13th Zoloft Update - Feeling Very bad

September 7, 2026··

Feeling very bad. Been having bouts of nausea, insomnia, anxiety, irritability, fatigue, and electric shock sensations. Another night of no sleep at all. Every time I tried to doze off I would get a surge of adrenaline. I was even tried taking a sleep aid (hydroxizine) and nothing helped. This morning I’m having akathisia type symptoms and feel horrific. This is so frustrating after having multiple amazing windows yesterday and now I’m even worse. Please tell me it gets better, please me it gets better I’m really struggling right now.

Maria A.’s taper progress

Dose (mg)

Mood (/10)

Zoloft —50 mg to 15 mg — 8 years with a cold turkey and reinstatement in between— was liquid micro tapering, crashed at 14.275 mg and now holding at 15 mg.

4 Replies

Wolf11d ago

Community AnchorProzac · researching

Oh, sorry to hear. It does get better because yours is the most common set of symptoms and nothing out of place in withdrawal. I heard many reports that hydroxizine does not work at all for many people, while it works perfectly well for others.

Prozac — 40 mg — 6 months — holding | Zyprexa — 20 mg — 6 years — holding | Depakote — 600 mg — 8 months — **tapering** | Buspirone — 20 mg — 8 months — holding | with clinician
"If life is painful, start a rebellion and make it good."

⭐

Catina11d ago

Community AnchorEffexor

Oh @Maria A., I'm so sorry. I've been in your shoes before. Please know it does get better. It's the most awful thing to have to endure, but just hold on with everything you have. Your body will eventually sleep. Remember the windows, which means your body is capable of healing. It will. Please try to be patient and as gentle with yourself as you can. I used to write a list of positive affirmations to help get me through the awful times. I went for days without sleeping and felt like I was hanging by the thinnest thread ever. Try not to let secondary fear take over. You're safe and you will be okay. Have you tried doing some EFT Tapping? That has helped me in the past. https://taper.community/thread/3c6f1a16-3d21-4077-9ed5-8267209ffca3 Keep holding onto the fact that it won't always be this bad. Hugs, Catina 🙏🏻 💜

Venlafaxine (tapering) - Current dose 17.92 mg
Trazodone - 50 mg
Levothyroxine - 25 mcg

“Your brain and body know how to heal. Trust the process and keep going.”

Please Note: I am not a healthcare professional. Any advice given is based on personal experience and that of others in the lay withdrawal community.

Maria A.11d ago

LighthouseZoloft · active

Thank you Catina. I’m just so exhausted. I can’t believe I still haven’t stabilized yet. I didn’t think going from 14.275 to 15 would be to jarring to my nervous system. I would be able to handle the side effects if I was able to sleep but without sleep it makes everything so unbearable. It’s also confusing to me that this updose has created symptoms similar to withdrawal.

Zoloft —50 mg to 15 mg — 8 years with a cold turkey and reinstatement in between— was liquid micro tapering, crashed at 14.275 mg and now holding at 15 mg.

⭐

Catina10d ago

Community AnchorEffexor

"I can’t believe I still haven’t stabilized yet" — @Maria A.

I understand. It can take longer than we'd like, but it will happen in time. I know it's hard to be patient. If things continue to be bad, you could try a very tiny reduction, but I'm not sure how your body would react. I'm sorry it's all so difficult. Patience and radical acceptance can help. The more we fight against, the worse it can get.

Join the conversation

Need a clinician who understands tapering?

Browse our map of deprescribing-informed providers worldwide.

Find a Deprescriber