sometimes, and I still get upset like the average person, but I can actually work and sleep and read and eat without the incessant voices in my head. I don't feel like I am being controlled by some external demon manifestation of myself, rather that I am the controller of myself. It's insane. At first, I was very loopy on Zoloft, in the sense that I just felt so awake all the time. That lasted about two weeks, at most. The drug fully kicked in around a month and a half in."

• Grills
• November 5, 2011

Zoloft (sertraline) "I've suffered from OCD since about the age of 9, but wasn't diagnosed until I was 44. I was prescribed Zoloft at 100mg a day at first combined with some cognitive therapy. After around a month the dose was increased to 200mg/day, which seemed to work more effectively. I have now been taking Zoloft for 10 years now with no significant side effects (only feeling slightly hotter than before). I found if I didn't take the Zoloft with a meal or on an empty stomach, I would feel very nauseous. But, all is great if taking with my meal. Zoloft has helped my life considerably. My wife often comments how much more chilled I am and easier to get along with and we can talk about OCD openly with an understanding of why these compulsions were there etc."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 30, 2023

"I have suffered with severe health anxiety & OCD for as long as I can remember. I am a 28 y/o female. 2 months ago, I had a huge trigger and completely went downhill, waking up every morning in a state of panic, sweating, shaking, and throwing up. I spent weeks in a state of depression, not being able to eat, cook, clean, or do anything really. I went to my GP who prescribed 50mg sertraline. 30 days later, I am CONSIDERABLY better. After the first 2-3 weeks, I got my appetite back, my mood improved, and my obsessive thoughts subsided. Health anxiety will maybe always live with me, but I am finding it a lot more manageable. Please seek help if you need it, don't suffer alone."

• Calmi...
• November 22, 2014

Zoloft (sertraline) "There was a point where I had been forgetting to take the Zoloft that had been prescribed to me for social anxiety (and it had worked quite well in decreasing the symptoms of that disorder) and during the time I had been forgetting to take the meds, things took a turn for the worse. It all started with an intrusive thought, and that was what triggered my first, horrific episode of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. It took me a while to piece together the reason why the OCD had developed and persisted, but finally I realized that my Zoloft had possibly been suppressing an earlier development of OCD due to it's anti-anxiety effects (OCD is characterized by anxiety.) I then got back on the medication, and it literally only took an hour for the OCD to significantly vanish."

• zoloft...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 12, 2022

Zoloft (sertraline) "3 months ago I was a total mess. Suffering from the way my mind was working. Was feeling like I am losing it. I went up to 200 mg by increasing doses by 25 mg after 6-7 days. Side effects ? Night urination, less sex drive and sometimes dry mouth. My sleep time got more peaceful, although sometimes I couldn't sleep. Sometimes I feel tired but never felt like a zombie. I have started feeling like depression is leaving me and my OCD is better. I know it will always be with me. I visit a psychiatrist, and I won't stop having sessions. Started feeling like my mind is approaching a more normal state. I had reached the bottom and I want to forget all the negative thoughts I had. Fear of my thoughts. Harm OCD etc. OCD is so hard, but there are other mental illnesses that are worse, i.e. bipolar. Luckily I am still thinking logically although my mind is working in a tricky way ... always there to stress me and to harass me. I read fluvoxamine is good for OCD too. Good luck, OCD survivors."

• Alex
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 26, 2023

Zoloft (sertraline) "I have been suffering from OCD since I was young, but always it was manageable for me until I reached 27 years old. I couldn’t handle it anymore and it affected my entire life. Started taking Zoloft 50 mg first 3 days then 100 mg. I started feeling better on day 9. Now I'm on day 16 and I feel amazing. Zoloft changed my entire life with almost no side effects."

• Sunny...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 25, 2018

"I had OCD and depression with anxiety after I started birth control (BC). I was waiting long enough for my body to accept hormonal changes but after 3 dark months I gave up. My doc said that emotional changes are normal while you are on BC. But these were too much for me to handle. I started sertraline 50 mg and after 2 -3 weeks I was my old happy self again and I don't even have PMDD anymore, only light PMS for 2-3 days before period. My OCD was mostly intrusive thoughts. It was really dark place and I am so glad that sertraline helped me and of course Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) therapy. But I still believe that OCD is about chemical imbalance in brain, for me caused by BC and my own female hormones. So if you are reading this and you think that life is never going to be good and you want to give up, don't! Try sertraline, seek help! P.S. don't drink to much alcohol and coffee while you are on sertraline."

• Black...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• April 30, 2020

Zoloft (sertraline) "AWFUL side effects!!! Took Zoloft in high school and gained 50lbs along with an eating disorder because the psychiatrist brushed off all my complaints as irrational even though the weight gain was detrimental to my mental health (still cannot drop the weight years after stopping), hair loss, constant cold sores, cavities, very heavy periods (and eventually severe anemia), brain fog, loss of creativity, eventually developed severe Tourettes syndrome after stopping, list goes on!! AVOID if you value your health and well-being! Also did not even help that much! Not worth it at all for me."

• j...
• February 21, 2012

Zoloft (sertraline) "Zoloft at first helped with immediate lifting of my moderately to severely depressed state, while unergiong treatment with the medication I have been in so many words transformed (as far as OCD) symptomoligies go. I stopped my continuous ritualistic, obsessive habits such as checking, obsessive cleaning, etc. and began instead to be noticed by everyone as having a relatively light and airy disposition as opposed to my former, neurotic and morose self. The dose had to be increased to work optimally, in fact several times. I had no noticeable sexual side effects, as other SSRI's I had used. The change I experienced as far as mood, behaviors, etc. were first in fact noticed by others, than by myself."

• Matts...
• August 26, 2017

Zoloft (sertraline) "I was on 50 mg for a month and it seemed to help a bit. My doctor and I agreed to up to 100mg last week. Since then my anxiety and intrusive thoughts have been awful. Is this just a side effect until it balances out?!"

• DHH
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 30, 2013

Zoloft (sertraline) "I can remember being on this for just two months last year. What did improve while I was taking it was my concentration--I started reading every book in sight. I stopped taking the Zoloft because I thought it made me sick to my stomach and also gave me tics. I guess I should have waited out the side effects because I thought my ability to read was fantastic."

• Joel
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 18, 2021

Zoloft (sertraline) "I've come to the realization over the past year that all my life I've struggled with OCD. Intrusive thoughts and obsessive behaviors have just been something I've grown to accept without knowing it. Prozac made me way too anxious and I gave up and thought I just wasn't meant for SSRIs. I was prescribed Zoloft a few months ago and it was the perfect fit. It took a while for me to find my perfect dose (150mg), but now I am a completely different person. Of course prescription meds are only one part of the equation (in addition to diet, exercise, therapy, etc) but this was a miracle. I'm writing this to say to anyone who is curious about medication for OCD or anyone who is struggling in general, there is hope and if you are patient you will see the light and find something that works. Give it time, it took me over a month to get it just right, but it was so worth it!"