Drivel that cannot fit in a single panel comic.

Thursday, January 11, 2007

I once took Zoloft for a mild case of OCD. Actually, it was not quite OCD. My symptoms did not fit 100% neatly into any category, Obsessive-compulsive disorder was the closest. Not fitting into something neatly sums up my whole life.

Anyway, I wasn't into therapy so the doctor prescribed pills. 2001 was the last time I took any Zoloft. The results of that last dose were a bit weird.

I still have a prescription bottle with half a pill in it in one of my desk drawers at work. The date on the bottle is 1/18/1999. I have changed offices twice and desks three times and I still keep that 1/2 Zoloft pill.

I doubt it would have any effect if I took the pill.

Running has alleviated 99% of the symptoms that led me to seek professional help.

I still obsess over a few things but it is not life disrupting. My original symptoms were not life disrupting just very disturbing and annoying to me.

Goofy stuff that I obsess about:

  • The bone count on Loki's Dogster Page The bones are up for a limited time, I'm trying to keep it over 70 but it may be a losing battle unless others pitch in.
  • Counting. A momentary glance at this blog would make that abundantly clear. A pedometer might not be the best present for someone with obsessive tendencies. I keep my running miles separate from my walking steps/ miles. I keep two spreadsheets to keep records of all this. I have altered my life slightly in order to elevate the number of steps I take. I received two pedometers for Christmas. Fortunately, I haven't reached the point of wearing both at the same time. Maybe I keep that 1/2 Zoloft in case I reach that point.
  • Poisoning fish with discarded anti-depressants
  • Worst case scenarios about peak-oil
  • The exact location of Linda Lavin
That last one is a joke but I do think about her from time to time and hopefully she gains a small amount of comfort knowing that some stranger is thinking about her ocassionally.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

My name is Stephen Long and i would like to show you my personal experience with Zoloft.

I am 40 years old. Have been on Zoloft for 2 years now. Zoloft certainly got rid of my depression and anxiety. It also helped me with sleeping and I did not gain any weight like others have. However I was younger when I tried this so perhaps my metabolism worked differently then. It was impossible to reach orgasm on this drug so I would sometimes delay taking my drug to give my body a mini wash out period and this helped. However, if I waited too long to take the tablet, I endured severe headaches and had to lie down. Fortunately, this was reversible as soon as I took the drug again. I eventually tapered off this drug thanks to my doctor's plan which worked perfectly. The main reason I gave up Zoloft is because at the time there were reports saying that long term use of it was dangerous.

I have experienced some of these side effects -
Sweatiness, loss of libido, EXTREME headaches if forget to take drug.

I hope this information will be useful to others,
Stephen Long