u/birdofparadiseisbird

I wanted to share that generic sertraline manufacturers do matter. I'm hypersensitive to meds and Rising works way better for me than Lupin at the same 25mg. Rising gives me a sense of clarity and calmness, like I actually increased the dose!

Also I've found that eating bulky food before taking Sertraline so my stomach empties slowly really helps cut down on the side effects

Coming from a healthcare system where self advocating is not demanded, I am finding my recent transition to Kaiser HMO distressing and filled with lots of self doubt. I even had a nightmare about my new doctor pushing back against my care..

As a non confrontational person, I struggle when I have abnormal labs or symptoms and have to push for followup testing after a doctor says it isn't necessary. If those tests come back normal, I feel very embarrassed, start questioning myself, and worry that my medical file will flag me as a "difficult patient". I am terrified that doctors will attribute my physical symptoms to my existing anxiety, or use my past requests against me and dismiss me if a more severe medical issue arises in the future.

I've even had to research clinical guidelines myself (thanks to Reddit comments) just to push for a med I needed.

Every visit leaves me feeling like I am the problem. I am wondering if anyone else experiences this healthcare guilt and anxiety, is this normal with Kaiser, or do I just need to find new doctors?

I wanted to share this with those on Linzess who are on a low carb diet, lots of water might NOT be enough for us, we need glucomannan fiber.

I've been on Linzess 145mcg and 3L+ water daily, was having daily bowel movements, Type 1 stool. Then I started eating Shirataki noodles 30 minutes after Linzess, and magic happened.

I learned that on a low carb diet, the body doesn't store water as usual, water gets released too fast for the digestive tract to retain it. Glucomannan fiber forms a thick gel in the digestive tract for Linzess to work.

Been on Restasis for ~2 months for dry eyes once/twice daily. Zero relief, and with burning and sensitivity all day long.

Just diagnosed with meibomitis and allergic conjunctivitis. Doctor told me to stop Restasis if I don’t feel it’s helping, and use Zaditor + chilled artificial tears for now to return to the baseline.

Did I waste 2 months? Should I give it more time?
Also wondering how long after stopping Restasis will my eyes calm down.
Thanks!

I have wild dreams almost every day on sertraline 25mg, and almost all of them are related to my past traumas. I've started fearing sleep.
For sleep aid I tried trazodone 25mg, but it pushed me into a dorsal shutdown immediately, making me feel too “off” to fall asleep. I also tried hydroxyzine 10mg, but even 5mg made me drowsy the next day, leaving me locked in bed doing nothing.

Any suggestions? Thank you!

32F, BMI 21. Low carb diet. Lipid panel:
- TC 270 / LDL 179 / HDL 83 / TG 55

Other:
- Lp(a): 80 mg/dL
- ApoB: 111 mg/dL (optimal <90)
- ALT: 82 (ref <41)
- TSH 0.9 / Free T4 1.1 (both normal, thyroid ruled out)
- FHx: both grandmothers stroke (started age 60–70), mom on Statin

Is that lean mass hyper-responder pattern? Should I start Statin with this Lp(a) + FHx, or am I just overthinking? Thank you!

I’ve been on Sertraline 25mg for 5 weeks. Last few days I started taking Berberine 400mg (worked up to 3 times daily) for insulin resistance. I have been experiencing alternating insomnia and sedation (stuck in bed the whole day). Also GI discomfort. Is that mild serotonin syndrome? I stopped Berberine, but still feeling drowsy. Do I need to pause Sertraline?
I learned that Berberine metabolized Sertraline, slowing its breakdown. Anyone managed to take both together?

Thanks!

Hi looking for some perspective on my insulin response to glucose test results (3 specimen OGTT).

- Fasting insulin: 2.7 uIU/mL (ref: 2.0–18.4)
- 60 min post-glucose: 186.6 uIU/mL (ref: 6.0–86.0)
- 120 min post-glucose: 246.2 uIU/mL (ref: 8.0–112.0)

Also experience reactive hypoglycemia.

Other labs (2 months ago) are normal: fasting glucose 80, 2 hr glucose tolerance 91, A1C 5.1.

32F, BMI 21, diagnosed PCOS. I eat low-carb, do resistance training, and take Ovasitol and Berberine 400mg. Despite all that, I've gained 15 lbs over the past few months. My fasting insulin did improve from 5.5 to 2.7 over the last two months, so something is working, but the post challenge numbers scared me.

I'm currently switching providers and establishing medical records, so I don't have immediate access to a specialist. I'm feeling pretty scared by these numbers and don't know how serious this is or what I can do in the meantime while I wait for proper care.

Thanks in advance!

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I had one week of bereavement leave as a benefit at my last job. When I brought it up, my manager told me, "If you take this leave now, you will have to be on call for Christmas week, since everyone needs to take turns."
I mentioned this to my ex mentor before I quit, and they claimed the manager was just trying to "help me grow" since oncall shifts count toward year end performance reviews. I don't buy that because I didn't even end up working on Christmas, the manager just forgot. Was my mentor actually being optimistic or were they just making excuses for him?

And that was actually the trigger for me quitting. I wouldn't say that to my worst enemy while they were grieving. I simply don't understand why they did it. This was my first job so I'm trying to understand if this is common

I took 12.5mg for 14 days and felt great and energetic at least half time. I felt Sertraline saved my life. I understand it’s not therapeutic dose for most people, but I felt my brain chemistry change.

Then it lost effect after a (intense) trip, hypervigilance kicked in. So I increased to 25mg on day 18 and took it for another two weeks. I felt down most of the time, feeling stuck in my body, with no energy, even worse than before the sertraline. But yes, less hypervigilance and anxiety.

Is this a sign of adjusting to an increasing dose?

I know I should give it more time but two weeks of feeling down (worse than half dose) has made me question whether increasing to 25mg was wise.

Thanks for any perspective.

I stopped my birth control and now have no period, no follicles on ultrasound, and extremely low estrogen. My SHBG was critically high while on the pill but normalized after stopping. My FSH and LH are low-normal. I’m also gaining weight despite exercising, mostly in my abdomen and arms, and experiencing reactive hypoglycemia symptoms.

Do I have hypothalamic amenorrhea on top of PCOS?

I was on the Nikki birth control pill and got a hormone panel tested while not on my period.

Sex Hormone Binding Globulin: 152 (Normal range: 24.6–122.0 nmol/L)

Estradiol, Sensitive: <5.0

Is that expected? One doctor raised concern about my extremely low estradiol and even suspected Primary Ovarian Insufficiency (POI), while the other said it’s expected since I was on Nikki.

Any insights?