lurker

my psych has me starting out on zoloft at 50mg,,,after doing some reading
should I ask him for 25mg starting dose?

philip

Yes, that will make for a smoother ride. Ideal starting dose is 12.5 mg IMO. Philip

lurker

Thanks. I am curious does a psychiatrist have to prescribe? Reason is my
psychiatrist can be hard to get a hold of--ie he just have several offices
he shares around town. Whereas my general practioner is always at his office
day after day in case I need a dosage switch or whatever. Do general
practiioner/internal medicine physcians have a enough info to reliably
presribe SSRI's? Also I am very concerned SSRI's will turn me into a
robot--I have never taken any. I really dont want to get drowsy at work,
etc. But I do want to get these racing anxiety oriented thoughts out of my
head. Due to an injury I am nearly impotent at 36 yrs old so obviously those
thoughts constantly race through my head---I want them to disappear.

philip

No, GPs can do it too. But chances are they will know less about how to
treat anxiety disorders than psychiatrists do. I only trust
psychiatrists with a lot of experience in the treatment of anxiety
disorders and an open mind (not *benzophobic*, for instance). Reason is my


Basically the main rule is *start low, go slow* to prevent initial
worsening of symptoms. I think you should be able to reach your pdoc
when necessary, maybe it will take some calls to find out where he is
but it seems you *can* reach him. That would be better IMO.


Also I am very concerned SSRI's will turn me into a

Most of us are med phobic, it's always difficult to start a (new) med.
You will *not* turn into a robot though, I can assure you. Drowsiness on
Zoloft is also not the first thing to expect but YMMV.

But I do want to get these racing anxiety oriented thoughts out of my

I am very sorry to hear that. I do wonder if an SSRI like Zoloft will be
the right med for you as SSRI's very often cause ***ual dysfunction
including impotence as a side effect. Maybe a TCA like imipramine would
be a more appropriate choice. Possibly even better would be a benzo like
Xanax XR.
It *is* obvious that you'd better talk to your psychiatrist about this.
I find it strange that he prescribed Zoloft while knowing about your
problems with impotence. I would certainly ask him about that. Philip