People who take Zoloft may have mild to severe side effects. These can fade over time or persist. Zoloft belongs to a class of medications called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).

Key facts. It usually takes 4 to 6 weeks for sertraline to work. Side effects such as feeling sick, headaches and trouble sleeping are common. They’re usually mild and go away after a couple of weeks.

Antidepressants can cause unpleasant side effects. Signs and symptoms such as nausea, weight gain or sleep problems can be common initially. For many people, these improve within weeks of starting an antidepressant. In some cases, however, antidepressants cause side effects that don’t go away.

Your doctor may adjust your dose as needed. However, the dose is usually not more than 150 mg per day throughout your menstrual cycle or 100 mg per day if you are only taking it during your premenstrual time. Children—Use and dose must be determined by your doctor.

Zoloft overdose Accidentally or purposefully taking two or more doses of Zoloft could cause: Nausea. Vomiting. Dizziness.

Maximum dose: 300 mg/day (Crow 2019). Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) (off-label use): Oral: Initial: 25 mg once daily; may increase dose based on response and tolerability in increments of 25 to 50 mg at intervals ≥1 to 2 weeks.

Administer once daily either morning or evening. If Zoloft makes you drowsy, take it at bedtime. May be taken with or without food; however, this needs to be consistent. Talk to your doctor if your mood worsens or you experience any suicidal thoughts particularly during the first few months of therapy.

A dosage of 25 mg or 50 mg per day is the initial therapeutic dosage. For adults and pediatric patients, subsequent dosages may be increased in case of an inadequate response in 25 to 50 mg per day increments once a week, depending on tolerability, up to a maximum of 200 mg per day.

Sertraline should not be taken with or within two weeks of taking monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). These include phenelzine (Nardil®), tranylcypromine (Parnate®), isocarboxazid (Marplan®), rasagiline (Azilect®), and selegiline (Emsam®).

Many people who experience nausea and other side effects from sertraline opt to take it at night in order to limit these side effects. Since sertraline can interfere with sleep in a small percentage of users, many people also opt to take sertraline in the morning.

It’s important not to miss any of your doses, as this could make your treatment less effective. You may also get withdrawal symptoms as a result of missing a dose of the medicine. If you do miss 1 of your doses, take it as soon as you remember, unless it’s almost time to take your next dose.

Sertraline has a relatively short half-life of approximately 24 hours and has a moderate risk of causing withdrawal symptoms. Withdrawal symptoms may occur a few days after a person begins to taper their dose and may last for 1–3 weeks.

If you decrease your daily calorie intake as a result, you could potentially lose weight by stopping your antidepressants. On the other hand, if you experience loss of appetite with depression, and your depression comes back after stopping antidepressants, you may also lose weight.

Long-term use of the following SSRIs may cause weight gain: paroxetine (Paxil, Pexeva, Brisdelle) sertraline (Zoloft) fluoxetine (Prozac)